"One of two works created in response to an online DNA test. A website provided a pie chart of my ancestry composition, by percentage. A few years ago, when I first submitted the DNA test, a big chunk of my genetic makeup was “Broadly Oceanic” and "South East Asian". Being adopted as a Māori child and raised in a Māori family, this aligned comfortably with my established sense of identity.
Palm Arms is the first work to feature my daughter, Te Pō Atarau, who can be attributed to being the catalyst behind this whole chain of dna test events. By the end of the making process, I came to the realisation that I could dig forever into my genealogy (both nurtured and natured) but my kid is the only blood relative that I know, and she is here, now."