Emily Rangitiaria Schuster (née Hicks, 12 January 1927 – 5 September 1997) was a New Zealand master weaver of

Te Arawa Te Arawa is a confederation of Māori iwi and hapu (tribes and sub-tribes) of New Zealand who trace their ancestry to the Arawa migration canoe (''waka'').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 ...

, Schuster was the niece of Rangitiaria Dennan, better known as Guide Rangi. She married Bob Schuster in 1950, and the couple had six children. Her twin daughters Dawn Smith and

Edna Pahewa Edna Pahewa (born 1954) is a New Zealand weaver and was the head of weaving () at Te Rito, the weaving school of the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute, for 18 years. Her work is held in the permanent collection of Te Papa. Biograp ...

became weaving tutors and experts. She lived all her life in Rotorua.

Contribution to weaving

Schuster was the convenor of the Aotearoa Moananui a Kiwa Weavers Committee since its inception in 1983, and was the weaving representative on Te Waka Toi's Māori Art Committee. Schuster founded the weaving school at the

New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute The New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute (NZMACI) is an indigenous traditional art school located in Rotorua New Zealand. It operates the national schools of three major Māori art forms. NZMACI opened in 1963 as a successor school to ...

in Rotorua, in 1969. Her daughter, Edna Pahewa, is the school's current head. In 1988, Schuster and Diggeress Te Kanawa were awarded a travel grant to visit

taonga ''Taonga'' or ''taoka'' (in South Island Māori) is a Maori-language word that refers to a treasured possession in Māori culture. It lacks a direct translation into English, making its use in the Treaty of Waitangi significant. The current d ...

kept in museums in the United Kingdom and United States. Schuster represented Aotearoa at a conservation conference in Brazil. Schuster continued to travel and teach until her death in 1993. Daena Walker writes that Schuster has been "acknowledged internationally as one of the most gifted weavers of her generation. Her contribution to the art of Māori weaving and her knowledge of kaitiakitanga, particularly the cultivation and conservation of harakeke (flax) and its origins, has ensured the survival of this craft today."

Honours and awards

In the 1983 Queen's Birthday Honours, Schuster was awarded the

Queen's Service Medal The Queen's Service Medal is a medal awarded by the government of New Zealand to recognise and reward volunteer service to the community and also public service in elected or appointed public office. It was established in 1975 and is related to ...

for community service. In 1993, she was awarded the

New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal The New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 was established by Royal Warrant on 1 July 1993. It was created to commemorate Women's suffrage in New Zealand and to recognize those New Zealand and Commonwealth citizens who had made a significant ...

. She was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, for services to Māori arts and crafts, in the 1994 Queen's Birthday Honours.

External links

Radio New Zealand National InterviewA Tribute

References

1927 births 1997 deaths Te Arawa people New Zealand Māori weavers Recipients of the Queen's Service Medal New Zealand Officers of the Order of the British Empire Women textile artists Recipients of the New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 People from Rotorua {{Māori-bio-stub