We were contacted by the Room 8 teacher Mrs Bedford from Bairds Mainfreight Primary (Otara) to say that we were chosen as the class art inspiration for their art week project. Wow what a privilege to have an influence over the next generation, it is something we don't take for granted & wanted to show our appreciation so we turned up at the school to surprise the kids & to say hi!
They did an amazing job referencing our style & presenting their own personal stories, we shared some of our experiences & sat around chatting about their dreams & aspirations. Knowing that the murals you paint not only bring beauty to a public space but also to the life of a child is one of the richest outcomes of what we do, thank you to the class for taking the time out to research our story & support our art practise wow!
Meanwhile this all happened right in the middle of a mural project we were doing over at Robertson Road School (Mangere), the meaning of the mural titled 'Hikoi' is as follows:
Tōrea (The Pied Oyster Catcher) is a Mangere local & inhabitant of the Manukau Moana. They hold key traits that each student is encouraged to pertain to:
1) focussed when flying & living in community (the journey of life alongside others) 2) digs deep for kai (the search for knowledge & understanding) 3) very protective (ownership & stewardship of what is theirs) Known as Mangere Mountain, Te Pane o Mataoho is a sacred maunga of the Te Ākitai Waiohua Iwi (along with other mana whenua) we wanted to acknowledge their specific connection to the area while painting here. The multi-cultural make up of the school is represented through colour & vibrancy. By not painting specific cultural designs we wanted any child who looked to feel included & know that this mural is theirs.
Thank you to Principal Wayne MacGivillry & to the students/teachers who helped us with the design ideas.
