Welcome to my blog that will document my Whakairo Journey. This is a platform to share and show evidence of my creative processes, explorations, organisation, creations and reflections.
Today was an inspirational day. I was invited by Jay to visit Otamatea High School to have a look at her whakairo shed.
I was impressed with the set up and how well resourced the shed was. It was great to see the quality of the chisels and tools which shows she values the students and expects quality mahi. I learnt so much from her today. One of my greatest challenges next year will be getting my head around NCEA assessments and Unit standards but thanks to Jay, I was able to look at some exemplars.
I met two of her students (Year 12 girls) who were a part of the team that worked on a commissioned waharoa for Whangarei Heads Primary School. It was erected inside the shed for an open viewing session at lunchtime for students and teachers. It will then be dismantled and taken to Whangarei Heads School next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to heading along to document the event.
I'm looking forward to the ongoing whanaungatanga with Jay and her students and I'm super excited on the new wero next year.
One of our creative works for our second semester is a tekoteko. I started a maquette way back in June for a design I had sketched up based on a tekoteko my bro had started. It was good practice and was just on a block of pine.
This semester we have a block of totara to work on (150x150x600) to create our tekoteko. I decided to create a new design for this project. Here's the project brief:
I've decided to create a contemporary tekoteko which will represent 'Rangiriri - he rākau mana. I've played around with shapes and I had a go at using polystyrene for my first maquette to get my head around the first cuts. Still not satisfied I have the design right yet, I continue to sketch ideas for the contemporary piece.
When arriving at the workshop today I looked at some of the artworks and took photos to try and give me ideas of different 3D forms. There's some beautiful pieces in our carving shed and I'm thankful to have access to them, there's nothing quite like walking around pieces rather than looking at them in a book.
My new wero is to practise carving whakarei. Pākati is the first (of many) that I am attempting to improve in. Ive had a number of lessons from Kawiti and the little videos have been helpful. There's nothing quite like getting in there a tackling the task at hand.
Last week I started practising. It's a looooong process but I like the fact that Kawiti is a perfectionist when it comes to pākati so it's great having a tutor that takes the time to try and teach the 'correct' way - he taonga tuku iho from our tūpuna and also a tribute to his own tutor/mentor Eric Korewha.
Here's some photos of my progress:
The thing I'm struggling with is telling those who are trying to share their own knowledge about how to carve pākati that I don't want to do it their way lol. I'm just too nice. I appreciate others sharing their knowledge and I sit patiently, watch and listen, but I don't have the heart to say "Well, Kawiti is our tutor and I'm going to do it his way" Haha!
So this week I've been sharpening my whao and working on pākati. Here's a comparison I've made of Kawiti's and my pākati.
I need to work on consistency and trying to keep the whakarei centred and sharp.
When I took on the wero of learning whakairo, I thought to myself "Cool no-one will ask me to carve them anything because of my bro Johnny".
A couple of weeks ago a dear friend of mine asked me to carve her son (Te Wairoa) a taiaha for his 3rd birthday. At first I was like... "What the heck, I'm not at that point yet!" But the more I thought about it and after talking to my hoa rangatira Patrick about it, he suggested I carve him a pouwhenua, which he said would be better for a toddler because there are not rules around using it compared to a taiaha.
I had the honour of making Te Wairoa's ipu whenua (which I hadn't made for over 20years). It is now buried out at Whakapara on his Mum's tupuna whenua. So, I warmed to the idea and thought it would be good practice.
I purchased some doweling from Bunnings and thought about how I was going to make it. Patrick recommended it to be short so he would get used to swinging it around and doweling would be nice and light.
I drew a few sketches in my book and looked at some traditional pouwhenua online.
I kept it simple and decided that I would paint it when finished. I called it "Hoeroa" which refers to one of the kaitiaki in Te Wairoa Awa. A story we all learnt growing up.
Ko Poko poko te Taniwha
Ko Rangiriri te rakau whakangautai
Ko Hoeroa ngā Ngaru
Ko Mahuhu ki te rangi te waka
Ko Rongamai te Ariki
Ko Ngatiwhatua te Iwi
I enjoyed the little wero of creating this pouwhenua, I painted 'Hoeroa' nga ngaru e toru and highlighted parts of the face - taniwha Rangiriri. The feathers represent the karuhiruhi (shag), another kaitiaki of the taniwha Rangiriri te rakau whakangautai.
My next wero is to create a wahaika. I knew I wanted to replicate a wahaika patu that my bro had made for me as a koha to Pt England School when I left back in 2015. I asked him to carve me something that I could leave behind as a taonga gifted to a student who showed leadership in Te Ao Māori. So, he decided on a wahaika patu. I named it in honour of my grandmother who was the matriarch of the whānau - Parehuia-manu-o-te-tau. The wahaika i'll be working on will be named in honour of my grandfather, Hori Winiata Tito so it will be a 'matching' piece to the taonga created 5 years ago. I just hope I can do it justice because the piece Johnny carved was ataahua.
I found another piece in the 'shed' at home and again, not sure of the wood. I thought it was Kauri but as soon as I started carving it, I knew that it wasn't. The grain was very different and the wood seemed to come away easier than that of kauri. When I showed my bro, he seemed to think it was black Maire from one of his mates up in Waipoua.
When I shared that knowledge with Kawiti, he was stumped because my piece wasn't heavy, (one of the characteristics of black Maire) He later on found a piece in the workshop and showed me, and I knew too, my piece is NOT black maire. When I told Johnny, he said there's some in the shed somewhere so I am super keen to go and find it. Apparently it's a hard wood and it can make your whao blunt, but has a stunning grain and colouring <3
I really enjoy shaping pieces and am thankful for the grinder. I slowly worked on the shape using the grinder but leaving plenty of room to finish using the whao. I didn't want to 'over' grind the piece in case I took too much off. I am always aware of taking too much off.
My first real challenge came when carving the manaia. I chose a manaia for its significance of kaitiakitanga. I had to get my head around the form and with advice from Kawiti I had to resort back to drawings. It helped with the visualisation of what I could work towards, I could see it in my head and had to put it down on paper, that was tricky too.
My first task for the manaia after drawing it was to drill in some holes for the negative spaces. I found it helpful in trying to keep the manaia in line on each side of the wahaika but then in saying that it was also a challenge keeping everything in line when shaping both sides.
I didn't mind chipping away slowly when shaping the manaia and it took me a long time to complete it. The manaia isn't fully symmetrical: the mouth is slightly slanted and the tinana is not quite the same on each side too. The centre line is super important and I need to draw it straight back on if I take it off with a whao (VERY important lesson) and it pays to keep taking the piece out of the vice often to keep the balance as accurate as possible. I then cut out the paua laminate for the eyes and tail of the manaia.
Once the manaia was completed I knew my next challenge would be the tingongi. Again I resorted to drawing to give myself an idea of how I wanted it to look. The tingongi on this piece represents tupuna. I drew the unaunahi on the design because ultimately, that's what I want on the piece. In reflection, I wasn't ready (equiped with the skills) to put whakarei on the wahaika (not to say that it will NEVER have whakarei on it, that is the ultimate goal)
The tingongi took as much time as the manaia to try and get right. I see there is a slight tilt of the tingongi when looking front on. I know where I went wrong and it was from not redrawing the centre line once I had taken it out with the chisel while shaping. It's a constant taking out of the vice/jaws to try and keep things symmetrical. Thankful for the superjaws (especially after screwing blocks in the feet so I wasn't bending over my mahi)
Finishing touches: Once I had competed the manaia and tinongi I glued in the paua laminate using wood glue. It was left overnight to dry and then I brushed on some danish oil. I got a headache afterwards too because I should have worn my proper mask with filters. A GOOD reminder about safety. I then prepared the muka and feathers, sorting through my kūkupa collection for right colours, size and shape. I bound a few using wax cord and then tied them to the muka. I use Kūkupa feathers because of their significance to our whānau (Tito) and whakapapa.
A completed taonga in honour of Hori Winiata Tito. A wero I thoroughly enjoyed and love the piece for all the learning and for what it represents.
Things to improve on:
Starting to focus on gaining skill in whakarei because at the moment my pieces are 'naked' and would really benefit from the beauty that whakarei have to offer in both visual context and that of adding 'meaning'/korero to pieces. In particular pākati, unaunahi and haehae - I would like to come back at some stage and add whakarei to the tingongi.
I learnt afterwards from Korotangi about how to size up pieces and how to measure using non-standard units ie: fingertips to inner elbow, palm, shaka etc. He also talked about how the wahaika would have been used to disembowel opponents. He also spoke about the meaning of 'wahaika' mouth of a fish and the hook shape where it would bite into kidneys.
Instead of just picking up a block of wood and shaping it, next time it would be nice to try and design something with the grain in mind, utilising the grain to strengthen, enhance a piece rather than just for the sake of doing a piece. I acknowledge that I'm at a stage where I'm utilising rākau to gain experience but would like to put more thought into the grain and type of rākau suitable for the pieces.
I thought I'd take on the wero of creating a patu. I had a cut out piece that my bro had left behind in our hut in Tangiteroria. To challenge myself, I completely changed the shape. His original design was a mere pounamu shape, so I thought I'd do a more contemporary design... a cross between a mere pounamu and a wahaika patu.
I am learning so much about identifying rākau. I thought this piece wasn't kauri because the grain looked so different from my pūtōrino. I discovered while shaping this piece that in fact it was similar to the kauri with 'end grains' running throughout it. Sure enough, it was confirmed as kauri.
I designed my piece and was going to attempt some more stylised designs. While working on it my mind changed, firstly because of the nature of the grain while shaping, it was 'all over the place' so I thought if I tried to carve whakarei on this piece, I was going to make a heck of a mess. As the grain started revealing itself, it was very interesting and thought it will look beautiful without any whakarei, as long as I got the shape right. There was a tricky knot to get around and it tool me a long time to chip away at it.
Some of the challenges/learnings I have come across during this process are:
* Don't mark both sides of your design unless they perfectly align, it really threw me when I was shaping the design so after struggling getting confused I figured out to sand off the marks and it was helpful. Also, don't use a vivid so you can rub them out.
* Grain direction - ripping. So inconsistent and you have to be on your toes (and listen) the whole time so you can change direction when you need to.
* Knot - design around the knots. It took such a long time to carve out this knot and I had to sharpen my tools.
After spending all day wānanga working on my patu, it took a LONG time to shape. I pretty much spent all day shaping. I started drawing out the tapering and used my chisel to start chipping away. The next day, I pulled out my angle grinder and orbital sander - OMG what a difference they made. I appreciate the mahi that goes in to using your whao but I am also mindful of the words of wisdom from Matua Hek Busby around tools to use the best tools for the job, be it a chainsaw etc.
Once I started sanding, the grain really revealed itself. I was concerned when I inspected part of the patu and the pathway of the knot. I messaged my bro in Oz and he said it was probably a 'shake' which happens when the tree is felled. He told me it will either be weak OR really strong. I'm hoping it's super strong. Now I'm just working on getting the balance right in the form and weight. Lets' see how we go.
I was unhappy with the butt of the patu because I felt that it wasn't thought out properly, which proves the importance of sketching out you idea fully or to at least give yourself options visually. I also learnt about ripping the rakau while drilling. So to create a hole in the butt so I could tie in muka and feathers, I drilled a hole using my hand drill.
I pressed too hard going through and probably should have had a wooden block underneath the handle so the drill wouldn't rip the wood during exit. So I had to fix up that mistake or 'make and adjustment'.
I am stoked with my first patu. I spent a lot of time sanding it because the grain was so beautiful. I quite like a rough finish that shows the whao marks but for this piece, it felt right to give it a smooth finish and to coat it with Danish Oil.
I adorned the patu with muka and Kūkupa feathers. The muka was made from harakeke collected from Mangakahia Road between Awarua and Nukutāwhiti. Sadly the muka flax aren't there anymore because of forestry, but we were lucky enough to have transplanted some to the kaumatua flats in Tangiteroria. I like to add feathers to my pieces because on both sides of my parents, manu are considered kaitiaki and I use Kūkupa feathers in honour of our tupuna Kūkupa.
I'm familiar with many taonga pūoro and have made some using uku (clay) I wanted to learn about a new instrument so I chose a pūtōrino. I did some rangahau around the story of pūtōrino (Taonga pūoro - Brian Flintoff) I have based my design around the legend of Hine Raukatauri and the pūrerehua (moth) I'll attempt the whiriki rua whakarei to adorn the pūtōrinoto to acknowledge the celestial belt.
There will be a small paua inlay at the bottwm of the pūtōrino to represent the beauty of Hine Raukatauri's alluring voice and whare.
Toi Awe (creative process): Exploration of materials
For my taonga pūoro project, I chose a piece of wood left by my brother-in-law. I was unsure of what the wood was but when I took it in to class I was told it was Kauri. I learnt a lot about the challenges of carving kauri. The main challenge for me was learning to change carving direction so not to rip the wood. Even though the grain was obvious, I found that in sections of the wood, the grain seemed different, like end grains. I've always had a great respect for kauri as I have worked on furniture restoration pieces with an uncle many years ago and also the familiarity of visiting Tane Mahuta in Waipoua ngāhere. Being from the Dargaville area, we are also familiar with the stories of all the kauri logs that were taken along the Wairoa awa by early settlers.
- Toi Hanga (creating): An exploration of skills, techniques, processes and methods - Toi Raupapa (organisation) Evidence of studio practice, A tauira project brief. - Toi Aro (Self-reflection) Evidence of self-reflection, Resolving and Analysing.
I used my bench saw to start cutting out the pūtōrino and I used my new chisel (Tipene) to shape. I am s\grateful for the superjaws as I found it easy to get around my work rather that using a vice on my bench.
I had a play around with carving some pine and it was really tricky. It would often split easily and chip so I had to be super patient when practising whakarei using pine. I practiced haehae and pākati using the pine block. After gaining more confidence using the whao, I used the off-cut from the kauri block to practise whakarei (haehae) that was similar to what I wanted to carve onto my toanga pūoro.
Once the shape was sorted, I drew the whakarei onto the pūtōrino and then split it using the band saw at Northtec. It was tricky to cut but I was grateful for Wilz showing me how to make a jig to stop the pūtōrino from moving. I noticed that the band saw left cut marks along the split and realised that it will need sanding before joining. I'm not too sure on how to fix that either. Do I need to move slower? Do I need to use a different machine to cut? I then started hollowing out the centre. I used a gouge chisel that I bought from George Campbell. During this process I had to sharpen the chisel. I took me such a long time to get it right. An observation I made is that I need a lot more practise sharpening my tools before I get the knack of it.
During the hollowing out process, I would tape the pūtōrino together using electrical tape, to see if it would make a noise. The first time i taped it up, I couldn't make any sound so I knew that I had to hollow out more of the wood, partly because the trumpet piece was too thick and also the mouth piece on the side opening. The mouth opening I found tricky to do because i didn't want to snap the half by drilling a hole so I chose a small dremel drill bit to use and slowly made the hole bigger that way rather than use a large drill bit. It worked but took quite some time to do.
Once I could produce a sound from both openings, I sanded the joins to get rid of the jagged edges that the band saw created. I flipped my mouse sander upside down and used that, careful not to take too much of the edge off so they wouldn't fit together again. When I was happy with the join, I applied PVA wood glue to both surfaces and clamped using my super jaws and some padding being very careful not to apply too much pressure. I left that over night.
The next day I inspected the join. On reflection I could have possibly spent more time on sanding back the edges a bit more because the join was still obvious. Now came the MOST challenging part, carving the whakarei. I practiced again on the off cut, trying to figure out which tool would be best for the job. Advice from my bro was just 'slow and steady'
A made a number of observations while carving.
1. Sometimes going too slow and steady doesn't do a nice clean cut as opposed to being confident and tapping the whakarei with the right amount of force. I found the slow and steady cuts needed tidying up afterwards.
2. Keep an eye (and ear) out for the change in the grain. I could hear splitting while doing the whiriki lines and knew instantly that I had to change direction of my chisel line. Sometimes I didn't listen carefully enough and small bits chipped off.
3. Your whao needs to be sharp! I used the factory sharp 13/4 whao thinking the smaller the chisel the better because its only a small piece... WRONG once I used my fav chisel 'Hori" which is a sharp haehae chisel and moves through the wood nicely, it really tidied up my cuts and its obvious on the completed piece which whao I used on each half.
After nervously completing the whakarei I thought about what thread to use to bind the pūtōrino. I gave the pūtōrino a good coat of danish oil and then rubbed all the excess oil off because I read somewhere that the oil helps harden the wood. I had some black thread and wrapped some around to have a look...
I instantly thought the thread was too thick for the piece and then tried wax string. I also thought the wax string would create a tighter binding. I had to watch a you tube video to figure out how to bind tidily. It actually took way longer (and quite a few attempts) to get it right.
Final reflection: When working in my workshop at home I felt it super important to always start with karakia. One practise I need to also include is to finish with karakia. I found because I would always go back to my workshop throughout the day I never really thought about "Am I coming back in here later?" so there wasn't any 'finish' time set.
I absolutely enjoyed this project and felt proud of what I had achieved. Like anything else we do, skill comes with practise and I have to learn to tackle the whakarei with confidence, the same way I do everything else (tools, shaping etc). I look forward to the next task and I'm also keen on getting acquainted with 'other' rākau.
Things I'd do differently next time:
* Figure out how to have a cleaner cut when cutting piece in half)
* I would spend more time on the joins - thinking about our tupuna who wouldn;t have used PVA glue to join, they would have made the join as seamless as possible so no air could escape, even with the binding there would have to be no gaps at all.
* Sharpen all the chisels,
* Keep practising whakarei
* Use some smaller g/f-clamps when joining rather that clamping just the middle using the superjaw.
* Possibly look at different stains to highlight the beauty of the rakau..
