The opening of Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery
The opening of Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery started with a Pōhiri on Friday 8 November at Pūtiki marae. The following morning Te Tūwheratanga, a dawn ceremony, took place as the sun came up on our opening day, Saturday 9 November. Te Tūwheratanga was led by hapu of Pūtiki on behalf of Whanganui Iwi. More than 400 visitors joined in the ceremonies for our new extension , Te Pātaka o Tā Te Atawhai Archie John Taiaroa, and to rededicate our heritage building.
Te Tūwheratanga was followed by the Opening Ceremony Mihi at 9.30am which was staged in the forecourt of the gallery and attended by approximately 550 members of the public and invited guests including Ngāti Tuwharetoa paramount chief, Sir Tumu Te Heuheu Tūkino VIII, and delegations from Whanganui’s sister cities in Toowoomba, Australia and Nagaizumi-cho, Japan who travelled to Whanganui especially. The Rātana brass band led dignitaries to their places and the event began with a welcome mihi from Kaumatua John Maihi, and Dr Rāwiri Tinirau guided us through the event as MC. Official speakers were Mayor Andrew Tripe; Rakeipoho Taiaroa, representing Sir Archie Taiaroa’s family; Minister Paul Goldsmith representing Central Government; Nicola Williams Chair of Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery Trust; and Gallery Director Andrew Clifford. To conclude the ceremony, the Mayor and Rakeipoho each laid a mamaku rau (leaf) in the entrance to connect with the rau that was laid during the dawn ceremony, and then Mayor Tripe declared the building open to the public.
We were blessed with beautiful weather throughout the Saturday day and enjoyed performances on the outside stage and inside the building, including opera performances from the NZ Opera School, Taonga Puoro, big band performances, acoustic and electronic musicians, DJ’s and Whanganui’s Anthonie Tonnon who took the stage that evening. The exterior of the heritage gallery was adorned with ‘Rama’ in the dark hours – a dramatic and colourful moving image lightshow.
Sunday featured talks and Lightning Korero with exhibiting artists and discussions about the co-design of Te Pātaka o Tā Te Atawhai Archie John Taiaroa, the waka, and the legacy of Tā Te Atawhai Archie Taiaroa. The Rama light display again lit the gallery on Sunday night.
Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery was ushered into its new age by over 5,500 locals and visitors from across Aotearoa and abroad who joined us for the opening weekend.
We look forward to sharing the future with you.
All images by Alanah Brown Photography
