Stone Maka

2022, Kumi Ē Manatu (Finding Black Tapa Memories), Johnathan Smart Gallery.

2021, Toga mo Bolata'ane, Christchurch Art Gallery.

In 2020 Maka's art practice was welding contemporary and Tongan heritage art forms using spiderwebs to create intricate patterns on Ngatu.

2020, Biennale of Sydney 2020 – NIRIN, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Australia.

2019, Va Oceans Between, Turanga Library, Christchurch.

2017, First Thursdays Chch, The Colombo and Dilana Rugs Ltd Gallery, Christchurch.

In 2014 Maka was exhibited in the Tonga 'i Onopooni at Pataka Art and Museum in Lower Hutt, this was the first exhibition of contemporary Tongan artists living in New Zealand. His work from this exhibition Ngatu ta'uli (blackened tapa cloth) (2010) is now in the permanent collection of Te Papa, the national museum of New Zealand.

2014 - 2016, Tonga 'i Onopooni (Tonga Contemporary), tour - City Gallery, Invercargill, Ashburton, Timaru, Oamaru, Pataka Art + Museum, Porirua.

Kulimoe'anga Stone Maka, is an interdisciplinary artist of Tongan heritage who lives in Christchurch, New Zealand. In 2011, he was awarded the Emerging Pasifika Artist Award from Creative New Zealand. Maka's work has been exhibited in museums and art galleries in New Zealand, Hawai'i Australia and Tonga. In 2020 he was selected to represent New Zealand at the 22nd Biennale in Sydney.

2010, Tohinoa 'o 'eku Manatu – Journal of my Memories, Centre of Contemporary Art (CoAC), Christchurch.

2010, Visions of Utopia, Centre of Contemporary Art (CoAC), Christchurch.

2009, Faka'ahu – Contemporary Fumage, toured to McCarthy Gallery, Auckland, Central Library, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, Centre of Contemporary Art (CoAC), Christchurch.

In 2008, Maka received the Margaret Stoddart award for his work in the Festival of Flowers, along with a cash prize of $2000. This further propelled his success in the following year, where he was selected as the Pacific artist in Residence at the University of Canterbury, where he received studio space, financial stipends and resources. Alumni of this award include Tusiata Avia, David Fane, John Pule and Michel Tuffery.

2008, Ngatu tu 'uli (The Past is now), Centre of Contemporary Art (CoAC), Christchurch.

2008, Preview exhibition, Centre of Contemporary Art (CoAC), Christchurch.

2008, Margaret Stoddart Award Exhibition, Centre of Contemporary Art (CoAC), Christchurch.

2007, Papata pe ka na'e Lalanga (It may be course in texture, but it was woven), Vitu Pacific Festival, Christchurch.

2007, Martin Hughes Contemporary Pacific Art Exhibition, Auckland.

2007, Maka Tu'u Taha, Fresh Gallery, Otara, Auckland.

2007, Our City O-Tautahi, Vitu Pacific Festival, Christchurch featuring Filipe Tohi

2002, Te Taumata Art Gallery, Grafton, Central Auckland.

2002, Art by the Sea Gallery, Grafton, Central Auckland.

In 2001, Maka gained a certificate of Art and Design at the art school in Auckland, Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design. He continued his tertiary studies from 2002 – 2004, where he graduated with BA in Visual Art, at Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT), Auckland, with both qualifications majoring in painting. As part of Maka's research during his studies, he traveled back to Tonga to attain more knowledge surrounding the fundamental practice of Ngatu Tā 'Uli (Blackened Tapa Cloth), a cornerstone of his art practice.

2001, Carlton Hotel Ballroom, Newton, Central Auckland.

1998 – 2003, Auckland Pasifika Festival, Western Springs, Auckland.

1997, Art of this World Gallery, Devonport, Auckland.

From 1990 – 1996 Maka had exhibited murals in Tonga, Ha'apai prior to his arrival in New Zealand.

Maka's art practice is heavily influenced and inspired from his Tongan heritage, where he incorporates a multitude of styles, including traditional Tongan art forms, from creating Ngatu (Tapa) made from the bark of the Mulberry tree, combining contemporary and experimental methods and techniques, which in turn assist with his general process of creating most of his works. Maka's specific style was showcased with his work Toga mo Bolata'ane, where he was selected alongside other Māori and Pasifika artists, including Lisa Reihana, FAFSWAG, Elisapeta Heta, and John Miller to exhibit this work at the 22nd Biennale in Sydney. Maka uses the traditional Tongan art form of Ngatu Tā 'Uli and painting to illustrate the relationship between the monarchs Queen Sālote Tupou III and Queen Elizabeth II and the wider implications of interconnectivity between Tonga and Britain.