Patupaiarehe | 2025
Festival: 2025 Takapuna Winter Lights
Date: 24-27 July 2025
Media: Digital Animation | 03:33:00, 30.00fps, 1080×1080 + Digital Soundscape
Site: Hurstmere Road, Takapuna, Auckland, New Zealand
Visionscape: ©2025 by Daniel K. Brown
Soundscape: ©2025 by Mark K. Johnson
The vision for Takapuna Winter Lights 2025 is for students of all ages to participate in and engage with art at a community level, with a strong focus on education around our chosen theme. “Patupaiarehe” features the students from Takapuna Primary School, Belmont Primary School, Campbell’s Bay ELC and Northcote Early Learning Centre, who created drawings of Patupaiarehe, which were scanned and brought to life by animated projection. Learning was in three parts: history, drawing and Te Reo, bringing together culture, art and language.
In Māori tradition, Patupaiarehe are supernatural fairies who dwell in New Zealand’s caves, dark forests and mountain tops. Known for their magical powers and special knowledge, they are only seen at dusk or in the mists. They are experts at weaving fishing nets, and they play sweet, alluring music on traditional pūtōrino and kōauau (flutes).
‘Patupaiarehe’ showcases the magical world of Aotearoa, filled with colour and life.
