Yesterday I cried in the garden for the first time in a while, (if you know me/this project you will know that I cry here a lot 😂) Over the weekend many of the giant sunflowers have been cut down and someone has ripped the largest Hue off the vine. It was grown from seed and gifted to us by Pacific Vision Aotearoa (PVA). This Hue was such a taonga. Not to be harvested until the air has cooled and the skin is hard. To be held with ritual, intention and care. I’ve been talking to them all summer. After they had cured we were going to use them as a vessel to mix dye pigments.

So after a joyful month of abundant growth and audacious flowers, the grief returned.

And, with a deep breath in, and out…

Here we are.

In the thicket.

The thick of it.

We feel the seasonal shift at Ngakinga, the soil has been drained of nourishment and the flower crops are turning to seed. Cosmos that just last week stood taller than me is bending and breaking under its own weight. Soon the harvesting will no longer be for colour, it will be for hibernation, archiving, transplanting, resting.

Installing these new banners back into the garden is a balm. The iconic cotton redline flat nappies are dyed with the colour grown here, Coreopsis, marigold, black scabiosa, dahlia… Sewn with wool felt, they tell the story of Ngakinga. Of the last 12 months. Of grief, connection, composting and joy. They are the new blooms.