Kuia Mau Moko: Photographs by Marti Friedlander

Kuia Mau Moko: Photographs by Marti Friedlander presents 29 black-and-white photographs of Māori kuia who were the last generation to receive the unbroken tradition of moko kauae in the 1920s.

The photographs were taken in the late 1960s and early 1970s for use in historian Michael King’s book Moko: Māori tattooing in the 20th century – a time when it was believed the sun had set on this ancient tradition.

The photographs tell a story of resilience, loss, and sorrow for a way of life that was fast slipping away. Within two decades though, moko kauae would begin a quiet revival. Today hundreds of Māori women proudly bear the moko of their ancestors – connecting the past with the present.

The photos were gifted to Te Papa in 2009 from the Gerrard and Marti Friedlander Charitable Trust.

‘Herepo Rongo’ from the series ‘The Moko Suite’, 1970, New Zealand, by Marti Friedlander. Gift of The Gerrard and Marti Friedlander Charitable Trust, 2009. Te Papa (O.033713)

Touring exhibition venues

Kuia Mau Moko: Photographs by Marti Friedlander exhibited at:

• Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato, Hamilton, 23 Apr – 29 May 2016

• Waitara Library, Waitara, 27 Feb – 10 Apr 2016

• Rotorua Museum Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa, Rotorua, 21 Nov 2015 – 17 Jan 2016

• Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art and History, Masterton, 18 Sep – 15 Nov 2015

• Tairawhiti Museum, Gisborne, 10 Jul – 23 Aug 2015

Hosting enquiries

Jake Yocum, Touring Exhibition Manager
touringexhibitions@tepapa.govt.nz