Work by Lesley Coleman

A series of oils depicting life on an atoll.

Lesley spent the last six months living on the Ahe atoll.  This atoll is part of the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia.  This was Lesley’s second visit to Ahe where she was able to build on past relationships to produce a journal of everyday lives of the people.  Her collection of  art on show includes the use of Polynesian kina shells as a border.  Her work reflects her experiences with tangata whenua whilst living on Ahe.

It is our pleasure to show Lesley’s work during Christmas until March 2012.

Nau mai haere mai ki tenei whakaaturanga rawe, welcome to this excellent exhibition.

Exhibition 22nd December 2011 to March 2012.

Haratu
The Strand
Russell

Hours Mondays to Saturdays 10 – 4pm

Entrance free, koha (donation) appreciated

Taaniko

From Thursday October 6^th Haratu will be running  series ‘Living Art’  workshops.

Each thursday  will be dedicated to a specific art making technique, commencing on  6^th at 10.30 with an introduction to Taaniko Weaving.  Everyone is welcome come and to join in as a participant or observer.

Materials for this workshop will be supplied. Please bring a shared lunch and a koha (donation) for participation.

Nau mai Haere mai

Michael Tuffrey "Cookie in the South Pacific"

Saturday night 25th June promises to offer up a rare treat for those wishing to purchase original items from some of New Zealand’s top Maori artists. At the Matariki dinner and dance, some 20 pieces of art will be auctioned in a silent auction. Items from well known artists such as Shane Cotton, Michael Tuffrey, Clive Arlidge and Stanley Palmer will sit alongside other items from lesser known, but talented local artists such as Kylie Miri and Theresa Reihana.

For a copy of the catalogue, click here. If you wish to attend the dinner, or place a bid on any of the artworks, please email with information on the item you want, the maximum bid and your phone number. The silent auction will present all the bids received for each work, with the highest item bid being the winner. Note Credit Card details will be required to guarantee a phone bid.

Hone Tiatoa - Artist

Born and raised in Auckland in the late 70’s, Hone spent most of his adolescent years growing up in Otara, then later moved for a short time to Whangarei, however eventually settled on papakainga (ancestral) land in Waimate North, 10 minutes out of Kerikeri.

Hone enrolled in Kerikeri High School and took on Art classes where he often struggled to conform to the conventional methods and concepts of art being delivered in the classroom.

Upon leaving school in 1993 he went in and out of different jobs and moved in between Auckland, Whangarei and Kerikeri but always maintained an inherent impulse to fashion works out of discarded items and often on, or in the most unorthodox places and surfaces.

Although graffiti art was and is still largely frowned upon, it provoked an interest in Hone to create art work outside of the restraints of the classroom. It enabled the ability to speak through imagery to a larger audience but gave him the added security of remaining some what anonymous at a very experimental and still naive stage of his artistic development.

Spray paint and marker were the most commonly used materials in graffiti art at that time; however Hone often used chalk on pavement, and on occasion did use spray paint or old house paint on alleyway fences. He liked the fact that by using chalk it wasn’t permanent, as his ideas and techniques often changed so he was never really content with permanent fixtures of work.

Most of his current work is reminiscent of ancient graffiti techniques where works of art were produced by scratching a design into a surface. A related term is “sgraffito’, which involves scratching through one layer of pigment to reveal another beneath it. In ancient times, graffiti was carved on walls with a sharp object, although sometimes chalk and coal were used, much like how Hone initially set out in his early experiments with chalk.

In 1999 Hone moved back to the Bay of Islands and began to create more serious works from his garage. It wasn’t until late 2002 that Hone was encouraged to have his work exhibited in a formal setting at the Whare Toi Tangata Gallery in Moerewa. Anxieties about what sort of response he may get from such a public display soon faded with each exhibition and growing popularity.

Hone went onto have solo exhibitions at the Moerewa Gallery on more than one occasion as well as, Finders Gallery in Kaitaia, The Art Bungalow, Kaan Zamaa, Kina Kitchen and Reco Tapas Bar and Gallery in Kerikeri, Opua Gallery and Paihia Library in the Bay of Islands, Halena Bay Gallery, The Tuatara Design Store in Whangarei, and the Bowen Gallery – Ghuznee Room in Wellington.

He entered in the 2007 BDO Spicers Art Competition in Kerikeri and for the first time exhibited two pieces in the Ngapuhi Festival Art exhibition for 2008. Hone also exhibits works in the annual Matariki festivals here in the Bay of Islands.

Hone has also completed commissions for Martin Hughes Architectural Interiors, Auckland, where his creative works can be found in the corridors and luxury apartments of the Standford Hotel at 22 Albert Street, Auckland. Hone is also a member of the Paihia Focus Group to which he contributes to the creative / cultural arm of future Paihia town developments.

Hone is a self taught artist who is inspired by the challenges of cultural diversity in the forever changing world we live in today. He admires such artists as Ralph Hotere, Bill Hammond, Colin McCahon, Cliff Whiting, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Leonardo De Vince.

Bring along a design and get ready to see it transformed onto a t-shirt.

Limited space so call or email Kaye at Haratu (09) 4037212 marae@kororarekanz.com  for more information.

Rua Pick was born on Moturua Island in 1968.  Rua was named by Rongo and Te Aue Hakaraia.  Rua grew up with an artistic family in the Bay of Islands.  His father a potter, his mother and sister both painters, the family was always surrounded by art and artists.  During 1983 and 1984, Rua was inspired by the tutorage of Selwyn Wilson who taught him kowhaiwhai and encouraged him to pursue his creative style, empowering and enabling him to follow his artistic path.

Thomas Lauterbach lives and works in the Bay of Islands.  After having studied painting in Germany, he was awarded a Master of Fine Arts degree.  He has been a New Zealand Citizen since 1985.  The focus of his work is the life and the philosophy of the Maori people.

In addition, a number of works, including two Matariki masks guest Artist Trish Clifford will  on display together with a giant kete to celebrate Matariki.  It will be “must see”!

The story behind the kete belongs to the Kororareka weaving group that meet regularly at Haratu on Thursdays.  A couple of months ago, one of their member Catrina Suter a textile artist by profession approached the group with the idea of weaving an enourmous kete and complete it in time for matariki.

For the past 4 months the group has been working hard to complete the project which is now on display.

After the blessing Minister and 2 weavers in the kete

Opening 14 June 4.30pm – 7.30pm, exhibit ending 14 July 2010 At Haratu, Cnr The Strand & Pitt Street

A range of Maori art and craft is available

Opened on 11th December 2009, the premises offer:

• retail presence, featuring Maori arts and craft
• venue hire for small groups and conferences
• a venue for educational purposes focusing on tikanga Maori
• administration facilities for the Kororareka Marae