Treasure house of Aotearoa marks 20 years
Te Papa is rated one of the world’s best museums
Hundreds of teddies have been abandoned, thousands of children lost and found, and tens of thousands of lightbulbs changed in the 20 years Te Papa has been open.
Yesterday marked the 20th birthday of Te Papa Tongarewa The Museum of New Zealand, which opened with a dawn ceremony on Valentine’s Day 1998.
The radical concept for Te Papa was that it would be a bicultural museum, and incorporate both the national museum and national art collection.
Opening day 20 years ago holds the record for the most visitors with 35,000 people pouring through the doors after they opened at midday. The second-busiest day was April 12 the same year, with 21,232 visitors.
If the 28.5 million who have visited since it opened is anything to go by, Te Papa has been embraced by New Zealanders.
While controversies raged — including protests about the Tania Kovats Virgin in a Condom artwork — the public continued to visit in their thousands.
Te Papa has discovered more than 400 new species, hosted more than 3000 powhiri, and rocked visitors with more than 1.3m shakes of its famous earthquake house.
It is consistently rated one of the world’s best museums and a top attraction in New Zealand, and its approach to storytelling and biculturalism remains a model for museums around the world.
Chief executive Geraint Martin said the reason for Te Papa’s success was that it offered a new kind of museum experience. “Museums aren’t cupboards full of old
stuff, they’re a mirror held up to society.
“Our aim is that every New Zealander can see themselves reflected at Te Papa, and that international visitors can understand the richness and diversity of Aotearoa.”
The museum has always faced criticism, and he hoped it always would.
“Given the significance of the stories we tell, it’s very healthy that they are the basis for debate and disagreement.
“We are here to cherish and treasure our culture, but also to challenge the old ways of doing things, to engage and surprise, and sometimes to provoke. Te Papa needs to be a safe place for challenging national questions.”
Major changes are ahead for Te Papa in the coming years, according to Martin.
“Next month we open a new art gallery in Te Papa, Toi Art, the biggest change to the museum since opening.”
The $8.4m space offers a vast, new gallery able to hold works that have never been shown at Te Papa before, and the opening on March 17 will reveal major commissions by contemporary New Zealand artists.
Te Papa’s Kaihautu¯ (Ma¯ori co-leader), Dr Arapata Hakiwai, has been with the museum since its earliest days. He said its strength had always been its ties to the community.
“Te Papa is different from other museums, and we celebrate that difference. We are a place where everyone can feel at home, and everyone can find a place to stand.
“As a bicultural museum we have always been reliant on our relationships with iwi, hapu¯ and wha¯nau, and as we mark our 20th anniversary we want to recognise and acknowledge that ongoing support: E nga¯ mana whenua, E nga¯ iwi o te motu tena koutou mo o koutou tautoko mai. No ma¯tou te honore kia mahi nga¯tahi ai.”