He may not be formally trained, but photographer Te Rawhitiroa Bosch has more than made up for that in skill, energy and sheer determination to portray Māori through a fresh, unjaded lens to themselves and others.
He’s everywhere. If it’s a Māori gathering of national significance, chances are you’ll catch Te Rawhitiroa Bosch (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu) there, camera in hand, spare lens hanging from a holster on his hip, ready to shoot. He moves confidently, quietly and swiftly through the crowd. A remarkable skill, considering he towers over most at 6″4′ (193cm). Without drawing attention to himself, he’s always on the move, repositioning himself for the best shot while managing to blend into the crowd.
Now, he’s one of the the most recognised Māori photographers in the country and his photos can be seen in many mana-enhancing profile pics around social media.
‘Straight tutu-Māori and now I’m here’
With no formal training in photography, Bosch says he figured it out along the way. “I borrowed my Dad’s point-and-click camera and went from there, entered a competition and won it – I thought that was pretty cool. After I left school, I was working as a landscaper and saved up to buy myself a camera,” says Bosch.
One of his earliest gigs was a wearable arts event in Whaingaroa, where he was commissioned to take photos for various backdrops. Impressed by what they saw, one of the judges sought to purchase some of the photos for her business. In the end, they came to an agreement to exchange six photos for a laptop.
“For a young fulla, I think I was 17, I thought wow this is mean! I really have to mihi to her because it gave me the rorohiko to start processing my images properly and everything grew from there,” says Bosch.
For him it’s not about the career, it’s about the kaupapa. A key driver that keeps his shutter clicking is uplifting Māori and portraying us as we really are.
Changing Maori perspectives and vice versa
“Too much of our media brings us down, tells all the bad stuff and if you get told something enough times you start to believe it, I feel like that definitely happened with our people over the years through colonisation and repeated messaging,” says Bosch.
With the advancement of tech and social media coinciding with a strong growth in Māori pride, Bosch believes the tide has turned, and it’s now more feasible for Māori to control the narrative about Māori.
“As a photographer I’m not making anything up, I just capture what’s there. So when I show photos of gifted, talented, supportive, loving, Māori, it’s because that’s exactly what’s there,” says Bosch.
As a photographer, he uses his skills to amplify the voices of the people within the community and highlight the roles and contributions that people are making in te ao Māori. His aim is to shift the perspective of how Māori see ourselves, how Pākehā and tauiwi see Māori and how Māori are viewed internationally.
A strong element of trust
While anyone can learn the skills of photography, for Bosch, having a cultural upbringing is about understanding which aspects to focus on to tell a particular story.
“If you’re looking at the world from a Māori lens, then you can understand what’s happening at Māori events. You know where to be, what’s important, you can anticipate what’s going to happen next,” says Bosch.
There is a strong element of trust involved when capturing images or filming in Māori communities and Bosch says a fundamental part of his practice is ensuring that the integrity of te ao Māori is upheld.
“It’s a privilege to be in these spaces and not anyone can get into these spaces where we are practicing our tikanga for real. When you look at the photos, nobody’s acting, it’s not a show. This is us practicing our tikanga, practicing our Māoritanga for real,” says Bosch.
His latest exhibition is a culmination of years of hard work, cultural awareness, whanaungatanga and chance.
Right place, right time
On Waitangi Day in 2020, while working as a photographer with the iwi chairs forum and the prime minister, Bosch heard that the waka taua were making their annual procession towards the shore.
The waka taua community in Te Taitokerau has grown immensely over the years. On this occasion, a fleet of waka taua were commemorating the 80th anniversary of the launch of Ngātokimatawhaorua, a Ngāpuhi war canoe that was inspired by Te Pūea Herangi of the Kīngitanga movement to be built for the 1940 centennial of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. That project was led by Pita Heperi of Te Taitokerau and Piri Poutapu of Waikato.
The name Ngātiokimatawhaorua originates from Matawhaorua, the original double-hull seafaring vessel sailed by Kupe when he first navigated to Aotearoa. Upon returning to Hawaiki he renamed it Ngātokimatawhaorua, before his son Nukutawhiti then sailed it back to Aotearoa.
Fast-forward to a commemorative event that encapsulated all that history and Te Rawhitiroa Bosch found himself running down to the bridge and onto the beach where the protocols and rituals were taking place.
Having been involved with the waka community and with key whānau members in leadership roles, not to mention his father being one of the original paddlers in the 1940 event, he knew he was within his right to proceed.
With camera in hand, Bosch managed to capture the historical moment in what he describes as being in the right place at the right time and with the right connections.
“I knew that day that I had an exhibition,” says Bosch.
A fleet of waka at Te Papa Tongarewa
The project quickly evolved beyond a photographic exhibition, with Bosch bringing in master waka carvers Hemi Eruera and Billy Harrison to introduce the last two waka taua that were carved by the late Sir Hekenukumai Busby.
After first showing at Waitangi Treaty Grounds, He Kaupapa Waka – A Fleet of Waka, created by Bosch, opened at Te Papa last week.
The exhibition consists of the photos by Bosch, a set of hoe carved by Billy Harrison which represent each star within Te Waka o Tamarereti constellation, and the two waka, as well as an immersive 40-minute soundscape created by Tiki Taane.
It was opened alongside the renewal of Manu Rere Moana Pacific Voyagers, one of the long-standing exhibitions at Te Papa which acknowledges the legacy of Sir Hekenukumai and Mau Piailug of Satawal, Micronesia, demonstrating the shared tradition of celestial navigation across Te Moana Nui a Kiwa.
“I think it’s really special because we have all of our waka on the same floor in Te Papa Tongarewa, waka taua, so people can have that full experience and dispel that myth that we paddled here from Hawaiki,” says Bosch.
To view the work of Te Rawhitiroa Bosch, visit @rawhitiroa or rawhitiroa.com
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This is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.