October 23, 2013
New Maori hall for Auckland Museum
Tamaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum is making revitalisation of its Maori galleries a priority for its 20-year Future Museum strategy.
Director Roy Clare says the Te Awe project will involve collaborations iwi and other communities, create more opportunities for research and provide richer experiences for visitors.
Te Awe’s new, enlarged carving store space will have an expert staff and the latest technologies so that taonga can be conserved, documented and photographed and the data made available to iwi, hapu, whanau, museum staff, researchers and in many cases the public at large.
Dr Clare says restoration of the wharenui Hotunui, which has been a centrepiece of the museum for nine decades, will start later this year in collaboration with the Taipari whanau and Ngati Maru.
The public will have opportunities to view the work in progress and to learn about the traditional skills and methods being employed.
Copyright © 2013, UMA Broadcasting Ltd