Ep 24: Tātatau with Terje Koloamatangi

Tufunga Tātatau Terje Koloamatangi from Small Axe Studios is featured in this episode. He shares some of his journey and background with tātatau Tonga (customary Tongan tattoo), from receiving and learning from Su‘a Suluape Paulo II to practicing and developing the art further. Tātatau was banned in the early 19th century in Tonga by the Vava‘u codes that would later inform the modern national constitution. We discuss some of the misconceptions that have resulted, and Koloamatangi shares his research-based approach to mark making, working through terms and concepts to (re)discover further layers of meaning. Placement, aesthetics, ethics, and tools are explored through Kolomatangi’s philosophy that approaches tātatau as a way of making marks beyond isolated patterns or moments in time by living the practice. You can follow him on IG at: @terje_k @smallaxenz.

 

Terms: Tātatau/Tatau (Tongan/Sāmoan for tatoo), Fetu’u (star in Tongan), Tu‘i (paramount chief in Tongan), Ngatu (tapa, paper mulberry tree barkcloth), Ngatu ‘uli (highly valued black tapa barkcloth), Kautau (pertaining to war, e.g., war clubs), ‘Au (tatau hand tools), Peka/Pekapeka/Alapeka (Tongan for bat, bat pattern, thick bands that wrap around the waist), Pe‘a (Sāmoan for bat, bat pattern, sometimes used to refer to the malofie), Mālōfie (masculine Sāmoan chiefly markings on the waist and thighs), Va‘a (Sāmoan for sea vessel, Vaka in Tongan), Kalia (Tongan version of the double hulled sea vessel), Tāvaka (term for masculine Tongan chiefly markings on the waist and thighs coined by Tufunga Tātatau Aisea Toeutu‘u), Tufunga/Tufuga/Tohunga (Master of skill/craftsperson in Tongan/Sāmoan/Māori), Makauka (a Tongan way of using lines in tattooing), Tāvā (time-space Tongan philosophy, see episode 15), Tāmoko (customary Māori tattooing that follows protocol), Kirituhi (skin art in Māori).