Photography: Mohamed Sadek
As a toddler in Sri Lanka, illustrator Mokshini Godamunne would spend hours drawing or browsing painting books with her dad Chandana. Little did she know that passion for art would carry her through tragically losing him in an accident or later inspire an award-winning career in New York City.
“My dad broke out of the traditional roles in Sri Lankan families – he made my lunch, took me to school, played with me for hours and taught me so much,” says Mokshini, 39.
“Some Asian cultures don’t encourage art, but my dad’s family celebrated it. Every time he went on work trips, he’d return with art supplies and nurtured that in me.”
Speaking to Woman’s Day from Brooklyn while twirling paintbrushes in her hand, it’s clear those early memories remain influential as Mokshini shows us the stunning Sri Lankan landscapes she has painted on her walls.
“My dad’s family owned a tea plantation, so I grew up around big trees and monkeys would steal the mangoes,” she recalls.
“It’s all so alive in me when I paint, with the greens I pick and the lush nature.”
Growing up with grief
Mokshini was four when she moved to Auckland with mum Donna and Chandana, who had landed a job here. She adored family road trips to Napier and stayed connected with Sri Lanka through regular visits.
Sadly, tragedy struck when Mt Ruapehu erupted in 1996, grounding all flights. Chandana and his colleagues drove home to surprise their families, but he was killed in an accident en route. Cops handed nine-year-old Mokshini a teddy before announcing her father was gone.
“I remember going to the funeral and seeing his body, but a week later, asking, ‘Mum, when’s Dad coming home?’”
Shell-shocked and grief-stricken, Donna struggled to talk about the loss, leaving Mokshini confused and lonely.
She explains, “If I’d had a family that was more open and vulnerable, and said, ‘I’m also scared. Don’t worry. We have each other’, I would have processed grief differently, but we swept it under the rug and went on with our day. It was the only way we knew how to cope.”
Art became her safe place
Mokshini turned to art.
“Drawing became a safe place for me to escape.”
She went on to study fashion design, then completed a Master of Arts and Design before teaching fashion drawing at AUT.
Inspired by an Andy Warhol documentary, Mokshini dreamed of working as a fashion illustrator for Ralph Lauren, so at 24, she hit the Big Apple.
“I knocked on so many doors!” she shares.
“I was depressed because they’d say, ‘We have PhD students interning here. No one cares about your degree’. I just needed to be out there, so I started interning.”
Findinh her own style
It took several applications and months of practising Ralph Lauren’s style for Mokshini to land her dream role – bringing the clothes that designers were imagining to life in illustrations, which were then pitched to Ralph. It was like “going to school” for three years, but she eventually wanted to explore her own style, so started freelancing.
Her style evolved from drawing herself on the subway and imagining the stories of New Yorkers she observed. Dream gigs followed for The New Yorker and Condé Nast Traveler, and she has since dabbled in packaging, live drawings, stationery and children’s books.
Her debut book, Faith Takes The Train, saw Mokshini win the 2026 Ezra Jack Keats Illustrator Award. It was a moment she would have liked to have shared with her dad.
“I realised grief isn’t dormant and doesn’t fade or end,” she tells.
“It’s alive. Some days it’s sharp and some days it’s dull.”
Finding joy in the memories
Mokshini wishes Chandana were around to discuss art or mentor her, but she thinks of him when she hits creative blocks. And while she recently split with her partner of six years, Moses, he helped reframe her approach to loss.
“He was the first person to say, ‘How should we celebrate him?’ on my dad’s anniversary,” says Mokshini.
“My family approaches those dates with such a heavy, sad mindset of, ‘Look what we lost.’ Looking at what he gave us and the legacy he left behind makes it a more joyful day.”
The exes remain pals and Mokshini is open to a new romance, but could also happily stay single. Her Kiwi roots are strong, with collaborations with Kiwi designer Olivia Cashmore and puzzle brand Piece House. She also visits Sri Lanka and hopes to spend more time at the home her late grandmother left her. But for now, she’s enjoying Brooklyn.
Mokshini enthuses, “My friend and I recently walked the Williamsburg Bridge and got crêpes at 11pm,” she tells.
“I can just walk outside and be inspired. A lot of my work juxtaposes two ideas – like a beautiful tree next to garbage – and that’s what I love about Brooklyn. There’s trash, but it highlights the beauty because when it’s all beautiful, you struggle to see it. Like life!”
