ŌTOROHANGA District Council chief executive Tanya Winter and Kaitakawaenga / Iwi Relationship Advisor, Cassidy Temese on the new carpet in the council chamber.
CARPET patterns can evoke moods, or like the new pattern in the Ōtorohanga District Council chambers, be used to combine historic and current social ties. The carpet feature was created to give life to one of the local names of the area where the district council is and a place further afield called Wai Kowhitiwhiti, Maniapoto kaumatua Shane Te Ruki said. “That pattern was crafted to symbolise the waterways, if you like, the meeting of waters in this space we call Ōtorohanga but also for the native watercress that used to grow along the sides of these waterways which provided much needed greens in the day, for the diet,” Shane said. “Ōtorohanga itself was a place of plenty, so Wai Kowhitiwhiti. It is a pattern to symbolise the coming together of the waters within and around Ōtorohanga and also the coming together of peoples. “The double spiral in itself showing that connected nature. And giving further notions of craftsmanship and engagement, the aspirational values that we look forward to now and within the future with regard to Ōtorohanga District Council, and the people living there,” Shane said. The triangular motifs bordering the spiral was the Wai Kowhitiwhiti itself growing, or also the homes along the waterway, artistically embedding the floors of the council within the immediate landscape. “The floor itself has layers of meaning,” Shane said. “It’s one motif that we decided to use to evoke notions of partnership – places of meeting being together in particular in this landscape which is Ōtorohanga, and the wider district as well.” It was part of a larger recognition and embracing of things Māori within the district, something he said was not apparent in the previous décor. “The opportunity to refurbish [the council building] gave the opportunity to renew not only in furniture and floor treatment, but it gave the ability and time for a greater consideration, that being the recognition of the Treaty of Waitangi, and participation and engagement and partnership with mana whenua, Māori within the district,” Shane said. “And noting too, that there wasn’t a lot of anything in the previous décor that reflected anything of the district, let alone mana whenua. “So with that in mind the local RMC Te Nehenehenui that [sat] under the [former] Maniapoto Māori Trust Board was approached by the council seeking help to showcase better aspects of the district.” The council chamber carpet was only one of a number of small integrations into the renovation work that has been done. “There will be windows with glass treatments with images that are sourced locally, dedicated names for rooms that evoke places and spaces within the Ōtorohanga district,” Shane said. “This will further embrace the carpet and other things. “All these features will further enhance the return of the entryway carving and tukutuku created by one of our local chiefs in his time Rua Anderson.” The carving was still being cleaned and receiving a makeover before its return, Shane said.
