Marae — Te Tatau Pounamu

Rt. Reverend Bishop Muru Walters, MA, Dip Ed, LTh (Aot), Adv Dip Tchg, PGD (Arts), Pihopa o Te Upoko o te Ika. Muru Walters’ life achievements remain far from ordinary and include being an exceptionally talented Maori All Black who was awarded the Tom French Cup in 1957, while simultaneously being an art teacher and an avid practitioner of the visual arts.

In the 1960s Muru (Te Rarawa and Te Aupouri) was responsible for developing a Maori arts curriculum for primary and secondary schools in Northland while studying carving under the tutelage of Pine Taiapa. Having always been an active member of the Anglican Church, today Muru is a Bishop and a revered and influential member of both the religious and Maori community nationwide.

Muru has been involved in the same creative work that influenced and inspired people like Syd Meads, Fred Graham, Ralph Hotere, Kath Mataira, Para Matchiit, Cliff Whiting, to name a few, to share their skills in diverse fields. His life is described by Ngahiraka Mason as a blessed binding together of people. 'If you asked Muru Walters he would say he considered that life was a continuum of redemption and transformation and that one must take heart and find the joy in the ordinariness of life.' (Ngahiraka Mason, Turuki Turuki Paneke Paneke, 2009).

Growing up in Dunedin, Robin Walters (Te Rarawa, Te Aupouri, Ngati Hine, Ngati Manu and Nga Puhi) was heavily engaged in the art world through his father. Robin pursued photography while at Otago Boys High School but did not perceive it as a way to earn a living until he arrived in London and found himself assisting some of Europe’s most well known fashion photographers.

From there, Robin went on to becoming a photographer in his own right and followed the natural progression that led to cinematography. He is now one of Australasia’s most renowned comedy film and commercial directors. With a host of awards to his name, Robin has a unique cinematic style that demonstrates not only his years of photographic experience but also a deep understanding of humanity and an ability to tell its stories with sensitivity and a distinctive appreciation of everyday beauty.

Sam Walters was born and raised on the North Wales coast in the UK. She pursued and learnt the craft of photography as an assistant and studio manager to American photographer Robert Golden, who ran one of the busiest studios for advertising and editorial photography in London. Following a natural progression from this, Sam moved into film, producing TV commercials, short films and documentaries for the UK and Europe.

In the mid-nineties, Sam moved to New Zealand where, alongside film production work, she continued to pursue her photography before enrolling in a formal study of the arts at AUT University, where she gained a Bachelor of Visual Arts in 2002. After graduating she went on to tutor sculpture and photography for MIT on their Dip. Visual in Arts course at Rutherford.

Sam’s work has been a finalist in the Waikato National Contemporary Art awards and she frequently exhibits at galleries around Auckland.