Picking up the THREADS

Alison Leauanae's hand-stitched and woven abstract works are inspired by past connections and her cultural heritage

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After nearly three decades in other industries, Alison Leauanae found herself returning to the world of art. The Wellington-based artist hand-stitches and weaves thoughtful and intricate works filled with rich meaning.

Tell us about your creative journey so far. There’s so much I’m still learning about my practice and where I would like to be. I decided IN high school not to pursue the visual arts because I had other options and didn’t know if I could really make it work.

My creativity was nurtured at home, surrounded by contemporary artwork produced by family members and I learned skills in making, painting and drawing and I developed a love for books and writing.

After nearly 30 years of other pursuits, I'm in catch-up mode. Not in the sense of chasing anything, rather that time is short to flesh out all that I want to in this space. I'm grateful to close friends in the arts community who encouraged me to step out and provided opportunities to exhibit my works alongside amazing artists. I'm enjoying this steep learning curve as I work to refine my skills.