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Te Oranga Hou
Have you ever held a piece of pounamu and felt a connection to the land and history of Aotearoa (New Zealand)? These taonga (treasured possessions) hold stories waiting to be told, and today I’m excited to share two special pieces I carved: a toki and a roimata, both crafted from the same beautiful raukaraka pounamu,…
Mana Tane Toki
This Toki is for a sone that is approaching adulthood and about to head out on his on haerenga/journey in life. The top line goes all the way around and represents himself. The dashes and notches are to represent his whanau so he will always carry them close to his heart. The double koru is…
Toki Raranga Weaving
This is a combination of a toki form with a pattern to represent the weaving or raranga of harakeke/flax. Raranga can represent many things. It represents a variety of facets being woven together to create something more than the individual parts. In this way it can be used to represent a whanau, or community, or…
Manawa
The name “Manawa”, meaning “heart” or “courage” in Māori, feels deeply fitting for this toki pendant. The rich, deep green of the pounamu, with its striking dark patterning, speaks of raw power and quiet strength. And the toki itself holds a special place in Māori culture. The toki (adze) was a vital survival tool for…
Moana Whanau
This toki is made from the rare and beautiful Marsden Flower Jade, or Putiputi. The notches in the side are for his two children. The wave is to represent the deep connection with Te Moana – The Ocean he has, particularly through waka ama. I loved carving this wave. The lines came up so clean…
Conference Set Toki and Kuru
These three pieces were made for speakers at a conference. I love the colours in the flower jade kuru. The tokis are super long and based on old functional designs that are now displayed in museums and books as historical examples. The photos on the black seem a bit overexposed and bright with really strong…