For Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori 2024, artist Kahurangiariki Smith has been invited to undertake a digital residency which will be hosted on The Physics Room's Instagram @physicsroom.

From Mane 16 Hepetema until Paraire 20 Hepetema, Kahurangiariki will share five kupu Māori to keep practising—some already familiar and some that might be new to you.

Kahurangiariki visited Ōtautahi at the end of last month for some kōrero with friends about te reo Māori and kupu they hear and use living here. In her digital residence, Kahurangiariki has used 3D animation software to build glittering lettering around these kupu, as mnemonic tools, giving form to language.

The theme for Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori 2024 is Ake ake ake – A Forever Language, representing the resilience, adaptability and endurance of te reo Māori. The Physics Room wants to tautoko the visibility of te reo Māori in contemporary art and join the ongoing energy of the Māori Language Movement.

Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori 2024 runs from 14-21 September

He uri nō ngā tūpuna i heke mai ai i runga i ngā waka o Te Arawa, o Tainui, o Mataatua, o Takitimu, o Horouta hoki, Kahurangiariki Smith is a Māori artist living in Aotearoa New Zealand. In recent years Kahurangiariki has been collaborating with her māmā, Dr Aroha Yates-Smith, a leading academic on the ancient Māori feminine. Kahurangiariki’s work explores her mother’s research and the many personifications of atua wāhine. She works to manifest these atua wāhine into a physical form, locating them in the present and in our futures. Sometimes playful, sometimes cheeky, Kahurangiariki’s work explores a range of media such as moving image, karaoke, 3D rendering, video games, neon and writing.

image: Kahurangiariki Smith in front of Mā te Moana (2024), included in the exhibition Homing Instinct.