when we return

when we return is an ongoing project that sees artist Christopher Ulutupu extend his research into moe manatunatu, a dream-like dialogue with ancestors and atua. when we return I and when we return II are the first two works in this new series.

This tool of Sāmoan village politics brings perspective and harmony between the physical self, spirit, and mind. moe manatunatu rituals were often performed in nature, in solitude, as prayers and meditations (Anapogi).

when we return I emerges from this exploration, a process of retreating to the forest where Ulutupu’s fanau workshop spirituality through their own perspectives. Children hold direct access to spiritual realms, and the work centres their curiosity and engagement with our environment.

when we return II moves into a domestic setting and hovers between daydreaming and memory, unsure of what is recollection and what is invention. Ulutupu’s practice has long centred on daydreaming, conjuring from imagination—yet his past works have been distorted memories.

Across the ongoing project, the works move between expression and documentation, treating moe manatunatu as both method and subject. when we return is not about arriving or finding answers; it is about returning to a self in negotiation, loading, unable to be fixed.