Maori artists discovered they had more in common with their Aboriginal neighbours than they thought.

Dargaville-based artists Colleen Urlich, Manos Nathan and Bernard Makaore joined nine other Maori artists from throughout New Zealand in a cross-cultural exchange in rural Queensland recently.

The Dargaville group was surprised by the similarities they had with the Aboriginals.

Maori artists discovered they had more in common with their Aboriginal neighbours than they thought.

Dargaville-based artists Colleen Urlich, Manos Nathan and Bernard Makaore joined nine other Maori artists from throughout New Zealand in a cross-cultural exchange in rural Queensland recently.

The Dargaville group was surprised by the similarities they had with the Aboriginals.

Mrs Urlich says she was surprised to learn that Aboriginals cooked their food in a similar way.

"We had an Aboriginal hangi, which they called kupmurri, whereby food was placed in a hole and smoked."

"Oh yes, it had a lovely smoked flavour," Mr Nathan exclaimed.

Mrs Urlich says she also found it interesting to discover the painted marks worn by Aboriginal dancers tell a story, just like the Maori moko does.

"The bands on their upper arms represented the groups they belong to. On their faces were owl pictures and on their backs the flying fox – these were images symbolic of the local wildlife in their region. They were tribal totems."

The group was glad to share similarities but also shared differences too and combined these to create pieces of art together.

Mrs Urlich explained that a couple of Maori artists had a map of Thornhill Station where they were staying and enlarged it to show the landscapes. Maori and Aboriginal artists then filled in the spaces to create an impressive collaborative print.

Mrs Urlich says the environment they worked in was ideal for artists.

"It wasn't the red stuff, it was green all over and the nearest shop was an hour and a half away. As an artist it was fantastic, there were no disturbances, there was total focus on what we were doing. And magic happened when we collaborated.

`We had a really good rapport from the get-go. There was not one grump, there were no primadonnas and there was a lot of laughter."

But she says the Australian wildlife was a little scary.

"The Aboriginals took the mickey out of us Maori because we were scared of the toads in the toilet."

At the end of the week-long cross-cultural exchange the artists displayed their creations at the Gidarjil Development Corporation in Bundaberg followed by displays at three other venues in Queensland.

`The exhibition blew everyone away. It was on the television news and a documentary crew followed us filming the whole experience," she says.

"For me one of the inspiring aspects was that we took some young Maori artists over and now they are setting up an art exhibition in June next year and gaining an international profile.

"And it works both ways – when the Aboriginals come to Northland New Zealand in 2012 they will be able to gain an international profile here too."

Bernard Makaore says the experience really broadened his understanding on the Aboriginal people and gave him a new found appreciation for home.

"You can't just walk around in the grass in the outback because of all the snakes," he says.

Maori artists involved in the exchange were: Colleen Urlich, Manos Nathan, Bernard Makaore, BJ Ewen, Faith McManus, Rhonda Halliday, Allen Wihongi, Gabrielle Bells, Todd Douglas, Will Ngakuru and Whiu Waata, all of Ngapuhi.

Rose Stirling - Dargaville News