'All 'e Same t'e Pakeha' or A Good Joke (1905) is probably Goldie's best- known portrait. Te Aho-o-te-Rangi Wharepu, a warrior chief of Ngati Mahuta, was known for his sartorial elegance. But his cheesy grin and eclectic attire, and the imperfect English of the painting's title, offend the modern sense of political correctness. It is as if Te Aho has been set up as an object of ridicule: a rogue in a bowler hat. But who has the last laugh? Perhaps it is Te Aho, who is immortalised in this most iconic of images.
The image is a portrait of a smiling man with a distinctive facial tattoo, wearing a hat and a coat, set against a textured background.
The image is a portrait of a smiling man with a distinctive facial tattoo, wearing a hat and a coat, set against a textured background.