Tag: travel
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Home again
We are home again after our overseas trip and what a trip it was! Over the next few weeks I shall share some of the exciting things we saw in Venice at the Art Biennale, in London, Shetland, and Athens. You can see a few of the things we have seen in the slideshow at…
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Lobola – negotiating an African wedding
Thank you to our South African reader who sent this in to share. In Africa, weddings are often marked by a “bride price” – a payment that signals the negotiations for the joining together of two families. Lobola is a cultural practice that differs across the continent, and in South Africa it is often part…
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Conversation and Cloth – Hokitika
The West Coast of Aotearoa New Zealand is full of history and tales. In the middle of the Southern Winter, as the world turns and seasons change, a star cluster rises in the sky. This is known in New Zealand as Matariki, a shortened version of “Ngā Mata o te Ariki Tāwhirimātea” (the eyes of the…
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A tapa sampler
The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Aotearoa’s national museum, has a unique taonga: a book of tapa samples. This book, rather grandly entitled “A Catalogue of the different specimens of cloth collected in the three voyages of Captain Cook, to the Southern hemisphere : with a particular account of the manner of the…
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How technology can help Cantonese opera
In the city of Hong Kong the centuries-old art of Cantonese opera is making use of technology to help students to learn the artform and sustain it. Professor Leung Bo Wah, Head of Cultural and Creative Art at the Education University of Hong Kong, has created a virtual reality programme, using the same 3D imaging…
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African fashion in Australia
At the end of this month, the National Gallery of Victoria is hosting an exhibition of African fashion, curated by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The exhibition will be supported, it is hoped, by photographs from Australian communities with links to the diaspora, particularly those from the independence and liberation period (mid-1950s to…
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Venice and the Biennale
Since 1895 La Biennale di Venezia has been promoting art in its many forms. This year the theme, Stranieri ovunque/ Foreigners everywhere, has led to prestigious awards for Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia. The Golden Lion for the Best Participant in the International Exhibition has been won by Mataaho Collective. This quartet of Māori wāhine…
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Paradise Road
On the 27th April 1994, the first democratic elections in South Africa were held, ultimately leading to Nelson Mandela becoming President. It was a time of hope and positive change was in the air. There was jubilation and joy, and community, much celebrated around the world. Music had supported and helped to lead the way…
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Feedback on the blog
Many thanks to everyone who responded to last week’s request for feedback. It is appreciated. Some things readers said… Phew! That is a good amount of great feedback, isn’t it? There are some things that people have suggested might make the blog better to read. These are technical things such as the placement of the…
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Of cranberries and kahikatea
Weekends on the West Coast are spent exploring the area and this week that exploration took in cranberry growing and kahikatea forests. Agriculture in Aotearoa New Zealand is the largest part of the economy with regards to trade, and is unique in having an unsubsidised agricultural sector as a result of reforms aimed at making…