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Kerry Howe to curate Waka Moana
When Rodney Wilson sat down to read Quest for
Origins he lost no time in seeking out the author. Dr Wilson, Director
of the Auckland War Memorial Museum, had a stunning proposition to put
to History Professor Kerry Howe, after reading his acclaimed work on the
settlement of New Zealand and the Pacific. Dr Wilson invited Professor
Howe to become a curator for a major exhibition the museum is planning.
Waka Moana – Voyagers of the Sunrise is scheduled to open in late
2005 or early 2006. It is a project of the same scale as Te Mäori
or the Hillary exhibition and it is expected to tour the world’s
leading exhibition centres after opening in Auckland.
Already the team of curators, including Professor Howe, is developing
the concepts for Waka Moana. Plans for the exhibition, which is a partnership
between the museum and the National Geograhic Society, have not yet been
publicly announced.
The exhibition outline site states the purpose of Waka Moana is to bring
to the world the comparatively little known story of the exploration and
settlement of the vast Pacific basin. It will give an understanding of
the craft, sailing technologies and navigational skills of these ‘Stone
Age’ astronauts. It will also inspire the world with the achievements
of the Oceanic peoples.
Dr Wilson says he has had the notion of an exhibition of this type in
mind for some time and is delighted to be able to add Professor Howe,
with his area of specialisation, to the curatorial team. The exhibition
is drawing together the best international scholarship on the subject,
says Dr Wilson.
Waka Moana will be a multi-sensory and participatory experience for visitors.
It will include artifacts, reconstructed craft, film and sound, engravings,
log books, charts, instruments and multi-media. A book of the same title
is also being prepared.
Professor Howe is involved in two areas of the curatorial brief. On the
subject of exploration and emigration he is working with Geoff Irwin,
Professor in Archeology at Auckland University. Under the heading of Two
Worlds he is working with Auckland University anthropologist, Professor
Dame Anne Salmond.
For Professor Howe the opportunity to be involved is an unexpected spin-off
from his book, launched earlier this year.
“I am very excited about the project. It’s probably a once
in a lifetime opportunity.”
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