21/05/2026
The Black and White Box and PCL Imaging recently had the privilege of working with on ‘Taharaki Skyside’, which represents Aotearoa at this year’s 61st Venice Biennale.
In this series, Pardington (Ngāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Ngāti Kahungunu, Clan Cameron of Erracht) brings together large-scale photographs of taxidermied birds from museum collections, reflecting on colonial histories of collecting, ecological loss, and the cultural and spiritual significance of manu (birds) within te ao Māori.
We’ve had the pleasure of working with Fiona for many years through PCL and now The Black and White Box, and supporting the production of ‘Taharaki Skyside’ through printing and mounting has been a real honour. Produced as archival inkjet prints on Ilford Galerie Cotton Rag 310gsm, a lot of care went into making sure the manu still felt alive in the final works. Jacob has been working with Fiona on this project for about a year, and it has been a joy to support her in this process. Given the age of many of the specimens, colour and detail had to be carefully brought back so the birds could be seen as they might be in nature again. The Whēkau became one of the favourites in the lab, with its bold, striking presence.
Congratulations to Fiona on this achievement, and thank you for trusting us with this special project. We’re proud to have played a part in bringing it together and onto the international stage.
Image details //
Slides 1 to 4: Working behind the scenes with Fiona Pardington at The Black and White Box
Photos courtesy of Duncan Cole
Slide 5: Kākā kura, Nestor meridionalis septentrionalis, colour morph, Rangataua, Tongariro; collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (OR. 001127), Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand, 2025.
Pigment inks on Ilford Galerie Smooth Cotton Rag
1897 x 1458 mm
Continued in comments
