Ta Moko

 How is Ta moko important to Maori culture?

Ta moko is important to Maori culture because it shows their status in a tribe. A ta moko tattoo shows whether or not you're married, your rank, your birth status and your job, it is your identity. Having a tattoo is important because you're not regarded as an important person if you don't have one. It is also a part of Maori culture and not having a tattoo could be a sign of disrespect towards your own culture.

 Why is there a resurgence of Ta moko?

There is a resurgence of ta moko because Maori people are proud of their culture. They like to display who they are and they do so by getting a traditional tattoo. Another reason why it's popular now is that it is a lot quicker and less painful to get a tattoo now. Some people from New Zealand and Maori tribes might get one because they like to show their heritage even if they aren't descendants of a traditional warrior.

How have the aesthetics of Ta moko changed over time?

The aesthetics of Ta moko have changed because as the traditional wide chisels were replaced with thinner, smaller ones, it was found that more detail could be added to tattoos. Ta moko exists because it displays to others, a person's background and tells their story. As the aesthetics of Ta moko have evolved, the tattoos have changed as well to being tattooed on other places of the anatomy. Thus more detail being added into the designs of traditional ta moko tattoos.

What looks good in Oz?

Australia has an interesting culture. Many things look good; the grass, museums, tourist attractions, national icons, the beach and even kids playing cricket in the street. But with good things come bad things. Some things like dodgy looking neighborhoods, drunk people at the footy, and some Australian role models that are caught doing drugs and breaking the law.

There are also things that can look ugly and beautiful at the same time. Take the Sydney Harbour Bridge. If you look at it from Circular Quay its a large majestic structure standing over the water, that brings people from all over the world to see. But if you look at it closely it's a large amount of ordinary grey metal and could be considered ugly.

I think beauty is decided by peers, it depends on what situation they're in, the view they have and whether or not they find it attractive.

Street Art

Street art is an artistic representation of inner feeling. Unlike graffiti where people go around 'tagging' fences and buildings, street art shows emotion. It can be classified as a form of vandalism, and in some places is illegal, but that doesn't stop people from showing what they're about. Street art is usually performed with aerosol spray paint, sometimes people use just a regular paintbrush and paints.
In one place in Japan, there was so much street art in an alley, and the standard was so good, it was named a tourist attraction. Some underground artists go there to discuss upcoming projects and designs.

This is 3D street art, it was painted by street artist Edgar Mueller. It is a 3D depiction of a chasm painted on 2D pavement. I think it's very cool, I would call this art. This artist is very talented. I like how by making the colour darker towards the bottom it looks like the cave is getting deeper. My favourite thing is the bits of falling rubble. The angle and shading of the rubble are iconic. The people acting out that they're stumbling at the edge of the chasm also help create the idea that there's a huge crater in the middle of the sidewalk. If I were to come across this on the street I would do 3 things, take a minute to work out the amazing design of this painting, take another minute to appreciate how much time it would've taken to create this and three, have a picture that makes it look like I'm falling in. I think this art should be more common, as it makes the ground look livelier and draws in tourists. This is one of the coolest things I've ever seen, I think this artist should make a trip out to Canberra sometime.

Racism in the 1860s

Racism in the 1860s was a huge issue. In fact, black people were so largely discriminated against that there was the civil war. White Americans started to import black Africans and use them as slaves. They were treated with disregard and less respect the white men. This wasn't just happening in America either. The British soldiers who came with the convicts to Australia also disregarded the Australian aboriginals. They did this because they aren't familiar. They're not something they've seen before and it came as a shock because they didn't expect it.

We look back at it now and say "why were they such idiots, why did they treat these black people so badly". It's because it was a new thing for them, they were discriminated against because they weren't familiar to the Americans. Black people weren't something they'd seen before and knew nothing about them. They thought that maybe something was wrong with them and that they were a less worthy form of life then them.

Now we have evolved and adapted our form of thinking to accept everyone and we know that just because someone is 'black', it doesn't make them any less worthy of living on the earth then we are. The world benefits from aboriginal knowledge.

I can believe why the Africans were treated badly. The Americans had no knowledge of the people and who they were. They were treated poorly because the whites were unfamiliar with the blacks. It was wrong, but possible to understand.  Everybody should be treated with respect. Even if they aren't part of your culture or from your part of the world.

Graffiti

I found some graffiti on a wall one day when I was walking. Graffiti is usually classified as vandalism and is an ugly spray paint job done by someone at 1 in the morning. Some graffiti is beautiful and does look good. In some places you see graffiti that are pictures, say for example Mario and Luigi, or even another person with a can of spray paint in their hand. People who do vandalise things with graffiti put a lot of time into painting their 'artworks'. It is a cool thing to come across if you find some that really catches your eye.

I think this graffiti is very nice, it says 'risk'. Take into consideration the artistic ability of the person who painted this. The letters overlap in a certain style that is classified as 'street vandalism'. The range of colours used in this piece of graffiti is amazing, they compliment each other. I also like the sky with stars above the tag. The dynamics of the letters to make them stand out are iconic. If more graffiti was painted like this, instead of those lazy tags on people's fences, I think it would be accepted by the community as pieces of art.

Sunrise over mountains

This is a photo taken in the Australian outback. The photographer was sitting in a cave when the sun came up and took this photo.


I find this photo visually attractive for a few reasons. I like how the rays of sunlight are seen off the sun itself. I also like how the light from the sun and the angle of it make the cave's roof that amazing earthy red colour. This photo is also visually attractive to me because I like how the rocks and everything inside the cave is glowing, it gives you a really good comparison when the valley running throught the mountains is a dark brown. It gives you the impression that this cave is keeping watch over the valley.

This photo could also be attractive because of how great the camera itself is when it took the photo. It's captured everything in very fine detail. You can see the texture of the rocks, you can see the sun itself very well. Also the photo could catch people's eye because it's very bright. Bright colours attract people's attention. If it was all brown like the valey below most people wouldn't even give it a second glance.

This photo is magnificent and I only wish that I had been there when it was taken to experience the view that this one lucky photographer got.