Shane Cotton, Hineāmaru,
2021, acrylic on canvas, 2200 × 1600 mm
Tēnā tātou i runga i ngā tini āhuatanga o te wā,
Hineāmaru is rendered at the centre of the painting in tiki form in the style of a carved poupou. She is depicted in a haka stance doing a pūkana, a pose signifying strength and alertness. Her resolve is also expressed by the positioning of her hands, joined together at the centre of her body. Her body is patterned in a variety of colours, recalling her tūpuna Uenuku (which means rainbow). The patterns of colour create movement across her brow, mouth, arms, and body. The sense of movement references her narrative that was characterised by journey, travel, and discovery.
Hineāmaru’s body is crossed with a V-shaped pattern. This pattern literally depicts the ribs of the poho (stomach/chest). It is also a metaphor for the rib-like architecture of a wharenui, which is made up of heke (rafters) and maihi (front barge boards). Wharenui are personifications of tūpuna, who provide shelter and protection for their descendants. Wharenui are a paramount symbol of mana and tūrangawaewae (a place to stand), where roots are firmly established. In the connecting structures of the heke there are representations of the distinctive topography associated with Hineāmaru’s journey. She successfully traversed a region of undulating hills and steep mountains, demonstrating her determination to reach new lands on the horizon.
The inclusion of a stylised manaia figure positioned beneath her body reflects the many narratives in ngā rohe o Ngāpuhi (the lands of Ngāpuhi) that include taniwha and their relationships to people, land, and celebrated events.
The pot plants that sit either side of Hineāmaru represent Te Taitamatāne (the west coast) and Te Taitamawahine (the east coast). These two coasts are the starting point and the ending point of her journey to find new lands. The pot plant image and the many other associated naturalistic renderings were popularised by many Māori artists from the 1860s onwards. These depictions were influenced largely by the spiritual and political teachings of the prophetic movements like Paimārire and Ringatū. Land alienation, colonisation, and themes of tino rangatiratanga were central narratives in the depiction of such images. The potted plant references a myriad of ideas ranging from kaitiakitanga, political statements of containment and boundary, and the Garden of Eden. In this painting, the potted plants reinforce the themes within Hineāmaru’s journey such as nurture, connection, change, abundance, control, sustenance, resource, protection, and kaitiakitanga.
The vines of the potted plants pick up on the colour inscribed on Hineāmaru’s body in the form of sprayed leaves of colour and sequence. This patterning is influenced by kōwhaiwhai composition that commonly adorns the inside of the wharenui. Kōwhaiwhai also emphasises the notion of whakawhanaungatanga (relationship, interconnectedness) that binds us together. At the top of the vines the leaves give way to more abstract impressions. The lines and colour are suggestive of light and other worldly structures yet unseen or unknown, representing the theme of potential in Hineāmaru’s journey.
The lines of dots at the base and above Hineāmaru are suggestive of the idea of light and draw the eyes inwards. I loved hearing about Hineāmaru’s ingenious system of planting called ahuahu that allowed for a bountiful harvest. Her considered planning and methodical planting of seeds takes the form of the dotted grid (at her base). Ahuahu are also represented in the mounds on the left pot.
Ngā manaakitanga,
Shane Cotton (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Rangi, Ngāti Hine, Te Uri Taniwha)