Turua School is looking more colourful than ever after the unveiling of four new murals on February 26.
The murals, painted by Waerenga artist Claire DuBosky, are mounted in pride of place on the side of a classroom block at the entrance to the school. Each image represents one of the school’s values – ako, whānaungatanga, kotahitanga, and manaakitanga.
School principal Karen Houghton said it was fantastic to see the artworks come to life.
“I’m really excited that we’ve managed to do this incredible new lot of murals for our kura so that we can always see our values quantified on the wall,” she said.
“I want the kids to really see their vision, see our values in a visual form on the daily, so it becomes a real strong presence in the school.
“Those are really important for us… they are the way we present ourselves, the way we communicate, connect with each other.”
Claire spent the last term of 2025 working on the murals, with collaboration from Karen and the school’s students. Each painted figure has been modelled on a student, and the senior students helped with the painting.
The whanaungatanga mural also depicts former teacher aide Stan Taipari, who principal Karen Houghton said was a much-loved member of staff and respected elder of the school community.
Anikha Sanders, the mother of Sam, the student depicted alongside Stan, said the mural emphasised the impact Stan has had on the school.
“It’s really important because that’s about relationships, right? The only reason Sam manages school is because of the relationship with staff. So Stan’s been such a big part of that for him. He wouldn’t have been at school now if it wasn’t for Stan,” she said.
The new murals sit alongside three existing murals, painted by Claire in 2020, which represent the school’s waka groups – Arawa, Tainui, and Takitimu.
“On one side we’ve got the ancestry, so the waka speak to where we’ve come from and [the new murals] speak to who we are and where we’re going,” Karen said.
The finished murals were unveiled in an early-morning ceremony in front of the student body, and were blessed by kaumātua Wati Ngamane.
Turua School received a grant from the Hauraki District Council Creative Communities Scheme for the murals, and discounted products from Resene Paints.
