‘The journey that never ends’: Niuean arts collective celebrates book launch milestone

A Niue community arts collective has marked a major milestone with the launch of its first book, celebrating the shared journey of Wellington’s Niue community.

Niutupu Pulapulaola launched their 70-page book, Hiapo Printing with Niutupu Pulapulaola, on Saturday. The book is a record of Niutupu Pulapulaola’s journey, from their first workshops in Wellington to the present.

It combines photographs, artworks, and stories, and celebrates the arts as a living link to Niuean ancestry. Speaking with Inangaro Vakaafi on PMN Niue, co-founders Maryanne Lapana and Margaret Jackson say the book documents their shared path of using arts to reconnect Niueans with their heritage.

Lapana says they wanted to learn more about their vagahau Niue (Niuean language) while also bringing “their people together” through arts and crafts. She says they also wanted to reflect their childhood values and experiences in their work.

“Where our parents [and] grandparents took us, what they taught us and the discussions we had around the umu. We went back to things like weaving from our grandmothers and our mother,” Lapana says.

Hiapo Printing with Niutupu Pulapulaola. Photo/Facebok/Niutupu Pulapulaola

“Hiapo stencil printing was one of the major ones that everyone kept asking for. So we reached out to our cousin Kirsten Feilo-Makap, the chair of Tupumaiaga A Niue Trust, and she created stencils for us so we could start our first workshop.

“The stencils itself connected us because it was a story. It was about our ways of being and doing as tagata Niue [people of Niue]around our marine life, plant life and the way we do things in Niue.”

Niutupu Pulapulaola grew out of inspiration from the Tupumaiaga A Niue Trust, which had introduced workshops in Auckland before the cousins decided to establish a similar initiative in Wellington.

The group, established in 2020, draws its name from the sprouted coconut for Niutupu, symbolising growth, while pulapulaola refers to the younger generation. Lapana explains that the name was chosen with the guidance of family.

The newly published book was originally planned as a 20-page publication but grew into 70 pages due to the overwhelming response from the community. Lapana says they wanted to incorporate as many people as they could into the book.

Jackson describes the publication as an extension of their guiding philosophy of “ko e fenoga nakai fai fakaotiaga” or the journey that never ends. She credits Niue creative Raquel Jensen for pitching the idea and supporting the project’s development.

“So all the ideas came together, we went away and did the work within… months. It was an exciting journey. We didn't have a name for the beginning of it. So everything just floated into place and we were in awe of how it ended.

“We were so excited to release our new book. I'm still buzzing that we’ve actually done it. That’s the thing, you give us an idea and then we'll go ahead and deliver it.”

The book also has a tribute page at the back, thanking everyone that has supported Niutupu Pulapulaola.

The co-leaders also recognised community supporters including the Aunties of Niue, Joy Sipeli, Pacific Health Service - Hutt Valley, Wellington Niue Rugby League, the Ministry for Pacific Peoples, Hutt City Council, and Te Papa Museum, where they had previously run workshops.

Looking ahead, Niutupu Pulapulaola plans to continue annual matua (elder) celebrations in Wellington and are considering taking workshops overseas to reach Niue communities globally.

For more information about purchasing the book, click here.