b.1964
IIam School of Fine Arts, University of Canterbury
Shane Cotton’s paintings refer to the stories of Aotearoa New Zealand – legends of the land and the ancestors, and the impact of colonisation, past and present. He once said, “I wanted to paint the land, but the only way you can paint it is to look at the stories and events connected to it, and you come to appreciate it in a personal way”.
Dimensions: 203x203mm
You took his land and you ate his corn,
and on his grave your land was born.
You took his pride and you fed him dirt,
you wished him winter without a shirt
And you called this red man savage.
And after you crushed him you helped him up,
to let him drink from an empty cup.
You gave him the navy without the fleet,
and made him lick your hands and kiss your feet,
and you named this mad dog savage.
Well I found a book the other day,
so I looked up red and white to see what it’d say.
One was a savage and the other unlearned,
like a look in the mirror the tables were turned,
for history has named you – savage.
The Song Of Crazy Horse by J. D. Blackfoot off the LP The Song of Crazy Horse.
Dimensions: 600x450mm
