Fred Graham (born 1928) is a New Zealand artist and educator recognised as a pioneer in the contemporary Māori art movement. In 2018 was the recipient of an Icon Award from the

Arts Foundation of New Zealand 'The Arts Foundation of New Zealand Te Tumu Toi is a New Zealand arts organisation that supports artistic excellence and facilitates private philanthropy through raising funds for the arts and allocating it to New Zealand artists. The concept ...

, limited to 20 living art-makers.

Biography

Graham was born in 1928 in

Arapuni Arapuni is a rural town centre on the Waikato river in the South Waikato District of New Zealand. The town sits next to the Arapuni Dam, a hydroelectric dam at Lake Arapuni commissioned in 1929. The Arapuni Power Station consists of eight turb ...

in South Waikato. He is affiliated with the

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 C ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

Ngāti Korokī Kahukura Ngāti Korokī Kahukura is a Māori people, Māori iwi of the Maungatautari area of the Waikato in New Zealand. It was formed by the coming together of two related hapū, Ngāti Korokī and Ngāti Kahukura. It has historic affiliations with Ngāti ...

and

Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka confederation of New Zealand Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Raukawa and Waikato. There are oth ...

. He attended Taita College in Lower Hutt, and enjoyed art and photography there. He trained as a teacher at Ardmore Teachers' Training College and specialised in art in his third year. He taught art at schools and in the 1950s he worked as an arts advisor to Māori primary schools in

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

and

Te Tai Tokerau Te Tai Tokerau () is a New Zealand parliamentary Māori electorate that was created out of the Northern Maori electorate ahead of the first Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) election in 1996. It was held first by Tau Henare representing New Zea ...

. One of his students was Nigel Brown, who went on to become well known New Zealand artist. Graham taught art at Palmerston North Teachers' Training College from 1957 until 1962. He has a studio in

Waiuku Waiuku is a rural town in the Auckland Region in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the Waiuku River, which is an estuarial arm of the Manukau Harbour, and lies on the isthmus of the Āwhitu Peninsula, which ...

and lives with his wife Norma. Graham was also a keen rugby player when he was younger and was briefly in the

Māori All Blacks The Māori All Blacks, previously called the New Zealand Maori, New Zealand Maoris and New Zealand Natives, are a rugby union team from New Zealand. They are a representative team of the New Zealand Rugby Union, and a prerequisite for playing i ...

rugby team (he played three games with them).

Career

Graham is known for his contemporary Māori art sculptures that reflect current themes and draw upon Māori traditions. He worked alongside other Māori artists such as

Ralph Hotere Hone Papita Raukura "Ralph" Hotere (11 August 1931 – 24 February 2013) was a New Zealand artist. He was born in Mitimiti, Northland and is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most important artists. In 1994 he was awarded an honorary do ...

Cliff Whiting Clifford Hamilton Whiting (6 May 1936 – 16 July 2017) was a New Zealand artist, teacher and advocate for Māori heritage. Career In 1955, Whiting began teacher training at Wellington Teachers' College where his artistic talents were quickly ...

and Paratene Matchitt from the late 1950s in founding a contemporary Māori arts movement. He said in an interview on Radio New Zealand:

''In the 40s, just after the war, Māori art was traditional art – carving and that kind of thing. But for the first time a lot of Māori had gone to teachers' college and the ideas around that time were changing. As young students, we wanted to follow our own path rather than follow the traditional path.''

Grahams work has been exhibited and sold to collectors with both New Zealand and international interest.

Works

Auckland Museum And Bird Of Prey Kaitiaki

Grahams' public sculptures are to be found in many places throughout New Zealand. This is a selection: *''Justice'' – courtyard of the High Court at Auckland *''Te Waka Toi o Tamaki -'' wall outside

Auckland Art Gallery Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki is the principal public gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. It has the most extensive collection of national and international art in New Zealand and frequently hosts travelling international exhibitions. Set be ...

*''Kaitiaki -''

Auckland Domain The Auckland Domain, also known as Pukekawa / Auckland Domain, is a large park in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the oldest park in the city, and at is one of the largest. Located in the central suburb of Grafton, the park land is the remains o ...

*''Kaitiaki II -'' corner of Shortland St and Queen St, Auckland metal bird – Mission Bay, Auckland *''Manu Torino'' – Auckland Botanic Gardens *''Falling Waters -'' the wall of the Alpha Motor Inn in

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

(sold to the city in 2017)

Awards

In 2017 Graham was awarded the Te Tohu mō Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu (Exemplary/Supreme Award) in the

Te Waka Toi Awards The Te Waka Toi awards are the premier awards in the field of ''ngā toi Māori'' (Māori arts). They have been awarded by Creative New Zealand and predecessors since 1986. The awards recognise ''tohunga'' (skilled people), artists and community ...

. In 2018 Graham was named an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have rend ...

in the New Years Honours List for his services to Māori art, and in the same year was made an Arts Foundation Icon.

References

External links