Carin Wilson’s career, spanning more than five decades, includes furniture making, sculpture, architectural design, education and advocacy. Curated by Zoe Black, He maramara tupu aranga explores this extensive output, which has come to help define an Aotearoa New Zealand design aesthetic. A sample of Wilson’s work includes design and fabrication of the iconic reading chairs in Wellington Central Library, conceptualisation of the interiors of Whakaata Māori television studios, and co-facilitation of Artiture, a series of exhibitions held in the 1980s and 1990s.

Throughout his diverse œuvre, Wilson’s making has maintained a profound relationship with rākau. In a symbiotic intertwining, the designer’s affinity for wood has driven him to experiment and push different ways to honour Aotearoa’s native timbers. Rākau is his connection to the past and consistent collaborator, described by Wilson as a nurturing presence, companion and refuge to which he always returns.

In the 1980s, frustrated with Aotearoa’s unrelenting focus on Eurocentric traditions, Wilson and fellow designers sought change, redefining what design from Aotearoa looks like. Since then, Wilson has maintained a design philosophy that is grounded in the notion that what we create must be firmly tied to the place we live, the whenua and the materials found here.

A staunch defender of Māori visibility within the national design vocabulary, Wilson has been dedicated to exploring, defining and uplifting Māori design, a central part of his practice. Through teaching, advocacy, commentary and wānanga, Wilson has repopulated our places and spaces with interventions that reflect whakapapa and pūrākau (genealogy and narratives).

He maramara tupu aranga celebrates the legacy of Wilson’s mahi. It features remarkable pieces of furniture alongside ephemera illustrating a life spent in celebration of the joy of creativity, letting chips fly and seeing what takes form.