Next month, as New Zealand marks Matariki, the Māori New Year, a new literary sculpture featuring a karakia in te reo Māori will be unveiled along Wellington’s waterfront literary trail. The illuminated installation, He Karakia mō Puanga mō Matariki, represents a significant addition to the existing trail, which has until now featured quotations exclusively in English.

The Wellington Writers Walk, established in 2002, showcases typographical sculptures that incorporate excerpts and quotations from writers connected to the capital city. Unlike many literary trails worldwide, the Wellington walk does not depict statues of the authors but instead integrates their words into the cityscape, connecting pedestrians with the literary heritage tied to Wellington. Currently, the trail honours 23 writers, including only one Māori author, Patricia Grace, whose excerpt appears in English on a concrete sculpture near The Boatshed.

Dame Fiona Kidman, a founding member of the Writers Walk and a prominent Wellington-based writer, welcomes the introduction of the karakia sculpture. She describes it as an important step toward broadening the representation of voices in the trail, including those of younger and more diverse writers. “It’s great to preserve the past but we have a growing literature and giving it prominence... is very important,” she said.

The karakia was composed by Ben Ngaia (Te Ati Awa), who was commissioned by the Wellington Tenths Trust and Palmerston North Māori Reserve Trusts, which gifted the piece to the Writers Walk. He Karakia mō Puanga mō Matariki celebrates the stars Matariki and Puanga, significant markers of remembrance, renewal, and unity for Māori communities. Ngaia, who has written educational materials in te reo Māori and a children’s book retelling the Wellington harbour taniwha story, emphasized that the karakia embodies both the hopes of his iwi and the wider Wellington community. “The karakia is about unity, as a community, and that’s something as people we can resonate with regardless of our background,” he said.

Designed by artist David Hakaraiņa (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Paoa), the new sculpture marks a departure in style from the existing plaques and metal inscriptions. Set in a thoughtfully landscaped area near Te Papa, the piece features backlit text that glows at night, evoking celestial cycles and inviting quiet reflection. Hakaraiņa noted that the illumination mirrors the stars themselves and reinforces the karakia’s themes of guidance and hope.

The Writers Walk committee, chaired by Philippa Werry, has not commissioned a new sculpture for 13 years, citing funding challenges and delays related in part to the COVID-19 pandemic. When selecting the karakia, the committee prioritized an original work written in te reo Māori rather than a translation, narrowing the field considerably. Werry expressed optimism that this new addition will pave the way for future installations celebrating contemporary and diverse writers. “We have a long list,” she said. “It’s lovely that committees have kept looking after it and it’s still a really important part of the waterfront.”

The Wellington Writers Walk remains a distinctive cultural feature of the city, threading the words of both established and emerging writers through its urban landscape and now, for the first time, shining a luminous spotlight on te reo Māori literature.