Ko te whaea te tākere o te waka - The mother is the hull of the canoe, the heart of the family

SOLD

Original painting by Josh Kiwikiwi

Acrylic mixed media, flashe & silver leaf on stretched canvas

600x900mm (framed) $6800

This painting positions motherhood as foundation and vessel. A wahine, cloaked in kowhaiwhai motifs, carries her child upon her back. Their korowai binds them together — earthen tones grounding her, cool blues flowing across him. Her expression is steadfast, while the boy’s cheeky defiance interrupts with vitality, drawing us into a moment that is both tender and staunch. Two feathers in her hair connect her to tūpuna, while the silver-leaf ground suggests both resilience and fragility.

This work binds many themes of the exhibition — whakapapa, continuity, balance between softness and strength. The mother is both hull and navigator, carrying the child, and by extension the future, forward across ancestral tides.

Limited edition prints will be releasing in January 2026

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