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).