Christall Lowe, née Rata (Ngāti Kauwhata, Tainui, Ngāti Maniapoto) is an award-winning author, food writer and food photographer. Her stunning, photojournalistic cookbook Kai – Food stories and recipes from my family tablewas awarded Best First Book (non-fiction) at the 2023 Ockham NZ Book Awards, and highly commended at the PANZ Book Design and NZ Booklovers awards. In 2022 she was awarded NZ Food Photographer of the year.
Described as a “great raconteur” Christall is adept at weaving stories that connect and resonate in both visual and narrative form, bringing stories to life by capturing the mauri (life essence) of all that she produces, making her an incredible visual storyteller with a strong narrative vision.
Her second book, Kai Feast – Food stories and recipes from the maunga to the moana (October 2024), is another beautifully illustrated story of kai and manaakitanga – a bountiful basket of kai and kōrero gathered from the mountains to the sea.