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Tatau: Tatau Sāmoa ma ata pu‘eTatau: Sāmoan Tattooing and Photography

Tīgā. Fa‘asinomaga. ‘Auala fou. Maimoa mai i le Tatau Sāmoa e ala i ata pu‘e o ni tagata pu‘eata se to‘afā – a‘o fa‘agasolo le taimi i Sāmoa, Aotearoa Niu Sila, ma tala atu. ‘Ole‘ā ‘e fa‘alogo fo‘i i le tāua o le Tatau Sāmoa mai i a latou ‘olo‘o lā‘eiina nei fa‘ailoga pa‘ia.

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Pain. Identity. Innovation. Experience Sāmoan tattooing through the lenses of four photographers – across time, in Sāmoa, Aotearoa, and beyond. You’ll also hear about tatau’s significance from those who wear these sacred markings.

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Ko te tatau, ko te tāpatupatu uhi e haehae ai i te kiri, he mamae, he mana, he tapu. Mā ēnei karu nō te tokowhā kaihopu whakaahua e rongo ai i te tā tatautanga i te takanga o te wā, i te takahanga o te ao. Ka rongo kōrero anō mō te hunga kua tāia ki te uhi tapu, arā, ki te autā.

When | Āhea

9 Nov 2019 – 8 Nov 2020

Where | Ki hea

Toi Art, Level 4

Cost | Te utu

Free entry

Ages | TE REANGA

All ages

Accessibility | E wātea ana ki
  • wheelchair accessible

  • floor has some shallow slopes

  • accessible toilet

Find out more about accessibility at Te Papa

View of Tatau: Samoan Tattooing and Photography, Level 4, Toi Art, 2019. Photo by Maarten Holl. Te Papa

View of Tatau: Samoan Tattooing and Photography, Level 4, Toi Art, 2019. Photo by Maarten Holl. Te Papa

View of Tatau: Samoan Tattooing and Photography, Level 4, Toi Art, 2019. Photo by Maarten Holl. Te Papa

Greg Semu, Front of pe‘a, Nouma Kiriau, 1994, gelatin silver print. Purchased 2019. Te Papa (TMP035038)

Angela Tiatia, Walking the Wall, 2014, digital video. Purchased 2017. Te Papa (2017-0019-1/1-8 to 8-8)

John Agcaoili, Tattooing by Sulu‘ape Si'i Liufau, 2016, print. Purchased 2019. Image courtesy of the artist. Te Papa (TMP035059)

Mark Adams, Farwood Drive, Henderson, west Auckland Tattooing Uli Tufuga tatatau: Su‘a Tavui Pasina Iosefo Ah Ken, 1982, print. Image courtesy of the artist. Te Papa (TMP036153)

For educatorsMā te pouako

Using the new Tatau: Sāmoan Tattooing and Photography exhibition, students learn about tatau’s significance from those who wear these ceremonial markings.

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