Dr Maureen Lander is of Ngāpuhi (Te Hikutu subtribe) and Pākehā (New Zealand European) descent. A noted multimedia installation artist, weaver, and academic who has exhibited locally, nationally and internationally since 1986.

In Flat-Pack Whakapapa, Lander has created three installations that explore the connections between whakapapa and raranga (Māori weaving).

Flat-Pack Whakapapa considers kinship, family and friendship networks as well as genetic heritage. Building on the notion that our whakapaka is always with us, Maureen Lander’s installations can be packed down into individual weavings: easily carried around, reconfigured and added onto later. Her approach symbolises how whakapapa grows with us, and how our genealogy is inherited by our descendants, who continue our heritage lines.

An added bonus for a selected group of local weavers will be the unique opportunity to attend a master class conducted by Landers. They will be given the task of creating their own installation using patterns strongly linked to the Tairāwhiti region. The completed project will be allocated to the museum’s concourse gallery.

Flat-Pack Whakapapa is developed and toured by The Dowse Art Museum.
Supported by the Waitakere Ranges Local Board.