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Teine Sa: The Ancient Ones - Artist Inspiration

The stories of our Moana atua are a focal point of the 'Teine Sa' series, which looks at some hard hitting contemporary issues for Pacific women, and how ancient deities of the past are invoked to deal with these situations. 

Tuu'u Apulu Mary Autagavaia talks about the metaphors of these atua/ aitu in Samoan culture in both Part One and Part Two of our Teine Sa series 

Over the years many Moana artists have created their own visualisations of these deities that were a sourse of inspiration for some of the visual ideas & imagery in the 'Teine Sa' series.

Here are some of these pieces honouring our deities of the past, - and where you can find out more information on these artworks. 

Lindah Lepou - AITU triptych series: 

Lindah Lepou is both the creator of the theme song of the 'Teine Sa' series and the primary mood board inspiration for the visual themes and ideas in the anthology. Lindah worked with producer Lisa Taouma in creating the visual design for the 'Legend of Taema and Tilfaiga' for the 'Marks of Mana' documentary, and has been a creative influence for ongoing works.

Lindah's AITU triptych series featured at the City Gallery in Wellington in 2012 where she "pays tribute to three legendary Samoan aitu )—Nafanua, Taema and Telesa"  Lepou says Christianity has tainted them, casting them as servants of the devil. But, as a young fa’afafine growing up in Samoa, Lepou saw them as role models—symbols of strength and identity who could be called upon for support. 

The show included Lepou garments, and photos of models wearing Lepou garments in the Samoan villages where the aitu are believed to dwell. The photos were shot by fashion photographer George Buckleton. The show offered "an opportunity to reconsider the nature of aitu and the role of women in Samoan history" 

Check out the rest of her show that was at the City Gallery Wellington online here 

Nafanua by Lindah Lepou
Taema by Lindah Lepou
Telesa by Linda Lepou

Lisa Reihana 'Digital Marae' - Atua' series: 

In the making of 'Teine Sa' one of the inspirations behind an inspiration for the fictional character of 'Ahi', was the seminal work of Lisa Reihana and her 'Digital Marae' series of atua. 

With the lyricism of magic realism, Reihana’s digital photographs seamlessly fuse traditional and contemporary motifs and offer new representations of Māori ancestral figures that convey the complex narratives of Māori mythology to make it accessible to global audiences. Furthermore, by incorporating varied identities Reihana’s Digital Marae echoes the desire for an inclusive contemporary marae that would interpret mythology and re-examine Maori identity itself.

View her Digital Marae Media online here

Shigeyuki Kihara - 'Velvet Dreams' series 2014

Shigeyuki's work in her 'Velvet Dreams' series came out of a period where tropes of the 'dusky maiden' was a popular point of discussion. The theme of self representation in artist work, and the high gloss imagery in the series was influential in Episode 1 of the 'Teine Sa' series. 

"Velvet Dreams brings together works from two early bodies of work by Shigeyuki Kihara, including Faleaitu: House of Spirits (2003) and Vavau: Tales of Ancient Samoa (2004).Both series saw Kihara examining Samoan legend and mythology from within, deconstructing the frameworks of cultural identity, spirituality, and narrative traditions."

View her Milford Galleries Dunedin Velvet Dreams exhibition here 

Jordan Kwan - Nafanua series 

Jordan's powerful image of the Samoan Goddess of war Nafanua was a great reference point for the power of our Pacific atua in the 'Teine Sa' series

Check out his Nafanua series here 

Pati Solomona Tyrell - Fāgogo

"In Pati Solomona Tyrell’s practice, fāgogo is situated as a restorative practice, shared with other artists and collaborators from the Pasifika LGBTQI space in Aotearoa.

The research, writing, choreography, styling and garment construction in this film was a collaborative process, honouring the tradition of fāgogo by sharing the responsibility of telling this story and allowing artists to respond to their own cultural heritage unpacking the colonial gaze placed on queer brown bodies to return gender and sexually diverse identities back to their oracle status." - Dunedin Art Museum 

FĀGOGO, AFI, TONGA, 2016 - PATI TYRELL

Marks of Mana - The Legend of Taema and Tilafaiga - Lisa Taouma/ Twayne Laumua as styled by Lindah Lepou

In this video piece that pays homage to the Samoan atua ‘Taema and Tilafaiga’, the video  features artist Lindah Lepou’s stylised vision of these goddesses of tatau. With exagerated headpieces and swathes of blood red cloth, the images evoke an ‘otherwordly’ feel to the story. 

Sima Urale - Velvet Dreams

"A homage to Dusky Maiden images as well as a playful take on the low art of velvet painting, Sima Urale’s Velvet Dreams provides a tongue-in-cheek exploration of Pacific Island stereotypes.

Part detective story, part documentary, an unseen narrator goes in search of a painting of a Polynesian princess that he has fallen in love with. Along the way he meets artists, fans and critics of the kitsch art genre, as well as the mysterious Gauguin-like figure of Charlie McPhee.

Made for TVNZ's Work of Art series, Velvet Dreams played in multiple international film festivals." - NZ on Screen  

#Watch "Velvet Dreams" here