In the beginning: Ranginui and Papatūānuku

How can we use art to explore Te Ao Māori?

This question is the learning focus in the art room during 2022. To begin the year students across the school used different artistic media to explore the creation purakau (story) of Ranginui and Papatūānuku.

In the beginning Ranginui (the sky father) and Papatūānuku (the earth mother) were joined together, and their children were born between them in darkness. The children decided to separate their parents, to allow light to come into the world. After this, the children became gods of various parts of the natural world. (Te Ara)

The artworks that the children created explore the states of Te Kore, Te Pō and Te Ao (The Nothingness, The Great Darkness and The Light) that occur at the beginning of the creation of the world. As the light enters the world the story of Ranginui, Papatūānuku and their children begins.

I used the fabulous book Atua by Gavin Bishop to introduce to stories to the students. It is a visually stunning book with stories about the creation of the world, gods, demi-gods, heroes and the Migration. If you are interested in reading about Ngā Atua, Te Ara (The Encyclopaedia of New Zealand) has some information.

Stay tuned for upcoming posts sharing student work based on the Māori creation story.