Open now, ahead of He Rā Maumahara, the National Day of Commemoration for the New Zealand Wars on Monday 28 October, Auckland Museum presents Atarau: Stories of the New Zealand Wars, a refreshed gallery exploring the wars’ lasting impact on Aotearoa.
In 1996, Auckland Museum introduced a dedicated New Zealand Wars gallery with a historic exhibition that was the first major museum presentation of the Wars from both Māori and Pākehā perspectives. Atarau: Stories of the New Zealand Wars introduces new insights into the events that shaped our nation, incorporating taonga, contemporary artworks, and diverse viewpoints that encourage reflection on the complex legacies of the wars and their lasting influence on society today. It now builds on the Museum’s commitment to multiple perspectives on these pivotal conflicts.
The refreshed gallery includes contemporary artworks by Maureen Lander (Ngāpuhi), Haare Williams (Ngāi Tūhoe and Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki), Kingsley Baird, Richard Lewer, Bryce Brown, Ria Hall (Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui, Tuwharetoa, Te Whānau-a-Apanui), Ati Teepa (Ngāi Tūhoe, Kāi Tahu), and Ngahina Hohaia (Taranaki iwi, Parihaka – Ngāti Moeahu, Ngāti Haupoto). Their artworks reflect on these conflicts and provide dialogue around the legacy of the Wars on the land and its people.
The exhibition opens just ahead of He Rā Maumahara the National Day of Commemoration for the New Zealand Wars, which was inaugurated in 2017. Auckland Museum will be illuminated on 27 and 28 October in a pounamu green to mark this commemoration, and to provide a link between the exterior of building the newly-refreshed gallery inside.
Atarau: Stories of the New Zealand Wars is free with Museum Entry and open now.
