Ko rātou, ko tātou | On other-ness, on us-ness

NorthArt, Northcote, Auckland, Aotearoa | New Zealand
curated by Salama Moata McNamara + Sonja van Kerkhoff

opened 16 March 2020. Closed on March 22nd.
New Zealand was in lockdown on 26 March - 13 May.
The exhibition was open from 14 -30 May.

Some artworks were responses to the 2019 Christchurch mosque massacres while others are recontexualisations in relation to the Qur'an and the diverse cultures and histories of Islamic worlds. The curation positions work by contemporary artists and craftmakers in multi-layered dialogues with an Islamic space.

Left to Right: Wave (detail), custom-made water tank with silkscreened water wake,
by Jeff Thomson
Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level (2018) by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki. Acrylic, gesso, printed perspex, metal lugs, pencil, sealant on board (99 x 61cm), plastic spirit level (6 x 61cm).
Gavin Chilcott Pilgrimage to Mecca Framed pastel on paper
Joanna Margaret Paul, from the Eros and Psyche series (111) gouache on silk, 1966/67
Untitled Jeff Thomson Cut corrugated iron, 2 pieces Floor sculpture by Jeff Thomson
Untitled Jeff Thomson Silk- screened flayed rope on corrugated iron
(foreground) Ursula Christel New Space / Takawaenga (2020) re-purposed wooden table (dia. 118cm), 4 table legs (H: 46cm), vinyl flooring, 3mm acrylic sheets (83 x 83cm), glass chess board (38 x 38cm), ceramic tile (20 x 20cm), composite board (dia. 65cm), jute, LED lights
New Space / Takawaenga is a conceptual assemblage inspired by geometry and the floor plan of the Dome of the Rock. It refers also to a quote by George Dei (2006) - "Inclusion is not bringing people into what already exists; it is making a new space, a better space for everyone." Takawaenga is a process.

northart, whangarei exhibition
Left to Right: Wave (detail), custom-made water tank by Jeff Thomson Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level
(2018) by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki. Acrylic, gesso, printed perspex, metal lugs, pencil, sealant
on board (99 x 61cm), plastic spirit level (6 x 61cm). Gavin Chilcott Pilgrimage to Mecca Framed pastel on paper.
Arabic text above reads: "first house (avvala baytin)"
A4 text below this begins with:
"Indeed, the first House [of worship] established for humanity was that at Makkah
- blessed and a guidance for the worlds". The Qur'an, 3:96

This is one of 5 texts in Arabic arranged around the first gallery.

artists
Adibah Saad, Wellington
Azadeh Emadi, Glasgow, Scotland
Brenda Liddiard, Auckland,
Carolyn Lye, Karetu, The Far North,
Christina Wirihana, Bay of Plenty
Emma Paton, Auckland
Fiona Lee Graham, Auckland
Java Bentley, Auckland
Jeff Thomson, Helensville
Jessika Kenney, Los Angeles, U.S.
Joanna Margaret Paul, Whanganui
John Mulholland, Warkworth
Layla Walter, Auckland
Lipika Sen, Auckland
Michelle Mayn, Auckland,
Narjis Mirza, Sydney, Australia
Phil Dadson, Auckland,
Salama Moata McNamara, Auckland
Sen McGlinn, Kawakawa
Sonja van Kerkhoff, Kawakawa | The Hague, The Netherlands
Tash Nikora, Whangārei
Ursula Christel (Mokopōpaki), Warkworth

northart, whangarei exhibition
Foreground: Wave (detail), corrugated iron water tank on a stand tank by Jeff Thomson with
The Disconnected Letters (Huruf al-Muqatta'āt), chalk, by Sen McGlinn

The Huruf al-Muqatta'ā, known as the the Disconnectioned Letters are letters that have no specific meaning that appear at the beginning of each chapter of the Qur'an, seem to dance inside the watery wake imagery by Jeff Thomson.

Ko rātou, ko tātou | On other-ness, on us-ness

NorthArt, Northcote, Auckland, Aotearoa | New Zealand curated by Salama Moata McNamara + Sonja van Kerkhoff

opened 16 March 2020. Closed on March 22nd. New Zealand was in lockdown on 26 March - 13 May. The exhibition was open from 14 -30 May.

NorthArt, Northcote, Auckland, Aotearoa | New Zealand
curated by Salama Moata McNamara + Sonja van Kerkhoff

opened 16 March 2020. Closed on March 22nd.
New Zealand was in lockdown on 26 March - 13 May.
The exhibition was open from 14 -30 May.