Ruminations: Encrypting My Mother Tongue w/ Anthony Zemke: 28th February, 2025

Ruminations: Encrypting My Mother Tongue is a new exhibition by artist Anthony Zemke showing as part of the Te Ahurei Toi o Tāmaki Auckland Arts Festival. It is a ‘visual exploration of the struggle faced by diasporic and mixed-race individuals to connect with a mother tongue they may never know’ (Auckland Arts Festival).

The exhibition runs through the festival of Naw-Rúz (Nowruz) which is celebrated as a time of renewal, reconnection and reflection by Iranians, Baháʼís, and various other communities.

The series of paintings and drawings aim to transform feelings of shame and guilt into celebrations of heritage and belonging through calligraphic abstraction. 

Beth had a kōrero with Anthony about Ruminations.