Blackmailpress Cover artwork:
Waitī - Acrylic on board, 900 x 1200mm, Penny Howard 2026
In this painting, Penny Howard draws inspiration from the Matariki star Waitī to remind viewers that the health of our rivers directly reflects the health of our people.
The artwork focuses on the magnificent giant kōkopu, a native galaxiid whose spotted skin beautifully mirrors the stars of Matariki navigating dark currents. Through this imagery, Howard highlights how fragile freshwater ecosystems mirror the current displacement and loss of taonga tūturu.
Through this powerful piece, the artist brings a lost ancestor home to the safety of our waters, offering a deep blessing and spiritual repatriation. The work serves as an urgent demand for both the healing of our streams and the reclamation of lost and stolen taonga.
Artists bio:
Penny Howard ( Te Mahurehure, Ngāpuhi and Celtic descent) is an acclaimed contemporary New Zealand artist whose mixed-media practice explores cultural identity, Māori narratives, and the impacts of colonialism. Her artwork features prominently in major public and institutional collections, including Waipapa Taumata Rau (the University of Auckland), the New Zealand Parliamentary Collection, The Arts House Trust, and Foundation North, alongside private collections globally. Her practice is included in Waharoa: Art of the Pacific, a documentary series hosted by esteemed art historian Professor Ngahuia Te Awekotuku. Her ongoing body of work, Te Whakahoki, continues her interrogation of colonial archives and overseas auction lots, serving as a powerful platform for creative repatriation and rematriation.
Selected Earlier Solo Exhibitions (Whitespace Contemporary Art & others)
Penny has an extensive exhibition history including:
Te Whakahoki: A Sort of Homecoming (2021, 2020)
Mana Muse (2018)
She Counts Kahu (2017)
Karakia Precari (2016)
Four Steps to Standing on a Horse (2014)
Te Kuri O Te Wao (2013)
Losing My Religion (2010)
Parlour Birds (2009)
Ataarangi Whenua – Shadowland (2008)
