The Ashburton Art Gallery is delighted to present Tonga ‘i Onopooni: Tonga Contemporary an exhibition of work by thirteen Tongan New Zealand artists toured by Pataka.

Tonga ‘i Onopooni: Tonga Contemporary positions Tongan contemporary art within a global network and seeks to highlight the dynamic and outgoing character of this Pacific nation. This ground-breaking exhibition, the first to focus exclusively on the work of artists of Tongan heritage living in New Zealand.

The perspectives and approaches of the artists are richly varied but all demonstrate a highly distinctive visual language that draws on both their Tongan heritage as well as their New Zealand experience. Sopolemalama Filipe Tohi, Kulimoe‘anga Stone Maka and Dagmar Dyck have been inspired by traditional Tongan art forms, while the younger artists, second and third generation New Zealanders, explore the realities of migration, adaption, identity and the ambivalence of home.

Tonga ‘i Onopooni: Tonga Contemporary celebrates the impact of contemporary artists of Tongan heritage on the New Zealand visual arts scene.

Exhibition developed and curated by Nina Kinahoi Tonga and Pataka Art+Museum

Header Image: Dagmar Dyck, Which Side are you on?, 2014, acrylic and screen print on wood. Courtesy of the Artist.

Image: Glen Wolfgramm, Hood X, 2012, Acrylic and graphite on prepared car bonnet. Courtesy of the Artist and Orexart.