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When Te Papa prepared to host Breathe | Mauri Ora, an immersive exhibition originally created overseas, the question of keeping it aligned within New Zealand culture came into question.
The exhibition explores the relationship between nature, art, and human experience- themes that fit closely with native worldviews, despite mātauranga Māori not originally present into the exhibition.
Kate Camp, head of marketing and communications at Te Papa says “We are fortunate to have te reo Māori experts within Te Papa who immersed themselves in the exhibition content and then gifted the exhibition’s te reo name,”
“The exhibition itself does not contain Māori content, although its themes of the interconnectedness of nature, art and human human experience is strongly aligned with te ao Māori thinking.”
She says part of that alignment comes through the emotional state Te Papa hopes visitors will leave with.
“Visitors are going to be uplifted, relaxed, and feel they’ve had an escape from the everyday. I did the virtual reality experience the other day and it was like a religious experience! I really felt like I was in another world – it was beautiful and quite moving,” she says.
At its core, Breathe | Mauri Ora relies on visual technology- but it’s used carefully. The goal is not to overwhelm, but to reveal.
“The technology reveals nature in new ways – you can see how a tree breathes, how oxygen travels from the air to a tree’s roots, and then follow that oxygen into the human bloodstream. We know that people are going to walk out of this show seeing their connection with nature in new ways,” says Kate.
She says its not the first time Te Papa has partnered with ACMI, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, and it will not be the last.
“The partnership between Te Papa and ACMI has really flourished over the years, we are both known for immersive experiences, and we are excited to host future shows from ACMI.” she says.
