MANA TIPUA TUKU IHO 〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2024
The images attest that takatāpui, transgender people and LGBTQIA+ communities are fundamental to a thriving society, a clear tohu that tāngata embody the expansive diversity within te ao. The transformations people go through are reflected in the ngahere, the moana, the rangi and the whenua. In Wiremu Grace's pūrākau, Whātaitai dies, his body turns to stone and his wairua rises as a female manu, Te Keo. Zalk-Neale identifies this as a moment in pūrākau Māori where a form of gender transition is expressed in whenua and in the rangi.
Mana Tipua Tuku Iho describes the mauri whakawhiti, the ancient shape shifting energy that pulsates through the bodies of taniwha and tipua, guiding takatāpui through transformation and ascension.
Photographer: Ted Whitaker
Producer/Curator: Jaimie Waititi
Models: Noiz Puketapu,
Chanel Hati, Renee Paul,
Jaimie Waititi, Louie Zalk-Neale
Presented in the Courtenay Place Light Boxes 2024-2025, Te Whanganui-A-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand.
Skeleton
2024
The fizzing potential
2024
Collecting seaweed to share
2024
Yet another place to dream about
2024
Orbiting debris
2024
Sprouting downwards, below the surface
2024
Hidden transgender limbs
2024
I sharpen my femininity
2024
Iridescent horse mussels
2024
Stranded and alive, like Whātaitai
2024
Saltspray sting
2024
Adapted for high tides
2024
Nourished through a cord
2024
Comforted by being needed
2024
Cleansing neon fibres
2024
Kura-hau-pō
Celestial halo
2024