Visions in blood and ink: the return of Maori tattoo at the Peabody Essex Museum

Salem, Mass. — On February 23, the Peabody Essex Museum will
open a remarkable exhibition of moko, the facial and body tattooing of
Maori, New Zealand’s indigenous people. Thirty large-format portraits
by award-winning photographer Hans Neleman and related 19thcentury
and contemporary Maori woodcarvings explore this tattoo
tradition.

The decision to wear moko is a major commitment and involves
the subject’s family and iwi (tribe). Enhancing the contours of the
face and body, each moko design is unique, belonging to the
individual physically and intellectually, and may take years to
create. Kimiora Ereatara Hohua shared part of her story with
Neleman: “The bottom of the design [on my chin] represents my
mountains, the sides my whakapapa, the curls at my lips my
children, and the top spirals each side of my family.”

“Each image represents the strength and pride of Maori triumphing
over an inequitable past,” said Hans Neleman. “They reveal majestic
faces marked with permanent lines – lines of sacred heritage, of
cultural commitment, of visual poetry and of personal pain. It is the
revival of a tradition, the promise of Maori future inspired by the
beauty of Maori past.”

About the Photographer

Hans Neleman is a New York-based photographer whose work has appeared in exhibitions worldwide.
He has received numerous awards, including Photographer of the Year from American Photograph
magazine, Kodak Young Photographer of the Year, and an Image Bank Award from Getty Images which
resulted in the collection of Maori moko photographs that constitute this stunning exhibition.
Media partners for Body Politics are The Boston Phoenix and 101.7 WFNX. Additional Support provided
by New Trade Winds/ECHO (Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations), administered by
the U.S. Department of Education Office of Innovation and Improvement.
Image captions (from top):

Piri (Dave) Iti, 1998. Photograph by Hans Neleman, © Hans Neleman and Piri (Dave) Iti.
Kimiora Ereatara Hohua, 1998. Photograph by Hans Neleman, © Hans Neleman and Kimiora Ereatara
Hohua.

About the Peabody Essex Museum

The Peabody Essex Museum presents art and culture from New England and around the world. The
museum's collections are among the finest of their kind, showcasing an unrivaled spectrum of American
art and architecture (including four National Historic Landmark buildings) and outstanding Asian, Asian
Export, Native American, African, Oceanic,