It’s a great feeling to achieve something. To finish a project or an art work, to achieve a goal that you have had for a while – it is SO satisfying. But do you ever feel once you have achieved something, a kind of emptiness or a what now feeling like huh, that’s over, what [...]

I’m painting this rock today for Brazil and the Xingu indigenous people who are fighting to protect their indigenous lands from the Belo Monte damming project that has been approved by the Brazilian president. The Belo Monte dam project will be lethal and will cause widespread flooding to indigenous lands and rainforests. It will displace [...]

A different kōrero today to what I’ve been posting over the past few days! And perhaps I’ve spoken about this before, maybe, maybe not… there are so many days to go back through now! Photography is all about light. Whenever I take a photo, I’m always looking for the light – how does it fall? [...]

I woke at 4.30am this morning! Great – jet lag is well and truly here and my body clock is still on Istanbul time and my spirit is in some ways too… I keep looking for Turkish food recipes online lol And I was SO grumpy today, it was like I didn’t know what to [...]

I got off the plane last night here in Gisborne; raining and cold… and then when we left the airport it was like driving into a ghost town. Seriously. There was one other car on the road and that was it. Talk about a big shock! I had just come from a city of 14 [...]

Written while flying from Singapore to Aotearoa – Sun 25th Sept Aotearoa time… Flying in amongst the stars right now, a clear night, not a cloud in the sky. I saw lights below, strong lights like someone lived down there and then I realized it was a star and then a whole lot of stars [...]

Sitting in a quiet space at Changi Airport Singapore. I discovered this place hidden and when I sat, it sent me straight into reflection, piano music playing in the background, sunrising, even the planes flying in and out added to the rhythm of the moment… My journey into power… has just begun, each day another [...]

I just finished painting this rock as the sun rose in Doha – and what a beautiful sunrise – three suns rising at Doha airport over parked plane tails as another plane takes off into the sunrise. How lovely! A welcoming for a new day and I am so tired I’m nearly ready to go [...]

I’m leaving Istanbul in a few hours and I must say I’m feeling a lot lighter. Physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, I feel like I’ve left a few things behind for good. It’s an odd feeling actually; it’s like the rain that fell last night for the first time since I’ve been here was a cleansing, [...]

I’ve lost count how many times people have tried to sell carpets to us – yes, these carpets are amazing, so many different kinds… but we soon realised that a lot of friendliness in the street and invites in for apple tea were all opportunities to try and sell us carpet! We even had two [...]

Well I was going to a workshop today only to get there and it had been cancelled! But kei te pai – I had an adventure on the way back, found a book festival and a few more side streets and things happening about the place. There is no shortage of things to do and [...]

I am totally fascinated by the side streets here in Istanbul – specifically those that I walk past and experience everyday… I was led down one today, this live acoustic music was playing and I sat to just listen and experience the music as it wafted out the door. There were three of us in [...]

Catching up on sleep today. I woke at 10am Istanbul time and went on a bus tour, came back and slept for another four hours! I reckon I’ve tuned into Istanbul time now, but am heading home on Thurs – back to a different timezone, different weather… I’ve really enjoyed the weather here. Even though [...]

He atua – he tangata He atua – he tangata Those words are sounding in my ears as I write this. It reflects some of the korero of today’s eco-sapiens round table forum for ISEA. Atua – it is not what our European colonisers have labeled a single “god” but rather a collection, a community, [...]

Today I had more insight into how the Turkish people operate and have come to the conclusion that they are very industrious! They are not people that sit on their butts all day – they are definitely doers. On every corner you will see someone selling something – grilled corn on the cob (which I’m [...]

I’ve been feeling a little homesick now and then. Yes I am having an amazing time but there is a part of me that longs for air, the sea… home… I’m sitting in a park as I write this. It has trees and I was so excited when I came across it so I decided [...]

Such an eventful day – I don’t know where to start! I listened to some interesting kōrero at the conference today and I painted this rock while sitting in on one of the panel sessions… very interesting ideas about perception and participation, intuition and energy… and during the keynote speaker, I wrote a whole lot [...]

Uncontainable – it’s part of the title of our exhibition which is opening here in Istanbul tomorrow at 6.45am. It reminds me of being uninhibited or unable to be contained or locked up, locked into a way of being or thinking… I wonder if culture is like this? Seeing and meeting the diverse range of [...]

I am in love with turkish delight. Not the turkish delight I remember as a child – actually that was horrible. I’m talking about REAL turkish delight – oh my gosh! I am going to try and bring truckloads back with me haha – it is going to be one of my most important items [...]

Merhaba – kiaora – so I’ve made it to the heart of Istanbul and am right in the thick of things – busyness everywhere! 24/7! But what did I expect right? 14 million people in one city, of course it will be busy! It’s Saturday the 10th here in Istanbul as I write this – [...]

Someone needs to invent a dictophone thing that can dictate your thoughts as you have them. That’s the wonderful thing about LONG plane rides is that you have a lot of time on your hands in a limited amounted of space… So many things going through my plane brain – I call it because it [...]

So I’m up at 6.30am this morning painting my rock because when I get to Singapore tonight there will be no time to paint a rock and photograph it and then upload it online! So here it is! And I must say that I really enjoyed painting this early in the morning instead of in [...]

Today I began my journey to the other side of the world… as I walked out to the plane at Gisborne airport, a kahu circled up above just in front of the plane – ahhhh – he tohu tēra – kua marino te huarahi kei mua i a au… So a lovely sign from one [...]

What a day! That’s all I want to say – nah just kidding : ) But it has been one of those days – so many things to do, sending this thing to this person and that person, doing this, doing that, organising this and that, emails, marking students work, things to do downtown, packing [...]

Has anyone seen the Bee Movie? Oh my gosh – this is such a COOL movie! We watched it last night and were in fits of laughter and the animation is awesome! It’s a family movie, very well made and with an important message, actually, I think more movies with important messages need to be [...]

I had to look back through all 200 and something rocks to see if I had titled a post, “going with the flow” – and I hadn’t! So there you go – going with the flow has been me over the past few days, preparing myself for the long journey ahead, not wanting to stress [...]

Compassion and Love – the two things I believe that have the ability to heal. Apparently the world is supposed to be ending next year and if not next year, with the way we’re carrying on, we’re certainly heading that way somewhere into the near future… I can’t help but think at a time when [...]

How often in a day do we judge? In my quest to be non-judgmental, I learnt a cool thing to help me, and that is to ask a question when I find myself being judgmental of others and that question is,”hmmmm I wonder about that?” A simple question that puts whatever you are judging into [...]

Today’s kohatu is definitely “me” right now – kicking back and relaxing just for the moment… It’s nice to allow myself the luxury of doing this now and then, to watch a movie, read a book or just do nothing! There is a lot of work to do – yes – but being able to [...]

Do you see white or do you see blue? Do you see grey or do you see brown? Isn’t it funny when we see something, we only see what we want to see? And in choosing what we want to see, we miss out on what is in front of us, the whole picture. It’s [...]