North Shore Times (New Zealand)
Kiwi artist didn’t let her dreams shatter
An organic tribute to the lives of a special group of Cook Island women now lines the wall of a Devonport gallery.
This Woman’s Work Is A Woman’s Worth is a plantation of 15 taro-inspired glass sculptures and a realisation of a vision that has been growing in the mind of the artist for over a decade.
Artist NiaVal says now it is time to ‘‘harvest’’ this vision.
The Kiwi artist of Cook Island descent says that, in her own culture, a woman’s dreams are often set aside.
Journals and yet more journals of ideas have been crowding her shelves for years, and finally those ideas have become a reality.
‘‘I never had the time solely for myself. Just me, and my heart,’’ she says. ’’It was time to coordinate my own dream.’’
The concept for the exhibition came to NiaVal 13 years ago while working in south Auckland with a group of 40 women of Pukapukan descent.
Pukapuka is an island in the northern part of the Cook Islands. On this island, it is only the woman who harvest the taro. The taro sculptures are both representative of these women’s work, and symbolic of a woman’s worth in their life and community.
Glass artistry is rare in New Zealand, NiaVal says.
But a long-held passion for glassblowing meant, when it came to creating the exhibition, it was ‘‘always going to be’’ made with glass.
Experimenting with glass is unforgiving, but this is all a part of the love.
‘‘I love the intensity of working with glass. Everything is about precision.
‘‘Sometimes the colours don’t like each other and they don’t mix. That’s the mystery of it,’’ she says.
Despite living in west Auckland, NiaVal says she has adopted Devonport’s Depot Artspace as her ‘‘creative home’’. ’’I was always going to bring my exhibition here.’’ she says.
Depot coordinator Linda Blincko says she has built a strong bond with NiaVal and the New Zealand Cook Islands Arts Collective through their past collaborations.
‘‘It was wonderful to welcome her again, this time to celebrate the place of women in their community,’’ Blincko says.
NiaVal’s creative partner for the exhibition is G, Lazaro. This Woman’s Work is a Woman’s Worth, October 15 till November 2, at Depot Artspace in Devonport.