Aaron Kereopa And Sofia Minson

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 13 August 2007

Aaron Kereopa And Sofia Minson At Toi O Tahuna Fine Art Gallery

Toi o Tahuna fine art gallery will be holding an exhibition in their Church Lane gallery showcasing Aaron Kereopa and Sofia Minson.

Aaron Kereopa uses surfboard foam blanks as a medium, substituting knife and scalpel in place of chisel and hammer, paint in place of varnish. He also integrates Māori design with Polynesian. This allows him the freedom to take whakairo, the art of carving, in a new direction and create his own style of carving practice.

Aaron’s interest in carving and design dates back to his high school days at Wesley College, a boarding school in Auckland that emphasised the importance of culture to its students, many of whom hailed from Pacific backgrounds. Here he developed interests in ta moko (tattoo), kapa haka (performance) and te reo (language), and became a member of a waka taua (war canoe) group, travelling to Canada and Hawaii as a representative of his school, the Māori Queen and Tainui, his tribe. In 1985, the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior was bombed in Auckland harbour, sparking a new wave of anti-nuclear protest across New Zealand. Aaron was living with on his family land in Raglan at the time when he saw a foam blank carved with fellow surfer Kevin Barker’s message “No Nukes in the Pacific”.

Inspired and wishing to express his ‘screaming silent voice’, Aaron took up some old broken surf boards and began to experiment with the koru, or spiral form, initially using a kitchen knife and spoon to carve out the foam. He shortly realised that the same techniques applied to carving wood could be used with the foam if he used different tools, with a cutting rather than chiselling action. Initially hesitant to explore this form of carving, given the respect with which Māori treat whakairo and the rules that have come to be associated with the art form, Aaron has grown confident over time about his work and his ability to take it forward. ‘A good thing about our people’ he says, ‘in the past they learnt how to adapt and move with the times. I’m just doing the same thing’.

Like ta moko and whakairo, Aaron’s work utilises a visual language that acts as a code, drawing on themes both universal and personal such as mythology, geography, his tupuna (ancestors), whakapapa (genealogy), navigation, and also popular culture in the form of surf culture and comics. Although those familiar with Māori design can read some of the imagery, much of the work has personal references, such as to Manu Bay, the surf beach over which Aaron’s studio looks, and Karioi, the neighbouring mountain, which has a specific relationship with local Māori. Aaron also often integrates patterns he sees in his mother’s fibre work as a weaver of kete (bags), whariki (mats) and potae hats, each with the underlying message of the significance of culture. ‘I believe each Māori person, or person who thinks they are Māori, has a responsibility to carry on what our people left behind. It doesn’t matter if it’s in a small way, a big way, political, creative or whatever. It’s about getting a message out there.
It’s about keeping our culture alive’

Sofia Minson, at only 22 years of age is a rising star of the New Zealand art scene. Her bold yet finely detailed oil paintings are inspired by her deep respect for the land and mythology of Aotearoa. By exploring the ancient people and legends from a contemporary perspective, Sofia discovers and strengthens an important connection to her own Maori heritage. The exhibition includes works influenced by the Wakatipu landscape and local Māori legend.

Born in Auckland in 1984, Sofia spent much of her childhood in Samoa and Sri Lanka and developed a strong appreciation for richly diverse cultures. On returning to New Zealand her artistic enthusiasm flourished and she desired to understand and love her homeland as she had other parts of the world.

In the past three years her artistic career has grown rapidly. Sofia has won two national art awards, graduated with an Art and Design degree and featured in numerous media publications.

The exhibition will run from 17 August until 31 August 2007 with a preview on the evening of Thursday 16 August, 5.30pm - 7.30pm.

ENDS

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