Ayesha Green, Folk Nationalism, Tauranga Art Gallery

Tauranga Art Gallery Toi Tauranga, in partnership with Seeds Trust, presents Folk Nationalism, an exhibition of new work by Tāmaki Makaurau-based Ayesha Green (Ngāti Kahungunu, Kai Tahu). 

Folk Nationalism is presented across Tauranga Art Gallery’s ground-level galleries and features a substantial new body of paintings and drawings developed by Ayesha over the past year. Her large-scale canvases and works on paper interrogate histories of Māori and Pākeha representation and the role that images and language play in perpetuating systems of power. 

While Ayesha’s paintings are characterised by her simple rendition of figures and forms, they represent a bold approach to issues concerning her Māori whakapapa — passed down through women over four generations.

Ayesha is the second recipient of the prestigious bi-annual Rydal Art Prize, for which she received a cash prize and the opportunity to develop this exhibition for Tauranga Art Gallery’s 2022 programme.