Uniformity: Cracking the dress code  has just opened on level 4 of  Te Papa in the Eyelights Gallery.  This time we’ve focused on uniforms, the influence of uniforms on fashion, and elements of uniformity in the way people dress. A highlight of the exhibition is Corporal Willie Apiata, VC’s combatRead more

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Te Papa’s latest art exhibition, Angels & Aristocrats, opens on the 20th October in the Level 5 galleries.  The exhibition draws on a number of collections from around New Zealand including artworks from Te Papa’s collection which you will see on display.  Some of these paintings required attention in the conservation lab beforeRead more

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 Te Papa has an enormous collection of photographs, negatives and transparencies by Brian Brake (1927 – 88), one of New Zealand’s best known photographers.  Brake became famous while working overseas as a photojournalist – one of his best known works is the Monsoon photo essay, which he took in 1960. Read more

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105 years ago New Zealand becomes a Dominion (26 September 1907) At 11am, 26 September 1907, New Zealand officially moved up in the ranks in the British Empire. On that day it became a Dominion instead of a Colony. That night, electric illuminations on buildings in the capital proclaimed this auspiciousRead more

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Sometimes when I look at photographs, I start imagining the past. Details in the images trigger memories of people and places lost to time. These images of water towers take me back to my childhood in Invercargill, where the sight and purpose of the large tower, visible from most partsRead more

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Wi Tako Ngatata ME023859; Writing Compendium [presented to Wi Tako Ngatata] This writing slope belonged to Wi Tako Ngātata, one of Wellington’s most influential tribal leaders during the early colonial period. It commemorates his appointment to the New Zealand Legislative Council. Wi Tako (with Mokena Kohere, Ngāti Porou) was the first Māori toRead more

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Perhaps you know where some of the photographs below were taken?  If you can help, please note the number related to each image with your comment below. Click on the images to enable enlargement. 1) Its summer here… 2) North Island wharf 3) Is it Otago harbour? And if so,Read more

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The Amazon Softball Club, the first and last lesbian softball club in New Zealand, has kindly donated a selection of team uniforms and ephemera to Te Papa. The Amazons formed at the height of gay liberation in 1977. The Wellington based club provided a space for lesbians to socialise, findRead more

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A while back I posted Marion Queenie Kirker’s image of a ‘nodding cat’. Recently the rest of her negatives were scanned and uploaded to the museum’s database. One of the things I enjoy about working in the museum is helping to make images like this available to be seen. There areRead more

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Several people in a rowboat on the shore.

I’ve been enjoying our scientists’ fieldwork posts.  We have scientists’ photographs from several historic field trips in the photography collection.  My favourites are in this photo album from the 1907 Expedition to the Subantarctic Islands.  The Expedition was initiated by the Canterbury Philosophical Institute with support from the Government, andRead more

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25 years ago the New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act is passed (8 June 1987). This legislation was a flash point in the history of New Zealand’s international relations. It derailed New Zealand’s defence alliance with the USA and Australia known as Anzus. The Anzus Treaty,Read more

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