2026-09-24T10:34:19Zhttps://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/server/oai/requestoai:openrepository.aut.ac.nz:10292/199612026-06-13T16:29:16Zcom_10292_3col_10292_5
AUT Research Repository
advisor
Robertson, Natalie
advisor
Boberg, Ingrid
author
Belton-Bodsworth, Ngahina
2025-10-20T03:15:26Z
2025-10-20T03:15:26Z
2025
http://hdl.handle.net/10292/19961
Through painting, I reflect on the introspective and embodied spaces created by sustained engagement with three ancestral oceanic practices: surfing (whakahekengaru), voyaging (hekenga), and diving (ruku). This project was prompted by ongoing relocations, both internationally and within Aotearoa, and grew from a desire to establish continuity and connection across shifting geographical landscapes and cultural dislocations. I examine the historical significance of each practice within te ao Māori and their contemporary reinterpretations in post-colonial Aotearoa today. Employing painted magical realism to construct layered, cross-generational narratives, I emphasise an intimate relationship with the sea as a vessel for linking past, present, and future. I argue that this connection can facilitate whakapapa Māori reconnection, nurture a sense of place, navigate bicultural identity, and foster environmental kinship.
en
Whakaruku: Painting a Love Letter to the Ocean
Thesis
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URL
https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/bitstreams/1eef830e-afd6-48e9-bbf7-9dd739499274/download
File
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application/pdf
Belton-BodsworthN.pdf
URL
https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/bitstreams/639920c1-c518-4cc8-be58-ac7c52030fc2/download
File
MD5
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Belton-BodsworthN.pdf.txt