where is my house?

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some blades of grass and fern are hiding, yet vibrant, in a wet and all encompassing mist.

Kia mau ki te tokanga nui-a-noho. (There is no place like home)

"where is my house?" is a triptych audio/video collage comprised of audio video recordings using tito ohia a taonga pūoro ki te taiao, environmental improvisations, spontaneously captured over six months around Aotearoa using an iPhone 11 and the Camera app.

When I play ngā taonga pūoro, I often think of places and people connected to the taonga or places I have visited. This project shifts my focus back to my whare and to Te Whanganui- a-Tara, where I live and play pūoro the most. In this work, both the camera and my mind consistently point towards my whare in Te Whanganui-a-Tara as I play taonga pūoro.

Tēnei te mihi ki ngā mana whenua o Tē Whanganui-a-Tara, arā ko Te Ātiawa, rātou ko Ngāti Toa Rangatira, ko Ngāti Raukawa raua kō Taranaki Whānui. Ka nui ō manaakitanga. Tēnei te mihi ki ngā tāngata tāwhito o Te Ūpoko, arā a Ngāi Tara, rātou ko Ngāti Ira, ko Ngāti Kahungunu, ko Ngāti Mamoe, ko Ngāi Tahu, ko Ngāti Tama, kō Ngāti Mutunga anō hoki.

Dedicated to the memory of Rua McCallum (21 April 1959 - 9 May 2024). Moe mai rā e māreikura o Moeraki, moe mai rā.

Alistair Fraser

Al has a soft face and a warm beard. He is gentle.

Alistair Fraser (Pākehā) is a manu whakatangitangi a ngā taonga pūoro, a player, composer, maker and researcher of ngā taonga pūoro who has been making, performing and composing with ngā taonga pūoro since 1999. Alistair was born and raised in Ōtepoti/Dunedin and lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara.

Image Credit: Ebony Lamb