It is with immense sadness that we mark the passing of John Edgar ONZM. Stone carver, sculptor and environmentalist, John Edgar has been a central figure in stone carving since the early 1980s. Here, Curator Decorative Art and Design Justine Olsen reflects on Edgar’s rich practice and influence on Aotearoa New Zealand’s stone carving and sculpting. Read more
Studio jeweller, craftsman Te Papa sadly bids farewell to contemporary studio jeweller Paul Annear who passed away on 24 April in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Characterful and enigmatic, Paul loved materials and the process of craft making. He studied anthropology and psychology at the University of Auckland- subjects that helped informRead more
What do they think of it? Kura Pounamu exhibition tours China Kura Pounamu, the largest exhibition of taonga pounamu or ‘Māori jade treasures’ ever shown at Te Papa, was displayed from September 2009 to July 2011. As curator for the exhibition a favourite past time of mine was to sitRead more
Kura Pounamu is Te Papa’s first exhibition of Maori Taonga in China since the National Museum sent Maori artifacts in 1978. The mutual appreciation of ‘green stone’ jadite (jade) and nephrite (pounamu) provided an ideal platform for re-establishing a cultural exchange. The exhibition required ease of installation and minimal objectRead more
It’s Christmas at Te Papa and this year’s Christmas tree decorations are on a pounamu and paua theme. The colourful creations include tikis as you’ve never seen them before! Here’s one with fabulous tropical looking flowers… But my favourite tiki is this one with it’s red sparkly hearts… If you’dRead more
Tim Tait is one of Te Papa’s talented IT developers and one smart cookie. He put together the fabulous touchscreen image browser which you can find in our Kura Pounamu exhibition – and after more of Tim’s hard work this is now available on our website. All 200 of the incredible pounamuRead more
