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Moko: Maori Tattoo
Mesmerizing, beautiful, and sometimes shocking, the facial tattoos of the Maori are revealed in this collection of photographs.This is the first book ever published featuring Maori portraits and moko, the traditional facial tattoo of the Maori of Aotearoa, New Zealand. Hans Neleman's photographs reveal the power, dignity and exquisite beauty of this painful and deeply sacred art.
- GenresArt
144 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 2, 2023
We are told that this book is dedicated to the return of the mokomokai.: the preserved Māori heads decorated by tā moko tattooing.
In the early days of the nation, along with pork, pine spars and flax, dried heads were one of New Zealand's chief exports.
We are told that "Ignorance is the oppressor" by Tame Wairere Iti in his introductory 'Perspective.' Thus, this book is an oppressor. Cannibalism is not mentioned. Nor is the fact that Maori enslaved other Maori, tattooed their heads, and sold the decapitated heads. Or that Tame Wairere Iti was a Communist who visited China during the Cultural Revolution.
In exchange for allowing photographs be taken, Rastafarians of the Ngati Poru tribe requested the effort be dedicated to the return of the mokomokai.Rastafarian?! Which part of pan-African consciousness is traditional Maori culture? Is this early Wokeism. Utter infantile idiocy hidden under an 'anti-colonialism' umbrella? Is Hans Neleman a confused Dutch-American who stumbles into a situation he doesn't know too much about, and takes some shots? There are no smiles in this book. It is not a smile-inducing book.
Ironically, I never wanted to read it. I asked a librarian for a copy of Moko: Maori Tattooing In The 20th Century by Michael King, and was given this instead. The librarian had a moko.
In the early days of the nation, along with pork, pine spars and flax, dried heads were one of New Zealand's chief exports.
After eating the rest of his slaughtered enemies he could sell the heads to the Sydney traders at a good price in gunpowder and other munitions of war, and thus acquire the means of collecting more heads. A raid was an easier and more sporting way of securing muskets, powder and tomahawks than the alternative of scraping flax or cutting and hauling spars.https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/schol...
We are told that "Ignorance is the oppressor" by Tame Wairere Iti in his introductory 'Perspective.' Thus, this book is an oppressor. Cannibalism is not mentioned. Nor is the fact that Maori enslaved other Maori, tattooed their heads, and sold the decapitated heads. Or that Tame Wairere Iti was a Communist who visited China during the Cultural Revolution.
In exchange for allowing photographs be taken, Rastafarians of the Ngati Poru tribe requested the effort be dedicated to the return of the mokomokai.Rastafarian?! Which part of pan-African consciousness is traditional Maori culture? Is this early Wokeism. Utter infantile idiocy hidden under an 'anti-colonialism' umbrella? Is Hans Neleman a confused Dutch-American who stumbles into a situation he doesn't know too much about, and takes some shots? There are no smiles in this book. It is not a smile-inducing book.
Ironically, I never wanted to read it. I asked a librarian for a copy of Moko: Maori Tattooing In The 20th Century by Michael King, and was given this instead. The librarian had a moko.
April 9, 2011
The photos are fine but some of the people really don't carry their moko well.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews