April 03, 2019
Wāhine art projects boosted by suffrage fund
Photographer Qiane Matata-Sipu, who has documented her community at Ihumātao and its fight against a major housing development on ancestral land, has received a $20,000 grants towards the second phase development of a multimedia storytelling project focussed on the experiences of indigenous women.
She's one of 10 nrecipients to receive funding totalling over $150,000 from a new Suffrage 125 Fund.
Creative New Zealand spokesperson Cath Cardiff says the fund is for innovative arts projects which recognise women from diverse cultural backgrounds who have helped advance women's rights.
Other recipients include
-Jennifer Gillam, who gets almost $8000 towards a publication exploring the heritage practice of pelting kiwi, kaitiakitanga, and the role of Māori women in birdlife conservation efforts.
-Melissa Williams, who gets $19,000 towards a publication of essays focussing on the impact of mana wahine and activism of Maori women in New Zealand’s social history;
and OneTree House, which gets $10,000 towards a collection of stories and publication based on the lives and social impact of 14 Māori women.
When the new Electoral Act giving New Zealand women the vote was signed into law in 1994 women had only six weeks to register to vote in the upcoming election.
Despite the tight timeframe almost 110,000 women enrolled, about 84 percent of those eligible, and more than 90,000 voted on polling day.
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