Nikau Hindin

Hindin faithfully reproduces the traditional stages of fabrication, from the cultivation of the plants to the extraction of bark and fabric making. The artist even makes her own tools out of wood, produces her own pigments, and then, finally, creates the painting. Hindin is also inspired by another Maori tradition in which aute plays a part: the manu. The work signifies both bird and kite; the manu was used to predict the outcome of battles, as well as a means with which to communicate with loved ones who were far away, or mark the beginning of a new year. It is a symbol of spiritual connection and communication between the worlds, and between earth and sky.

The Fondation Cartier project Aumoana, included in their Exposition Générale, was conceived and presented by Hindin. This installation is the fruit of a collaboration with several artists who work with bark cloth fabrics: Ebonie Fifita-Laufilitoga-Maka Fungamapitoa, Hina Puamohala Kneubuhl Kihalaupoe, Hinatea Colombani, Kesaia Biuvanua and Rongomai Grbic-Hoskins. These artists are respectively natives of the Polynesian islands of Tonga, Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji and Aotearoa, and each of them contributed the histories, symbols and knowledge linked to their island communities.