Presented as an exhibition at Te Uru and as this publication, Motutapu is the conclusion of a four-year journey by the artist Benjamin Work and Brendan Kitto. The project looks at the shared history of Motutapu, the sacred island, throughout Moana Oceania — including Tongatapu, Rarotonga, and the entrance to the Waitematā Harbour in Tāmaki Makaurau.

Motutapu is a place of sanctuary. Positioned at the entrance of great harbours, straddling the open ocean and the mainland, it serves as a gateway for navigators arriving and departing on voyages. The lifting of tapu and the making of things noa took place there, allowing navigators to continue their journey back to their closest kāinga, even if it was generations later.