tinaku

TINAKU is a Te Reo Māori word meaning "to germinate" or "to sprout."

This series portrays sprouting kūmara (sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas), appearing to levitate, drawn toward the sun by their flourishing leaves and reaching sprouts.

I see the sprouting kūmara as a metaphor for Aotearoa’s ongoing revitalisation of both Te Ao Māori and Te Reo Māori, like the roots of the Māori renaissance of the 1960s and 1970s, which have germinated, sprouted, and are now thriving in the present-day light.

The concept of light as essential for life is the foundation of this series—both literally and metaphorically. Without sunlight’s nourishment, the kūmara would never sprout or regenerate. Similarly, without being brought into the light, Te Ao Māori and Te Reo Māori could not flourish. Even the act of photography itself would be impossible without light.

When I first arrived in New Zealand in 2000, I noticed that Māori culture was, for the most part, confined to museums and tourist attractions, like an artifact studied through protective glass. Over the years, I have witnessed a profound shift: Māori language and traditions are now embraced more widely by Māori and non-Māori alike. These taonga have emerged from the museum cabinets into the light, allowing them to thrive once more in Aotearoa.

As a tauiwi (an immigrant), I approach this subject with deep respect, recognising the hard-won revitalisation of Te Reo Māori as a triumph, one that must be celebrated and nurtured so it may continue to flourish for future generations.

I see the mauri (life force) of the sprouting kūmara as an example of non-human whakapapa—a genealogy tracing its way across the Pacific to Aotearoa, telling a cross-generational story of trade, migration, and settlement that continues today. Likewise, the revitalisation of Te Ao Māori and Te Reo Māori is central to the whakapapa of many across Aotearoa, and these stories must be brought into the light and nurtured for future generations.

Through this series, I explore the profound parallels between the kūmara, as a way of seeing the world, and photography, as a way of showing the world.