Faka-Tokelau: Living with Change

Faka-Tokelau: Living with Change is on display at Papakura Museum from 7th July until 18th September 2021.

This thought-provoking photographic exhibition explores Tokelau’s unique way of life through the lenses of two New Zealand photographers, Glenn Jowitt and Andrew Matautia. Jowitt first visited Tokelau in 1981, and Matautia 36 years later, in 2017.

Faka-Tokelau compares and contrasts the two artist’s images alongside one another, revealing the constant, ongoing change on Tokelau’s fragile atoll.

With a focus on climate change, Faka-Tokelau: Living with Change portrays how people on the isolated and low-lying atolls of Tokelau live.

The vulnerabilities they face due to the ever-present threat of rising sea levels is evident in both Jowitt’s images from 1981, and Matautia’s in the present day.

Te Papa’s Curator of Photography, Athol McCredie said, “This exhibition highlights the strength and resilience of the Tokelauan people by showing how they have managed to live with the limited resources of their islands over time.”

Developed and toured by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Images:
Glenn Jowitt, Men carrying bananas, Tokelau, 1981, Gift of Glenn Jowitt Estate, 2015, Te Papa.
Andrew Matautia, Siniva Kalolo holding fishing net, Atafu, Tokelau, 2017, Te Papa.