Pounamu School Launch

Sir Apirana Ngata’s vision further realised

With the launch of the Pounamu Development and Training Unit at Te Puia, the late Māori leader’s dream of perpetuating Māori arts and crafts as pillars of Māori culture has taken another step forward.

The Māori Arts and Crafts Institute Act was passed in 1926 by the efforts of Sir Apirana Ngata and supporters such as Hon. Jospeh Gordon Coates. It would be another 30 years before the NZ Māori Arts and Crafts Institute took residence within the Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley in 1967, now known as Te Puia. Over that time Te Puia has trained students in carving and weaving traditions, and at one point, had a local pounamu carver on site.

The Pounamu Unit will include a back-of-house workshop and a display carver in the existing Carving School to talk to visitors about the art form. Carved pounamu – made onsite – will be available to the public by mid to late October.

The team – lead by Lewis Gardiner (Ngāti Pikiao/Ngāi Tahu) – will also be training existing Te Puia students in the time honoured tradition of pounamu, and will be offering training to prospective students in the near future.

As part of the pōwhiri to welcome the team of carvers, Te Puia will also be launching its own Official Mark of Authenticity as an independent quality measure, guaranteeing the standard of workmanship across all tāonga produced by the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute.

Te Puia Chief Executive Te Taru White says “we are excited about this new development; it is another opportunity for Te Puia to fulfill its responsibilities to maintain and develop Māori arts, crafts and culture for future generations”.