A CELEBRATION OF THE SCIENCE AND ART OF MAORI WEAVING, FOCUSED ON THE LARGEST COLLECTION OF MAORI CLOAKS IN THE WORLD Weaving is more than just a product of manual skills. From the simple rourou (food basket) to the prestigious kahukiwi (kiwi feather cloak), weaving is endowed with the very essence of the spiritual values of Maori people. This award-winning book opens the storeroom doors of the Te Papa Tongarewa Maori collections, illuminating the magnificent kakahu in those collections and the art and tradition of weaving itself. More than fifty rare and precious kakahu are featured within this book, with glossy colour detail illustrations of each, plus historical and contextual images and graphic diagrams of weaving techniques. These are accompanied by engaging descriptions bringing together information on every cloak - its age, materials, and weaving technique with quotes from master weavers and other experts, stories of the cloaks, details of their often remarkable provenance, discussion of how the craft is being revived and issues to do with cloaks held in international museums. A full glossary, illustrated guide to cloak types, and index are included. Contemporary cloaks made with novel materials also feature.

A beautiful hardcover book, richly illustrated and sumptuously designed Contains information on many cloaks - from the rare to the prestigious - from Te Papa's collections Revised edition issued due to high demand and includes new cloaks to have come into Te Papa's collection, and discussion of rare cloaks held in overseas museums This is the definitive book on cloaks

About the Author
Awhina Tamarapa (Ngati Kahungunu, Ngati Ruanui, Ngati Pikiao) holds a Bachelor of Maori Laws and Philosophy from Te Wananga o Raukawa, Otaki, and a Bachelor of Arts from Victoria University, Wellington, where she majored in Anthropology. She has worked in museums for more than 10 years, including as concept developer and collection manager at Te Papa.

Reviews
'... a definitive work on the subject, showcases 40 distinctive kakahu from Te Papa's large collection ... Beautifully illustrated and richly informative ...' - New Zealand Geographic; 'Ranging from the primitive and precious, through the unique and prestigious, to their contemporary reincarnation, Whatu Kakahu is the definitive description of Maori cloaks in Te Papa's collections. Illustrated throughout with stunning photographs that document the subtle beauty of these cultural treasures ...'- Scoop.


Awards
Commended for AAANZ Book Prizes - Best Art Writing by a NZ Maori or Pasifika 2019.



Book Information
ISBN 9780995113633
Author Awhina Tamarapa
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Te Papa Press
Publisher Te Papa Press
Weight(grams) 1200g