Hinetītama

Ko Hinetītama, te whaea o te tangata, te wahine o te ata hāpara tērā, e mura mai ana i te mata o te whakaahua. Ko te peita tuatahi o te raupapatanga whai mana a *Wahine Toa* nā Robyn Kahukiwa e whakaū ai, e whakanui ai i te whakahirahiratanga o te mana wahine i ngā kōrero Māori tuku iho, kei te tōiriirihia te mana o te atua a *Hinetītama*, 1980 hei kaihanga o te ao mārama, o te tauoranga, o te orokohanga o te tangata. E ai ki ngā kōrero mō te hanganga o te ao, ka wehe a Hine-tītama i tēnei ao nā te putanga mai o te mōhiotanga ko tōna hoa moe a Tāne, ko ia tōna pāpā. Ko tāna ki a Tāne, ‘Ka haere au ki Rarohenga ki reira pōhiri ai, tiaki ai i ā tāua tamariki i ō rātou matenga. Ko Hine-nui-te-pō kē ahau ināianei.’

Kei waenganui e kongange ana, e whetē mai ana, ko ia te ihi e honohono ana i ngā apaapa 10 o tēnei ao me te ao o Rarohenga, me te taiao e kapakapa ana i waenganui. Ko Tāne, ko tōna pāpā me tāna hoa moe, he tiki pango; ko Māui te mokomoko nā tāna whakamokomoko i a ia anō i tāna ngana ki te tinihanga i tēnei mea te mate. Kei te noho ā-apaapa te atahanga me te tohutanga kia whakarauorahia ai e Kahukiwa i roto i tēnei peita whai mana, tēnei peita wā mutunga kore.

Hinetītama, mother of mankind, dawn maiden radiates out of the picture plane. The first painting from Robyn Kahukiwa’s powerful *Wahine Toa* series, which reinstates and celebrates the centrality of mana wahine (female power and authority) in Māori cultural narratives, *Hinetītama*, 1980 reverberates with the deity’s influence and significance as a creator of light and life, and the originator of mankind. Māori creation narratives tell us that Hine-tītama’s departure from the world of light was prompted by her discovery that Tāne, her husband, was also her father. She tells Tāne, ‘I will go to the underworld of Rarohenga where I will welcome our children when their earthly life is ended and care for them in death. I will be known from now on as Hine-nui-te-pō.’

Emblazoned in the centre and staring steadfastly at us, she is the interconnecting and generating force for the 10 layers of the overworld and underworld and the landscape pulsating in between. Tāne is represented in the black tiki figure, while Maui appears as a lizard – the disguise he adopted when he tried to triumph over death. These narratives sit layered in imagery and symbolism that Kahukiwa brings to life in this iconic and timeless painting.

To find out which artworks are available for print requests and reproduction please enquire here. This service only applies to select artworks in the Gallery's collection.