Artwork information

Ko Tāne te Atua o te ngahere, te kaiwhakaora i te rākau, i te ngārara, i te manu, i te tangata, ko ia te atua nāna i whakawehe a Ranginui rāua ko Papatūānuku, nā reira i puta ai Te Ao Mārama. Ko tā te pou whakairo piātaata o Arnold Manaaki Wilson he whakaata i te mauri o tēnei pou kauri kia waiata ai tēnei toi tūrehurehu i te tikanga me ōna hāngaitanga ahurea e whakanui nei i a Tāne.

God of the forest, giver of life to the trees, insects, birds and man, Tāne is the atua or god who separated Ranginui (sky father) and Papatūānuku (earth mother), which created Te Ao Mārama (the world of light). Polished and standing, Arnold Manaaki Wilson’s carving reflects the mauri or life force of this column of kauri and lets the abstract form sing with cultural meaning and associations celebrating the importance of Tāne.