First Light: A Magical Journey

by Carol O'Biso

A museum registrar, lover of New York City, and not too adventuresome, now living in New Zealand, tells why a trip to that country changed her life unbelievably

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, Art

222 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

Reviews

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the non-required books I read in anticipation of my study abroad in the south Pacific. Carol O'Biso was a curator in charge of a traveling exhibit of Maori art. She went to NZ to get the art, and followed it around the US to its various destinations. The book was imbued with some weird magical/spiritual elements which were enjoyable if a little silly. Still, it is a beautiful story about art and reverence for art.

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Update 5/27/15
I decided to up my rating from 3 stars to 4 given how often I've thought of this book over the years. This was probably one of the few books I read for pleasure during my college years.

[Kathleen (itpdx) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The spirit of TeMaori. Carol O'Bisio was the Chief Registrar (a profession that was new to me) for a touring exhibition of ancestral treasures of the Maori that leaves New Zealand for the first time ever. The book is her story of the gathering, transportation and mounting of the exhibition. She learns from Maori elders what the pieces really are and grows to understand the amazing trust they have placed in her. And she feels the impact that the tour has on people, both Maori and Pakeha. And a special connection that is established between carvers of New Zealand and carvers from North America. The book tells of a spiritual journey.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful read, heartwarming funny, sad, spiritual, Carol O'Biso captures the feelings for the art and for the Maori people while dealing with them and their Art.
Perhaps my all time favourite book, have loaned it out to many friends and while in NZ last time picked up 2 more copies to pass on to family and friends.
Thank you Carol O'Biso for this gem

[Katie Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read this book for a class at Webster like 8 years ago. I have never forgotten it. It is an autobiographical account of her interaction with the Maori people of New Zealand. Truly fascinating.

[Igna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laughed until I cried quite a few times!! Great read.

[SA Lillie · Rating 4 out of 5]

You do not have to be a museum nerd to read this. But if you are one, you will hopefully enjoy this too. This gorgeous, witty book is a rare gem in the museum world. It is written from the perspective of a Registrar (not a curator) based in New York who is tasked - against the odds - of bringing the controversial, watershed Te Maori exhibition to the rest of the world, and away from the shores of New Zealand for the first time. The exhibition first displayed in 1984 in New Zealand before travelling overseas. Today's cultural industry workers can recognise the lengthy, ground-breaking cultural protocols and consultations that took place to facilitate the transport of an entire exhibition's worth of living ancestral heritage half-way across the world. Around 1984, it was Carol O'Biso's unexpected job to pioneer this process.
At the beginning of the book Carol O'Biso embodies the typical busy-mindedness of a New York-based Registrar familiar with lists, sheets, dimensions, logistics, fine art handling and the typical preoccupations and language of those that live in the museum-speaking world. Amidst this busy background, Carol must travel to New Zealand to assure traditional custodians that works selected for Te Maori are in safe hands. Carol knows nothing about Maori heritage, or New Zealand for that matter and finds herself immediately thrown out of her comfort zone upon arrival.
What is wonderful about this book, is the character's transformation as she learns more, and develops an understanding, cultural sensitivity and connection with the Maori elders, and more and more begins to appreciate the significance of the living collection she is working with.
The story is narrated via a series of letters and post cards sent back to colleagues in New York. Her journey is witty, whimsical, refreshing and heartfelt.
As the exhibition tours through North America, Carol finds herself wrestling with the desire to move on, and her sense of obligation to remain custodial guarantor throughout the epic journey of the exhibition's sacred contents. Her loyalty and sense of the trust placed on her by the community continues to grow on her as the journey continues.
First Light is a simple, wonderful read. It includes the cross-cultural connections that develop between traditional Maori and North American carvers. It's an inclusive, thoughtful, heartfelt and delightful journey. For those who work in museums or aspire to do so, experiences like these underpin the satisfaction that comes with doing what we professionals do.
This review is written from a cheerfully biased perspective. I have passed this book around to those that appreciate the joys of a good spiritual journey. A book that's worth passing onto your friends.

[Chrisl · Rating 4 out of 5]

See that other readers have posted helpful informative reviews ... it has an internal 1968 "America, love it or leave it" link for me.

I'm grateful for the ten days I wandered North Island in 1968. (A bonus from the P&O Orcades.) The ship had crossed the international date line the day Nixon was elected.

O'Biso's book connected with that exploring done 20 years earlier. She put the people in the places seen only ... with a forever wish that circumstances had allowed me to become a permanent member of their society.

Fish and Chips wrapped in newspaper ... the greenness of November in the Southern Hemisphere. The rain in Wellington. The ferry strike that kept me from South Island.
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quote from Wiki - P&O --
"After 1945, the passenger market declined to India but boomed to Australia with the advent of paid-passages for literate & healthy European immigrants known as Ten Pound Poms. P&O built 15 large passenger liners, including SS Himalaya, SS Chusan, SS Arcadia (1954), and SS Iberia (1954), culminating in SS Canberra, its last & largest in 1961. By 1968 over 1 million immigrants had arrived—many via P&O—and Australia ended the program." (Didn't know they ended the program ... I had decided to not remain long ... anybody know the Yank equivalent of "Ten Pound Poms"?

[Lynnea · Rating 4 out of 5]

She is the chief registrar for the art show Te Maori which travelled through the United States with 181 Maori artifactsin the mid 80's. Story about cross cultural connection between career oriented New Yroker and Maori people.

[Wendy Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second read (first one eleven years ago). Still a great book and an incredible insider's view of the Te Māori exhibit that toured in the 1980s. The growth in understanding of te ao Māori from the perspective of the New York art curator is fascinating to see.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked that the story was told through the letters she had written to her friends. I think it made the story more interesting and believable than if it had been written as a recollection of her experiences.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! It's heartwarming and absorbing, and I was carried along the whole journey with the Maori treasures. O'Biso's writing will make you laugh and cry. So relevant to our current exhibit at the museum.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Want to live in Godzone NOW.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enchanting. It was fun for me to read because I've known the author for a few years, but didn't know she'd written a book. I enjoyed it very much.

[Linda Edquist · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is had museum conservation - gotta read it.

[KC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read for anyone interested in what it looks like behind the scenes of a major exhibition.

[Becca · Rating 3 out of 5]

The joys of being a museum registrar very painstakingly spelled out in this book. But glad to see some things haven't changed since 1984.