Ashleigh Taupaki in the Te Whare Hēra Studio making works for exhibition at Jhana Millers Gallery. Photographed by Fraser Walker
Ashleigh Taupaki (b. 1997, Waitakere, New Zealand. Lives and works in Tāmaki-makau-rau, Auckland, New Zealand) explores Māori connections to place through concepts of indigenous narrative and non-human agency. Working with hard materials, she creates sculptures that manifest ideas of kaitiakitanga (stewardship) and collaboration with natural resources. She depicts places that are significant to her own ancestral origins in Hauraki, New Zealand, and strives to revitalise the stories and knowledge of her people and lands.
Throughout her residency, with Te Whare Hēra, Ashleigh focused on a research project titled ‘Noughts and Crosswords’. This project intends to explore the use of language as a colonial weapon that perpetuated violence against Māori culture and land by finding instances in legislation and official texts that have used passive or racially exclusive language to suppress te Ao Māori.The focus being on Ashleigh’s tūrangawaewae of Hauraki, from which her ancestors Ngāti Hako originated.
The process largely involves the physical texts kept at Archives New Zealand, and will follow a game-like structure in reference to hidden agendas, the playful selection and tricky deselection of wording, and the infantilisation of Māori culture in these archival texts.
Ashleigh Taupaki’s new work, for exhibition at Jhana Millers Galley,in the Te Whare Hēra Studio. Photographed by Fraser Walker
Whilst researching, Ashleigh has recently exhibited painted works she made during her stay, in the foyer at Jhana Millers Gallery. Ashleigh explored the South coast (Te Moana o Raukawa) beaches collecting rocks, stones and fragments. She then ground these down-forming earth pigments to use for painting three works on paper. By using local natural materials Ashleigh strengthened the connection with the local environment and the whakapapa of the land (whenua).
Ashleigh is currently studying towards a Doctor of Philosophy, specialising in Fine Arts. Her doctoral research looks into Ngāti Hako connections to wetlands, which also critiques colonial histories and occupations, while uplifting their mana as repositories of cultural knowledge and taonga species.
This residency is supported and facilitated by Te Whare Hēra artist residency and Enjoy.