Erena Mary Baker (born 1984) is a New Zealand visual artist. Baker uses photography to explore ideas of commemoration and remembrance within

Māori culture Māori culture () is the customs, cultural practices, and beliefs of the Māori people of New Zealand. It originated from, and is still part of, Polynesians, Eastern Polynesian culture. Māori culture forms a distinctive part of Culture of New ...

. She is also a member of

Mata Aho Collective The Mataaho Collective is a group of four New Zealand artists: Erena Baker, Sarah Hudson, Bridget Reweti and Terri Te Tau. They are known for their large scale fibre-based artwork. In 2024 the Mataaho Collective received the Golden Lion award ...

, a group of four artists known for their large-scale art works. As part of the collective their work has been exhibited internationally at the Royal Academy of Arts and the

National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's National museums of Canada, national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the List of large ...

Education

In 2009, Baker graduated with a Master of Māori Visual Arts degree from Toioho ki Āpiti School of Māori Studies at

Massey University Massey University () is a Public university, public research university in New Zealand that provides internal and distance education. The university has campuses in Auckland, Palmerston North, and Wellington. Data from Universities New Zealand ...

. Her thesis was on the importance of photography in Māori culture. She now works within the school as a lecturer and is based in

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; , colloquially known as Palmerston or Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatū Plains, the city is near the north bank of the Manaw ...

Exhibitions

Baker's first solo exhibition, entitled ''Pepeha'', was held at Thermostat Gallery in Palmerston North. Her photographic work ''Tango Whakaahua'' produced in 2006 is part of Auckland Art Gallery's permanent collection. The work consists of 50 self-portraits of Baker wearing a cloak by weaver Kohai Grace. Baker was one of the founding members of the Mata Aho Collective which formed in 2012. The group consists of Sarah Hudson,

Bridget Reweti Bridget Reweti is a New Zealand photographer and moving image artist. Reweti is a member of the artist group Mataaho Collective. Education Reweti holds a Master of Māori Visual Arts from , the School of Māori Studies at Massey University. S ...

and

Terri Te Tau Terri Te Tau is a New Zealand contemporary artist and writer. She is a member of the Mata Aho Collective. In 2017, the collective represented New Zealand at documenta, a quinquennial contemporary-art exhibition held in Kassel, Germany. This w ...

. The first work the collective produced was ''Te Whare Pora'' in 2012. This was shown at the

Adam Art Gallery The Adam Art Gallery (in Māori language, Māori: ''Te Pātaka Toi'') is a purpose-built arts gallery located in the Kelburn Campus of Victoria University of Wellington in Wellington, New Zealand. History On 15 July 1997, Jenny Harper and Tin ...

and was subsequently acquisitioned into the

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington (), also known by its shorter names "VUW" or "Vic", is a public university, public research university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of New Zealand Parliament, Parliament, and w ...

Art Collection. As part of the Mata Aho Collective Baker's work has been exhibited internationally at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa. The show, ''Àbadakone, Feu Continuel, Continuous Fire,'' showcased a range of works from contemporary indigenous artists. In 2020, Baker's work was included in the

Auckland Art Gallery Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki is the principal public gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. It has the most extensive collection of national and international art in New Zealand and frequently hosts travelling international exhibitions. Set be ...

Exhibition ''Toi Tū Toi Ora.'' Her individual photography work was included alongside that which she produced with the Mata Aho Collective.

Personal life

Baker is of

Ngāti Toa Rangatira Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

, Te Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai and

Te Āti Awa Te Āti Awa or Te Ātiawa is a Māori iwi with traditional bases in the Taranaki and Wellington regions of New Zealand. Approximately 17,000 people registered their affiliation to Te Āti Awa in 2001, with about 10,000 in Taranaki, 2,000 in We ...

descent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Erena New Zealand Māori artists Living people Massey University alumni Academic staff of Massey University Ngāti Toa people Te Āti Awa people Te Atiawa ki Whakarongotai 1984 births