Birdsong

Coming to my senses on retreat in California. I’m struck by the different sounds and songs of the birds that are foreign to me… And how much their songs are a soundtrack to my life, how this gently permeates my consciousness and lifts my spirit. And just as I have flown half way round the… Continue reading Birdsong

Going back..

“If we’re judging ourselves we can’t take in what’s behind the ways in which we aren’t truly experiencing ourselves. Living on the surface of ourselves hurts, it takes a lot of work to come home to who we truly are….. ” ~ Sandra Maitri We’re back in San Francisco for the May retreat of the… Continue reading Going back..

Breathing Room

I’m really excited to be be part of this new development in Christchurch!  Managing Director Mark Appleton has invited me to be one of the foundation artists in his new gallery opening in the stylish Frobisher Interiors showroom at 322 Manchester St, check it out online at http://www.frobisher.co.nz He’s getting together some great artists to compliment the… Continue reading Breathing Room

The Pied Piper of….

“The Pied Piper: Ian Hamlin” is a pencil drawing by Morris Campbell, its one of the artworks in the exhibition of my Wellington students opening on Monday Night at 6pm….it’s a great show and I’d love to see you there – at the Hutt Art Society! Views of the show…. Its fantastic to see the fruits of… Continue reading The Pied Piper of….

Coming home

Places where the heart lives…. “When you love something like reading — or drawing or music or nature — it surrounds you with a sense of connection to something great. If you are lucky enough to know this, then your search for meaning involves whatever that Something is. It’s an alchemical blend of affinity and… Continue reading Coming home

Giving back

We’re back at Hou Ngahere for a week of tree planting….. Our Diamond Approach retreat group, the IRG, has committed to plant trees to offset the carbon emissions used in attending the two retreats in California each year. Called “Trees for Travel“, the scheme really has something tangible to show for it now with the… Continue reading Giving back

The Altar of this Moment

As I set off walking the dog this morning there was a quiet stillness in the air and the sky was on fire. We went down the hill to the beach. Kuri loves the beach its something about the vital energy there that seems to bring out her inner puppy and she plays in the washed… Continue reading The Altar of this Moment

Brilliance!

“I think it is a beautiful thing to recognize that the human soul has the potential to feel and be utterly complete. You see, the Brilliancy is our nature, the brilliance of who and what we are. That completeness, that contentment, that sort of complete deliciousness, happens by completely abiding in our nature, our Being,… Continue reading Brilliance!

The good Doctor Wildcat

I’ve just been down to “Hou Ngahere” again; we spent a couple of days with the geckos! I rescued one from the kitchen sink and she left behind a skin, I took it as a notification that she’d updated her profile picture…. ….and it was a reflection of the transformation going on underneath. Thanks to… Continue reading The good Doctor Wildcat

The Mapua inspiration…

My first trip to Mapua was an inspiration. A very pretty coastal village near Nelson set the scene for the first of what looks likely to be a monthly painting class. The class was the result of the persistence of one of my former Wellington students, now a very fine artist in her own right,… Continue reading The Mapua inspiration…