one master carver's hopes for the next generation
As master carver James Rickard chips away at the wood beneath him, he balances one leg on a rickety stool and the other on the base of the pou he is carving.
His quiet workshop echoes with the rhythmic beat of each strike before he calls his tauira (students) to take over.
“It’s nearly there so you can take that like that and come up higher, then you can worry about the rest,” he tells them.
The tohunga whakairo (master carver) watches on, offering tips and encouragement to the second and third year students at Rotorua’s Te Puia, the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute.
Link to video and article: A lifetime of whakairo — one master carver's hopes for the next generation | Stuff.co.nz
