HARAKEKE
24 March to 14 June 2020
24 March to 14 June 2020
- These artworks conceptually follow two previous series ‘Rau’ and ‘Haekaro.’ ‘Rau’ from the exhibition ‘Pure Forns and Cultural Narratives’ ( COCA 2O10 ) is inspired by whakario (carving) and the rau (plumage) of individual native birds which also title the individual works.
- In ‘Haekaro’ from the exhibition ‘Tanikoniko’ ( Nga Tohu o Uenuku 2017 ) the works are tukutuku influenced and based on the colours of the native plant Haekaro.* In ‘Harakeke’ the title generically covers the different types of native flax and cultivars from the mighty spceimen on the side of the road at Raungaiti Marae on State highway 27 ( whose leaves have recently been harvested ) to the multi coloured cultivars painted by British Artist and Curator Nerys Ann Johnson (1942 - 2001).
- The colour combinations taken from the Harakeke in different stages of growth and decay are selected by Adobe Capture then arranged in combinations for each artwork. The design; based on the leaf shape. *’His works on paper Haekaro 1-9 are studies of a native shrub (Pittosporum umbellatum).
- Tootill paints the colours of this species through time, as the seasons change, from bright verdant greens through to the plummy pink at the time of flowering.’ - ‘Tanikoniko’ Nga tohu o uenuku (Mangere Arts Centre) Matariki Festival 2017
