Neke Moa ✿ A kaitiaki of pounamu
Neke Moa uses the language of local stone, including pounamu, to activate her Māori culture.
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I am interested in stories about craft and object and relationships to environment, materials, people and their stories of how they connect to their deities, communities, families and culture. I am inspired by all things and everything.
Great teachers for me have been Chris Charteris, Peter Deckers, Dianne Prince, Kohai Grace, Pip Devonshire, Karl Fritsch..there are many more. I live iat Otaki Beach, Kapiti Coast. The Iwi here is Ngati Raukawa and many Hapu.
I am inspired by the materials that I gather from the beach, bush and river. We have a strong Maori community with many artists, the Wananga-o-Raukawa is here and there is te reo maori spoken everywhere. It is a small town not far from the capital city of Wellington. I enjoy a slower pace and I have a studio I work in most days at my house.
I live at Otaki Beach, Aotearoa, where I have a studio/home and a rich resource of materials, people and inspiration. I am an adornment and object maker, being tangata whenua (indigenous) informs and leads my art practice. I mainly exhibit and make commission works, teach and currently work part-time at Toi Matarau gallery at Maoriland Hub in Otaki. Mauri ora!
Like maorijeweller and follow @nekemoa.
A “kaitiaki” is a guardian.
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Neke Moa ✿ How to make deities for everyday use - We interview Neke Moa to learn about being a custodian of pounamu and how she uses it to connect with atua as guiding spirits.
Māreikura: Exploring the goddess in Māori women - Neke Moa, adornment and object artist, describes how she explored the role and importance of wāhine (women) in the spiritual and physical world for her latest solo exhibition.
Pearls for the people in Fiji - Neke Moa writes about the project of Marama Shellcraft to provide livelihood for the people of Ba, Fiji. 
The Handshake journey: I am the water and the water is me - Neke Moa writes about role that Handshake has played in her life as an activist Māori jeweller.