Tia Ranginui | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Known for | Photography |
Tia HuiaRanginui is an artist from Whanganui, New Zealand Aotearoa and her main artform is photography. Her work is held in public collections including at the Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua, Whanganui. [1]
Ranginui grew up along the Whanganui river at Koriniti. [2] Ranginui is Māori affiliated to the hapū Ngāti Hine Oneone, of Whanganui iwi. [1]
Ranginui is a self-trained artist and in addition to her art practice works as a gallery assistant in Whanganui. [3] Themes in her work include Māori representation in art and stories from her local region of Whanganui. [4] Her works are described by art critic Robert Leonard as ranging 'from the polemical and political to the enigmatic and poetic' and have also been described as magic realism. [5] [6] In a review of her work in the journal Art New Zealand, Milly Mitchell-Anyon says: "Her photographs are steeped in history whilst simultaneously balancing contemporary concerns." [7]
In 2021 Ranginui collaborated with writer Arihia Latham. Latham wrote a poetic essay in response to Ranginui's work for Photo Forum Online. [4] Arihia Latham (Kai Tahu) is writer and also Māori health practitioner of rongoā. [4]
Public collections which include work of Ranginui include Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato, The Dowse Art Museum, City Gallery, Wellington and the Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua, St Peter’s School Cambridge, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa and the Arts House Trust. [1] [8]
Ranginui's first solo exhibition was in 2015. [9]
The exhibition Tāwauwau(Away) includes a sequence of ' patupaiarehe' photographs. These are creatures of Māori folklore with 'red hair and fair complexions' and Ranginui has them placed in contemporary suburbs of Whanganui. [10]