Cape York artist Connie Rovina presents her work at the Te Ao Marama Aotearoa Maori Dental Association’s 30th anniversary celebration event. Photo: Supplied.
A Cape York artist’s take on health has made it to the shores of New Zealand after she was selected to represent Australian Indigenous culture to the Maori dental association.
Kuku-Thaypan and Widi woman Connie Rovina was commissioned to create a painting by Indigenous Dental Association Australia as a gift to the Te Ao Marama Aotearoa Maori Dental Association for its 30-year celebration.
Ms Rovina travelled to New Zealand earlier this month to present the work at the organisation’s anniversary event, sharing the history and traditional practices of Aboriginal health, which were depicted in the painting.
“I put in some bush leaves and eucalypts and tea tree, and when I presented, I spoke about the importance of looking after our health as Indigenous people,” she said.
“I talked about our traditional healers and how important they were in our times, and Maoris also use traditional healers for their healing work as well, so it resonated really well.”
The artist said she was honoured to share her work and culture with the roughly 200 people who attended the milestone celebration.
“The presentation was held in a really beautiful Marae, and it’s a traditional meeting house for Maoris, so it was a very important one,” she said.
“It was a way that we could connect with Maori people, in that we were talking the same language when it came to healing processes and using different plants.
“There’s an understanding that it’s not only just using the plants themselves, but it’s a spiritual thing, and it’s a faith thing, because you don’t get that healing just with the plants unless you are believing in it.”
