Solitude

Solitude explores the quiet resilience of those who have journeyed across oceans—physically or spiritually—to find themselves in unfamiliar lands. This black-and-white portrait series overlays the human face with digitally composed patterns of driftwood, forming intricate designs reminiscent of traditional tā moko or full facial tattoos. These organic markings are not literal symbols of identity, but metaphors—echoes of history, culture, and migration etched into the surface of each subject.

The driftwood, shaped by time and tide, becomes a visual language of the diaspora—referencing the many cultures that have arrived in Aotearoa by sea. Each piece of wood tells its own story of separation, transformation, and endurance, just as each person carries their own narrative of displacement and renewal.

At the heart of Solitude lies the idea that within every individual exists an inner strength—a grounded solitude—that enables them to survive, adapt, and belong. These portraits are not simply studies of faces; they are testaments to the human capacity for rootedness in motion, for identity in flux.