I am a digital entrepreneur in the health and wellness industry, and a practitioner of rongoā and mirimiri healing. My creative life is rooted in Toi Māori, a journey I have been walking for the past three years through my time with Te Whare Wānanga o Aotearoa. My discipline is grounded in Te Ao Māori, whakapapa, hauora, and rongoā – weaving together ancestral knowledge, wellbeing, and Toi.

I was born in Rotorua, and over my life I have lived in Taupō, Hamilton, Ōhaupō, Whakatāne, Whanganui, Auckland, Tauranga, and now Te Puke. Each place has shaped me in unique ways – from the geothermal steam of my birthplace to the salt air of Ōhope Beach, where so many childhood memories are etched into the sand.

The earliest stories I remember came through books and waiata – the illustrations of Māui slowing the sun, and the songs that carried the whakapapa and mauri of each place I lived. I am grateful to have grown up with Māori creation stories and historical narratives of our tūpuna, despite decades of attempted cultural erasure. These taught me that art and Toi are powerful, and that as a ringa Toi, I hold the capacity to shape realities.

The landscapes of the Bay of Plenty continue to call me – my awa, Kaituna and Waiari, the lakes of Rotorua, the healing embrace of geothermal baths, and our maunga: Rangiuru, Te Rae o Pāpāmoa, and Mauao. These places sustain and inspire me.

Some days I am studying at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, other days I am in my studio at Ōkahukura developing my art practice. I also hold rongoā community clinics and am learning how to use social media as a tool for business. Life is still finding its groove, but I carry deep gratitude for this path.

Music was another teacher in my youth. I grew up on 90s and 2000s RnB and HipHop – weekends spent watching MTV’s Total Request Live or listening to NOW CDs. But the deepest memories are of my parents’ music: Terrence Trent D’Arby, Whirimako Black, Bob Marley, Babyface, Renee Geyer, Tracy Chapman, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson. Those soulful voices continue to shape me.

In November 2025, my class and I will be holding a group exhibition in Katikati – my first public exhibition outside of Te Whare Wānanga o Aotearoa. I am excited to share this milestone, though details are still being finalised.

To aspiring creatives, my advice is this: your art is not just decoration. It is a force that can heal, provoke, inspire, and transform. Never underestimate its power to shift realities, reimagine the future, and create worlds worth living in.

At its heart, my practice is about connection – to whakapapa, to whenua, to people, and to the unseen realms that shape our reality. Everything I create carries the intention of weaving people back to themselves, to each other, and to the natural world.

Photo credit: Renati Waaka