About
Alongside her Monica Brewster Evening kōrero, Moa leads a jewellery-making workshop that embodies her practice—exploring the whakapapa of materials, the art of making, and the role of body adornment in shaping connections to people and place.
Bio
Neke Moa (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāi Tahu/Kāi Tahu, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) Working primarily with pounamu, shell and other locally sourced materials, Neke Moa’s practice as a jeweller and carver explores the whakapapa of materials, making and the role of body adornment in creating a sense of belonging to people and place. Moa employs traditional techniques, such as hōanga (hand-held grinding stones), as well as uses electric machinery and diamond tools, and conceives of her practice as a spiritual continuation of a whakapapa that extends back to Te Ao Kōhatu (The Age of Stone). Moa lives at Otaki Beach, Aotearoa, where she has a studio/home and a rich resource of materials, people and inspiration. Being tangata whenua (indigenous) informs and leads her art practice, and she mainly exhibits and makes commission works, teaches and currently works part-time at Toi Matarau gallery at Maoriland Hub in Otaki.