Join Professor Ngarino Ellis for the 2026 Auckland Museum Institute Humanities Lecture.
TUE 18 AUG, 6PM - 7.30PM
TE MATA TAIRONGO AUDITORIUM, LEVEL 2
BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL, PAY WHAT YOU CAN
What kind of conversation can a whakatauki, a chevroned whalebone adornment and a braided length of human hair have across time and place? Each has its own stories to tell about the whakapapa of rākai (adornment) and its practices, and together reveal a world where people, ideas and materials were constantly shifting, yet the values that surrounded and underpinned them continued through the many generations.
Our ancestors composed oral records filled with accounts of delicate bird feathers gracing the ear, and of ancestors whose use of scented perfumes are marked on the land. Memories of Pacific art designs influenced taonga stylistically for generations, while other stories come from deep in the whenua which help us trace a remarkable transformation of culture, from Pacific to hapū to styles which are being re-made by contemporary artists in their journey to compress time and space through their art, and celebrate resilience of culture in all its forms.
Join Professor Ngarino Ellis as she traces these ideas through the origins of Māori adornment and how the conversation has changed over time.
About Ngarino Ellis
Professor Ngarino Ellis (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Pōrou) is the Associate Head of School - Mātauranga Māori at the University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau.
Curiosity about the role of art across cultures has characterised the career of Ngarino. Her undergraduate dreams of diplomat life have taken on new meaning since spending time in museums and art galleries, compelling her to create pathways between taonga and communities, scholars and artists, both in Aotearoa and overseas. Speaking, teaching, curating and writing about taonga especially collaboratively has been recognised nationally and internationally, and continues to fuel new projects, most recently the Marsden-funded Ngā Taonga o Wharawhara: The World of Māori Body Adornment, part of which will be discussed at this event.
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