Tatau: A History of Sāmoan Tattooing
A beautifully designed and richly illustrated retelling of the unique and powerful history of Sāmoan tattooing, from 3,000 years ago to modern practices.
Tatau: Sāmoan Tattooing and PhotographyTatau: Tatau Sāmoa ma ata puʻe
This exhibition presents the work of four photographers who capture the dynamic practice of contemporary Sāmoan tatau (tattooing) over the last 40 years.
The touring version of this exhibition features a curatorial selection of the works from the larger Te Papa exhibition in 2019. The four photographers are:
New Zealand photographer Mark Adams, who has followed Sāmoan tattooing families since the late 1970s, documenting the many and varied contexts for their work
Sāmoan Greg Semu, who began making his striking self-portraits in the 1990s, documenting his 25-year identity journey as a tattooed man
John Agcaoili, who was commissioned by the Japanese American National Museum to photograph the contemporary work of the present generation of Sāmoan tattooists for the exhibition Tatau: Marks of Polynesia (2016)
Angela Tiatia, who is an artist whose moving image work on the female malu innovatively explores the relationship between the female body as a fetishized object and her identity as a Sāmoan woman.
The exhibition is based on the scholarship developed for the Te Papa Press book Tatau: A History of Sāmoan Tattooing (2019).
Touring schedule
| Papakura Museum, Papakura | 5 October 2024 – 23 February 2025 |
| Whirinaki Whare Taonga, Upper Hutt | 4 March – 28 May 2023 |
| Tairawhiti Museum | Te Whare Taonga o te Tairawhiti, Gisborne | 30 September – 11 December 2022 |
| Millennium Public Art Gallery, Blenheim | 9 April – 22 May 2022 |
Hosting enquiries
Jake Yocum, Touring Exhibition Manager
021 595 092
touringexhibitions@tepapa.govt.nz
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Watch: Photographing Sāmoan tatau (tattoo)
Mark Adams discuss his 40-year project photographing Sāmoan tatau with Senior Curator Pacific Cultures Sean Mallon.