Robyn Kahukiwa

This work was displayed with this label to mark the death of the artist in April 2025.

It is with great sorrow that we acknowledge the passing of one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s preeminent artists, Robyn Kahukiwa. For over five decades Kahukiwa was uncompromising in her commitment to articulating the realities of life for Māori, including the relentless impacts of colonisation, and the strength, resilience and resistance maintained in response. Her books, drawings, prints and paintings were underpinned by a deep love for her whakapapa, as she sought to uplift her people, particularly wāhine Māori, through her work.

Kahukiwa was born in Australia and moved to Aotearoa aged nineteen. Her early work was informed by her experiences teaching art at Mana College in Porirua in the 1970s and early 1980s, and focused on cultural dislocation and the struggles of young, urban Māori. 'Girl with a Bush Shirt' is one of several works produced during this time that capture a sense of estrangement or inner conflict.

In 1983 one of Kahukiwa’s best-known series of works, 'Wahine Toa', toured the country. The exhibition and the accompanying publication honoured the women of Māori myth whose stories had so often been minimised or erased. The mana of Māori women and children continued to be a central theme within Kahukiwa’s work.

Kahukiwa’s posters and book illustrations were how many New Zealanders experienced her work for the first time and were particularly meaningful for Māori in their thoughtful representations of Māori life and culture. Her children’s books such as Taniwha are still read in schools and homes around Aotearoa.

Kahukiwa has left behind an extraordinary legacy for her mokopuna and all New Zealanders and we are honoured to be kaitiaki for several of her works.