Sophora, 2023

John Black  

In, part of John Black's ongoing series, the artist pays homage to the national flower of New Zealand — the kōwhai, from the genus — and to the nation's unique status as a country untouched by war on its own soil. The painting captures the gentle elegance of the flower through a composition rooted in simplicity, balance, and symbolic color.

Rendered on a single unified canvas, the kōwhai blossoms stretch across vertical bands of soft teal and golden ochre. The center — a radiant yellow column — echoes the bright hue of the flower itself, while also suggesting warmth, harmony, and light. Black's stylized linework outlines the petals and stamens with delicate precision, almost like a botanical drawing, yet infused with poetic abstraction. The word — Māori for "peace" — is subtly inscribed, tying the visual narrative to the land's indigenous culture and language.

Unlike other works in the series, which may explore the tension and reconciliation between divided nations or histories, remains whole — a single, uninterrupted surface. This formal decision mirrors New Zealand's peaceful legacy and reinforces the theme of natural unity.

Through this piece, Black suggests that peace, like a flower, requires nurture, attention, and cultural rootedness. is both a tribute and a quiet aspiration — a vision of a world where nations bloom, not burn.