PEPE Matariki

Arts Organisation: Good Company Arts

Vision:

The potential to develop nine short solo choreographies by emerging Māori dance artists and to twin these dances with commissioned taonga pūoro sonic compositions, that relate specifically to the nine stars of the Matariki cluster, is exciting. GCA proposed that each short work will pair one of the traditional Māori instrument whānau to a dancer and a star, so that the relationship becomes triadic. Picture that these nine cinematic journeys or triads, which are to respond poetically to the Matariki constellation, then can be expanded from 2D film form to immersive 3D Extended Reality (XR). This is what GCA proposed - a showcase of nine digital VR/AR works, hosted via bespoke web portal to celebrate Matariki through human movement, music and XR - for web interaction with our global family, sharing the rich cultural heritage of Aotearoa.

Inspiration:

For early Pacific Island ocean travellers, the changing phenomenon of the sea and weather conditions created challenging navigation situations. Polynesian ancestors of Māori sailed thousands of kilometres and routes were preserved in memory or recorded in song and dance. The navigators on these voyages were guided by the night skies and other natural phenomena. They developed star compasses and are known to have fashioned stick charts as navigational aids. For Māori their maps were an oral cartography. Navigation through sound and dance - how we extend the body in space through gesture, can tap spatial dimensions that reconnect us to the cosmos. Envision each dancer responding to specific taonga pūoro instruments through the universal heart languages of sound and movement. The films might exist like miniature portraits, tracking each dancer and their musician partner as their mahi honours each of the nine Matariki stars - Matariki, Pōhutukawa, Tupuānuku, Tupuārangi, Waitī, Waitā, Waipunarangi, Ururangi, Hiwaiterangi/Hiwa.

GCA's concept for the Matariki Digital Arts Commission is to develop and migrate a 2D film workflow into the immersive 360 XR space. Viewers from around the world be enabled to access these XR episodes through portable devices such as smart phones, tablets, desktop computers, or VR headsets. Sending messages, marking significant stages in life, and ceremonies particularly that involve the coming together of community such as during Matariki are supported through sacred practice with dance and taonga pūoro.

Imagery Credit: Mahina-Ina Kingi-Kaui and Nancy Wijohn in Good Company Arts PEPE project POC 2023.