A celebration of Matariki through art and community
Make sure you mark 10 July in your calendar for the Matariki Festival happening in Kūaotunu. Te Toi o Matariki will provide an opportunity for the community to come together to celebrate the Māori new year.
An exhibition and community events will be happening this Matariki in Kūaotunu to celebrate the Māori New Year, thanks to funding from Creative Coromandel. Te Toi o Matariki (The Art of Matariki) is an exhibition showing nine artists’ interpretations of the stars of Matariki, under the curation of Roimata Taimana.
As well as the exhibition, a hautapu ceremony will be performed at dawn on 10 July (Matariki Public Holiday) which all of the Kūaotunu community and surrounds are invited to. Then at 9am there will be an opening for the Te Toi o Matariki exhibition at the Kūaotunu Hall – again, all are welcome! There will also be wānanga (workshops) running through the day, and a beach bonfire is planned for the whole community in the evening.
For more information, contact Roimata Taimana: roimatataimana@gmail.com.
What is the hautapu ceremony?
Hautapu is a beautiful pre-dawn ceremony where we celebrate the three tenets of Matariki: reflection, celebration, and preparation. The full name is whangai i te hautapu, which means to feed the stars with sacred offerings.
During the hautapu ceremony, karakia will be said for each of the whetu of Matariki. These are brief but powerful karakia and can be found at Matariki.com if you would like to read them before the day. The first karakia, Waerea, clears the space so obstructions can be cleared and we can all begin with a clear mind and spirit. The next karakia is Pohutakawa which is the whetu that helps us to remember those who have passed since the last Matariki. After this karakia is spoken, all present are invited to speak the names of loved ones who have died in the last year.
The next part of the ceremony is Te Whāngai i ngā Whetū, or the feeding of the stars. We will remove the lid off a cooking pot so the steam rises up to warm our loved ones in the stars.
Once the remaining karakia are said, the ceremony will be concluded with waiata and haka from Te Rerenga School. To complete the ceremony, we all have kai from the central boil-up pot. As we start the Maori New Year with intentions to all be kaitiakitanga, please bring your own mug and spoon to participate in this part of the hautapu.
You might be thinking, but will we be able to see the Matariki constellation from the Black Jack Reserve? We won’t as it will be light once Matariki has risen above the Black Jack. Instead, the star we will be looking for is Puanga (Rigel), which sits within what is known as Orion’s Belt.
Who can attend the hautapu? Everyone! Bring your whanau and friends, all are welcome to attend.
What should I bring? A mug and spoon to enjoy kai at the end of the ceremony, and your warmest clothes!
Where and when? Black Jack Scenic Reserve (opposite Luke’s Kitchen), 6am, Friday 10 July (Matariki Public Holiday).
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