Mokorua

One woman’s journey to her moko kauae as an expression of her Kāi Tahu identity.

I kā rā o mua, I would know my place in my tīpuna’s time, I would know my face.

Mokorua is a revealing and emotional account of one woman receiving her moko kauae. Ariana Tikao grew up in suburban Christchurch in the 1970s and ’80s surrounded by te ao Pākehā. This book tells the story of Ariana exploring her whakapapa, her whānau history and her language.

This is one woman’s story, but it is interwoven with the revival of language, tikanga and identity among Kāi Tahu whānau over the last thirty years. Ariana’s journey culminates in her decision to take on Mokorua – her moko kauae – from tā moko artist Christine Harvey.

After an emotionally charged ceremony that brought together whānau, young and old, for songs and tautoko, hugs and tears, Ariana writes: ‘Our whānau had reached another milestone in the decolonisation process – or, rather, in our journey of reindigenising ourselves, becoming who we always were.’

Through Ariana’s words, te reo Māori text by her hoa tāne Ross Calman, and an intimate, moving photo essay by Matt Calman, Mokorua reveals the journey of one woman reclaiming her Māori identity. My moko has now surfaced from beneath my skin, and she, Mokorua, has revealed herself in her green-lined goodness.