Manu Lele, 2021

Marcus Hipa  

Marcus Hipa is a Niuean artist born and raised in Alofi, Niue Island momentarily living in Aotearoa/ New Zealand. Drawing, painting and carving are some of the mediums he utilises to explore and share insights of his people's history and culture.

The convoluted and interlocked lines merge into another, creating an image that seems to expand and bubble-up. Their "pure" white frame keeps the boundless energy in check. In the works there is also a contrast at play, all layered up in black and outlined in vivid colors. These lines created in grafitti style, look like sci-fi figure sharing insights of his people's history, culture and traditions. With the need to assimilate when relocating to a foreign country there is the challenging and often abrasive task of taking on the new environments language. The prickly underside of the figures is inspired by the form of the coconut scraper. Coconuts are engraved in Pacific Islanders identity and form an important link with their cultural background. Hipa celebrates the values, traditions, progress and sense of community, as well as shedding light on social and political issues affecting his Pacific people in the Pacific region and Aotearoa. So the lines are read as universal letters telling complex stories of identity, loss and reclamation of culture, representation and power dynamics.