Wendy Munro 'Tane Hokahoka And The Kiwi' | Original Painting

Wendy Munro 'Tane Hokahoka And The Kiwi'
Oil on cotton ready to hang
Size: 500mm x 500mm

A depiction of the artists interpretation of the story told of how the Kiwi lost its wings.
In the time of the old forests, Tane Mahuta, (God of the forests), saw that his children were suffering. Creatures on the forest floor were eating the roots, and the trees were getting sick. He turned to his brother Tane Hokahoka for help and together they gathered all the birds of the air.
Tane Mahuta asked for a courageous bird to leave the safety of the canopy to live upon the dark forest floor, to protect the trees from the insects that dwelt there. The Tui was too afraid of the dark shadows. The Pūkeko refused to wet his feet in the damp undergrowth. The Pipiwharauroa was far too busy building its nest.
Eventually the brave Kiwi stepped forward and although it meant giving up both its colourful wings, the Kiwi offered to live on the ground to save the forest.
Tane Hokahoka gave the other birds their fate and the Piwakawaka heralded this warning. The Tui would wear white throat feathers as the mark of a coward, and the Pūkeko would be forever banished to the swamps and wetlands. The Pipiwharauroa would never build a nest again and would only lay its eggs in the nests of other birds. Tane Mahuta gave the Kiwi his deepest gratitude. 
The Kiwi's wings faded, it's colours dimmed, and its legs grew strong but it because the guardian of the forest floor, the silent protector of Tane's children.