Te Oro

E ai ki a Kereama Taepa, ko Te Uira tētahi orokohanga pai pea mō te whakapapa e whakahoropaki ai i ngā wāhi matihiko me ngā tikanga auaha i roto i te tauira ahurea a te Māori. I tēnei toi ao mariko, a *Te Oro*, 2020 kei te rumakina te kaiwhakamahi ki roto i te ao o Te Uira, he āhua maitai kua whakatangatahia, i tāngia ai ki te moko. Huri haere ai te kaiwhakamahi i te taiao mariko kī tonu i ngā rarapa uira. Ko te koauau kei roto i tēnei ao mariko, he kaikawe i te whakapapa mā tāna tangi. Ka whakatangi te kaimātaki i te koauau mā te nuku haere ki waenganui i ngā wenewene e toru. Ko tā te tangi he whakaohooho i ngā mātauranga o te ao tawhito me te ao hou i te whare toi.

Kereama Taepa identifies Te Uira, god of lightning, as a potential beginning for a whakapapa (genealogy) that contextualises digital spaces and creative practices within a Māori cultural paradigm. In the virtual reality work *Te Oro*, 2020 the user is immersed in the realm of Te Uira, who appears in a personified metallic form adorned with tā moko (tattoos). The user moves through the virtual environment consisting of bolts of lightning. A kōauau (open-ended cross-blown flute) is also rendered in this virtual realm to emanate transference of whakapapa (genealogy) through its use and sound. Viewers can play the kōauau by shifting between the three wenewene (finger holes). The sounds bring to life the knowledges of both new and old to activate the gallery space.

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