LOUIE ZALK-NEALE
artist

Ngā Manuhiri Taura (the visiting ropes) 
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2022

“In Taranaki close to New Plymouth, the iron sand at Ōnukutaipari is so black that it sometimes has a blue sheen to it, iridescent like the oily feathers of a shag, or the shell of a kukuroaroa, a horse mussel. And more ominously, like an oil slick. This beach is between Paritutu Rock to the north, a volcanic pinnacle, and the Herekawe Stream to the south. It’s a signicant place for many people, being on the border of Te Ātiawa and Taranaki lands. I came to Taranaki for the first time in April, saw the dramatic clay cliffs at Ōnukutaipari, waves swirling hard around the islands, tufts of bush on top. I’m sure many people have called this beach picturesque. But the surrounding area is painfully industrial. The infrastructure of oil and gas drilling, boats, pylons, the port, and wide round tanks atop the cliffs. I don’t understand the full impact of these industries on the area, but they definitely feel like they’re choking the place. I was told that the surrounding area was also used to manufacture agent orange in the 60s and toxic waste was buried in the whenua there. This is a charged place. The layers, the whakapapa, of the places we inhabit today, hold so many histories that don't just disappear when the grass grows over.”

Prior to the performance, Gallery visitors were invited to join the artist for two ropemaking workshops, during which Zalk-Neale guided participants in making miro (twined string) from tī kōuka.

The performance took place at Ōnukutaipari Back Beach and making use of found and recycled materials transformed into body adornments, Louie Zalk-Neale’s (Ngāi Te Rangi, Pākehā) performance embodied whakapapa links to te taiao. With support from Rangimarie Keall (Taranaki), Zalk-Neale’s explorations draw upon Dr Elizabeth Kerekere’s concept of Mana Tipua—which speaks to the shapeshifting power and fluid gender of the taniwha and other spiritual beings as a grounding for takatāpui and trans identity in the present.

Attendees were encouraged to bring a taura (rope) with them, which was used as part of the performance.
Commissioned by Govett-Brewster Art Gallery for Public Relations: A performance series in which three performance-based projects unfolded at the Gallery and in public sites around Ngāmotu (New Plymouth NZ) between August and November 2022. Featuring Louie Zalk-Neale, Layne Waerea, Chris Braddock, Fayen d’Evie and Benjamin Hancock, curated by Simon Gennard.

Photography by Yuval Zalk-Neale




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Ngai-Kore-Tua-Mao & Rewa-Taha  
  〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2024
 
  〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2024
   

TAURA residency  
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2024

Beyond your tadpole stage // your spinal cord dissolves  
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2023
  

 Watering Intimacies Residency (Taiwan)  
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2023

LANDBORNE WHETŪ  
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2023

Ngā Manuhiri Taura (the visiting ropes) 
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2022

TRANSCESTOR
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2021


MANA TIPUA TUKU IHO  
〉〉〉〉〉〉〉2021