“I have immersed myself in what the Māori world means. I want to leave a better place. I understand what art means to our people and know that’s what to concentrate on to make a difference.”

“For every art form that disappears, there goes a way of being, a way of communicating, a whole body of knowledge.”

• Julie Paama-Pengelly, Why art matters, UNO magazine 2023

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HE URI AU NŌ NGĀI TE RANGI

Hetoroa whakakopaa unō rungai Kārewa,

he pōtiki manawa ūnā Ngāi Te Rangi

I am a soaring albatross high above Kārewa,

a stout-hearted child that belongs to Ngāi Te Rangi.

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Ko Mauao te maunga

Ko Tauranga te moana

Ko Matakanate moutere

Ko Ngāi Terangi te iwi

Ko Ngāi Tūwhiwhia, Ngāti Tauaiti, me Ngāti Tapu ōku hapū.

Ko Te Rangi Kaiwhetu rāua ko Te Hekerangi o Tamarau ōku tamariki

Ko Julie Paama-Pengelly ahau

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📸 courtesy of the artist