Te Taratara ā Kae is the Māori and Pasifika space in the Central Library, which features a large and versatile study space and holds the Central Library’s Māori and Pasifika Collection.
Te Taratara ā Kae is located on the harbour side of Level 2 in the Rankine Brown building, just inside the main entrance to the Central Library.
The kaitiaki of Te Taratara ā Kae is David Kukutai Jones, Pou Whakaapa – Māori and Pacific Librarian.
The furniture in Te Taratara ā Kae is designed to be flexible. You are welcome to rearrange the space to suit your needs, but please be respectful of other users. You must return furniture to its original place when you are finished with it. Te Taratara ā Kae contains:
The group tables and the Pasifika mat can be booked. To make a booking, use the Ask a Librarian service.
Te Taratara ā Kae is in a Green Zone, intended for group work and conversation; however, you must still respect other users of the space.
Please respect the following rules:
The Māori and Pasifika Collection at the Central Library consists of books selected for their relevance to the teaching and research of Te Kawa ā Maui and Va’aomanū Pasifika, plus basic reference works, and samples of material from other disciplines.
“Te taratara ā kae” is the name for the jagged whale tooth design found on most traditional pātaka (storehouses). The design indicates abundance and wealth. This name complements the Library’s name in te Reo Māori, “Te Pātaka Kōrero”, alluding to the wealth and abundance of knowledge the Library contains. The choice of an ancient name is tohi: it links the new space to what has gone before and imbues it with mauri (life force) to give it life and vibrancy.
Instead of walls, Te Taratara ā Kae has widely spaced floor to ceiling pillars, which allow light and sound into and out of the space, and are designed to evoke a Māori pā or Pacific village. Inside, the space has been modeled on a wharenui (meeting house), and laid out according to traditional Māori spatial design principles.
There are two pou (gateposts) at the front entrance of Te Taratara ā Kae, carved by master carver Dr. Takirirangi Smith. The figures on the pou are Tāwhaki and Karihi, who ascended to the heavens and brought back knowledge, and their wives Maikūkū and Maikākā, who watch over those who seek knowledge—like the users of Te Taratara ā Kae.
The large rug in Te Taratara ā Kae was designed by Christchurch textile designer Avis Higgs. It is woven in the traditional Māori colours of red and black, and the frangipani pattern represents Pasifika students and Pasifika culture. Its placement just inside the pou acknowledges Pasifika as manuwhiri tūārangi: illustrious guests.
The special label for books in the Māori and Pasifika collection is the winning entry from a competition to design a label in harmony with the goals of the collection. It was designed by Emma Gardiner.
