Gottfried Lindauer was a Czech artist who specialized in portraits of Māori people.

In 1874, Lindauer arrived to the wondrously green landscape of New Zealand. He had sailed there from Europe in order to avoid being drafted into the Austro-Hungarian army. Business had been slow at home due to the invention of photography lessening the demand for portrait painting, so he was also eager to find new opportunities abroad. Ironically, Lindauer often relied on black and white photographs to paint his unique subjects, and Taraia Ngakuti Te Tumuhuia was painted from one taken by an anonymous photographer. 

Taraia Ngakuti Te Tumuhuia was a prominent chief of the Ngati Tamatera, a Maori tribe. Te Tumuhuia had a reputation as a man of war, and he practiced cannibalistic rituals. The tomahawk isn’t the only weapon Te Tumuhuia possessed as European traders sold him and his people a whole bunch of guns to use in warfare. Te Tumuhuia was a strong willed chief, unmovable, determined to protect his tribe. Te Tumuhuia refused to sign the Treaty of Waitangi with the British, which aimed to placate the Maori population by granting them the same rights as British subjects and allowing them to retain their land, while giving England full power of governance over New Zealand. 

But Te Tumuhuia remained cautious of the treaty (and rightfully so, the protections set by the treaty were largely ignored in the following years). By refusing to sign, Te Tumuhuia remained true to Maori customs, retaining control of his estates. Perhaps Te Tumuhuia’s determination was due to the Maori tradition slipping away as Christianity was on the rise due to colonization. Customary facial tattoos were practiced less and less, and many old beliefs were changed under the influence of European migration. However, Te Tumuhuia remained true to the traditions of his heritage until his death in 1872.