Ayesha Green

Ayesha Green (Kāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Heretaunga, Pākehā) is a leading voice in Aotearoa art. Her practice explores mātauraka Māori, processes of identity- and nation-building, and relationships between empire and indigeneity. She holds a Graduate Diploma in Arts in Museums and Cultural Heritage (2016) and a Master of Fine Arts (2013) from the University of Auckland Waipapa Taumata Rau. Since 2018 she has worked with Paemanu, a Kāi Tahu contemporary visual art collective. Green has won key awards, including the Rydal Art Prize (2021), the National Contemporary Art Award (2019), and an inaugural Springboard award from the Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi (2020). She held a McCahon House residency in Tāmaki Makaurau in 2022 and a Harriet Friedlander Residency in New York City in 2024. Her work has been presented across the motu, in important group shows, such as Toi Tū Toi Ora: Contemporary Māori Art (2020–21) at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, and solo exhibitions, such as Wrapped Up in Clouds (2020) at Dunedin Public Art Gallery, To the Best of My Knowledge (2021) at Hastings City Art Gallery Te Whare Toi o Heretaunga, and Folk Nationalism (2022–23) at Tauranga Art Gallery and City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi.