Cindy Te Ata Batt

Te Atiawa, Te Whānau-A-Apanui, Waikato and Ngai Tūhoe.
Joined the exhibition in Whakatū Nelson in February 2020.

Cindy's photoportrait in colour

Charting her journey from a challenging childhood to an abusive adult life, Cindy shares how her ancestresses taught her strength in the face of adversity.

Cindy is now a majestic Māori woman, and her experiences have given way to a wider wisdom; one that recognizes that women’s pain is universal. Or as she puts it, “wāhine is wāhine”.

Her powerful words are woven together with recordings of herself playing “Taonga pūoro”, Māori instruments.

Follow the exhibition’s journey here:

PHOTO PORTRAIT DESCRIPTION

Cindy’s brown eyes stare into the camera, eyebrows arched, chin jutting forwards slightly. Her lips and chin are adorned with a moko kauae with wide circular patterns.

She has long dark brown curly hair that flows over her right shoulder and down her back, almost concealing her long greenstone earrings and the long tongue of pounamu that hangs from her neck.

Her top is black with Māori designs of koru, triangles and diamonds in green, yellow and red. Her image stands out against a mottled background of wood brown and muted greenery.

Nelson Exhibition February 2022

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