Hauraki Maori Arts

28/09/2026

2 Restorations so far
Te Korowai Hauora Thames
Paeahi Marae

27/09/2026

Bird chirping, Wharenui restored, Nature is Good

27/09/2026

Arohamai for a real late update, been spending time at Paeahi marae, Waitoki, Te Aroha with the whanau, helping with the restoration of Paeahi, it was a privilege to be able to do some whakairo at Paeahi Marae alongside the Hauraki Whanau.

Majority of this restoration was done by chisel, salute to the whanau who carved those long hours and the Wahine who provided us with nourishments to keep our strength up to carry on.

Thank You Paeahi Whanau

14/09/2026

02/09/2026

Young taps before we go and Tautoko one of the Whanaus Music Gig in Auckland

31/08/2026

Whanaus Table they're lining up with the Haehae before Paint application, they wanted a design Ying and Yang type form, to represent Balance (Positive & Negative), Unity and Overcoming barriers as a Whanau but Maori styles to the exact words, so drew the form and added in Kowhaiwhai with a Pungawerewere and Raperape design, 10 flowing Mangopare Kowhaiwhai on each side, 4 seperate Mangopare Kowhaiwhai on the leftside and 3 seperate Mangopare Kowhaiwhai on the Rightside, the numbers are significant to the recipient, and then they also wanted us to do some Script writing of our names along the outside, circling the Main design.

Alot of handsanding went into this.

28/08/2026

While we wait for the process of the wānanga to be set up, we've been in the process of trying to carve a representation of Aotearoa (The People) as a whole, which Includes Te Ika A Maui (Left Amo/Leg) and Te Waipounamu (Right Amo/Leg), 16 contemporary Regions as the Arms/Maihi of the Wharenui (9 Left Maihi/Arm, 7 Right Maihi/Arm) 9 designs on the leftside to represent the 9 contemporary regions of todays North Island, and 7 on the Right which represents the 7 contemporary regions of the south island, from pin point ideas, to building off each point, currently in the block out leveling stage.
This poupou is a contemporary whakairo that explores whakapapa through the form and symbolism of the wharenui.

The intention is to represent how whakapapa begins with the tūpuna and extends through successive generations, creating many branches while remaining connected to a common ancestral foundation.
The wharenui is used as the conceptual framework, while the poupou itself becomes the carrier of that kōrero. The wharenui has been used here not as a literal building, but as a way of expressing whakapapa through whakairo. The 16 regions acknowledge the geographical Aotearoa of today. They do not represent iwi, hapū or traditional rohe. Instead, they represent the many places across which generations and descendants now live.
The carving therefore tells a story of one ancestral foundation extending into many branches.
The regions may be many.
The generations may be many.
The places may be many.
But the whakapapa continues to connect them.