| Bio... |
Raised old paradigm assimilationist theory of the 1960s. Of German, Celtic and Ngati Kahungunu descent Maiia is one of 7 children and a visual artist working in tropical Australia and exploring themes of post-colonialism
"I get the new paradigm thing but it's actually not new to me. To me it's quite obvious pre-modernism is the grounding the european diaspora are looking for - and it is manifesting in a variety of ways. The archaic revival is interesting
Norma Rolfe
That Whole Green Theme I grew up in isolation in nature on a farm playing with dirt in the summer and mud in the winter. Indoors books and creativity were every day life in a way the urban, industrialised and domesticated mind cannot conceive.
Cottage Industry - Making things and doing stuff was a necessity and cultural content was a way the immigrant connected with 'civilisation' and worked and contrived ideas about personal and national identity. Maiia- painter, photographer, from Gisborne, Aotearoa E ditor at Brindle Style Artists a nd Musicians Forum Cairns Indy-Media
We were in the ihimaera stories. The town clock makes much more sense than some clock in London and the tangental angles of a northern hemispherical approach to environment and government.
For example during the 1969 'royal visit' for the 1969 200th celebration of colonisation I was expecting a representative from the Maori Women's Welfare league. "
A memorial to Cook stands on the foreshore, marking the point where he first stepped ashore in New Zealand on 8 October 1769" .
Every community, culture, society has it's intellectual, spiritual and philosophical wealth within. Local Maori writing and artwork was a revelation. European tales were too far away...
Like a window opening onto reality. The New Net Goes Fishing 1977 by ocal author Witi Ihimaera had a big impact... like a big breath of fresh Aotearoa air. 
The first contemporary Maori artist I saw did fine pen and ink drawing. Like illuminated manuscript, like the old childrens story books. I was enthralled by the craft-skill." (Above, Smiling Madonna 1990s) THE ACORN TREE Warrior Spirit A commitment to colour and paint came along in the form of expressionist and installation artist Norma McCarthy of Mossman in far north Queensland. |
