Deadline Approaching for Applications for Te Waka Toi Scholarships.

If you are a post-secondary Māori student studying in the arts then Te Waka Toi want to hear from you by the end of March 2011.

Every year Te Waka Toi, the Māori Arts Board of Creative New Zealand, offers two scholarships, Ngā Karahipi a Te Waka Toi, to students studying the arts (e.g. music, theatre, dance) and arts-related subjects (e.g. curation, arts writing, conservation).

Applications are sought from those studying in a formal or informal place of learning (such as a marae). The $4000 scholarships are awarded for artistic, cultural and academic merit, and for leadership qualities.

Past recipients have come from diverse fields of practice from fashion design to theatre to the visual arts.

Reuben Friend, who received a Te Waka Toi Scholarship in 2010 to complete his masters degree in Maori visual arts, said he was honoured to receive the award in recognition of a decade of study and achievement in Māori art and museum curatorship.

“There are few young Māori and Pacific people working in curatorship, and even fewer employment opportunities in this sector, which makes entering into this arena daunting. For me the scholarship symbolised validation, an acknowledgement by my elders in the world of Māori arts that my efforts were appreciated,” he said.

Reuben has combined study and hands-on experience to become a curator. He has been studying Māori language and visual art for 10 years and working part-time in museums to learn about taonga Māori and contemporary art. In 2008 Reuben was awarded the Doreen Blumhardt/Creative New Zealand curatorial internship at TheNewDowse where he curated Plastic Maori - A Tradition of Innovation.

Reuben is currently the Deane Gallery Curator at City Gallery in Wellington working to profile the work of Māori and Pacific artists such as Ngahina Hohaia, also a previous Te Waka Toi Scholarship recipient.

Applications for Ngā Karahipi a Te Waka Toi/ Te Waka Toi Scholarships can be downloaded from www.creativenz.govt.nz or contact Creative New Zealand on (04) 498 0746. All applications must be accompanied by quality examples of applicants' works.

The scholarships will be awarded at the Creative New Zealand Te Waka Toi Awards in Wellington in August 2011.

Applications for Ngā Karahipi a Te Waka Toi close at 5pm, 31 March 2011.

For media enquiries please contact:

Katrina Smit
Media and Communications Adviser, Māori Arts
Creative New Zealand
Tel: 04 498 0727 or 027 290 1606
katrina.smit@creativenz.govt.nz