I have journeyed back home after an amazing month exploring New Zealand. Yet again I was blown away by its epic landscapes, rich cultural foundations and natural mystique. Something that I find so fascinating about the country is that it feels both strangely familiar, with vistas that could be mistaken for parts of the UK and social threads of British sensibilities, yet parts are also completely alien, with live volcanoes and tempestuous micro climates.
Being a part of the Traveller’s Tails project definitely influenced the way I engaged as a tourist with the country during my travels. It almost gave me a heightened sense of curiosity and thirst for knowledge about the heritage and culture of New Zealand, much more so than when I was last in the country, 8 years ago. Intrigued by some of the research I had done previously around Cook’s voyages to New Zealand, I was particularly interested in finding out more about the complex relations between the Maori people and first European explorers then settlers over between 250-300 years ago, as well as the continued repercussions of these initial encounters and their relevance to a contemporary society.
Whilst there I visited some of the country’s larger museums including Auckland War Memorial Museum and Te Papa in Wellington. It was fascinating to see how the museums portrayed not only the diverse history and traditions of the Maori people but also the impact of European exploration, colonialisation and arguably exploitation on the country from a variety of open perspectives. I was also impressed by the exposed presentation of some of the galleries (in particular those displaying Maori artefacts) in which many of the objects were out on open display, free from cases. I felt this gave a greater sense of connection and tactility to the collections and made me more intrigued about the physical construct and story behind the items on display. It was also great fun to recognise many relatives of the RE·THINK: Exploration handling collection including Marshall Islands maps, Tapa cloth and breadfruit pounder to name a few.
It is hard to avoid the legacies of exploration and well known explorers in New Zealand, particularly the influence of James Cook. His presence extends far beyond museum displays, from place names that haven’t been altered since they were documented during Cook’s voyages (Doubtless Bay, Bay of Plenty, Poor Knights Islands) to the Endeavour appearing on 50 cent pieces. Personally I felt there were generally very mixed opinions about Cook’s influence in New Zealand and what he went on to represent, especially for the Maori people of the country, much of which eventually had a negative impact on their lives.
Even though I was there for a month I still feel there is so much of the New Zealand isles that I didn’t get to explore. I hope to go back for another visit soon and continue my adventures.
Onto other news…
Last week I started rehearsals for Shifting Beneath, a new dance and music piece that will be performed in the dry berth of the Cutty Sark on Sunday 20th March. The piece is being made is a collaboration between myself and dance, composition and music students from Trinity Laban and the project is a part of the institutions annual Co Lab festival which is centred around music and dance collaborations.
We kicked the project off with a week’s intensive rehearsal splitting our time between Laban and the Cutty Sark so we had the opportunity to create the work whilst being in the environment of the ship, which greatly affected the content and atmosphere of the material we developed. The starting points for the work included:
- The physical effect of being at sea on the body
- The spine (keel) of the ship
- Efficiency and harmony
During the week we experimented with various influences from the ship’s displays and collections including movement patterns created using coordinates and musical influences from some of the countries that the ship travelled to. It was also extremely helpful for me to be able to access images, ship guides and crew accounts of life on board the ship prior to the start of the project to inspire the creative process of the work.
Myself, the composers, dancers and musicians will be continuing rehearsals over the coming weeks and I am very excited to bring the piece to life again at the ship on the 20th March.
Last but not least, a reminder that Who is the Land is still on display in the RE·THINK studio at the National Maritime Museum. We are getting some really thoughtful and inspiring responses from people on our postcards, which are being added to the installation. If you haven’t made it already please do come and visit.