Opening fairy doors to Coast creativityA walk up Manutahi Hill in Ruatoria was the inspiration behind the light show and exhibition Te Ara Patupaiarehe held during the Te Tairāwhiti Arts Festival.Based on the stories of kuia Kuini Moehau-Reedy, students of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Waiū o Ngāti Porou created fairy doors which were displayed along the Manutahi Hill walkway.Sports Gisborne Tairāwhiti community connector Rawinia Parata came up with the idea when walking with other mothers as part of the Titirangi Mt Everest Challenge, adapted to allow those on the East Coast to use Manutahi Hill instead of Titirangi/Kaiti Hill.“I thought it would be an opportunity to enhance our natural environment and create a space that would be interesting for our children,” Parata said.The exhibition was a collaboration between students and teachers of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Waiū o Ngāti Porou, Hoea Gallery, Te Tairāwhiti Arts Festival, and Ngāti Porou Whanui Trust, who own the hill.Te Waiū o Ngāti Porou principal Philip Heeney said the school was only too willing to help bring the stories, songs and items students had learned from kuia Kuini Moehau-Reedy to life through their artwork.“The thing that really interests me is people can come up with ideas and go through a process where those ideas are brought to fruition,” Mrs Heeney said.Media and visual arts teacher Jual Toroa said the brief they received was to create fairy doors.The creative process started with students finding inspiration from other Maori art forms such as whakairo, ta moko, tāniko and tukutuku.From there, Kuini Moehau-Reedy, known by students as Nanny Moehau, went to the school to do a korero on patupaiarehe (fairy-like people from Maori mythology).Once students had their final drawings they digitised them using Adobe Illustrator. A cut file was made and this then went to a laser cutter to create the artwork.Student Tamera Cross-Teraa said her favourite part was seeing all the end products, while fellow student Ariki Beach enjoyed learning how to use Illustrator.For event organiser Parata, her ultimate aspiration of being able to host a well attended, high calibre arts festival in Ruatoria came to fruition, with over 600 people attending in sessions over the night.“My ultimate aspiration for this project would be that our people feel worthy of the investment,” she said.“Our isolation isn't always a barrier.”None
The benefits of kawakawaKawakawa (Piper excelsum)Most of us will know this plant as it can be found in most parks, reserves or farm gullies in our region. I hope in this column you find something new and interesting about kawakawa. You might even choose to eat the kawakawa fruit or make a tea from its leaves in the coming weeks.My first introduction to kawakawa was as a child in the bush. My father taught me that by chewing the ends of the leaves I could create a pulpy toothbrush full of antibacterial qualities that I could rub on to my teeth to remove plaque in the mornings and evenings. The taste is slightly peppery but is refreshing and delicious. It is a lesson I have carried with me through life.The bright orange fruit of the kawakawa are also edible and taste similar to rockmelon with a peppery aftertaste. They can be found on female plants from mid to late summer. My son often eats them straight from the plant while I like to freeze them and use them as a base for a sweet, peppery meat sauce in winter.The kawakawa leaves have many uses. They can be brewed into a refreshing and tasty tea and the young, opaque leaves can be added to salads. They have a similar taste to rocket.Kawakawa can help flush toxins out of your system and in this way is slightly diuretic. It's important not to eat too much at once but a few brews of tea or a handful of fruit won't hurt.In land management, kawakawa is a valuable colonising species that is one of the first species to heal over slips and broken country. Kawakawa also provides valuable food to kererū and other fruit-eating bird species.■ How to identify — It is a medium-sized shrub with heart-shaped leaves. The mainland variety often has holes chewed through the leaves by the kawakawa looper caterpillar while the Chatham Islands variety does not. The fruit of the kawakawa are cylindrical and bright orange when ripe and occur only on female plants.None
Children ready to be vaccinated against Covid-19Catherine Rogers with her son Sebastian Rogers holding his teddy bear — appropriately called Teddy — and nurse Paula Renouf at the Palmerston Road vaccination clinic this morning. Demand for the 5 to 11-year-old vaccination was high as Hauora Tairawhiti began its roll out of the youngest age group Covid immunisation. The children-only vaccination clinics were on today from 9am to 1pm and again tomorrow. On Saturday and Sunday a drive-through children's vaccination clinic will be held at Te Poho o Rawiri Marae from 1pm to 4pm. The child (paediatric) Pfizer vaccine is now available for 5–11 year-olds at centres throughout New Zealand, including walk-ins, drive-throughs, hauora providers, community pharmacies, and general practices. Parents are advised to check BookMyVaccine.nz or call the Covid-19 Vaccination Healthline on 0800 28 29 26 to find a walk-in or drive-through near them or to make an appointment. Many general practices are offering child vaccinations for their enrolled patients so contact your local doctor to find out more or visit Healthpoint.nz. None
For the past seven years, the Haurakis of Ruatoria have opened their home to rangatahi and whānau wanting to lead healthier lives. Reporter Akula Sharma talked to them.
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INNOVATION REWARDED: Entries have opened for the Fieldays No. 8 Wire National Art Award, with a prize pool worth nearly $10,000. The renowned competition has ch...
Kawakawa (Piper excelsum)
Most of us will know this plant as it can be found in most parks, reserves or farm gullies in our region.
I hope in this column you f...
Te Kura-a-Wao charitable trust's three-day summer holiday bush camp series began last week, which gives rangatahi a chance to try something new.
“The camp is an...
