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NEW ZEALAND ARTS

New Zealand: An Exciting Blend of Cultural Influences.

The arts in New Zealand reflect an exciting blend of cultural influences including Maori and Pacific Island, as well as European and Asian. From haka to hip-hop, fashion to filmmaking, New Zealand artists are making their mark at home and around the world.

AUCKLAND MUSEUM

Whether you're interested in Maori carving or abstract painting, you'll find lots of art in New Zealand. Traditional Maori arts such as carving and weaving are alive and well. You'll find excellent examples in museums, shops, and on marae (meeting grounds) throughout the country.

Early Painters

New Zealand has a fine tradition of painting. C.F. Goldie (1870 - 1947) and Gottfried Lindauer (1839 - 1926) were two early artists who painted portraits of Maori subjects. Frances Hodgkins (1869 - 1947) is one of New Zealand's most acclaimed and influential painters. She was associated with a number of avant-garde British movements including Neo Romanticism.

Modern Masters

Rita Angus (1908 - 1970) is a much-loved New Zealand artist who painted beautiful New Zealand landscapes and a large number of self-portraits. Colin McCahon (1919 - 1987) painted a large number of landscapes and used text, often of a religious nature, in many of his works. 'His Practical Religion 1969', featuring the words 'I AM', has become an iconic New Zealand artwork.

Striking and Provocative

New Zealand has a vibrant contemporary art scene and most New Zealand towns have interesting art galleries and shops. Maori and Pacific, as well as feminist influences, are strong in contemporary New Zealand art. Artists such as Ralph Hotere, John Pule, Michael Parekowhai and Robyn Kahukiwa, not only create striking and dramatic images, but also provoke reactions from their audience.

Early Giant

Katherine Mansfield (1888 - 1923) is the giant of early New Zealand literature. Regarded as being one of the finest short-story writers in English, she is the first in a long line of excellent New Zealand short-story writers. Stories such as 'The Doll's House', 'At the Bay', and 'The Garden Party' are superb examples of Mansfield's depiction of turn-of-the-century colonial New Zealand.

Devastatingly Good

The twentieth century saw the emergence of many fine New Zealand novelists including John Mulgan ('Man Alone'), Robin Hyde ('The Godwits Fly'), Maurice Shadbolt ('Strangers and Journeys'), and Janet Frame ('Owls do Cry').

Born in 1924, Janet Frame is one of New Zealand's most highly regarded novelists. Frame's books include devastating accounts of the treatment of mental patients in New Zealand during the 1950's and 60's. Her best-selling three-part autobiography was made into a top-rating television series and film--'An Angel at my Table'.

New Generation

New Zealand's best-known Maori writers include Patricia Grace, Alan Duff, and Witi Ihimaera. Duff's bleak 'Once Were Warriors', depicting a violent, dysfunctional Maori family, was made into an international hit movie by Maori filmmaker Lee Tamahori.

An exciting younger generation of New Zealand novelists including new-ager Elizabeth Knox ('The Vintner's Luck'), Gen X-er Emily Perkins ('Not Her Real Name'), Bulgarian-born Kapka Kassabova ('Reconnaissance'), and Samoan-born Sia Figiel ('Where we once belonged') show that contemporary New Zealand literature has a wide range of cultural and stylistic influences.

Poetry

It should come as no surprise that much of New Zealand's best poetry is about the country's landscape. However, major New Zealand poets including James K. Baxter, ARD Fairburn, Denis Glover, Allen Curnow, and Sam Hunt also reveal a keen social conscience and wry sense of humour.

Fashioning an Industry

New Zealand fashion has come of age in the last few years. Exciting designers such as Karen Walker, World, and Zambesi have put the country on the fashion map, frequently exhibiting in London and Sydney. New Zealand fashion used to be largely a copy of European styles. Now it is a vibrant and dynamic industry with a range of influences, including those of Maori and the Pacific Islands.

Music and Dance

New Zealand has three professional symphony orchestras, including the highly acclaimed NZSO (New Zealand Symphony Orchestra). There are also a large number of excellent choirs, including the National Youth Choir, which recently won a number of prestigious internationalevents.

Recent co-productions between European-style groups, such as the Royal New Zealand Ballet and the NZSO, and Maori music and dance groups, are examples of a bicultural 'fusion' currently occurring.

New Waves

New Zealand has a diverse contemporary and alternative music scene. While rapper OMC (Pauly Fuemana) and Crowded House's Neil Finn are probably our best known musicians, other performers including Bic Runga, HLAH, Stellar, Shihad, Weta, and King Kapisi are currently making waves.

On Stage

As well as supporting a thriving local theatre scene, New Zealand performers regularly appear at festivals abroad, including the Edinburgh and Adelaide Festivals. Maori and Pacific Island writers and performers have had a big impact on the New Zealand theatre, giving it a unique and colourful Polynesian-influenced identity.

On Film

A competitive exchange rate, excellent scenery, and a highly skilled workforce make New Zealand the perfect place to shoot a movie. New Zealand has produced many top directors, including Roger Donaldson ('Cocktail', 'Species'), Jane Campion ('The Piano'), Lee Tamahori ('Once Were Warriors', 'The Edge'), and Peter Jackson, who filmed his massive 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy in New Zealand.

Movies such as 'Smash Palace', 'Once Were Warriors', 'The Piano', 'Heavenly Creatures' and 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy have proved that New Zealand can produce unique and intelligent movies equal to the best in the world.

THE PEOPLE

Today, New Zealanders are largely sophisticated and highly educated urban dwellers. Members of a unique and vibrant multicultural society, New Zealanders are embracing 21st century technology and culture in record numbers. But New Zealanders also have a background of quiet but rugged individualism, self-reliance, and a genius for invention--qualities still evident in the population today.

CULTURE

MAORI DANCE

New Zealand has a very unique and dynamic culture. The culture of its indigenous Maori people affects the language, the arts, and even the accents of all New Zealanders. Their place in the South Pacific, and their love of the outdoors, sport, and the arts make New Zealanders and their culture unique in the world.

FACTS

New Zealand

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1. While it is no longer the case, New Zealand was once governed as a part of the territory of New South Wales (later a part of Australia). When Australia federated in 1901, New Zealand was offered a place as one of their states. New Zealand refused and is its own country with no ties (other than economic and commonwealth) to Australia.

2. A kiwi is not a fruit – it is New Zealand’s native flightless bird and a slang term for a New Zealander. Kiwis call the fruit “kiwifruit” – they are also known as Chinese Gooseberries.

3. New Zealand was the first major nation to have universal suffrage. In 1893 it became legal for all male and female citizens of New Zealand to vote.

4. New Zealand was first discovered by Europeans in 1642 when Dutch sailor Abel Tasman arrived. He left New Zealand after several of his crew were killed by Maoris, and it was not until 1769 that English Captain James Cook arrived and mapped the land.

5. Queen Elizabeth II is officially Queen of New Zealand. She is represented in New Zealand by a Governor General, who ratifies all laws put before him or her by the elected parliament of New Zealand.

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6. New Zealand is one of only three countries that have two official (and of equal standing) national Anthems. The first is God Save the Queen (the English National Anthem) and the other is God Defend New Zealand. The other two countries with two anthems are Denmark and Canada which both have a Royal Anthem and a State anthem.

7. Another native bird of New Zealand (the Moa) was one of the largest birds in history – standing up to 3.6m (12 foot) tall and weighing 300kg. Unfortunately they were hunted to extinction by the Maoris by the end of the 1500s.

8. When the Europeans arrived in New Zealand, it was already inhabited by the Maori people – Eastern polynesian settlers who arrived some time between 800 and 1300. Oral tradition says that they came from a place named Hawaiki; its location is unknown. The very strong linguistic connection to Cook Island Maori might suggest that they originated from that region of the Pacific.

9. Another group of settlers (who most likely came from the same group as the original Maoris) settled on the Chatham Islands. They were called the Morioris and they were pacifists. In 1835, groups of Maoris moved to the Chatham islands and wiped out nearly all of the Morioris – leaving only 100 by 1862. The last full-blooded Moriori (Tommy Solomon) died in 1933. [Image above: Tamati Waka Nene, a Maori Chief]

10. New Zealand was the first country to have its three top positions of power held simultaneously by women: The Prime Minister (Helen Clark), the Governor General (Dame Silvia Cartwright), and the Chief Justice (Sian Elias).

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11. New Zealand has a strong hold on the international trade in sheep meat. There are presently around 9 sheep to every 1 human in New Zealand (the population of New Zealand is 4 million).

12. Wellington, the Capital City of New Zealand is the southernmost capital city in the world. 

13. New Zealand was forced out of the ANZUS (Australia, New Zealand, United States) alliance in the 1980s when it outlawed nuclear arms and power. To this day, there are no nuclear power stations in New Zealand, and a change of law would be required before one could be built. New Zealand retains its military ties with the United Kingdom.

14. New Zealand has one of the most liberal media arenas in the world. Distinctly left wing versus right wing press is not as obvious there as in other nations.

15. New Zealand is a plastic nation – almost all personal financial transactions are made with a card – credit or otherwise. Most shops offer EFTPOS (similar to the UK Chip and Pin which appeared two years later) and cash is seen less and less. It is possible that New Zealand was the first nation to offer this system of payment. The majority of taxis now allow you to pay without cash through this system.

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16. New Zealand is a fairly liberal nation with homosexual marriage (Civil Union) being legal and prostitution, soliciting, and brothel keeping being legal. The driving age is 15, the consensual sex age is 16, and the drinking age is 18 (though minors accompanied by adults are allowed alcohol in restaurants).

17. Lake Taupo (one of New Zealand’s most popular tourist destinations) was the source of the largest known eruption in the world in the last 70 thousand years. It had a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 8. It released over 530 cubit kilometers of magma. 

18. New Zealand was the last major landmass to be populated (with the exception of the polar regions).

19. New Zealander and Nobel Prize Winner, Ernest Rutherford is known as the father of nuclear physics for his orbital theory of the atom.

20. Sir Edmund Hillary – the first man to reach the peak of Mount Everest was a New Zealander (born in Auckland) and his face is on the New Zealand $5 bill.