'Hine' by Owen Dippie. Picture / Supplied
Accor Hotels has commissioned internationally renowned artist Owen Dippie to design a piece of artwork on its 25m wall on Custom Lane in downtown Auckland.
Dippie's accustomed to painting large scale pieces, his arguably most-viewed outdoor piece is his three storey high portrait of Tania Cotter on Auckland's Southern Motorway.
Dippie's artwork for Custom Lane is based on his tiki, to represent his distinctive style and also as a tribute to this country.
"Over the years this tiki has taken many shapes and forms and has in turn become something unmistakably Aotearoa. After being approached by the Grand Mecure, hearing their thoughts and seeing the space I knew this would be the perfect fit." Dippie says.
The chosen media is acrylic and paintbrush and the artwork is expected to be completed in three days.
Dippie hails from Kawerau and growing up surrounded by individuals with strong cultural identities drove his chosen subject matter from a young age, transpiring in his highly-praised portrait works.
He has an affinity for Maoritanga and a personal passion for tattoo and ta moko, along with a keen interest in pop culture imagery.
The artist has been painting his large scale realist portraiture on the streets of New Zealand and New York for more than a decade.
During a three-month long trip to New York, he held his first solo exhibition, and was honoured to have one of his works named as Best Mural 2015 by the Huffington Post, along with producing his first work in downtown Los Angeles.
