John Vea: Ini Mini Mani Mou

John Vea: Ini Mini Mani Mou

Talk

Saturday 8 March 2025 / 1pm

Meet in the exhibition

Free

Pouarataki curator Māori Chloe Cull speaks with Ōtautahi Christchurch-based artist John Vea (Tonga, Aotearoa New Zealand) on the opening day of his new exhibition Ini Mini Mani Mou.

This exhibition by John Vea explores the complexities of life in Aotearoa for Pacific migrants. With his characteristic sense of humour, Vea has created a series of impossible or futile games. Together they point to the challenges and barriers of the often bureaucratic immigration processes that they must navigate in order to come to Aotearoa to live or work. Vea highlights the tension between the perceived value and opportunities provided by residency in Aotearoa, and the realities of labour, acclimatisation and leaving home.