Latoya Tuffley
Ngaati Maniapoto
Latoya Tuffley (Ngaati Hari, Ngaati Maniapoto) is a self-taught young artist who says she was into art as a little kid and has been painting since she was fifteen. She works in a day job at a factory but says she dreams of a day when her creative practice could provide an income. In her spare time, she converts the bedroom in her flat into a studio so that she can make and do “what is meaningful to her”.
Koko (Whakapapa)
Acrylic on canvas
Koko (whakapapa)
Latoya (right) with painting for scale
Addressing ideas about the importance of whakapapa, I had to depict my grandfather Errol Neville Tuffley who passed in 2017. I have wrapped him in a kaakahu to honour what he was to us … safety, security. He provided this for our whaanau. The whole painting is an acknowledgement to him and his remaining connection to us through the passing on of his knowledge. This is one of the largest canvases I have attempted, and I have enjoyed letting my hand go where it wants to.
