Speaking
of which, it took a long time before I was comfortable with calling myself an
‘artist’, I felt like a fraud, I was surely just a ‘dabbler’ in art? Apart from spending a short period of time in
the mid-80’s in Auckland, creating bone-carvings and teaching bone-carving at a
local Community House in Devonport, I did not indulge in anything as esoteric
as art…for some time after that I was far too busy child-rearing with two small
children, (Waiata and Honore), and care-giving
other children through Barnardos.
After
moving back down to Porirua in the late 80’s, I was lucky enough to be accepted
on a Taha Maori course being offered on Takapuwahia Marae. I spent nine months (it was supposed to be a
three month course) learning nga taonga - te reo Maori me ona tikanga.
I got my ‘painting on’ again at the end of
the course and gifted the ‘Aunties’ (tutors) at the Marae a painting.
 |
| Takapuwahia Marae Aunties with gift - "Te Ahi Kaa" |
In the
early 90’s I did a large mural for Titahi Bay North School (my two children
were attending the bi-lingual unit and I was teacher-aiding there).
I was doing some small paintings mostly as
gifts for friends and family. In 1993, I was blessed with child number three,
(Te Aihe) and within twelve months I began an adventure into retail with my
lovely friend Meri, we opened a small ‘new-age’ shop in Titahi Bay called ‘Aihe
Crystals and Crafts’.
I starting playing
with aqua pencils on watercolour paper during this time and created a few ‘mandala’
(circular spiritual patterns/drawings) and
some paintings for friends and customers; I met some amazing people, learned a
lot about running a shop and I also learned the lesson that a business can’t
run on love alone.
 |
| Titahi bay North School Mural - "Poutama Matauranga" |
 |
| Native American Smudgestick Cleansing Ceremony (with a twist) |
The
next few years were busy with child-rearing, teacher-aiding and surviving as a
solo parent – no painting… I still didn’t see myself as an artist at this
stage. In 1999 I was accepted into the
Wellington College of Education and began my three year academic journey to
become a Primary teacher. Visual Art
block courses and a trip to the Cook Islands for a Multi-Cultural Studies
Course. I was in my element and produced
quite a bit of work, some of which was exhibited there along-side other
students’ work.
I think this was when I
started to admit to myself that I am an artist, but just quietly. I
began exploring pacific design/symbolism during this time in response to my
Samoan partner Andrew and his family becoming a part of my life.
 |
| "Nga Hau e Wha" - Pencil on cartridge paper |
Teaching
has been a great experience that has enabled me to use my creativity to set up
my classroom learning environments, teach art to my students (year 1 – 6) and
contribute artistically to various aspects of school life such as school
production set design. I have taught
mainly in low-decile, multi-cultural schools that have a high Polynesian and
Maori population. I absolutely loved my students;
I truly appreciated the different cultures to which my students belonged and I
soaked up as much of their cultures and respective art/symbolism as I
could. I didn’t really have time to engage in
personal artistic pursuits until mid-2007 when I painted for a fundraiser for
Porirua School (where I was working), I organised and set up a Silent Auction
and donated a painting for it.
 |
| A very Pregnant me with Silent Auction Painting |
Over
the next few years, I continued to dabble in art doing the occasional painting on
commission or for friends and family, but my focus was well and truly grounded
in child-rearing. I had two more beautiful
children, (Rohan and Bronte), with Andrew; and my daughter Waiata gave me three
precious part Cook Island mokos (grandchildren), who I have been caring for
through Porse. I was getting to the
stage where I felt was going to burst if I didn’t find an outlet for the
frustrated artist in me!! In late 2009,
a teaching colleague (and long-time friend) asked me to come for a term and
teach art to a small group of talented students; that got my creative juices
flowing! I had a lovely group of
students once a week for a term, which I took step-by-step through the painting
processes using NZ artists such as Robyn Kahukiwa (who else?) and Don Binney as
motivation.
Earlier
this year, as a part of a group of local women called Charlie’s Angels who have
been fundraising in support of a lovely young woman who had cancer (and who has
since, sadly, passed away), I created a painting to auction off on TradeMe
using a circular offcut of plywood and my 'kanohi taniwha' or ‘taniwha-face’ motif in acrylic, (“Kia
Kaha Wahine”: white on white with pink accents). This painting proved to be the catalyst for
the next stage in my artistic journey…
By the
time both of my youngest children and two of my mokos were at school, I had
made the decision that I was going to work
towards bringing in an income that was time-flexible, capitalised on my
talents/abilities and above all –I was
not going to settle for less than working at something I enjoy/love! A
good friend of mine (and her very patient husband) offered me space in their
rumpus room to use as a studio and the key to their house so I could have
daytime access, an offer that I very gratefully accepted. I began collecting old photo-frames,
used/unwanted canvasses and off-cuts of plywood to use for my paintings.
During this time I
went to a WorksWonders ‘KickStart’
Seminar run by two wonderful ladies – which
is “designed
for those who want to start or change careers, set some personal goals, get
back into work after children or redundancy, or want to set up (or expand)
their own business”. (http://workswondersnz.blogspot.co.nz) …and KickStart me it did!! I began to ‘network’ (read as ‘do coffee’)
with some excellent, caring and knowledgeable women, (thanks Biddy, Jane and
the P.B.Angels, Angela B., Kate J., Margaret T., Tori, Teressa and Angela R.),
and with their input, ideas and support I began planning for my grand new
adventure…
And so the journey
begins… along with doing a bit of ‘relief/supply’ teaching to keep my hand in: I
have developed an art extension programme to take into schools to work with
small groups of talented, artistic students; I have been painting in my wee
‘studio’ and creating enough paintings to put together an exhibition; I have
set up a blog (a triumph for this I.T.-challenged arty type) through which to
sell my paintings and visual art teaching resources; and I am in the process of
developing resource kits for primary (Years 1-8) and ECE (kindergarten - new entrants) based on Maori and
Pacific designs.
I think that if you
can dream it - you can do it!! If you create art – you ARE an ARTIST!!
