Cher Davis

I am affiliated through my children to Ngāti Hauā and Ngāpuhi.
My weaving is influenced by customary Whakairo patterns and I have created various works from Kete Whakairo, Papa, Tukutuku and also Hue.
My kaupapa is to make taonga for my whānau because the concept 'Taonga Tuku Iho' (Treasures handed down by our ancestors) is important to me. I think that it is a living heritage we receive, and we take it, breathe new life and wairua into it and then gift it on. When I create Tukutuku for instance, there is something of myself, my spirit woven in with the story it tells and when that is passed on to my children and mokopuna it becomes a memory of whakapapa, an unbroken spiritual thread that reaches forward through the generations to come, and also back through me to our tipuna; it is a rich and beautiful concept.
I honour the knowledge passed to me by my Kaiako, Simi Paris at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, where I gained a Certificate in Māori Arts - Raranga and a Diploma in Māori and Indigenous Art and also Te Hemo Ata Hēnare for the privilege of learning from her as I completed my second year of a Bachelor of Māori Arts - Raranga at North Tec, Whangārei.