Kawa Kawa Toki with Koru
Deep green Kawa Kawa Pounamu toki, with koru in the negative space.
This is the piece that I decided to start with. It is a piece of Flower Jade from Marsden. I have made 3 pieces from this so far and am still… working on one more. The first piece was a bit of a trial just to see what shaping the stone would be like. I…
My Grandfather passed away earlier this year. He was almost 80 years old, his lungs started to fail him and he couldn’t keep his body running any more. He was a much loved member of our family and there is still a huge gap he has left behind. I made these pieces because of him….
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,…
There was so much depth and mana to this piece before I even got involved, it was a real privilege to be the one to influence and carve this design. Kath was given this piece of pounamu by friends of hers as a symbol of her connection to Aotearoa, so already this piece held significance…
The koru is a powerful symbol in Maori culture, representing growth, new beginnings, and the unfurling fern frond. It’s a fitting image for a taonga pounamu (treasured greenstone) carving, a piece imbued with deep meaning and cultural significance. This piece is called ‘Koru Whanau’. This particular koru whanau carving, crafted from Marsden Kawakawa pounamu, is…
Symbolic gestures have a unique way of adding profound depth to significant milestones. Aroha Roimata, a meticulously crafted pounamu pendant, serves as an eloquent illustration of this idea. This striking piece, a large roimata fashioned from Kawakawa pounamu from the Arahura River, tells a deeply personal story. As she stands at the threshold of her…