16/2: Te Whenua
Hand in hand, our journey shares the richness of te reo through the sequence of powerful images of whenua and taonga, which are bookended by an explanatory index. This journey places us in our unique geographical location and pays homage to the Māori myths and legends that speak to the heart of our history and people ‒ our response to a brief requiring each design studio to express the creative identity of their country and surrounding cultural stimuli.
To stay true to ourselves and our culture we used design to touch the very essence (te Ihi) of who we are. With this in mind we begin this journey with a Karanga "Nau mai ki te Ao o te ramaaroa. Tihewa mauri Ora" which sets the tone and invites our audience in.
It shares the richness of te reo and we look to the heavens and the gifts shared with us from the Atua. Our connection to our beautiful whenua , it's mountains, rivers, fauna and taonga inspired us to look at some of the myths, practical and spiritual associations surrounding our choice of design direction.
Our creative approach was always going to be collaborative, its how we work. We crossed countries and embraced generations to share knowledge and develop an expression of our culture that stays true to this Māori and non-Māori collaboration.
The treatment of photography, illustration and type accentuate the richness of our connection to Aotearoa and our typeface Plateau compliments the geographical formations represented by sky, land, rivers and mountains.
This 16-page section highlights our vision by employing modern graphics to reawaken and share traditional stories that celebrate our unique cultural heritage and valorise paper and print methods in book design.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Brandon Littlefield
INTRODUCTION COPY
Te Raa Nehua
