Moko I

Ko te moko kauae he tohu tuakiri, he tohu mō te ū o te tangata ki tōna ahurea. I ngā tekautau o 1970, i tata mate ā-moa tēnei taonga, te reo Māori hoki. He ringa toi, he mātanga mātauranga, he ngaio kaupapa mātauranga, a Kātarina Mataira, ā, he toki ia mō te whakarauoranga o te reo Māori, o te whakatūnga o te mātauranga rumaki i te reo Māori.

I ēnei toi, kitea ai te panonitanga ā-roto o te akoranga e huri ana hei panonitanga ā-kiko. I roto i te Moko 1, circa 1977, he wāhine tokowhā e rauhī ana ā-koru nei, he tohu mō te ako me te pito mata o te tangata. He moko kauae tō tēnā, tō tēnā, heoi kua hē te whakatakotoranga. He kahurangi te tae o ngā kuia, ko rātou ngā tuarā o tō rātou akoranga. Kitea ai i roto i te *Kauwae, Dome 1*, ngā wāhine e tū tata ana, e hāpai ana, tētahi i tētahi. Nō raro ki runga te moko kauae e piki ana i te tinana ā, ka tae atu ki te kauwae.

The moko kauae (female chin tattoo) is a marker of identity and cultural pride. During the 1970s this taonga (treasure) was in danger of being lost, as was the Māori language. Artist, author, educator and academic, Kātarina Mataira was an influential proponent in the revitalisation of the Māori language and the establishment of Māori language immersion education.

In these works, an internal transformation realised through learning and support results in a physical transformation. In Moko 1, circa 1977, four wahine (women) gather within the shape of a koru (an unfurling fern frond), a symbol of learning and latent potential. All these women have moko kauae, but they are misplaced. Depicted in blue, their kuia (female elders) remain present supporting their learning journey. In *Kauwae, Dome 1*, wahine stand shoulder to shoulder, supporting each other. Their moko kauae rise up their bodies to find outward expression on their chins.

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