Story: Lifesaving and surfing

Māori designs

The surfboard can be a work of art, as this carved decorative board made by Aaron Kereopa of Raglan shows. The board is called ‘Whai’ and its design was inspired by the way killer whales hunt stingrays in Raglan Harbour.

Using this item

Private collection

by Aaron Te Whanatangi Kereopa

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page

Nancy Swarbrick, Lifesaving and surfing – Surfing: 1970s to today, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/9057/maori-designs (accessed 3 June 2026).

Story by Nancy Swarbrick, published 2 March 2009.

Comments

Harriet
28 May 2018

You can find more work by the artist Aaron Te Whanatangi Kereopa here: https://www.aaronkereopa.gallery/about/.

dat boi
01 February 2018

this is awesome more info plz