Page 267 - Constructing Craft

British or Oriental direction would be merely copying a foreign culture. His advocacy

of ‘primitive’ forms was linked to advocating New Zealand’s native culture as a
source of creativity. Craftspeople, like some post-impressionist artists such as

Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Gauguin and Paul Cézanne, often revered ‘primitive’ craft
for its unspoiled honesty. The interest in ‘primitive’ art was a search for qualities that

had been abandoned by nineteenth century European art: ‘intensive
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expressiveness, clarity of structure and a forthright simplicity of technique.’
‘Primitive’ art (and craft) was also linked to the notion that children’s art was more

expressive than adult art (or craft). In New Zealand, Māori craft, despite its position
as the nation’s indigenous craft, was perceived by some as exotic and a primitive

form of craft.

Robyn Stewart burnished pot, 1987. Stewart’s use of ancient making
techniques encouraged her to use Māori decoration. Photo: John Parker
and Cecilia Parkinson.

Other craftspeople applied Māori decoration to their craft work because they

believed the way the item was made had an affinity with Māori designs. Robyn

Stewart, a potter, employed an ancient technique used by the Pueblo Indians in
New Mexico that involved burnishing (rubbing with a smooth object) the surface of

the pot before firing in a type of bonfire – often using dung as the fuel. Stewart used

Māori motifs because she believed ‘the pots ... [lent] themselves to ethnic

Constructing Craft