1986

Te Ao Marama

(The World of Light)

In February 1986, Adrian Newstead and his indigenous business partner Joe Croft staged Te Ao Marama (The World of Light), an exhibition of contemporary and traditional work by seven Maori artists at the Sydney Opera House.

The opening was attended by 57 visitingMaori elders who were greeted formally by Charles Perkins. Arnhem Land Elder WandjukMarika and his sons performed a ‘waita’ in their honour at the dawn opening ceremony..

The exhibition, organised in conjunction with the Sarjeant Gallery in Wanganui, New Zealand, included three painters: Robyn Kahukiwa, Darcy Nicholas, and Sandy Adsett; Rangi Hetet, a traditional carver; Fred Graham and Cliff Whiting, both contemporary carver/sculptors, and Erenora Puketapu-Hetet, a traditional weaver.

Newstead and Croft subsequently organised for the tour to a number of regional galleries around Australia. The exhibition was the focal point of several cultural exchanges between Maori and Aboriginal artists which included lectures and workshops, with supporting performance groups Te Ohu Whakaari and Merupa Maori.