I Am the River. Maori Heritage on the Auction Block

Description

When a trove of high-quality negatives dating back to the 19th century surfaced in a New Zealand attic, the discovery sparked much controversy over cultural sensitivity and ownership rights. In the manner of the famous Curtis photographs of Native Americans, the images depicted individual Maori people and had been used as tourist postcards during the Victorian Era's craze for all things "exotic." This program documents the discovery of William Partington's Whanganui River photos, using commentary from the Auckland auctioneers who recognized their historical and artistic value, and from the Maoris - direct descendants of the people in the photos - who fought to halt their sale.

Runtime

51 min

Subjects

Genre

Date of Publication

[2013], c2010

Database

Films on Demand

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