Tamata Reo | Self-Initiated Project
Aotearoa, NZ
Overview
Tamata Reo is a self-initiated design and photography project exploring how visual communication can support the revitalisation of te reo Māori. Combining typography, imagery, and storytelling, the work reframes language learning as an intuitive and culturally grounded experience—connecting meaning not only to words, but to memory and emotion.
Challenge
Te reo Māori revitalisation often exists within formal or institutional frameworks, which can feel inaccessible or disconnected from everyday life—particularly for emerging learners. There is a need for approaches that move beyond translation and instead foster lasting, personal connections to language. The challenge was to create a body of work that supports memory as a key part of learning—embedding kupu in ways that feel lived, familiar, and emotionally resonant. This required balancing cultural integrity with contemporary design, while remaining accessible and engaging across different contexts.
Approach
Tamata Reo was developed as an interdisciplinary system combining typography, photography, and visual storytelling. At its core is a custom collection of glyphs, each designed in response to a specific kupu—sometimes through literal visual translation, and at other times through a more interpretive expression of its essence.
Each glyph is paired with contextual photography that draws on memory—capturing moments, environments, and atmospheres that people can recognise or relate to. In some instances, these images reinforce direct meaning; in others, they act as mnemonic anchors, allowing learners to associate language with feeling, experience, and recall. By holding both literal and interpretive approaches, the work shifts learning from memorisation to recognition and connection. Design becomes a tool for cultural translation, bridging traditional knowledge with contemporary visual practice to create a learning experience that feels both modern and grounded.
Applications
The project functions as a flexible visual system that extends across both educational and public-facing contexts. The glyphs and photographic pairings can be applied to printed materials, exhibitions, and merchandise, enabling the work to live in everyday environments. This adaptability increases the visibility of te reo Māori while reinforcing memory through repeated visual exposure in daily life.
Outcome
Tamata Reo contributes to a growing movement of design-led approaches to language revitalisation. By anchoring kupu in both memory and visual clarity, the project supports deeper retention while remaining accessible to learners at different stages. The work was recognised as a finalist in the inaugural Kiingi Tuheitia Portraiture Award at the New Zealand Portrait Gallery in 2021, highlighting its impact within both cultural and contemporary art contexts.
As an evolving body of work, Tamata Reo continues to expand its applications and reach, with the long-term aim of strengthening cultural pride, supporting language learners, and embedding te reo Māori more visibly within everyday life.
Illustration
GIF
Typography
Photography
