Guardians: Tairāwhiti

Location: Corner Lowe st and Gladstone Road - Gisborne NZ

About the project: Art in the City is a council funded initiative to revitalise the inner city streets of Gisborne.

Artist Statement: This series imagines 5 wise guardians to watch over the streets of Tūranganui-a-kiwa. Each figure embodies human warmth, animal guidance, and the elemental forces of our local environment. The work invites us to feel seen, sheltered, protected and connected by honouring intergenerational knowledge, celebrating local identity, and emphasising the inseparable relationship between people and place.

I am the wind who whips at the tree
I am the soil who feeds you for free
I am the river who splits into three
I am the sun and the sun is me
I am the current who flows to the sea

I’ve painted on a lot of street corners, but there’s something really special (and alas, rare) for me to paint in my home town. I’m grateful to have met all the colourful humans who stopped for chats and to share their appreciation for my artwork on this corner of the once grand Masonic Hotel.