A waka carved from a fallen 700-year-old pōhutukawa tree has been blessed in a dawn ceremony on Waiheke Island today.
The six-metre-tall tree had fallen in the backyard of philanthropists Andrew Barnes and Charlotte Lockhart's property on Waiheke four years ago.
The couple sought an artist to give the tree new life, eventually picking Waiheke Māori ringatoi / carver Anton Forde for the project.
After years of setbacks caused by weather events, life events, and the Covid-19 pandemic, Forde finished the mammoth task — using the fallen tree to carve a 16-metre waka.
It was fashioned after a waka tētē, a type of travelling waka which would have been common on Waiheke.
The waka was blessed at a dawn ceremony this morning, where it was gifted the name Te Aroha by Ngāti Pāoa.
Forde said the creation of the waka "has been a constant in my life and has enable connection and reconnection in many ways".
"I think everyone here in Aotearoa New Zealand connects with a waka in some way. Many important things have happened [as the waka was created] – births, deaths, marriages, sicknesses, a pandemic, floods," he said.
"For me it’s one of the biggest works I’ve ever done, and the last waka I’ll ever do. For the last four years, for every work I’ve completed, this waka has been there with me, and with Charlotte and Andrew. It’s special."
The waka will be permanently located at Postage Stamps Wine, in Onetangi, Waiheke Island, where visitors will be able to see the sculpture during visiting hours. (Source: Supplied)
On the front of the waka sculpture is a kuaka, connecting with a significant nearby bay Kuakarau, and the bird that travels thousands of kilometres in March, returning home in summer.
It also features a whai (stingray) that is often referred to as a kaitiaki of the area.
Represented on the back of the waka is Tangaroa / Atua of waterways, and an albatross raukura / feather. The rauawa / side gunnels connect with pakura / pūkeko footsteps connecting with the estuary and puna that have been a playground for pūkeko for centuries.
Lockhart and Barnes see the project as "rejuvenation and the circle of life" after the project was started the year Lockhart was diagnosed with breast cancer.
"The pōhutukawa had stood proudly for its lifetime at the entrance to the harbour, a beacon for people coming to Auckland," Lockhart said.
"It represents society in general, I think, how life goes in waves, not just a constant line. It's always ups and downs. For me, the waka represents the idea there’s always hope – when there are bad times, you hold on to hope and the good times will come again."
Barnes said the creation of the waka was "very personal for everyone involved".
"Charlotte and I, and Anton and Ngāti Pāoa have supported each other to create a deeply connected sculpture, from the first karakia or blessing of the tree when it came down to the final whakatuwhera, the unveiling, of the waka."
Details of the waka, crafted by artist Anton Forde. (Source: Supplied)
It will be permanently located at Postage Stamps Wines – owned by Barnes and Lockhart – in Onetangi, where visitors will be able to see the sculpture during visiting hours.
Postage Stamp is significant to the island, as the area was where waka would be anchored when travellers journeyed from from Coromandel, Aotea, and Tāmaki Makaurau. Travellers would navigate through Pūtiki Bay and an estuary to reach their destination.
Lockhart and Barnes set up the Onetangi Waka Trust via the Perpetual Guardian Foundation "to protect and maintain" the waka sculpture and have organised a structure "to ensure its ongoing upkeep".
The waka, Te Aroha, which was crafted by Anton Forde out of a fallen 700-year-old pōhutukawa tree. (Source: Supplied)
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