Mārika Pounamu - Who are we?
My name is Karaitiana and my creative outlet is making beautiful artwork from gorgeous New Zealand Pounamu (Nephrite Jade), alongside a wide variety of other materials.
Together with my wife Josie, we own and operate Mārika Pounamu.
I began carving as a means of self-care through challenging times – so my art has been formed through real life.
This shows most strongly through the stories and emotions that many of my pieces are imbued with.
What I love most about carving is the ability to capture the essence of a feeling, a situation, or a character, and immortalize that through what I consider the perfect gift.
There is no denying that carving, in a word, saved me. I found my passion, and it freed me from so much.
Things too deep for words.
So I use my outlet of carving as a way of giving back to the world something unique, something positive.
Please, enjoy looking through the works of our hands.
We thank you for your support.
Ngā mihi mahana,
Karaitiana & Josie