Large nikau 3

'I went to the Nikaus, stood amongst them, followed the curve of the trunk to a lofty height where the swelling of the boll converts into the thrusting spread of the branched palm head. I looked through the cross-hatched patterns to the sky.

My response to these images as a symbol of Aoteoroa's place in the Pacific and my passion for this land were the messages I wanted to portray in my work...

Working with clay is like human relationships. The minute I try to boss it round and control it, everything breaks down. If I work with the material and respect it, it respects the life that is there, and then I can see it in the work. If I'm not feeling good, the clay can resolve that, by the process of working with it.'

Christine Boswijk
'<em>Treasures of the Underworld</em>' Catalogue
World Expo, Seville, Spain. 12 April -20 October 1992