Niho Mako

He uri a Toroa, a Porourangi, nō reira, ko Ngāti Awa ki Rangitaiki, ko Ngāti Porou ki te Toka a Namu ngā iwi. Artist Statement: Most of my life has been influenced by Māori art and design. Growing up, my parents owned one of the early Māori art galleries in Rotorua in the 1980's. I have a degree in Art History from The University of Auckland and spent a good part of my adult life working in the Māori arts sector, in galleries across New Zealand. In December 2018, we left the beautiful takutai of Te Tairāwhiti, Gisborne NZ in search of new opportunities which led us to the takutai of the Gold Coast, Australia. We acknowledge the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh language as the First Nations People and traditional custodians of this area. Australia always was and always will be Aboriginal land. Since moving away from home I have felt matemate-a-one (a deep, profound affection for one's land and people). This feeling inspired me to create a collection of jewellery and motifs paying homage to the things I miss most about home.