the Department of Anthropology and Institute of Archaeology at University College London and was also awarded a Chester Dale Fellowship at the Metropolitan Museum in NYC.
Using her own aesthetics to reclaim and embody the power and dynamism of the Dusky Maiden, Rosanna responded with Full Tusk Maiden, 1999. "With both hands placed on her hips and legs spread wide, the Full Tusk Maiden assumes a powerful haka stance-a posture that in many Polynesian cultures denotes defiance and strength... [H]er steady, penetrating gaze conveys in a potent way self-possession, self-sufficiency, and agency. The Full Tusk Maiden is not only beautiful-she is intimidating... rather than being polar opposites, [the dusky maiden and her Full Tusk sibling] are instead two sides of the same coin, flipping back and forth through the transformative space of the wÄ [vÄ] when it suits them." (Tamaira 2010, 16-18)
These Pasifika stylings garnered acclaim in Auckland in the 1990s through the art collective Pacific Sisters. Rosanna and her Pacific Sisters created a space where they could artistically express and celebrate their heritage. Rosanna's art depicts her journey so when she and her family moved to London in October 1999 it was not surprising that she found comfort in and connections with taonga in museums; like Rosanna, those taonga were separated from their original lands. Feeling a strong cultural bond to those 'artefacts', she digitally customised tapa to demonstrate its importance in contemporary life. Using her own drawings and handwriting to replicate the chaos of the many 'voices' and layers that exist simultaneously within the work, Ode to a Pale Sina reflects the nature of living in a modern world.
Rosanna’s work includes co curation of Pasifika Styles, Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology's, 2006, artists were invited to work with and respond to the museum collection to create arenas for cultural exchange. Rosanna has exhibited in a number of group and solo exhibitions including: The Asia Pacific Triennial, QAGOMA, Australia, 2015; Dead pigs don't grow on trees, Mangere Arts Centre NgÄ Tohu o Uenuku, Auckland, 2014; Fa’amania, Artstation, 2014; Face a Face, Galeria Meyer Oceanic Art, Tahiti, 2011; ethKnocentrix, October Gallery, London, 2009.Â