Join artist Shona Rapira Davies as she speaks to her monumental sculpture hung in the Lower Ramp of the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, Ko Te Kihikihi Taku Ingoa. She will also spend some time with her works currently showing in exhibition Te Hau Whakatonu: A Series of Never-Ending Beginnings.

Featuring a wood and graphite whale tail, pohutukawa, high tensile wire rocks representative of volcanic pumice and the new growth of a Kauri tree rendered in stainless steel, Ko Te Kihikihi Taku Ingoa speaks to the gesture of the children of Parihaka who were sent out in front of invading soldiers, the extinguishing of iwi land rights through warfare and force, and the ongoing processes of colonisation and industrialisation that cause continuing alienation for iwi from resources and led to environmental damage to local lands and the pollution of the sea.

This is a special opportunity to spend time with Shona and learn more about her work and practice.

A leading Māori sculptor and a Senior New Zealand artist, Shona Rapira Davies cites Ralph Hotere and Colin McCahon as artistic influences, alongside her upbringing and relationship with the sea, land and waterways of Aotea, Great Barrier Island, where she is from. Her innovative and wide-ranging practice includes textiles, drawing, sculpture, large scale ceramic works such as Nga Morehu held in the Te Papa Tongarewa collection and large-scale installation and outdoor public sculpture.