- Hey Mum, that's Ben Haami! I met him, he's cool! exclaimed my seven year old.
- Yeah he's cool, he was at Uncle Gordon's and (his daughter) Wairingiringi, added my three year old.
My children were referring to the playa in Ben Harper's Steal my Kisses video. In fact they were talking about Ben Harper himself, like he and my two boys were old friends.
- Oh really...
- Yeah! my eldest said looking at me as if I were daft, "He's Maori".
Apart from the fact that my sons believe everybody should be Maori, I needed to take my investigation a little further...
- And how is that? I asked.
- He's got moko said he.
- Ok... I replied and left it at that.

Cut to: telephone interview, three days earlier.
Teremoana: Hello...
Ben Harper: Hello...
- Hey it's Teremoana, do you remember me?
- Yeah man, from the radio station right.
- Yeah...
- How's JP [Jared Pitman] ?
- He's good...
- You gotta tell JP I say hello, please
- Yeah I will...
- You know who I'm talking about right?
- Yeah, yeah...

Though many of you reading this do not, so let me elaborate. When Ben Harper last toured Aotearoa ("the land-of-the-long-white-cloud", New-Zeland) Virgin Records in conjunction with Auckland's Mai FM had a traditional welcome (called Powhiri) for him in that most traditional of settings, the Mai FM offices in Grey Lynn suburbia. I covered the powhiri for TV2 youth show Mai Time and JP was the reporter.

June 2000

The day's events went as elegantly as powhiri are renowned for and when the speeches were done and bellys were full we were permitted 15 minutes with the man. JP cautiously found his comfort zone with Harper and as soon as the camera was turned off, they immediately found a connection with each other.

Turns out Ben Harper was looking for advice on taking a special step in his life: for the last ten years he had been thinking of adorning himself with a piece of body art, and he had decided he wanted ta moko. JP talked it over with him, a course of action was decided, and they made plans to go visit Tohunga ta moko (expert moko artist) Gordon Hatfield.

Harper, without a doubt, loves coming here. During his interview, he reminisces about the time he caught a cab to Paremoremo to visit an inmate whom made him a taonga [a pendant made from beef bone which appears on the inside cover of the booklet accompanying the limited edition CD box collection released last year]. He went to the prison to thank the man, and neither the cab driver nor the prison guard were particularly amused.

But let me continue to explain how Ben Harper became Maori.

The powhiri started on the footpath outside Mai FM. Harper received a quick rundown on the concept of a powhiri, but still really had no idea what he was about to experience. He was greeted by a taiaha-wielding toa [a warrior weilding a weapon likened to a spear] half naked in traditional garb. And when it was determined whether the arriving party had come in peace or to bring the ruckus, Ben was lead through the Mai FM offices to the courtyard where he was welcomed by the warmth of sweet singing brown faces [referring to all the Maori - indigenous]. At times throughout the powhiri his eyes were closed, listening and rocking to the singing in a language that he didn't understand, but he understood its meaning. He spoke in turn as the protocol of the area dictated. We couldn't actually hear him but from the expression on his face, we knew the meaning. Then he sang and we all understood.

Harper recalls one thing that caught him off guard: it was the face of kaumatua Kingi Taurua. Kingi wore the facial moko, 'kiri kiore', and Harper could not take his eyes from his face. "When he (Kingi) spoke" says Harper, "I had like an epiphany, a moment you could say, and that's when I knew this is what I should have done." He followed his instinct through and that night JP took him over to Hatfield's Mangere based studio, where Harper spent time with the great moko practioner's family and discussed what he should have done. Harper was convinced that Hatfield was the man for the job that would grace his physical and spiritual being for a lifetime, and he was further swayed when he found out that Hatfield had also created the moko that was on the face of the kaumatua that had affected him so deeply.

In between gig dates, Harper had a day off where, he says "they went for it". He had his entire back covered in moko, then at a later date Hatfield flew to Harper's LA home and finished his arms. Hatfield also performed moko on some of Harper's family and friends. So Ben Harper and his family are seriously connected to Aotearoa now.

I ask him if he's glad he took the plunge. "Yeah man, definitely!" he responds, sounding overwhelmed by the experience. "I feel very privileged. You know, I know what it means and I know where it comes from. He (Hatfield) could have easily said no, this is for Maori only. I know that people may feel that this is for indigenous people only and there's like a whole other camp that think it's ok." He hesitates. "But then it would be like me saying I make music for black people, you know. That doesn't make any sense. Art loses it meaning unless it is shared."

Harper has no plans to tour here at present, although he and the band are playing in Australia later this month and he's scheduled in a few days off in New Zealand for early April. And as my son gradually makes his way to the end of this story, proof reading as he goes along. "I told you Ben Haami is Maori" he says. "How does that work again?" I ask. "He has moko and he's coming back home," he replies, giving me that 'don't you know anything' look.

Ben Harper : "Well, they're called Maori Body Art called Moko and their symbolism of thousands of years, it reflects where you've been, where you are and where you're going. Their philosophy is that its already underneath your skin and they're bringing it out from underneath you. What I love about Moko is they incorporate the skin as part of the design as much as the ink itself. I've got some that are just healing up as we speak!"

"There was pain involved, but it's a part of it. A process to what it means. A sort of initiation. It's a symbol of your life... An extension of what's already beneath your skin."

Dedicated by Blood
Whakautu ki te toto - Renaissance of Ta Moko
by Patricia Steur and Gordon Toi Hatfield
source : www.reed.co.nz

Dedicated By Blood is the result of four years of intensive collaboration between Steur and Hatfield. Their shared passion for the Maori culture resulted in beautiful photographs that not only uncover the soul of Ta Moko, but also the pride of a clan intimately revealing the artistry and essence of Gordon’s designs. The body became the ‘wood’ for the artist and a symbol of the history of the clan and culture. This book reflects the renaissance of the Maori culture through the meaning of Ta Moko.

Gordon Toi Hatfield (1964) is a New Zealand artist of Maori descent and a graduate of the Maori Arts & Crafts Institute. At his graduation he received the Sir Henry Kalliher Student of Honor award for his talents. Gordon has had several gallery exhibitions in both New Zealand and The Netherlands. He has designed Maori meeting houses where he personally executed the intricate wood carvings. In doing so, Gordon has had the sole responsibility for the artistic interpretation of his tribal history. As an actor Gordon played roles in several films, including The Piano, and received the Best Actor Award at the New Zealand Film and TV Awards. Hatfield was nominated for the TV Guide New Zealand Television Award for Best Contribution to Design for his work as Maori Production Designer. In the mid nineties he achieved gteh status of Top Warrior after a long training in Maori disciplines. Thereafter he was a role model for Maori youth and gave his support to rehabilitation programmes at schools. The art of wood carving was a precursor to the art of traditional Maori tattoo, ta moko (carved skin). The move to ta moko was a natural progression for a carver who understands the meaning and application of the patterns; the wood-based medium became skin-based. Today Gordon enjoys great international fame as a moko artist and plays a leading fole in the worldwide reintroduction of indigenous tattooing.

Patricia Steur (1948) is an internationally recognised Dutch photographer. Out of 6,000 professional photographers active in The Netherlands, Patricia is ranked fifth by De Fotograaf, the country's leading magazine for professional photographers. Her work has been published in most well-known Dutch magazines, as well as international publications. Her frequent exhibitions have included portraits of musicians, authors, actors and other celebrities, including Andy Warhol, The Red Hot Chilli peppers, Keith Haring, Dennis Hopper, Stevie Ray Vaughn, John Hyatt, Jan Cremer and Ringo Star, among others. Her interest in the art of tattooing and the history of its origins has developed into a passion. Capturing vanishing cultures and their tribal tattoos - the source of all contemporary tattoo art - is a main ingredient of this passion.

More info | www.patriciasteur.com