National Contemporary Art Award winner, 2022

Through my experience of judging, this work Ko te Awa Ko Au, kept returning to me.

I’m proud to say that not all art works may be able to explain themselves in words, but are able to carry the presence of themselves over time, just like a river.

It’s the ability for water to strip us bare, and just bathe in a silence without words.

Reuben Paterson - Waikato Museum