Charles & Janine Williams

About

Charles & Janine Williams - Urban Contemporary Artists (NZ)

Story

Charles Williams - Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngapuhi
Janine Williams - Ngāti Paoa, Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara
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Working & travelling extensively throughout Aotearoa (New Zealand) & around the globe we create visual stories that connect us to the whenua (land) & to the tangata whenua (local people) we encounter along the way. Our creative practise is the outworking of our passion for our Māori heritage presenting it in an urban context that features modern interpretations of cultural design along with native/endemic birdlife.
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Charles is a founding member & president of the world championship winning crew TMD (The Most Dedicated), a collective of creative individuals who continue to push artistic boundaries & who have been global leaders in the urban contemporary art field over the past 20 years. His personal accolades include winning the world Ono'u Graffiti Festival Tahiti 2015, being one of only three New Zealand artists to be fully sponsored by Ironlak spray paint while travelling the world painting as a family team member including the Guinness Book of Records worlds longest graffiti scroll Dubai in 2014.

Janine is one of Aotearoas' first female urban artists' & a member of TMD & has spent the past 15 years painting & developing community art activations & projects with a strong focus on youth interaction & community engagement. Recent works include mana whenua endorsed projects in the Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) region working within the Wynyard Quarter building precinct. She also featured as the Matariki Festival 2016 opening artist completing a rain art installation outside the Britomart Train Station & a projection mapping work onto the historical St James Theatre. Together they were invited to attend the Festival of Pacific Arts Guåhån 2016 as members of the Aotearoa delegation & have worked on numerous creative festivals including the Auckland Arts Festival, Artweek Auckland, Matariki Festival, Tāmaki Herenga Waka Festival, Pasifika Festival & Ono'u Graffiti Festival Tahiti/Ra'iātea.

Married with 4 children, whanau (family) & hapori (community) are an integral & important part of our full time artistic journey. We believe that a work of art is not only the finished product but includes the relationships you build along the way with the people & communities you encounter.