For the last few months, the Pacific team have been auditing the Niue collection, where objects are photographed, and the catalogue record updated. Niue also known as Nuku-tu-taha is located between Tonga and the Cook Islands. We had an enquiry from a scholar who was researching throwing techniques, and wasRead more
On Saturday 10th April Te Papa opened The Mixing Room, stories from young refugees in New Zealand to the contributors, their families and of course the public. Over 250 people gathered from Nelson, Hamilton, Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington and Palmerston North in the Wellington Foyer and the Red Couches meeting room to eagerlyRead more
There has been some debate about the pose of the mounted skeleton of Phar Lap on display at Te Papa. Using digital photographs, an image of the skeleton has been superimposed over photos of Phar Lap and used to “prove” that the skeleton has been mounted incorrectly. http://www.horsetalk.co.nz/features/pharlap-168.shtml Unfortunately, the image of the skeleton thatRead more
Phar Lap was a legendary racehorse and an adored animal hero for a generation of New Zealanders (where he was born and brought up) and Australians (where he mostly raced). After Phar Lap’s death on 6 April 1932, his owners, Mr D J Davis and Mr H R Telford, presentedRead more
The Mixing Room Team are the very proud recipients of the New Zealand Race Relations Commissioner Kaihautū Whakawhanaunga-ā-Iwi award for positive contributions to race relations. The Mixing Room, stories from young refugees in New Zealand is a collaborative project between Te Papa and more than 70 refugee background young people fromRead more
Musician Pauly Fuemana died yesterday after a short illness. He was 40 years old. Pauly is from a talented family of musicians, who were pioneers in hip hop and the music industry in South Auckland. He was frontman for the group OMC (Otara Millionaires Club) but is best known forRead more
In 2008, I co-curated a small show in our Illot Gallery about Samoan-born graphic designer Joseph Churchward, who has hand-crafted about 570 fonts to date. Last year, Joseph received the John Britten Award, from the Designers Institute of New Zealand, for outstanding leadership, vision and achievement in the field of typeRead more
One of the great things about blogs are the connections that get made. For Te Papa this means we get new and interesting links to things in our collections. Debby Mathews lives in Lewes, near Brighton in the south of England – in the same house in which Gideon MantellRead more
Today is the LAST DAY to see Te Papa’s Formula One the Great Design Race exhibition, in fact as I write this, it’s the LAST HOUR to see these sexy beasts. I’ve loved the cars we’ve been fortunate to be able to display – it would’ve been brilliant to haveRead more
I’ve been quiet on my blogs as I’ve been away for a while, but heard a lovely rumour at work this afternoon about a new car in the building – an A1GP car! So a camera was borrowed (thanks Norm!) and off I went in search…. walking smartly coz you shouldn’tRead more
Te Papa acknowledges the life and writing of poet, playwright, novelist, and memoirist Alistair Te Ariki Campbell. His work is noted for its attempts to reconcile the complexities and displacements he experienced as a result of his New Zealand/Cook Islands ancestry. Campbell was born in the Cook Islands and spentRead more
It’s great that folks are interested in the Play School toys. This week they’re some of the most viewed objects in Collections Online. I’ve also loved the way Invercargill is having a debate on where the clock should be. Read stuff story on the clock I’ll stay out of that, but I’veRead more
Over the past few weeks a couple of us here have been reliving our childhoods looking at the Play School toys in our collection and clips from the shows on NZ On Screen. We’re not curators, we’re just in the web team and the Picture Library so it still delights us whenRead more
Well … kind of! NZL 32 aka Black Magic will be barged tomorrow morning from Team New Zealand’s shed in Auckland’s Viaduct Harbour to its new home within the National Maritime Museum’s Blue Water Black Magic – A Tribute to Sir Peter Blake exhibition, opening in December this year. BlackRead more
Chief Executive Officer, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa 2003–2009. ‘What I’ve enjoyed most is developing the relevance of what happens inside the museum for the public.’ (Dr Bennington, 2003) E te Rangatira Seddon – He Poroporoaki He reo noa ka kore e rongohia e tangi ana i rotoRead more
