Taylor Tiave
7.25.22
“My name is Taylor Terewai Tiave and I have an awesome husband and two very fun babies (5 and 1). I have a Bachelor's Degree in Media Arts (Film) and I am a watercolor/digital artist. My favorite Polynesian food is Maori bread, manioke, laulau, squid lūʻau, and New Zealand chocolate...does that count? lol.”
“Before my last year of college, my son Hono was born. I had a lot of doubts about making it to graduation and sometimes (ok, a lot of times) struggled keeping the end goal in mind. One thing that kept me motivated was literally envisioning myself wearing our family kahu huruhuru (Māori feather cloak) during my graduation ceremony. Graduation day finally came and as my aunty draped our kāhu huruhuru around me I instantly felt pride for not only what I'd accomplished, but more so pride for my village that got me there. During the ceremony I was also invited to speak to represent our department, where I chose to recognize my village and acknowledge them by sharing some of my pepeha. It really does take a village.”
“I was born and raised in Southern California as a mixed girl (Māori, Tongan, Pākeha (palangi, caucasian, white, however you prefer to describe it). Which there in CA it's SUPER common to be of mixed ancestry, but we didn't grow up with lots of other polynesians, other than my own family. From a young age I felt a deep connection to my Polynesian roots and am grateful to my parents (mom especially) who created opportunities to cultivate that love, i.e. learning our Māori pepeha, Māori song and dance, participating in Polynesian dance groups, taking us on trips back to NZ, etc. As I grew up and became my own person, I found it was ultimately up to me to continue cultivating that love and connection I felt - not only for myself, but also for my now two children. That's kinda where my art has come from. Growing up I longed to have and see representation of myself in art, children's books, even movies. Growing up in America (now is a bit different) we just didn't have that. So I try to reflect that in my art. I focus on Polynesian people (wahine especially) continuing to celebrate their culture. My main art mediums are watercolor and digital illustration.
As far as how my Polynesian ancestry has shaped who I am today... To me it's very important to know both who and where you come from. A quote that has stuck with me for years is, "If you don't know where you've come from, you don't know where you're going." (*Maya Angelou). It's one thing to be Polynesian and a whole other thing to seek after a meaningful connection with that side of your identity. For me it's a never ending journey of learning and understanding. In all that I do I want to please and also pay respect to my ancestors and living family for all that they've done to guide me to where I am at this point in my life.
"In all that I do I want to please and also pay respect to my ancestors and living family for all they've done to guide me to where I am at this point in my life"