Dr Rangihiroa Panoho

Dr Rangihiroa Panoho

Auckland, AUCKLAND

My visual practice grows out of my background as a Foundational Māori Curator & Māori Art Historian .

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Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Te Kōpua 'the deep' refers to a conversation in 1845 prior to the battle of Ruapekapeka between Northern leaders Te Ruki Kawiti of Ngāti Hineamaru and Hone Heke Pōkai of Ngāti Rāhiri and the British and Māori allies. The words contained within this painting involve Kawiti telling his younger ally Hone Heke, I mea au i tū ai koe ki te riri kia taea te ika o te kōpua, kahore i te pātihitihi nei ano, kua karanga koe KĀTI. ‘I expected when you took up arms that you would go out to catch the fish of the deep; now, only in the shallows, you [cry stop, you] are calling out for peace.’ Te Ruki Kawiti. A more colloquial way of translating this passage might be, 'I warned you that the water was too deep for you alone to net the big fish, but you would not listen. Now the water just barely reaches your knees and you cry, enough!' In other words he is saying they are moving into deeper water. This is the meaning of 'Te Kōpua' the deep.
Te Kōpua 'the deep' refers to a conversation in 1845 prior to the battle of Ruapekapeka between Northern leaders Te Ruki Kawiti of Ngāti Hineamaru and Hone Heke Pōkai of Ngāti Rāhiri and the British and Māori allies. The words contained within this painting involve Kawiti telling his younger ally Hone Heke, I mea au i tū ai koe ki te riri kia taea te ika o te kōpua, kahore i te pātihitihi nei ano, kua karanga koe KĀTI. ‘I expected when you took up arms that you would go out to catch the fish of the deep; now, only in the shallows, you [cry stop, you] are calling out for peace.’ Te Ruki Kawiti. A more colloquial way of translating this passage might be, 'I warned you that the water was too deep for you alone to net the big fish, but you would not listen. Now the water just barely reaches your knees and you cry, enough!' In other words he is saying they are moving into deeper water. This is the meaning of 'Te Kōpua' the deep.
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: detail
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: detail
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: detail
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: detail
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Te Kōpua is partly based on an illustrative print of a sperm whale by eighteenth century Dutch artist Diederik de Jong for Nieuwe beschryving der walvisvangst en haringvisschery, Amsterdam, 1792. 'MAORI ART: How To Read It' is a ten chapter illustrated followup to MAORI ART: History, Architecture, Landscape and Theory (2015) to be published again by Bateman New Zealand in 2017. The book involves juxtapositions of Māori and tauiwi 'foreign' images that demonstrate the ongoing dialogue taking place in Māori art with the global visual legacies. I am currently contracted to produce this book and 'Te Kōpua' is one of the illustrations that will be used in the publication.
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Te Kōpua was the last image produced in Studio 6, Theater Royal, Kingsland. The text was added later at 2A Exeter. Planning for ATAAROA 'long shadow' began early 2021 and after receiving a CNZ Ngā Toi Maori Fund grant of $48,000 'towards the research, wananga and development of an artwork series that explores the Northern New Zealand Land Wars' I began work in May and exhibited the show of photographs, paintings and drawings at MAHARA Gallery in Waikanae in July-September 2021
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Theatre Royal, New North Rd, Kingsland (built during WWI, 1916)
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Working on 9 metre long painting for Waikanae show inside 100 square metre Studio 6.
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Mark Amery review, Te Hīkoi Toi: Creating New Zealand anti-war memorials, 'Stuff', 25 August 2021
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Big Idea review, 2021
Te Kōpua 'the deep' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho Image: Dominion review, 2021

Videos

Te Kōpua 'the deep', 'Have you ever wondered what it might be like to take on something gigantic that threatens to overwhelm and take you out? Perhaps you don’t need to imagine. Maybe you have had a practical experience of something overwhelmingly traumatic. : perhaps a life event or a challenge that has brought you to a point of crisis, to the edge of a precipice, to an overwhelming sense of dread as to what might next occur'

Te Kōpua 'the deep' 2021, acrylic inks on cotton paper

  • Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
  • Te Kōpua 'the deep'
  • acrylic ink on cotton paper
  • 1675 x 1530 in
  • Inv: KingslandStudio22_TeKo...
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Te Kōpua 'the deep' refers to a conversation in 1845 prior to the battle of Ruapekapeka between Northern leaders Te Ruki Kawiti of Ngāti Hineamaru and Hone Heke Pōkai of Ngāti Rāhiri and the British and Māori allies. Kawiti tells younger ally that he warned him they would have to go out into the deep to catch their big fish. Now that the water is only ankle deep, he chides Heke, you are saying no more, stop. This piece was created while I was painting in the Royal Picture Theatre studio in Kingsland in 2021. Creative New Zealand provided funding for Studio 6, materials and time to prepare for artwork for an upcoming exhibition. I created 35 + works in 2021 for my ĀTĀROA exhibition which showed at the Mahara Gallery, Waikanae outside Wellington, New Zealand. This was the last work I created in the studio and it was completed later in the year. The work is partly based on an illustrative print of a sperm whale by eighteenth century Dutch artist Diederik de Jong for Nieuwe beschryving der walvisvangst en haringvisschery, Amsterdam, 1792. The motifs used are primarily based on the unaunahi 'fish scale pattern' which is common to Te Tai Tokerau carving and the rohe 'region' with which Heke and Kawiti were affiliated.

  • Subject Matter: Marine theme with text

Other Work From Dr Rangihiroa Panoho

Memorial commemorating the Queen's soldiers and sailors killed in the battle, St Michael's urupā, Ōhaeawai, 30 April 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Ngāti Manu whānaunga, mā runga i te rae o Taumarere, ko Ōtūihu te pā o Whetoi Pomare II, poupoutanga o te rā , 30 April 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Lei over gravestone, rock wall and sky, St Michael's urupā, Ōhaeawai, 30 April 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Uira ana te ao mā runga i te Ruapekapeka, ko te atatū, 'the heavens are glowing above Ruapekapeka', 16 March 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Ko ngā awakari tini, Ruapekapeka, tōnga o te rā, 15 March 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Ko ngā hua o te pūriri 'pūriri berries', Ruapekapeka, 15 March 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
‘Let Justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing river' [Big River], 1-15 July 2021 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Kūkū me Kōpū 'the native wood pigeon and Venus - the morning star' by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Ko te kikorangi ma runga i te Ruapekapeka, Raumati, 15 November 2020 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
Ruapekapeka, Ōhaeawai and Te Ruki Kawiti, Northern Series , 20 April 2020 by Dr Rangihiroa Panoho
See all artwork from Dr Rangihiroa Panoho