One of the main themes of Te Papa’s recently opened community exhibition The Scots in New Zealand is Scottish identity and how this is expressed in the New Zealand context. As with many other cultural groups, Scottish identity is infused with stereotypical imagery. For the Scots this typically draws on Highland culture, but the challenge with this exhibition was to explore Scottish identity in a way that balanced the well-known conventional expressions of Scottish identity alongside the lesser- known, unexpected ones. Aspects of Scottish identity are touched on throughout the entire exhibition but a segment, entitled ‘Scots Here Now’, is dedicated to this topic. Examples range from some traditional activities like curling, bagpiping and Burns Suppers, to some less familiar examples like fashion, Orkney Island fiddling and a contemporary artwork by artist Rob McLeod.

EXHIBITING SCOTTISHNESS

The exhibition team including the Community Advisory Group (CAG) carefully considered how Scottishness would be represented in the exhibition. In general it was decided that the exhibition should be warm and welcoming, vibrant and engaging, include historical and contemporary stories and present a sense of Scottishness that was fresh and unique. The CAG particularly wanted the inclusion of a diverse range of personal experiences, including that of women and children, Lowlanders, people from a range of places and from different periods of time. At the same time there was still a deep need to draw on familiar elements of Scottish culture. Therefore throughout the exhibition there are examples of tartan, bagpipes, clan badges, a cairngorm and Scottish dancing. Could there be a Scottish exhibition without these things?

A SCOTS PALETTE

When making history in the context of an exhibition there are many limitations including the availability of objects that can tell a specific theme, story or idea, and the amount of text or level of detail that can be given over to exploring complex concepts like the Scottish diaspora. The exhibition therefore needed to employ a variety of visual cues to get some of the key subliminal messages across and to paint a generalised picture of Scottishness. For example, the graphic design gives the exhibition a classical look and feel with a contemporary twist. This was done through strips of colour applied to the walls and exhibition labels which made use of warm welcoming tones such as pinks and purples, representative of some classic Scottish imagery such as heather, bluebells and thistles. The inspiration for the strips of colour came from the CAG. These hues are representative of the sudden and unexpected bands of colour thrown across the landscape, revealing themselves with the changing weather in Scotland. Details in the bands of colour refer to the content of the exhibition and are made up of musical notes, knitting, script poetry and wood ( figure 1 ).

SIGHTS AND SOUNDS

Audio-visuals play a major role in exploring Scottish identity through personal stories and individual life experiences. One film features Kenny Ritch, a fiddler from the Orkney Isles, and Bob McNeill, a songwriter-guitarist from Glasgow, who together form a duo called ‘Ben The Hoose’ ( figure 2 ).

For Ben the Hoose, music is both an expression of their Scottish roots and their lives in New Zealand. Bob McNeill describes himself as a ‘Scottish musician living in New Zealand’ but admits that being in New Zealand has allowed him to experiment and try new things. For Kenny Ritch, being able to play Scottish music means that he can have a part of home with him the whole time. Their unique journey of discovery, both musically and personally, gives life through sound to the musical side of Scottish identity.

SUITABLE OBJECTS AND THE FABRIC OF HISTORY

Objects selected in this section of the exhibition were either borrowed or new acquisitions. The Te Papa collection had no objects that could illustrate the storylines or perspectives we needed to explore. As Kirstie Ross explains elsewhere in this issue, the gap between past collecting practices and current exhibition needs are vast. Objects and collections contained in the museum signify layers of history and have developed within the parameters of past ideologies and priorities. Social history and the narrative style of exhibition that Te Papa currently creates did not become a focus in New Zealand until the 1990s.

Two contemporary sets of garments, both stunning in their own way and each presenting a slightly different perspective on Scottish identity, became new acquisitions. Both will be displayed alongside a modern piper’s uniform - a familiar symbol of Scottish identity. Nadine Freundlich created one set of garments. This suit ( figure 3 ) was part of her Autumn / Winter collection – shown at Air New Zealand Fashion week, 2005. Nadine drew on elements of her Scottish, English and Maori heritage – but in terms of her Scottish family history she uses tartan, the pleating is inspired by the kilt, and she combines the Scotch thistle with the Maori koru to create a clever motif that has been screen printed on the back of the jacket.

The tartan fabric used is registered as the ‘Pride of New Zealand’ tartan. It was conceived by Ivan Coward from Suit Surgeons Ltd. The colours used in the tartan include: black for sporting achievements, grey for a multi cultural New Zealand society, and white for snow-capped mountains. The overall result was to create a dynamic suit that incorporates a highly personalized sense of Scottishness through fashion.

The second set of garments acquired continue to challenge expected forms of Scottishness but in a different way to that of Nadine Freundlich’s suit. It is a collaborative work by the House of Hank and Repleat and was part of the House of Hank collection, at the “Walk on Water” fashion show in September 2004. This suit is made of white denim and consists of a jacket and a traditional machine-stitched kilt. Hank made the top and Chrissy Tetley of Repleat made the bottom. The ensemble is finished off with a sporran made of wild cat fur that had been accidentally trapped in the Te Puku bush by a friend of Hank’s. The use of white denim in a kilt bucks the Scottish custom where kilts are traditionally made of tartan and it makes a striking contrast to the more familiar piper’s uniform alongside.

This suit serves the purpose of being both an expression of Scottish identity in New Zealand fashion and a symbol of self-discovery. For Chrissy Tetley the process of kilt-making helped her reconnect with her Scottish heritage. She says:

“As I have made kilts I have discovered how deeply Scots I am. While I am a mix of European cultures, the Scots have left a deep impression in me. Perhaps though, my location has helped me identify with Scotland, stitching kilts in the misty highlands of Karori.”

Both of these suits are unique and individual expressions of Scottish heritage, culture and identity. For their New Zealand creators the impact has been deeply meaningful, it has ignited their inner Scot and they show how deeply inspirational the Scottish influence can be.

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Te Ara - Journal of Museums Aotearoa ; Volume 32; Issue 1 & 2; December 2007

Figure 1: Segmental label from the exhibition The Scots in New Zealand. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: MUSEUM OF NEW ZEALAND TE PAPA TONGAREWA

Figure 2: Ben the Hoose. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: MUSEUM OF NEW ZEALAND TE PAPA TONGAREWA

Figure 3: Nadine Freundlich’s suit. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: MUSEUM OF NEW ZEALAND TE PAPA TONGAREWA