Tauranga-based artist Cordula Taiwo is set to open her exhibition, "Of a Wild God," at Thistle Hall, intentionally overlapping with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ Wellington concerts (Feb 5 & 6). This sophisticated body of work is a deeply personal creative response to Nick Cave’s music, his public correspondence (The Red Hand Files), and his published conversations (Faith, Hope and Carnage).

The exhibition, running from February 4 to 7, 2026, features 15 paintings and voice recordings, presenting a profound dialogue on life, loss, and the transformative power of faith and art.

Finding Anchor in Shared Humanity

Cordula’s journey began after the loss of her father at age 22, a devastating moment that initiated a search for an anchor that years of solitary spiritual practice, including time in a Zen Buddhist monastery, could not provide.

Now an artist in New Zealand, Cordula was drawn to Nick Cave’s journey—especially his navigation of unspeakable trauma (the loss of his sons, Arthur and Jethro). Where her solitary path led to an "obliteration of language and meaning," Cave offered a model for moving forward through the vulnerability of shared experience.

Cordula honours this generosity by integrating voice recordings of edited excerpts of her letters to The Red Hand Files into her exhibition. The correspondence transforms the gallery into a communal confessional, engaging directly with the metaphysics of pain and transformation.

Connecting Art and Music

The 15 paintings track a narrative arc from fractured youth to eventual peace, with specific works echoing Cave's biography and recent tours:

• "Carnage" is the exhibition's most complex piece, addressing the unspeakable nature of our existence.
• "Love, Nick" features a large-scale painting of Cave's concert silhouette surrounded by hundreds of hand-scribed names of Red Hand Files questioners, celebrating the communal energy of art.
• "For Joy," directly connecting to The Wild God tour, features a "prehistoric bird-man" covered in album lyrics.

"Of a Wild God" promises to be an essential ancillary event for Wellington's arts and music community.

About the Artist

Cordula Taiwo is a self-taught, Tauranga-based artist with a Master's degree in Buddhist Philosophy from her studies in Japan. Her painting has become her ikigai (life's purpose), focusing on faith, and the search for shared human connection.

More at: https://cordulataiwo.com