The Kiingi Tuheitia Portraiture Award is a biennial competition that encourages emerging Māori artists to create portraits of their tūpuna (ancestors) in any medium. The Award was launched in August 2020 and is hosted and administered by the New Zealand Portrait Gallery Te Pūkenga Whakaata in honour of Kiingi Tuheitia. The inaugural award was held in 2021.
The Kiingi Tuheitia Portraiture Award provides emerging Māori artists with the opportunity to showcase their talents on the national stage, while also playing an important role in recording and celebrating tūpuna and their stories.
For 2023, our judges are Steve Gibbs, Mr G Hoete, and Lisa Reihana.
Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII
Winner
Stevei Houkāmau
Kia Whakatōmuri te haere whakamua
(Hinemaurea)
Clay, paint, feathers, sealer, powder coated wire
“The title and tūāpapa (foundation) of Stevei Houkāmau’s work invokes the proverb “kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua” which speaks of walking backwards into our future while keeping our eyes fixed on our past.
Created in honour of Hinemurea, this feminine work beautifully dances across the wall, reflecting the artists command of the chosen media. Reminiscent of a necklace of touch stones, each individual bead is incised with patterns and tohu (symbols) encoded with knowledge, and completed with a raukura (feather adornment) at each end.
The use of whatu raranga (finger weaving) to bind the work together reflects how the artist has considered whakapapa connections as an integral aspect. Masterful in its execution, this work can be installed in a multitude of ways, extending how it can be curated as a memory of tipuna.
This exquisite taonga mounga excited all the judges, who are thrilled that an uku (clay) artist receives the prestigious Kiingi Tuheitia Portraiture Award, 2023. ”
Runner Up
Ming Ranginui
Swept under the rug
(Heeni Jayne Ranginui)
Muka, cotton pearl thread, broomstick
“This work is a bold and masterfully crafted redefinition of what a ‘portrait’ is and can be. The Māori terms “whakaahua” and “ariā” are not limited to a mere exact depictions of the face but also focus on describing the “āhua ”or nature and personality traits of the person being portrayed, which in this case of Ming’s kuia, which has been portrayed powerfully and beautifully.
”Swept under the rug” is a surrealistic work full of resonant meanings, Ming utilises whatu raranga (finger weaving) to emulate a cotton broom. We are all familiar with the cleaning of marae at the conclusion of hui - everybody who has swept up the halls after a hui knows what this means: to be Kai Mahi. However, there is a political intention where the artist speaks of ‘sweeping past wrongs under the carpet’.
There is much aroha in this work for those that had to withhold their mother tongue and swallow their language. The whetu (stars) incorporated in the taniko weaving, is an assertion of an unbroken connection by the artist to her Nanny Heeni Jayne Ranginui. This work elevates a humble broom form into a taiaha - a weapon, and a site of protest. ”
Highly Commended
Tia Barrett
A Time Capsule of Aroha
(Ruby Rangiwhakahaere Ngahere Barrett)
Photography
Heramaahina Eketone
Ngaa Houhanga Rongo
(Toroa, Manutongaatea, Kai-ahi, Peehaa-nui, Kookako, WhaeaTaapoko, Tamainupoo)
Acrylic on MDF
Michelle Estall
When it's time to come home...
(Elizabeth (Lizzie) Lunjevich nee Waru 1899- 1951 )
Acrylic on stretched canvas
Bobby Luke
Ngākau Mahaki
(Huirangi Eruera Waikerepuru)
Moving image
Tukiri Tini
Kai Whakairo
Te Hira Roa Pateoro, William Bill Tini
Wood carving
The Forsyth Barr People’s Choice Award ($2,500 prize) is decided by votes from Gallery visitors and announced on the final day of the exhibition, August 20.
Exhibition catalogue
The official catalogue of the Finalists Exhibition is available for purchase at the Gallery or from our online shop
Urban Art Foundation presentation on Parliament TV
A 45 minute looping show of the Kiingi Tuheitia Portraiture Award is currently screening on Parliament TV (Freeview 31, Sky 86, or watch online). Featuring interviews with Lisa Reihana and Mr G, this presentation will play while Parliament is not sitting.
Made possible with the generous support of the Urban Art Foundation.
