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Baird, A. (2018, April 24). Māori outraged as gallery considers exhibiting 'racist' painting. Retrieved from https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/national/māori-outraged-as-gallery-considers-exhibiting-racist-painting/ar-AAwgigT

Chevalier, N. (n.d.). Maori war canoe approaching Taranaki[Photograph found in Art Collection, Te Papa, Wellington, NZ]. Retrieved from https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/37318 (Originally photographed 1879)

Edwards, J. (2015, October 27). Te Papa buys $1.5 million William Strutt colonial painting. Retrieved from https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/capital-life/73379860/te-papa-buys-15-million-william-strutt-colonial-painting

Haynes Writer, J. (2008). Unmasking, Exposing, and Confronting: Critical Race Theory, Tribal Critical Race Theory and Multicultural Education. International Journal of Multicultural Education,10(2). doi:10.18251/ijme.v10i2.137

Illustrated London News. (1863, August 29). "The War in New Zealand. The 57th Regiment taking a Maori Redoubt on the Katikara River, Taranaki". Retrieved from https://collection.pukeariki.com/objects/26673

Keenan, D. (2017, August 16). New Zealand wars', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved from https://teara.govt.nz/en/new-zealand-wars

Langford, A. (2018, May 01). Jamie Tuuta and the Strutt Painting. Retrieved from https://www.radionz.co.nz/programmes/ours/story/2018641597/jamie-tuuta-and-the-strutt-painting

Mclaughlin, J., & Whatman, S. (2011). The potential of critical race theory in decolonizing university curricula. Asia Pacific Journal of Education,31(4), 365-377. doi:10.1080/02188791.2011.621243

Muir & Moodie Studio. (n.d.). Mount Egmont, Taranaki, New Zealand[Photograph found in Photography Collection, Te Papa, Wellington, NZ]. Retrieved from https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/321145 (Originally photographed 1908)

Oakley, W. (n.d.). View of Mount Egmont (Taranaki)[Photograph found in Photography Collection, Te Papa, Wellington, NZ]. Retrieved from https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/125883 (Originally photographed 1930)

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It is unclear why the initial purchase of the work was uncontentious, but regardless, it seems Te Papa and the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery missed an opportunity to make this a learning moment for all involved while sending a clear message to the public: Any representation or presentation of Māori history without Māori input is an act of colonialism and indigenous erasure, and this is not in line with the gallery or museum's values. Perhaps the most obvious response to the controversy would have been a public commitment to consulting Māori leaders on the display of the work and reassurance that any display of the painting will be accompanied by in depth analysis and context for the painting, focusing on its role in perpetuating dangerous and racist stereotypes.

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“Indigenous knowledge is part of the struggle of self-determination, political and intellectual sovereignty of Indigenous peoples. Claiming Indigenous knowledge in the Western academy is an anti-colonial struggle for independence from exploitative relations of schooling and knowledge production. For critical learning, the strength of Indigeneity lies in the synergies of culture, history and identity” (Mclaughlin and Whatman, 2011, pg. 14).

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"The War in New Zealand. The 57th Regiment taking a Maori Redoubt on the Katikara River, Taranaki."

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"The War in New Zealand. The 57th Regiment taking a Maori Redoubt on the Katikara River, Taranaki."

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Published in the Illustrated London News, 1863

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New Zealand Wars
"In the 1840s and 1860s conflict over sovereignty and land led to battles between government forces and some Māori tribes. The largest campaign was the clash between the Māori king and the Crown. Land confiscations to punish tribes that fought against the Crown have left a long legacy of grievances" (Keenan, 2017, para 1)

Conflict in the 1860s

"The most sustained and widespread campaign was the clash between the British Empire and the Māori king fought in Taranaki, Waikato and the Bay of Plenty between 1860 and 1864" (Keenan, 2017, para 3)

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In response to criticism, the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery exhibit intended to feature the painting was postponed as of April 24, 2018 to allow time for further review of complaints and seek consultation for next steps. No further announcements have been made.

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The situation is a complicated one for the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery. When the artwork was purchased by Te Papa in 2015, there was no public backlash when the museum announced it had spent half its yearly budget to acquire the work. At the time, Te Papa chief executive Rick Ellis (since retired) said "There are very few paintings that reflect the historical events that were unfolding during this period – it captures a powerful moment in our history" (Edwards, 2015, para. 8), and museum art curator Rebecca Rice called the work an "exotic spectacle," stating "the national art collection doesn't have any other significant oil paintings from the 1850s and 1860s, so this painting is particularly precious" (Edwards, 2015, para. 11).

Paintings by William Strutt are considered rare and valuable pieces to any New Zealand collection. Given this as well as the overwhelmingly positive response at the time of Te Papa's acquisition, I think it unlikely the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery could have anticipated the degree of fallout their decision to display the painting would incite. This does not absolve them, but I can see how they would have assumed public reception would have been as positive as that experienced by Te Papa in 2015. To this end, the reputation of Te Papa further complicates the issue. When the museum first opened in 1998, there was significant criticism that the museum was too niche and focused on indigenous works and culture. Standing fast to their values, the museum has become a popular repository for indigenous art with a reputation of taking an active role in revitalization the of Māori culture as a direct response to the country's colonialist history.

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Critical Race Theory and Tribal Critical Race Theory

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Critical Race Theory and Tribal Critical Race Theory

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“Indigenous scholars began employing [Critical Race Theory (CRT)] to examine the effects of race, racism, and power in our communities and on ourselves and utilized CRT as a mechanism to perform truth-telling—to speak back to colonization and oppression. . . I offer and advocate for CRT and [Tribal Critical Race Theory] as ontological and epistemological frameworks to construct [multicultural education] as social justice; to function as a means to access and understand the “story” of colonization of Indigenous Peoples; to understand how colonization is continually enacted upon Indigenous Peoples; and to change that enactment of colonization” (Haynes Writer, 2008, pg. 3).

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Decolonization, Revisionist History, White Supremacy, Diversity,
Exoticism

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Controversy and Artwork Explained in Depth

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Controversy and Artwork Explained in Depth

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Te Papa Museum of Wellington, NZ has come under scrutiny along with a New Plymouth, NZ Art Gallery for the proposed loan and display of a colonial era painting by William Strutt. In this podcast episode, Amelia Langford of Ours: Treasures from Te Papa investigates the history and controversy of Strutt's painting.

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Ours Ep 12 Strutt Painting (WEB VERSION)

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Ours Ep 12 Strutt Painting (WEB VERSION)

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View of Mt Egmont, Taranaki, New Zealand, taken from New Plymouth, with Maoris driving off settlers’ cattle

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View of Mt Egmont, Taranaki, New Zealand, taken from New Plymouth, with Maoris driving off settlers’ cattle

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William Strutt, 1861, oil on canvas.

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In Strutt's work, View of Mt Egmont, Taranaki, New Zealand, taken from New Plymouth, with Maoris driving off settlers’ cattle (1861), Māori warriors are depicted attacking British settlers and livestock. The work, acquired by Te Papa in 2015, is considered a masterpiece for its style and depiction of historic conflicts in New Zealand, but critics argue the painting is a piece of dangerous propaganda reinforcing racist depictions of the Māori as murderers and thieves.

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Māori outraged as gallery considers exhibiting 'racist' painting

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Newshub 24/04/2018 Alex Baird

A Taranaki kaumātua is slating a New Plymouth art gallery after it tried to secure a controversial painting, which has been labelled as racist.

The 1861 oil painting by Englishman William Strutt depicts Māori armed with rifles driving away cattle during the Taranaki Wars.

Te Atiawa kaumātua Peter Moeahu says it's racist and colonial propaganda.

"I remember going to school and that painting being shown way back then, and how it was used to ridicule the Māori students," he says.

"I mean, we were called thieves and robbers because of that painting."

It shows Māori, armed and driving away cattle, at the foot of Mt Taranaki while a settler homestead burns.

The Govett Brewster gallery in New Plymouth recently told local Māori they were considering exhibiting the work - news that stunned Mr Moeahu.

"It represents colonialists, it represents the lie that took place in this region, in Taranaki, it represents the thieving that was perpetrated against us, but it's reversed as if we were the ones doing the thieving."

He even ripped up a copy of the painting to show how he felt about it.

The William Strutt painting was bought by Te Papa for $1.5 million in 2015. It's currently on display at the museum alongside other works, in a display centred around the New Zealand wars.

Spokesperson Kate Camp says Govett-Brewster had asked about exhibiting the painting

"Every portrait of history tends to take a lens - and this one takes a very colonial, Pakeha view on history."

She sympathises with Mr Moeahu, but also sees the painting's value in telling the story of our uncomfortable past.

"They may not be easy stories, they might not be pretty stories - but they're really important ones," Ms Camp said.

"For us, the value's around the conversations it creates - and we accept that some of those are really difficult conversations.

"That's because New Zealand has a really fraught and difficult history."

The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery says displaying the work was only a suggestion.

The exhibition it was meant to be part of has now been postponed for further consultation.

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Māori outraged as gallery considers exhibiting 'racist' painting

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Newshub 24/04/2018 Alex Baird A Taranaki kaumātua is slating a New Plymouth art gallery after it tried to secure a controversial painting, which has been labelled as racist. The 1861 oil painting by Englishman William Strutt depicts Māori armed with rifles driving away cattle during the Taranaki Wars.