Story: Whakairo – Māori carving

Rotorua School of Māori Arts and Crafts

Rotorua School of Māori Arts and Crafts

Māori leader Āpirana Ngata intended the Rotorua School of Māori Arts and Crafts to maintain traditional ways of life for all Māori. However, he based the school at at Rotorua to take advantage of the long tradition of carving expertise by Ngāti Tarāwhai, the local subtribe of Te Arawa. The school opened in 1927, and for its first years Ngata controlled most of its activities. This photo shows students at work on several poupou (carved posts), probably in the early 1930s.

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Rotorua Museum of Art and History, Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa
Reference: CP-2474

Permission of Rotorua Museum of Art and History Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Brett Graham, 'Whakairo – Māori carving - The Rotorua school', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/43109/rotorua-school-of-maori-arts-and-crafts (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Brett Graham, published 22 Oct 2014