Prime Artisan Knives

12/10/2026

Past. Present. Future.
In the shape of oka.

23/09/2026

Y’all say ring clamp, I say doohickey.

22/09/2026

Side quest!! 🗡️🗡️

14/09/2026

14/09/2026

Artist Introduction: A.J. Prime

AJ is an artist, carver, and established artisan knifemaker based in Cable Bay, Te Tai Tokerau, Northland. He draws on his unique combination of skills to create taonga Māori that are both visually striking and functional.

AJ’s aesthetic is often relic-like, with a preference for natural materials and tones, as-forged finishes, finely chiselled textures, and asymmetrical patterning. These elements contribute to a style he describes as perfectly imperfect.

A strong part of AJ’s practice is his use of materials that have already lived a life. He enjoys giving these materials a new purpose, reincarnating them as taonga that carry a whakapapa shaped by their own history.
Process sits at the heart of AJ’s creative practice. He favours manual processes over high-tech solutions and is willing to learn new skills when a project requires them, rather than outsourcing aspects of his mahi.

AJ’s arts practice is, at times, a personal exploration of identity and culture. At other times, it is simply about the freedom to create – for creativity’s sake.

09/09/2026

Works on the other side too 🤓

08/09/2026

Whakairo is sometimes referred to as one of our story telling mediums, like the pictures in a book that support a narrative, be that written or spoke word, or indeed even song.

With this piece I wanted to capture the unfolding of an event: Te whakaminenga o ngā hapū o Nu Tirene, also know as the gathering of the confederation of chiefs, on 28th October 1835.

On this day 34 rangatira gathered in Waitangi to discuss the motivations and benefits of one of the foundational documents of Aotearoa - He wakaputanga o te rangatiratanga o Nu Tirene, also referred to as New Zealand’s Declaration of Independence.

They eventually reached consensus, agreeing to sign the document and over the following four years another 18 rangatira added their names to the document.

Supported by the paragraphs above, this particular vessel, which I refer to as a wakataonga, tells that story.

On the main body of the vessel 34 entangled manaia represent the initial rangatira that gathered in 1835, interacting and engaged in discourse. On the lid are another 18, representing those that signed afterwards.
The four ūpoko gaze to the north, east, south and west, asserting the collective mana of the rangatira to all four points of the compass.

Held within is a facsimile of the taonga itself – He wakaputanga.

You can see this in person at Hono Exhibition in November and impress your friends and whānau by telling the story behind it.

Fun fact: no matter which way around the lid is placed, the pattern still manaia still flow.