# Megan Tamati-Quennell

Megan Faye Tamati-Quennell CNZM is a New Zealand art curator who has specialised in Modern and contemporary Māori and Indigenious art. In 2024 Tamati-Quennell was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori and First Nations art.

## Early life and education

Tamati-Quennell is Māori, and is affiliated with Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Mutunga, Kāti Māmoe, Ngāi Tahu and Waitaha iwi. She was born in Dunedin.

## Career

Tamati-Quennell began her career in journalism, and worked for The Levin Chronicle (now the Horowhenua-Kapiti Chronicle), The Evening Post in Wellington, before running a briding course/training programme for those interested in journalism through the Wellington Unemployment Workers Union in Wellington. She also worked in film on E Tipu E Rea - a series of 30 minutes Māori drama's made for television and on Barry Barclay's feature film Te Rua. As a young reporter, Tamati-Quennell previewed Te Māori, Te Hokinga Mai which was formative in her development as a curator. Tamati-Quennell also worked as a weaver, learning under Diane Prince at the Wellington Arts Centre and Erenora Puketapu Hetet at Waiwhetu Marae.
Tamati-Quennell began her curatorial career as an Intern at the National Art Gallery, New Zealand (now Te Papa Tongarewa) in 1990. Her first exhibition experience was working on Kohia Ko Taikaka Anake, one of the largest exhibitions of contemporary Māori art to be held in New Zealand. Her first solo curated exhibition was Pū Manawa, an exhibition that paid tribute to Māori weavers and looked at the relationship between weavers and contemporary artists. Since the National Art Gallery, Tamati-Quennell has worked at Te Papa Tongarewa on the opening programme under Ian Wedde and Tim Walker and continued work at Te Papa for 34 years as Curator of Modern and Contemporary Māori and Indigenous art. She has curated numerous exhibitions the most recent at Te Papa; Hinaki, contemplation of a form, 2023-2024, and Hiahia, Whenua, Landscape and Desire, 2022 -2024. She also worked at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery in New Plymouth between 2021 and 2022. During her time there, she curated two exhibitions; There is no before, 2021, with Indigenous Australian artist, D. Harding and Swallowing Geography, in 2022.
In 2024 Tamati-Quennell curated Ka Awatea: A New Dawn, a major survey show of senior Māori painter Emily Karaka alongside President of the Sharjah Art Foundation, Hoor Al Qasimi at the Sharjah Art Foundation in the UAE. She is also one of five curators selected to curate the 16th Sharjah Biennial, titled to carry, that opened 6 February and runs to15 June 2025 in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.
Beginning in 2024, Tamati-Quennell began studying for a PhD at Monash University.

## Honours and awards

In the 2024 Birthday Honours Tamati-Quennell was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori and First Nations art.

## Selected works

* Megan Tamati-Quennell (13 December 2022). "Introduction to "History and Sovereignty"". Pacific Arts. 22 (2). doi:10.5070/PC222259586. ISSN 1018-4252. Wikidata Q130476451.
* Megan Tamati-Quennell; Lisa Reihana (1 December 2016). "Reverse Notions, Darkness and Light". Public. 27 (54): 66–77. doi:10.1386/PUBLIC.27.54.66_7. ISSN 0845-4450. Wikidata Q130476450.
* Huhana Smith; Oriwa Solomon; Awhina Tamarapa; Megan Tamati-Quennell (2007), Taiāwhio II: Contemporary Māori Artists (1st ed.), Te Papa Press, Wikidata Q75135656