Meet Mata Aho Collective
Mata Aho Collective is made up of Erena Baker (Te Atiawa ki Whakarongotai, Ngāti Toa Rangātira), Sarah Hudson (Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Tūhoe), Bridget Reweti (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi Te Rangi), and Terri Te Tau (Rangitāne ki Wairarapa), all who live in Aotearoa New Zealand. According to Mata, 2014, their conceptual framework is founded within the contemporary realities of mātauranga Māori (traditional knowledge of Māori). They produce works with a single collective authorship that are bigger than their individual capabilities.
The collective have completed many projects over the years, with their work, ‘Kiko Moana’, being developed for documenta 14 in Kassel Germany, 2017. Kiko is a word that means the substance of something, referring to a body such as meat or flesh, while moana refers to the ocean. As they discuss, Kiko Moana is made from blue tarpaulin, a material that is common in their homes and communities, allowing people to come into this space and recognise and connect with it.