A new art exhibition in Christchurch is using humour to show the hoops Pacific people must jump through in order to get hold of a New Zealand passport.
Ini Mini Mani Mou by Christchurch-based Tongan artist John Vea opened on Saturday at the Christchurch Art Gallery.
Growing up in Auckland, Vea would hear stories of the challenges his Tongan relatives had as they attempted to secure citizenship.
He said family members would try to find alternative avenues of making the citizenship process easier.
One ongoing rumour was that an uncle and auntie considered adopting Māori names, thinking it would give them a better chance of a New Zealand passport.
Vea said he did not know if it was true, but the stories showed his family was willing to surrender part of their cultural identity to become a citizen.
"This particular show is listening to all the stories around our parents trying to apply for citizenship or even to come here, it was a rigourous, sometimes unsuccessful application," he said.
When you walk through the exhibition a makeshift help desk greets you with a game of Guess Who?, vending machines filled with New Zealand passports are hung up high on the wall, and there is a video playing in the background inspired by a movie scene from the crime drama, The Usual Suspects.
Installation view of John Vea: Ini Mini Mani Mou, 2025. Photo courtesy of Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū. Photo: John Collie
"The components of this show or the artworks in this exhibition is basically a comical take around the process of applying for citizenship."
Vea said he uses humour as a "trojan horse" to get people to engage in wider problems.
He said the game of Guess Who? shows the extra barriers Pasifika face compared to palagi people.
The makeshift movie scene addresses common stereotypes targeting Pacific people and the passports in the vending machine show that you can help yourself, but it is just out of reach, he said.
"It's a good strategy to talk about a specific issue and to bait people into interacting with the work, watch the work but then after time, they start to realise this is not just a quick laugh."
