Kids & Whānau Create

Get creative with your whānau at our free drop-in art-making sessions every weekend and during school holidays from 11am–3pm.

Saturdays & Sundays in December 11am-3pm and School Holidays: Te Ika a Māui

Fred Graham was a Māori artist who loved telling pūrākau (stories) through his art. One of his best-known works is Te Ika a Māui, which you can see in Taimoana | Coastlines: Art in Aotearoa on the Ground Floor. It shows the story of Māui, who used a jawbone from his grandmother, Murirangawhenua, to hook a giant fish – Te Ika a Māui (the North Island).

Create your own version of Te Ika a Māui to hang at home. Decorate three shapes that form te ika (the fish) with patterns, colours and images that remind you of Aotearoa’s mountains, forests, rivers or ocean life. Add a hook to your fish’s mouth to hang your artwork. 

He toka tū moana

A rock standing firm in the sea

This whakataukī (proverb) refers to someone or something that lasts despite the tides and waves.