Kate S

CV



The Price of Citizenship -
Te Rau Aroha Museum
Design Intern
  Workshop E
  Waitangi Treaty Grounds, Waitangi
2019



The Price of Citizenship is a central exhibition within Te Rau Aroha Museum, located on the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. It tells the stories of Māori involvement in conflict from 1840 to the present day and highlights the ongoing struggle for equal rights as citizens of Aotearoa.

As a new intern at Workshop E, this exhibition was my first introduction to museum and exhibition design and it played a key role in sparking my passion for this field.

Te Rau Aroha was a newly constructed museum in 2019, and Workshop E was tasked with designing a site-wide experiential journey that honours and commemorates the sacrifices and heroic actions of Māori soldiers and battalions.
While I was not involved in the design itself (conceptual and developed design stages were completed before I joined the studio), my role included content and image research, image creation and editing, technical drawing support, and general assistance to the lead designers. I was deeply inspired by the narrative and contemplative experience the team had crafted. Contributing to the development of this powerful and meaningful exhibition remains one of the highlights of my early career in the industry.

I assisted our lead videographer in mapping and projecting image loops onto the routered topographic tables featured in the exhibition, as seen in the images below. In addition, I created over 800 individual and unique watercolour stamps, each one printed on the end of a timber piece that formed part of the large-scale sculptural memorial at the heart of the exhibition’s final gallery. Each stamp represented a member of the 28th (Māori) Battalion, making the memorial a powerful and personal tribute.
 The structure itself was composed of these interlocking timber elements, forming a shroud-like enclosure that created a quiet, reflective space for remembrance. I was also responsible for sourcing photographs of the Battalion members and ensuring that each individual was correctly identified on the surrounding commemorative walls. This task was incredibly moving and impressed upon me the deep significance of the exhibition in honouring and giving voice to these lost men.

During the installation phase, I had the privilege of witnessing how an exhibition of such emotional weight is brought to life. As a young designer, seeing empty walls and rooms transform into an immersive and deeply moving journey through history was an influential and profoundly meaningful experience one that continues to shape my approach to spatial storytelling.