Urban Kainga

Artists Reweti Arapere, Terry Koloamatangi Klavenes, Nick McFarlane and Siliga David Setoga explore identity, culture and urban society in City Gallery Wellington’s new exhibition Urban Kainga, which runs 16 January to 28 March 2010.

Curator Reuben Friend says that while there are similarities in background and area of focus, the four artists explore these themes in very different ways.

“Urban Kainga presents four male artists from the South Pacific who were raised in and around New Zealand’s working class communities, where traditional culture and custom collided with economic hardship. Their art echoes the economic and cultural setting of this suburban environment, and tells the tale of transplanted cultures and the process of building identity under the pressures of urban life.”

Terry Koloamatangi Klavenes’ photography documents his kainga, his family and community. His art presents a personal history, yet it is a story shared by many men of his generation. Through his photography Klavenes investigates the ways in which his cultural heritage and this suburban environment have shaped his identity.

Artist Nick McFarlane grew up near Porirua in Wellington, a community where gang members had a strong presence during the 1980's. As a child of Pakeha descent growing up around these kinds of urban tribes, McFarlane observed that the gangs were a side-effect of greater social problems. His reworked gang patches describe some of the conditions in which gangs thrive.

Rewete Arapere (Ngati Raukawa, Tuwharetoa) comes from the new generation of Maori who have gone through Kohanga Reo, Kura Kaupapa Maori, and tertiary level Maori studies. This generation are confident in expressing themselves ethnically as Maori, as well as successfully navigating contemporary metropolitan culture. Arapere’s work combines traditional poupou (ancestral figures), and street style graffiti stencils.

Siliga David Setoga’s art looks at the impact of mass marketing and the media on his community and identity. His art reworks globally recognised brands, often revealing insidious messages concealed beneath the attractive packaging. In doing so he playfully addresses serious issues facing Pacific Island communities, such as the predatory nature of some finance companies, and the unhealthy influence of fast food advertising.

The Deane Gallery is one of City Gallery Wellington’s new exhibition spaces which is dedicated to exhibiting art focussed on issues of particular interest to Maori and Pacific audiences. Urban Kainga is the first group exhibition in the new gallery, following the opening solo exhibition by Ngaahina Hohaia.