§ Symbol
Ocean
Moana
Polynesia at large
The ocean (moana) symbolises life, origin and the road in Polynesian culture: the sea was the route the ancestors arrived by and what joins the islands of the Pacific.
§ How I draw it
2 original drawings
None of these drawings gets tattooed as it is. They're the starting point: in the consultation the motif is adapted to your anatomy and to the rest of the piece.
§ Meaning
Life, origin, the road.
Moana is ocean in Māori, Hawaiian, Tahitian and Samoan. For the peoples of the Pacific the sea was the road the ancestors arrived by and what joins the islands, not what separates them. In a Polynesian piece, water is the element that joins all the others.
Waves are usually read as continuity and change: they keep coming whatever happens. Lines of still water, as calm and daily life.
It's the motif that best resolves the transitions in a large composition, because it can narrow, widen and change direction without ever stopping being recognisable.
§ How it's drawn
Two registers: parallel zigzag lines for the water, and solid curved crests in a row for the swell.
§ Works well with
Interested in a piece with this symbol?
In the consultation we work out how it fits your body and your story.
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