Ōtūmoetai Intermediate School
Region: Bay of Plenty/Waiariki
Art form: Multi-Disciplinary
Project name: Our Stories and Connections Mural
Creative name:
Project information: We will create an internal mural down one side of the learning centre at Ōtūmoetai Intermediate School. The learning centre is used for many different purposes, including staff meetings, sharing professional practice, teaching students, community and parent meetings, and the development of the Te Ao Māori local curriculum. The centre is often referred to as a meeting house and is architecturally similar to that of a wharenui.
In discussion with the staff at the school, we feel that the mural should reflect the iwi, hapū and multi-cultural diversity of the school. Ōtūmoetai has strong kotahitanga with three iwi in the area and links with Wairou Marae, Hangarau Marae, and Huria Marae. The opportunity to create some artwork that would involve our wider whānau, hapū, iwi and rangatahi enables us to create something really authentic from the heart rather than just creating a piece of artwork for the sake of it. Ōtūmoetai translated means ‘of the sleeping tide’, part of the schools karakia is ‘Te tai timu, te tai pare’, the low tide and high tide. The area has many stories linked to the tide and ocean and how the pātiki or flounder swam along the shores and river inlets in the outlying areas. The school is surrounded by birds like the tūī which link strongly to Kinomoerua. The school and area are rich in visual imagery, storytelling, and cultural identity that we plan to use to link together to form creative opportunities.
Project starting: May 2022
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