Project 1 : Space 1st Shoot

Unedited photos from my first shoot.

Location: Te Herenga Waka Marae, Kelburn Campus, Kelburn Parade.

The objectives of these photos is to display the elements surrounding this wharenui (meeting house). This marae is located in the heart of kelburn, a very urban suburb, and is not typical of your usual rural setting. 

The focal point in the photos is Kupe who is the carving at the top if the meeting house.  My initial thought before going to the location to take the photos was to get more of the rest of the Marae being empty and showing the different space the marae holds when it is not in buzzing with people.  But when I saw what this wharenui had in relationship with the space around it i.e, the surrounding buildings, and construction cranes etc, I thought about a very strong concept in Maori Tikanga (way of doing things) in this case is "tapu and noa" which is translated as "sacred and ordinary/common" and when I look at a Marae and especially its wharenui, for me its hold a sense of sacredness, but when I see the other buildings around it, I feel totally opposite and see them as just a building. So what I tried to capture was this contrast of the space that this marae is surrounded by and the uniqueness it has in the middle of such an ordinary place.