A Te Teko-raised artist has won a major New Zealand art award.
Zena Elliott (Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Te Rangi, Te Whānau ā Apānui, Ngāti Rangitihi) — who recalls being raised on fruit from neighbours’ trees and liquorice from the local store in the small Bay of Plenty town — took out the top prize in the prestigious National Contemporary Art Award, announced at Te Whare Taonga o Waikato in Hamilton this week.
The multidisciplinary artist, now based in Waikato, takes home $20,000 for their winning work, The Silence Forced Upon Us Is Louder Than the Crown’s Declarations of Partnership and Fairness.
Elliott says the painting “explores pressing social and political issues impacting indigenous views”.
Elliott’s work was selected through a blind judging process — where the artist’s name was not displayed — by Nigel Borell (Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui, Te Whakatōhea), celebrated curator of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki’s 2020–21 exhibition Toi Tū Toi Ora: Contemporary Māori Art.
“It is a powerful work that made me return for repeat views. A work that is full of tension, energy and polemic [strongly critical] intent,” says Borell.
Elliott showed an interest in drawing from a young age, but did not start painting until high school. Since then, the artist has gone on to study Māori and contemporary art, developing a multidisciplinary practice incorporating whakairo art.
“It’s about how can I utilise these different materials, these techniques to enhance my customs, my heritage, our narratives and our stories,” Elliott said in an interview with Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki in 2022.
Leanne Mulder (Ngāti Maniapoto) received the runner-up prize for their work What the Land Remembers. Merit Awards were presented to Cora-Allan (Ngāpuhi, Tainui, and Niue — Alofi and Liku) for He tangata paerangi – coming from a distance, and Kelly Rowe for Access Denied.
This year’s award attracted a record 480 entries, from which 53 finalists were selected.
Liz Cotton, Director of Museum and Arts at Te Whare Taonga o Waikato, encourages whānau to visit the exhibition and experience all the finalist works firsthand — including Elliott’s powerful piece.
“This really is a piece that needs to be seen in person to appreciate its power and beauty.”
The exhibition of finalists is open from 1 August to 16 November 2025, with free admission.
