They formed in 1986 during a Ngā Puna Waihanga (Māori Artists and Writers collective) gathering, under the leadership of Baye Riddell and Manos Nathan.
[1] Founding members also include Paerau Corneal, Colleen Waata Urlich and Wi Taepa.
[2] Ngā Kaihanga Uku was formed to support the growing use of clay within Māori-based art practices in the 1980s.
[3] As Wi Taepa states, ‘Clay is more than an artistic material, it is a blood relative.
Working with it requires an understanding of the genealogical links between humanity and Papatūānuku (earth).