Lily Kara-Liu
Waikato-Tainui, Ngāpuhi
Kia ora! I’m Lily, I am currently studying a Bachelor of Communication at Te Herenga Waka. There I have formed an academic and creative foundation in Media Studies and Film which I hope to practically develop at Toi Māori.
Throughout my summer here, my focus will be on increasing the quality of Māori art resourcing available online with artwork catalogue entries and artist biographies. I am particularly interested in the media industry as I believe that this is one of the most important realms for decolonisation, te reo Māori revitalisation, and indigenising the resources Aotearoa has access to—my idol is Merata Mita.
I am excited to learn and grow my skills in an environment with kaupapa Māori at the centre!
Post-Internship Statement:
I got to learn about so many awesome artists, events and exhibitions that have been pivotal in the revival of Māori arts and culture. What I liked the most is that I learned about it in a much more personal way than I would at University, because I was reading about it from first-hand perspectives rather than in a more clinical and scholarly-evaluation kind of way.
I loved the friendly office environment which made for a perfect first internship, but mostly I enjoyed just getting to meet lots of artists and people in the arts industry.
