Tangaroa and Feu’u reunite for art display

Renowned Cook Islands artist Mahiriki Tangaroa and Pacific contemporary art godfather Fatu Feu’u will join forces later this month to present an exhibition showcasing their love of art.

The highly anticipated exhibition, which will open at Bergman Gallery through August 27, aims to inspire artists young and old to continue pursuing their artistic talents.

Tangaroa recalled the good times with the famous Feu’u when he visited Rarotonga about 20 years ago. Feu’u’s presence had a significant impact on the community, inspiring them to stay close to the arts.

The upcoming exhibition is a great initiative that honours Feu’u for maintaining a good relationship between artists and the art community. The visiting artist will stay in Rarotonga for five days.

“During the three months that he was assigned to these exhibition and workshop areas, he was very active in the final community activities, which I think was necessary, injected energy, and he succeeded in doing that,” Tangaroa explained.

“He ran painting workshops, woodcarving workshops and many other workshops, and had three exhibitions, a big solo show at the National Museum and an exhibition here, and another at the Art Studio.

“He was very active within the community and he managed to bring people together and spark that creativity again, so this lasted three months and seven years ago he came back to do a commission for Motu, which was a major installation.”

Ben Bergman, director of the Bergman Gallery, explained that he was approached by Feu’u about hosting the exhibition at his gallery and he immediately agreed, considering the impact it would have on the local community.

“That’s basically how this exhibition came about, but the connection with Fatu and this exhibition goes back about 20 years ago when Mahiriki was the director of the National Museum and she was working with the Cook Islands Ministry of Culture at the time to oversee the New Zealand Creative Artists and Residency Program,” Bergman explains.

“Fatu emerged as part of the programme in 2002 and has held a series of exhibitions, seminars and public appearances… Mahiriki was one of the artists.

“One of Fatu’s most significant legacies, beyond his career in painting and sculpting, is that he mentored, encouraged and stimulated discussion about Pacific contemporary art at a time when no one really recognised it. He was a driving force behind it, encouraging young Pacific Islanders to continue to create and exhibit their work.”

Feu’u, who is of Samoan descent, has earned a reputation as a doyen of New Zealand’s Pacific art scene.

He has been an exhibiting artist since the early 1980s and became a full-time artist in 1988. Prior to this he worked as a designer and color consultant for textile and automotive companies.

Tangaroa, a New Zealand-born Cook Islander and former director of the National Museum of the Cook Islands, is a leading contemporary Cook Islands artist whose work is regularly exhibited in galleries in New Zealand and the Cook Islands.