Fotoeins Fotografie

location bifurcation, place vs. home

Posts from the ‘First Nations Indigenous’ category

Great Hall, Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, First Nations, fotoeins.com

🇨🇦 National Indigenous Peoples Day (21 June) & Indigenous Artists

Above/featured: Great Hall, Museum of Anthropology, Vancouver – 5 May 2017 (6D1).

In Canada, National Aboriginal Day is held on or near the same day as northern summer solstice to celebrate language, culture, and tradition on the longest day of the year. In 1996, then Governor-General of Canada, Roméo LeBlanc, proclaimed June 21 as National Aboriginal Day. In 2017, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the change to National Indigenous Peoples Day to include First Nations, Inuit, and Métis indigenous peoples.

To highlight some wonderfully engaging work by contemporary indigenous artists, I provide examples of art seen and exhibited in both Vancouver and Seattle.

( Click here for images and more )

Kea, alpine parrot, Homer Tunnel, Milford Road, South Island, Te Waipounamu, Aotearoa, New Zealand, fotoeins.com

Waitangi Day (6 Feb): 15 images from Aotearoa

Above/featured: The kea is the world’s only alpine parrot and on the endangered list; on Milford Road near Homer Tunnel.

On the 6th of February, I’ll be humming “E Ihowa Atua” and “Pokarekare Ana”.

Waitangi Day is a national holiday in New Zealand to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi on 6 February 1840. As the founding document of the country, the Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is an accord agreed upon by representatives of the Crown (British Empire) and of indigenous Māori iwi (tribes) and hapū (sub-tribes). The agreement is named after the name of the location in the Bay of Islands where the Treaty was first signed. Despite continuing disagreements between the two parties about contemporary extent and redress, I think the conversation and interactions between the communities are at a more advanced stage of integration within the nation’s fabric by comparison with Australia and Canada.

For Aotearoa, the New Zealand government approved in October 2013 formal names of the two main islands in Māori and English:

•   Te Ika a Māui (“the fish of Māui”) for the North Island, and
•   Te Wai Pounamu (“the waters of greenstone”) for the South Island.

I highlight Aotearoa with 15 images of the following locations:

  1. Akaroa
  2. Auckland
  3. Dunedin
  4. Franz Josef Glacier *
  5. Greymouth
  6. Hapuku (Seaward Kaikouras)
  7. Homer Tunnel *
  8. Lake Matheson *
  9. Milford Sound *
  10. Queen Charlotte Sound
  11. Queenstown
  12. Southern Alps *
  13. Waimakariri River
  14. Wellington City
  15. Wellington Harbour

Asterisks identify locations within the Te Wāhipounamu area in South West New Zealand which was inscribed in 1990 as UNESCO World Heritage Site that includes four national parks: Aoraki/Mount Cook, Fiordland, Mount Aspiring, and Westland Tai Poutini.

( Click here for images and more )

New Zealand, true-colour image from NASA Terra satellite, December 2002.

New Zealand: Māori anthems Pokarekare Ana, E Ihowa Atua

New Zealand is located in a part of our planet that’s about as far as one can go. The country provides easy inspiration with her striking scenery and friendly people. Memories remain sharp and fresh after multiple visits to Wellington and Auckland, as well as a solid three weeks in early-winter on the South Island. Truth is: I’ve got a real big soft spot for “Aotearoa“. The more time I spend in country, the more the land reveals deeper insights about her culture and language.

New Zealand recognizes three official languages: English, Māori, and New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL). Of immediate connection to this land are two Māori songs, “Pokarekare Ana” and “E Ihowa Atua”, which are the unofficial and official national anthems, respectively.

( Click here for more )

Totem poles at Brockton Point, Stanley Park, Vancouver, BC, Canada, fotoeins.com

Vancouver : how totem poles put a spell on me

The pull is undeniable.

Under overcast skies and a forecast of heavy rainshowers, I walk out one January morning from Vancouver’s West End and head out towards Stanley Park for a morning walk. Past Coal Harbour and Deadman’s Island, I arrive finally at the totem poles near Brockton Point.

Totem poles, Brockton Point, Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada
Totem poles, Brockton Point, Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada

The totem was the British Columbia Indian’s “Coat of Arms”. Totem poles are unique to the northwest coast of B.C. and lower Alaska. They were carved from Western red cedar and each carving tells of a real or mythical event. They were not idols, nor were they worshipped. Each carving on each pole has a meaning. The eagle represents the kingdom of the air, the whale the lordship of the sea, the wolf the genius of the land, and the frog the transitional link between land and sea.

( Click here for more )