Monica Brewster Evening May: Neke Moa

Tue 13 May | 6.00 - 7.30pm

Neke Moa (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāi Tahu/Kāi Tahu, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) works primarily with pounamu, shell and other locally sourced materials. Moa’s practice as a jeweller and carver explores the whakapapa of materials, making and the role of body adornment in creating a sense of belonging to people and place. Moa employs traditional techniques, such as hōanga (hand-held grinding stones), as well as uses electric machinery and diamond tools, and conceives of her practice as a spiritual continuation of a whakapapa that extends back to Te Ao Kōhatu (The Age of Stone). Moa lives at Otaki Beach, Aotearoa, where she has a studio/home and a rich resource of materials, people and inspiration. Being tangata whenua (indigenous) informs and leads her art practice, and she mainly exhibits and makes commission works, teaches and currently works part-time at Toi Matarau gallery at Maoriland Hub in Otaki.