This week, the Te Tīmatanga exhibition officially opened at the Auckland Season Art Gallery, marking an immersive celebration of Pride Month through a te ao Māori lens.

The exhibition showcases the rich tapestry of LGBTQIA+ identities and experiences through the emphasis on connecting to the natural environment and Māori Gods and deities.

Artists, Neke Moa (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Porou me Te Mana) and Louie Zalk-Neale (Ngāi Te Rangi) have created a mix of natural materials with modern tools to sculpt the narratives of Māori legends and gods into physical art forms.

Zalk-Neale said the exhibition celebrates LGBTQIA+ individuals and their personal identity journeys. The exhibition explores the evolving nature of these journeys, drawing parallels to the same narratives found in Māori myths.

“I use Tī Kouka [in one of my artworks] that is a very very strong seed, so when a tree is cut down the Tī Kouka resprouts. It’s that type of resilience that tangata takatāpui has to exhibit as in certain situations as well.”

Te Timatanga (The Beginning) encapsulates the spirit of new beginnings and ongoing journeys for tangata takatāpui.

Zalk-Neale said their and Meke’s work has turned into a passion project to help others in the LGBTQIA+ community rediscover their identity through storytelling.

“A lot of our pūrākau Māori has a lot of our tangata takatāpui expressions in them already, so there’s a lot to uncover in where these stories are for other takatāpui as well.”

Hei kuaha ki te ao takatāpui.

Ko tēnei whakahouhanga he tino āhei ki te whai wāhi ki ngā taonga, hono atu ki ngā toi, me te hōhonu ake i tō mātau ki te Mana Tipua Tuku Iho.

Hei tā Meke, ko te whakaaturanga nei he kuaha ki te ao takatāpui hei akiaki i te whakaaroaro mō te panonitanga-ā-tinana me te wairua i roto i te whakamānawa i Te Taiao me ngā Atua, me te mana o te whakapapa i roto i te hapori.

“E whakanuia ki ngā pūrākau Māori. E whakanuia ki ngā rauemi nō Aotearoa. ”

I whakapuaki a Moa i tō rātou harikoa ki te uru ki tētahi whakaaturanga whakahirahira. Hai tāna hoki, nā te hiranga o ngā kōrero i hua mai ai i ngā atua Māori ka āhei rātou ki te whai i tēnei tūmomo mahi.

Ka whakaatuhia ngā mahi toi nei tae noa ki te Rātapu i tēnei wiki.

Ko tā Moa he whakatenatena i te tangata nō ngā hapori whānui ki te whai i ngā kōrero e pā ana ki ngā mahi hihiri e whakaatuhia ana.

“Haere mai! Haramai ki te tītiro, ki te whāwhā i ngā tāonga anō hoki.”