From Mountain to Sea: Painting Te Ao Māori into a School Court Mural

This interactive school mural in Auckland was seven years in the making before I became involved. The original vision, developed by the principal and parents of Flanshaw Road School, was to transform the school's courts into an artwork representing Te Ao Māori and create an interactive space for students to enjoy.
The school had already raised funds and commissioned an initial design, but the project was eventually put on hold when they struggled to find an artist with the skills and capacity to translate the detailed concept onto such a large surface.
Earlier this year, I connected with the school and began working collaboratively with students and staff on a series of murals. After getting to know the school community and seeing the original court design, the principal asked me to rework the concept into something more playful, engaging and interactive for the children, while retaining the original connection to Te Ao Māori.
My talented intern, Kayla, took on the challenge of developing the new design. She introduced simple but effective interactive elements that encouraged students to engage with the artwork, while keeping the underlying concept and cultural framework of the original design.
Together, we painted the entire court surface in less than two weeks. Working through Auckland's unpredictable winter weather brought its own challenges, with rain and cold temperatures extending drying times between layers and the practical difficulty of painting an artwork that we would eventually need to walk across.
Despite these challenges, determination and careful planning allowed us to complete the project in time for the students to enjoy during the final weeks of Term 3.
The finished Te Ao Māori-inspired court mural transformed an ordinary school court into a colourful, interactive space designed specifically for the students who use it every day. It is also an example of how collaborative school murals can combine student engagement, cultural storytelling and functional spaces to create artwork with a lasting impact on a school community.