Talk of the Eyes is a rhythmic moving image influenced by an origin story based on Tāwhirimātea, the deity of weather about Matariki known as "Ngā mata o te ariki o Tāwhirimātea: The eyes of the deity Tāwhirimātea." Captured by visual artist Tyrone Te Waa (Ngāti Tūwharetoa) and embodied by performance guru Millie Manning (Ngāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Rapuwai), the work pays tribute to Matariki and acts as a vigilant guardian watching over the city.

About Tyrone:

Tyrone Te Waa (Ngāti Tūwharetoa), born in 1992, compares his art-making process to "cooking lunch." Through methods of assembling, binding, hiding, attaching, knotting, connecting, tangling, and wrapping, he creates wearable objects, two-dimensional works, large-scale installations, and moving

images. His artistic expression is deeply rooted in his autobiography and ancestral reflection, which is informed by his research into takatāpui/gay/queer histories in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Tyrone completed his Master of Creative Practice at Unitec in 2021. During his time at Unitec, he curated the exhibition Kia whakatomuri te haere whakamua at Gallery One in 2020 and participated in group exhibitions such as Farewell to Fingers in 2021. Some of his recent exhibitions include Clingwrap at Sanc Gallery in 2021, Circle Turtle (with Reece King) at Papakura Art Gallery in 2022, Twisting, turning, winding: takatāpui and queer objects at Objectspace in 2022, and Whetūrangitia/Made as Stars at Dowse Art Museum in 2022. Tyrone is represented by Anna Miles Gallery in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.