One of my favourite New Zealand artists has teamed up with Tuhoe activist Tame Iti to produce a series of paintings that are now on exhibition here in Auckland at the OD Gallery on Karangahape Road.
The exhibition is entitled Ko Koe Ko Au meaning You and I. The theme behind the project was to illustrate how Maori and non-Maori can work together to achieve common goals. A true statement about the only way Aotearoa as a nation can move forward in the future.
I have a real respect for people like Tame who are willing to speak their true beliefs and create conversation and argument around subjects that need to be discussed rather than ignored. I enjoyed seeing another way in which Tame expresses himself through his art and the way he and Owen collaborated. As always OD's portraits are epic!!