Sonia Armana Snowden (born 1946) is a New Zealand
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
tohunga raranga (master weaver) who tutored in arts and weaving at
Te Wananga o Raukawa.
She identifies with the
Ngāpuhi
Ngāpuhi (also known as Ngāpuhi-Nui-Tonu or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland regions of New Zealand centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei.
According to the 2023 New Zealand census, the estimate ...
iwi
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.
...
. Her works are held in the collection of
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. Usually known as Te Papa ( Māori for ' the treasure box'), it opened in 1998 after the merging of the National Museum of New Zealand ...
(Te Papa).
Biography
The small community of
Waikare, in the far north of New Zealand is where Snowden grew up.
Snowden learnt her craft from such distinguished weavers as
Ramari Ropata,
Emily Schuster,
Erenora Puketapu-Hetet
Erenora Puketapu-Hetet (née Puketapu, 28 January 1941 – 23 July 2006) was a noted New Zealand weaver and author. A key figure in the Māori cultural renaissance, she helped change perceptions of Māori weaving/raranga from craft to int ...
,
Aromea Tahiwi, and
Nellie Frost.
She started weaving in the early 1980s and is known for the use of fine strands of natural fibres from
harakeke
''Phormium tenax'' (called flax in New Zealand English; in Māori; New Zealand flax outside New Zealand; and New Zealand hemp in historical nautical contexts) is an evergreen perennial plant native to New Zealand and Norfolk Island that is an ...
,
pīngao and
kiekie.
In 2001, after the
Rangiatea Church was damaged by fire, Snowden supervised a group of weavers replicating the
tukutuku panels of the church for its restoration. In 2013 Snowden was part of a group of weavers whose work was displayed at the
United Nations General Assembly Building
The United Nations General Assembly Building is part of the headquarters of the United Nations in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It contains the main assembly hall of the United Nations General Assembly, the main ...
.
In 2016 a New Zealand stamp was issued showing a
kete created by Snowden and held at Te Papa. Snowden gained formal acknowledgement of her master weaver status when in 2018 she was appointed to the Ngā Kahui Whiritoi of
Te Roopu Raranga Whatu o Aotearoa. In 2019 Snowden was awarded the
Ngā Tohu ā tā Kingi Ihaka award recognising her lifetime of contributions to Māori arts.
Snowden has passed on her knowledge as a tutor for many years at
Te Wānanga o Raukawa
is a Māori wānanga (indigenous tertiary-education provider) in New Zealand, established in 1981. Based in Ōtaki, with smaller campuses in Auckland and Gisborne, the wānanga was born out of a collaborative tribal desire or experiment known ...
, a Māori university in
Ōtaki.
Notable works
Te Papa holds the 'Matariki' tukutuku panel, woven by Snowden, in their permanent collection.
It was woven from
kiekie,
raupõ, kakaho (the flower of the
toetoe
''Austroderia'' is a genus of five species of tall grasses native to New Zealand, commonly known as toetoe (from Māori). ) and
pingaoto and was created to celebrate
Matariki
In Māori culture, Matariki is the Pleiades star cluster and a celebration of its first rising in late June or early July. The rising marks the beginning of the new year in the Māori lunar calendar.
Historically, Matariki was usually celebr ...
.
Te Papa is also the custodian of a kete created by Snowden and named Tatai Whetu ki te Rangi. Another
taonga
''Taonga'' or ''taoka'' (in South Island Māori) is a Māori-language word that refers to a treasured possession in Māori culture. It lacks a direct translation into English, making its use in the Treaty of Waitangi significant. The current ...
created by Snowden and held by Te Papa is the
hieke or raincape she created in March 2000.
This is made from neinei.
Exhibitions
* ''Toi Maori: The Eternal'' International touring exhibition, 2005—7
*''Toi Whakarākai: Ngā Aho o te Whenua'' Mahara Gallery 2020
*Toi Matarau Māoriland Film Festival, Toi Matarau Gallery, Māoriland Ōtaki 2020-2021
*Te Wānanga o Raukawa, Toi Matarau Gallery, Māoriland Ōtaki 2020
*Te Kahui o Matariki, Toi Matarau Gallery, Māoriland Ōtaki 2020
*Kāpiti Arts Trail, Toi Matarau Gallery, Māoriland Ōtaki 2020
*Ngā Aho Whenua, inaugural weavers residency, Toi Matarau Gallery, Māoriland Ōtaki 2021-22
*Tiaho Mai: Creative Kāpiti Gallery, Matariki Ramaroa Festival Paraparaumu 2021
*Whiti Ora: Toi Matarau Gallery, Matariki Ramaroa Festival Ōtaki 2021
*Te Ringa Māhorahora: Toi Matarau Gallery Ōtaki 2021-22
*Te Puna Waiora: Distinguished Weavers of Te Kāhui Whiritoi, Te Puna o Waiwhetū Christchurch City Art Gallery Otautahi 2021-22
*Whiriwhiria: Toi Māori Gallery, Te Whanganui a Tara 2022
References
External links
Sonya Snowden - Te Waka Toi Awards 2019
{{DEFAULTSORT:Snowden, Sonia
1946 births
Living people
Ngāpuhi people
New Zealand Māori weavers
New Zealand weavers
New Zealand artists
New Zealand women textile artists
People from the Northland Region