Tohu Harris

On the 2nd October 2023, in Melbourne Australia. A 22 year old woman by the name of Tishja Mihitaurangi Harris, took her own life.

Her favorite was colour pink, she had hazel eyes that hid behind her curly hair, when no one was listening she was. She was….She no longer is and she never will be.

The series “The Weight of What Remains” follows my grief journey after losing my cousin to suicide. These paintings explore the complexities of the grieving mind; and the transformative changes brought by loss. This series identifies the emotional shifts that death brings in relation to lived memories, particularly those tied to the departed. Memories become intertwined with physical places and objects; leaving them with a residual essence of life. Through use of oil paints I reconstruct my childhood home derived from my memories, which accommodates imaginary objects and animals. Through objects and animals, I allude to my experience with death and grief, becoming a vessel for those concepts. I use an unnatural palette of pink and green—pink representing my loved one, and green a colour I respectfully resent. This choice enforces the concept of duality, a central theme woven throughout my work