CHAPEL memorial service poroporoaki for Dr Ray Thorburn (1937-2023) Kārori 6 May 2023
Dr Ray Thorburn (far right) and te roopu whānau (L-R – Rosemary and Mapuna Pocklington, Rev. Rikki Witana Snr, ko au, Shona Pink-Martin raua ko Adam Pink-Martin) PhD celebration for Māori graduates, Tānenui-a-Rangi whare, Waipapa Mārae, University of Auckland, May 2003
Ka tangi te kūkū, ka tangi te kākā,
ka tangi hoki ahau.
Ka hinga te rākau rangatira,
he rata whakamarumaru.
Ngāueue te ngahere.
Ka rere, kei runga ake, te kāhui manu,
e ngaoki mōwaho mai ana
ngā pepeke kei raro.
Kei hea e okioki ana rātou?
Ka titiro ake au ki te poupou o te rā.
Kaore te marumaru o tou mangu
e toro mai ana.
Nā reira, e te marumaru takoto mai,
okioki koe, moe mai rā. Ka mahara au
ki tou awhi me te tautoko tonu hoki.
Haere, haere, haere, haere ki te poho
o te Atua.
Tēnā koe te whare tapū e tū nei
ko Futuna te mahi toi o te kaihanga
rongonui ko John Scott. Ka titiro au ki
te whare nei ka mōhio ki Te Atua
ae, heoi anō te āhuatanga o Tāne
whakapiripiri hoki (taku kōrero whakarite – te poutokomanawa ne!).
E te whānau pani.
Taku aroha ki a Sally rāua ko Mark
me te whānau whanui me te wāhi ngaro,
he wāhi tahanga nei i mahue iho
he mamae hōhonu.
Ka tangi te kūkū, ka tangi te kākā,
ka tangi hoki ahau.
Ka hinga te rākau rangatira,
he rata whakamarumaru.
Ngāueue te ngahere.
Ka rere, kei runga ake, te kāhui manu,
e ngaoki mōwaho mai ana
ngā pepeke kei raro.
Kei hea e okioki ana rātou?
Ka titiro ake au ki te poupou o te rā.
Kaore te marumaru o tou mangu
e toro mai ana.
Nā reira, e te marumaru takoto mai,
okioki koe, moe mai rā. Ka mahara au
ki tou awhi me te tautoko tonu hoki.
Haere, haere, haere, haere ki te poho
o te Atua.
Tēnā koe te whare tapū e tū nei
ko Futuna te mahi toi o te kaihanga
rongonui ko John Scott. Ka titiro au ki
te whare nei ka mōhio ki Te Atua
ae, heoi anō te āhuatanga o Tāne
whakapiripiri hoki (taku kōrero whakarite – te poutokomanawa ne!).
John Scott, Futuna Chapel, 1958-1961, Interior looking back to entrance, 6 May 2023
E te whānau pani.
Taku aroha ki a Sally rāua ko Mark
me te whānau whanui me te wāhi ngaro,
he wāhi tahanga nei i mahue iho
he mamae hōhonu.
E ngā whāea e ngā mātua tēnā koutou,
tēnā koutou, tēnā rā koutou katoa.
I couldn’t think of any other way to offer
a tribute in the 3 minutes left here other
than a poetic sketch to hint at the loss
and legacy left by Dr Ray Thorburn:
Ray wore shiny leather shoes
The kind that clacked on the lino and
made one stand to attention
no pretension
just passing through
seeking signatures
down rabbit hole corridors
a man on a mission
with papers and meetings and mates
and pressing dates round
plates of calendars and curricula
red face, white walrus moustache
confident gestures on the white board
charting a layline in March
ending the old and setting sail for Whetumārama
and the trajectory you plotted was a path
true to the cultures you loved
true to a uniqueness you cherished.
your words
‘…the quest in your painting
to make the image take on
the personality of its surroundings’
Dr Ray Thorburn, Modular3, Series 2, 1970, Christchurch Art Gallery
and that was the new conjoint design degree programme
a balance of horizontals and verticals
producing a third plane:
optical, bedazzling
where you sought
‘…[a] total environment where the audience is completely
encompassed by the work.’
And out of this fertile soil
your manager wanted to grow
a Bauhaus of the South Pacific
but I think a gathering place of
like-minded colleagues
was more in your mind
a mārae ātea
where you assembled
and employed us
and sold us
a dream in the early 1990s
me a burnt out foundational Māori curator
and others more senior
from around the world
signed up with the stroke of a pen
in airport lounges entered and exited
between flights
I once asked you how you knew I was looking for work?
a little bird tapped on my shoulder, you said
and over the years we kept connections
LinkedIn, my PhD celebration, job references
where we supported one another
or perhaps, where you were simply trying to encourage
I found you a man of vision and ideas
who believed in me more than I believed in myself
I now stand on your shoulders
Not because the vision has been executed
But because your legacy is in
others bringing it to life.
I think you were right when you wrote
but never sent me these words:
‘…you and your colleagues did outstanding
work transforming the school and creating
NZ’s first conjoint degree programme between
a university and polytechnic. It was a culturally
inclusive curriculum which Massey University
took over and adapted…To not stand up for
those who made it possible is to dishonour
their remarkable achievements.’
Dr Ray Thorburn, portrait in situ, memorial service, Futuna Chapel, 6 May 2023
Your life Dr Ray Thorburn was full of such
remarkable achievements and it was an
honour walking with you a while
and here
recounting one of the milestones
along the way.
Nā reira, kanui te koa
kua huihui mai tātou i tēnei ahiahi pō,
kia ora mai anō tātou katoa.
_________________________________________________