A new exhibition of 30 paintings created by five women migrants – and 20 from overseas artists – showing their attempt to heal from domestic violence is now open in Tauranga.

Teary eyes, covered mouths, broken homes and graves leap out from canvasses in ‘Unbroken Spirit' – an exhibition opening last night and being hosted by Tauranga's Shakti Ethnic Women's Support group.

Tauranga's Shakti Ethnic Women's Support group coordinator Sonia Pathak looks at the emotive paintings in the Unbroken Spirit exhibition on display at The Incubator, Historic Village.

With the group supporting women and children of Asia, African and Middle East origin with a focus on domestic violence, coordinator Sonia Pathak says the problem is 'big” for ethnic women – and there is a need to help victims.

'It's because of the cultures they've [the women] grown into and especially some of the countries they come from are quite patriarchal.

'Over there people are changing but when they move here, maybe five years ago, the families or husband are still holding onto the beliefs they had when they left.”

Sonia says the women have children in NZ, which grow up in Kiwi cultures – and they try to grow with the children 'but at the same time, coming home it doesn't match”.

'That's where the whole clash starts – when mum is trying to say to the family ‘you can't hit the child' and at the same time the husband says ‘who are you to tell me' and she gets abused.”

'When we get to the hospital to pick her up almost everything has been shattered.”

Sonia says the group's life skills programme – where the women created the exhibition art – is also about awareness, and advocating domestic abuse is unacceptable and doesn't have to be tolerated.

'When we started the programme last year we were not sure the paintings were going to be so brilliant – they're better than professional [works].

'It's also something that appreciates them as well, because a lot of the time the women's parents never let them paint when they're young; it's bad in the culture to paint, or they never got a chance to go to school.”

The group plans to extend the life skills programme to provide something for youth.

'We hope they can come and sit in one of the rooms and paint – as a lot of youngsters ask: ‘Why can't you offer it to us? We'd like to paint too'.”

The exhibition has the Tauranga women's 30 paintings and 20 from overseas artists involved with Venus IQNZ, a group focussing on women and children from Asia and the Middle East involved in wars.

'All of the money fundraised from their paintings will go to hospitals back in Syria,” says Sonia.

Money raised from the Tauranga women's paintings will compensate exhibition expenses, give donations to the artists, and ensure the life skills programme continues.

‘Unbroken Spirit' is on display at The Incubator, Historic Village, 10am-3pm until April 17.