The past few years have been busy ones for T\u0101maki Makaurau Auckland-based artist Shannon Novak. He\u2019s produced solo projects, like the multi-site Cultivate<\/em> (2021) in Ng\u0101motu New Plymouth, and participated in group shows, such as Sympathetic Resonance<\/em> (2019) at the Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakat\u016b, Nelson, and Queer Algorithms<\/em> (2020) at the Gus Fisher Gallery, T\u0101maki Makaurau. Francis McWhannell spoke to him about his latest show, M\u0101nawatia Takat\u0101pui\/Defending Plurality<\/em> (2021) at Tauranga Art Gallery Toi Tauranga.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Francis McWhannell: We first seriously connected at the time of your 2019 solo show Sub Rosa. <\/em>Itstarted in the window space of the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery in Ng\u0101motu and spilled into a corridor and the toilets inside the Gallery. It was a deeply personal presentation, exploring your early sexual experiences.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Shannon Novak: I grew up in \u014cakura, a village near Ng\u0101motu, in the 1980s and 1990s. I knew I was gay as early as I can remember; I just wasn\u2019t sure what to call it. I was in the closet until I left Ng\u0101motu at the age of eighteen. My early years were very cloak and dagger, and I put myself in risky situations. I lost my virginity in a public toilet, I had a secret relationship with the leader of my church youth group, and I went alone to my school ball. Much of my youth predated the commercialised Internet, so I primarily explored connections to an LGBTQI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, and more) world through my imagination. I had no access to gay support organisations or media: no books, no movies, no porn. It was only with the introduction of the Internet that I began to connect with the local LGBTQI+ community and to feel less alone. I started a youth group called Bent with a friend who was bisexual. The only safe place we could meet was the local needle exchange. It was a small group, but it helped us to be our authentic selves. Despite the tough times, I treasure my youth in Ng\u0101motu and will always call it home. \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n *<\/p>\n\n\n\n