Te Kuri a Paoa

We have been making pastel art of Te Kuri a Paoa. We learnt about Paoa and Kiwa through art, and we learnt that when Paoa and Kiwa came to New Zealand they thought that Young Nick's Head looked like their dog, and so they named it Te Kuri a Paoa. But then Captain James Cook came and named it Young Nick's Head, because he saw it over Nick's head. 

We had to use pastels and blend them to make the dog. First we outlined everything in chalk, and then we got out the pastels and started to colour it in. It took a week to make it, and we also had to use different pastel techniques and different smudging ways. It was quite hard to smudge and blend the pastels, because it was all quite fast-drying. When we had done one step, we had to come down to the mat to learn the next. Some people were away and had to finish later than others, and it was hard for them because they didn't the teacher explaining things to them. 

It was really enjoyable to learn about Te Kuri a Paoa while we were doing our art, because I love art and I really liked using the pastels. It was quite tricky to get the paper aligned properly when we were glewing it though, and next time I think that I'd change how far up on the page my dog is. 

Have you ever used pastels? Did you know about Te Kuri a Paoa? Tell me in the comments!