This toki was made for a special guy on a big round birthday late last year. It has beautiful colouring with light to mid green swirls. It carves really well, pretty consistent and didn’t flake or chip at all, a really nice stone. It held a good edge to and I put this to good use…
I have already made several of these for the organisation I work for. It is a school and they use a metaphor of paddling in a waka for teamwork. The Hoi (paddle) symbolises the effort that someone puts into to pulling the waka in the collective direction with the team. These are given to staff…
Making a matching set is one of the best projects I like to work on. There is something real special about receiving a matching set of Taonga that have been carved from the same stone, as you may feel you and your significant other have been. This pounamu toki and kuru are carved from a…
Whai is the Maori word for Stingray. In certain areas of Aoteroa New Zealand the Whai is believed to be Kaitiaki – Protector. They are often seen gliding effortlessly through the water at the beach, yet when they are startled or threatened their response can be quick, powerful, and deadly. This has been…
This is a special set I made for my Grandparents. They are from the same stone and from right beside each other, just the way a set for a couple should be especially since they have been married for 60 years, yeehaa. You can see the cloud patterns as the move through from one…
This is my second session making a Koru. Koru and spirals are some of the most loved symbols of our artistic vocabulary. They’re found in the art of many cultures around the world and each of these cultures understands their significance and meaning differently. I really like the balance and colours in this one. It…
This set was made for a wedding. The earrings in the middle for the Bride. The two Paahekoheko are for the Mother of the Bride and the Mother of the Groom. The are all made from the same piece of Pounamu. This is significant as means a stronger connection between the pieces and represents a…
These are a set of Pounamu Hoi, Waka Paddles. Hoi are an integral part of a waka (canoe) and the team that man that waka. They are a strong symbolic representation of a united team that is all putting in their effort to move the ‘waka’ towards a goal. A Hoi would be given to…
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….
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…