About Us

A whanau / family-owned business

Ko wai tatou

Who we are and what we do

Ora Jade is a whanau / family-owned business where we try to involve as many family members as we can whether it be simply for advice and perspective or hands on work / mahi itself. This could take many forms such as going to the Awa / river to find raw materials or a walk along the beach looking for driftwood to display our pieces on, that way even the youngest ones are participating and it’s fun.

We always strive to do the best by what we find as we only collect stone we believe to be the best quality and never take more than what we can work. This way the resource is there for those in the future and others who follow the same course.

Ora Jade gets its name from the word Ora – in Māori this word means wellbeing. This is rather ironic considering we work predominately with Nephrite a stone in ancient Greek times associated with wellness and health specifically the kidneys as in the Greek word nephro – nefro.

Te hono tahi

Joining together

Our business is not simply to make money but reviving a nearly lost tradition and cultural heritage which is very much an integral part of the Māori world, in saying that we are not closed to other cultures and ideas in fact encompassing them helps us diversify and construct a wonderful multicultural outlook. Quite often when you view the world this way you see similarities and common ground which helps to blend the art, thus never losing its ability to create wonder and a never-ending pool of ideas to draw on. How could you ever be bored right?

Te kaitoi

The artist

My name is Leon Bonney. Based in Richmond, Nelson, New Zealand, I am Chief cook and bottlewasher for our whanau business. Stated basically I do a bit of everything but primarily my forte lies within carving various stone. I am a relative new comer to jade carving having 10 years’ experience most of which was spent gathering tools and equipment, primarily self-taught although I did attend art school where I excelled in stone sculpting. This led me to what you see today.

I draw my influences from my childhood where I grew up in an area of great archaeological evidence for multiple Māori occupations along the Mataura River / Southland. A great many artifacts have been found in our district and where I lived was no different.

As a young boy I picked up many items and was fascinated by them all. My Māori Kuia / Grandma told me that the stones must speak to me which I believe is still the case, if something didn’t feel right then my Kuia always told me to leave it and wash my hands as some places and items could be very Tapu or hold Makutu, meaning sacred or cursed, and from this I have gained a lot of respect for those Taonga I still care for and use as a constant form of inspiration – I can not stress hard enough the importance of this philosophy as there are those who have chosen to ignore and sometimes ended in perilous circumstances.

Made Local

Take one of the most beautiful and iconic places in the country sprinkle it with gems stones, hidden valley rivers and golden beaches and you have Whakatū / Wairau which has been an inspiration to all people for well over a thousand years.

As a whanau business we know that in our busy lives, in this very modern world, it is hard to take the time to look at what many would see as purely asthetic. This is why we invite you to look beyond face value and understand the true nature, sybolism and relationship our culture wishes to share with you.

What our customers say...

Ora Jade is a whānau business that produces beautiful
pounamu carvings. Leon Bonney has been a carver for 20
years and is supported by his wife Trace who runs the
administrative and marketing side of the business and creates
the lashings for the pounamu carvings.
The couple want to create a product that is more than just
trinkets for tourists. They follow tikanga Māori in their work and
believe in honouring where the pounamu has come from and
reclaiming and revitalising the art of traditional carving. Leon’s
beautiful pounamu pieces are genuine and authentic and
imbued with mauri. Each piece has a whakapapa and a story.
The carving connects Leon to his Māoritanga, and through this
journey is connecting with other Toi Māori artists in the region,
sharing their mātauranga and exploring the art and passion of
carving to confidently build a sustainable living whānau
income.
Before launching Ora Jade, Leon had been a chef for 25 years.
The wave funding created an opportunity for Leon’s carving
passion and talent to be turned into a full-time job and a viable
business for their whānau.
Funding supported the purchase of machinery, a workspace
for Leon, and the development of a website and a marketing
strategy. Most of Leon’s work over the years has been private
commissions but the new website will enable him to sell the
works himself

Leon began carving many years
ago with just a chisel, an angle
grinder and sandpaper. With
funding from Te Pūtahitanga o
Te Waipounamu, Leon has now
purchased his own machine that
produces pieces much faster
and makes his time and effort
more profitable. This increased
speed and versatility is enabling
Leon to finish more
commissioned projects while
building up his stock.
Funding has gone towards building a
website that was otherwise out of reach
for Leon and Trace. They have learnt
valuable skills around running their own
sustainable business and have invested
in an accountant who ensures they are
up to date regarding protecting their
intellectual property (IP) and legislation

Leon and Trace’s three children are involved in the mahi with
Leon passing on his mātauranga to them. They have a keen eye
for the type of stone that Leon works with and are increasing
their knowledge every time they go on family trips to the river.
This has been significant for their whānau, bringing them closer
together and passing on intergenerational knowledge.
Through the development of Leon’s business they are
connecting with other Māori artists in the area, particularly
experts in the fields of carving, tā moko, whakairo and weaving.
They share their knowledge and experiences as well as trading
goods and recommending their clients to each other. This is
creating a resilient, cohesive community in Whakatū and
beyond.

Through his journey the whole family is involved in toi Māori. Te
reo Māori is encouraged and valuable connections are made
with other Māori artists and creatives in the community. This
initiative has created opportunities for Leon and his whānau to
participate in te ao Māori.
Leon and Trace have established Ora Jade as a viable, full-time
business that generates income for their whānau. While Leon is
carving, Trace is increasing her capability learning and applying
her administrative and accounting skills to the business.
The couple are supporting and backing each other to develop
this business out of their own home. The involvement of their
tamariki has been a positive opportunity and experience for
their whānau.
Leon follows tikanga and the principles of kaitiakitanga in his
mahi. He only takes the stone that he needs, and whatever isn’t
used, he takes back. This is a kaupapa Māori approach to
carving, and he is teaching this tikanga to other carvers in the
area. There are beautiful and rare stones in their rohe, so it is
important to Leon to be a kaitiaki, to protect their precious
taonga

Meeting Leon and Tracy and hearing about their story and passion for creating taonga from local pounamu, compelled me to see their pieces and feel the craftsmanship. Having recently moved to the Tasman district and feeling the loss of a family member, several pieces caught my attention. The Flower jade for its defence of nature and local pounamu from Rangitoto Ki the Tonga/D’Urville Island, for its sense of belonging to my new home. Just two of the extraordinary greenstones they work with. I’ll treasure my taonga and the pleasure of meeting two awesome people

Leon and Tracey were amazing at listening to our needs and created two beautiful taonga that we could wear to remember a dear friend and pet who worked her way into our hearts . Nothing was too hard for Leon and Tracey and for this we thank you in our time of grief .

Suzanne James

Our Jade

Tasman / Marlborough jade for many years was a very little known secret and for a while seen as an unsubstantiated myth. But in the late 60’s, 70’s and 80’s it was thoroughly investigated and documented by Mr Russel Beck a geologist and scientist who made it his mission to record all accounts by Maori of their discovery and use of this precious commodity. The collection he compiled is now considered by the Geological Society of New Zealand as the most indepth and accurate to date and is now accessed world wide.