About Us
Hello my name is Melissa and with my husband Wiremu, we opened Waka Huia Treasure Trove & Studio in April 2010. Wiremu is the artist, creator and facilitator while I look after the administration and marketing, run Head Start Marketing Services and look after our daughters Isabella and Manurere.
Trying to Make A Difference
Even before we met, we wanted to make a difference – to our communities, the environment and personal development - and we actually met through our involvement in youth mentoring programmes. The opening of our studio, gallery and tourism business provides us with a public space and platform with which to reach even more people.
Why Go In the Public Eye?
As you can imagine, it is quite a big step for an artist to own a store and sell direct to the public – it is like having your innermost feelings on public display and then having to see people’s reaction to your feelings every day!
However Wiremu is passionate about his community and showcasing high quality Maori art and the inherent intelligence of his ancestors and to do this we needed to go public.
Our Mission
Our aim in running this business is to
‘Positively Affect the Energy of a Space Through Art’
Wiremu’s artist statement is:-
‘A work of art is not purely an object of beauty. Our art is inspired by the environment, ancestral artefacts and our life experiences. This creates a piece of art that has a positive and healing effect not only on the person but also on the surrounding energy and space.’
Kawakawa Our Home
Although Kawakawa is now our home we both grew up in big cities. I grew up in London and have lived in Paris and New York and Wiremu grew up in South Auckland. I moved to Northland to work for the regional tourism organisation, Destination Northland and Wiremu moved here so that he could be near his daughter Te Rere, who moved here when he parted ways with his ex partner.
Ngati Manu, Ngati Pukenga
This moved turned out to be a turning point for Wiremu’s life journey in more ways than one as, unbeknownst to him, all his family on his paternal side were from Kawakawa and his marae is at Karetu - Ngati Manu, the Bird People. Birds play a large role in his artwork, as does the Manaia, which reflects his whakapapa on his mother’s side who is from Manaia in the Coromandel - Ngati Pukenga, the teachers.
The creator always needs an organiser!
I have worked in marketing for nearly 20 years and run a marketing consultancy – Head Start Marketing Services. I am also a healer and have a strong interest in environmentalism and Buddhism. You can read more about my work experiences in the sub menu to your left.
Established Artist
Wiremu is an established Maori artist who has had a number of high profile exhibitions and public art commissions and tutored Maori Material Culture at Auckland University for 5 years. You can read more in-depth information about Wiremu’s art and Maori Material Culture experience in his resume on the left. I have included some pictures of some of his previous work in the picture gallery to your right.
What Can Traditional Maori Tools Teach Us about Environmentalism?
One of Wiremu’s missions is to show how intelligent pre-European Maori society and technologies were. In pre-European times, Maori lived in harmony and balance with nature - hunting and farming only what was needed. Traditional Maori tools were made from wood and stone in their natural state, rather than the harsh treatment that goes into forging metal. In return the land provided us with the knowledge and natural resources to live balanced and conscious lives. We were connected to the earth.
Pre-European Maori Society was an Advanced Society
Working in harmony with nature did not mean the knowledge was ‘basic’ or that stone tools were ‘stone age’ at all – farming, fishing and navigational practices were highly effective, advanced and many were adopted by the Europeans who settled here, while products such as the 6-ply flax rope became one of the biggest export products.
Our Maori Business Ethos
We try to run our business within a Maori business ethos of sharing and balance. We hope to bring greater prosperity, pride and abundance to our whole community – making the ‘pie’ bigger and sharing our successes with other businesses; giving back to community groups through our workshops, tuition and education programmes. This differs to a ‘lets get the biggest share of the pie for ourselves’ ethos which is common in many capitalist cultures.
What is a Waka Huia?
A Waka Huia is a Maori treasure box. Waka means vessel (or canoe) and Huia refers to a bird (now extinct) whose feathers were one of the most highly prized items a person could possess. In opening Waka Huia Treasure Trove & Studio we wanted to create a space that was full of treasures – not just in terms of tangible objects but also knowledge and shared learning.
Our Location
We are located on the main street of Kawakawa in the Bay of Islands – just a few seconds away from the Hundertwasser toilets. The Bay of Islands is in Northland, the northern-most, sub-tropical region of New Zealand. We have a number of links providing more information about our region and Kawakawa within the links section of our website.
