Somehow ... it was all this and more

Somehow, without intention... without preparing for it all, I have been busy.

Monday, I interviewed the lovely singer/musician/yoga teacher, Luc Acke.  Friday night, I had the pleasure of attending his sneak preview concert, the one where he and Spring Groove performed tracks from the album they're making together ... HOME.

I was interviewed by a student of journalism on Wednesday.

Wandered city streets for the photography workshop on Friday.

All the while, preparing for a massive dinner party/party on Saturday.  Erik Rasmussen was in town and it seemed like a good idea to catch up with him, Paola and Simon, Cloe and Brian, pre-party.  And so we did dinner.

There was this really fast  turn-around, and we were ready as everyone started arriving for the party at 8pm.  It was a good party.  10 nationalities, excellent people, intense conversations, and much laughter too.

My carriage turned back into a pumpkin around midnight and voila, I fell into this horrible cold that's going around.  I've spent the last two days dozing and napping, only venturing out into that 'other world' called Facebook, when the notion of slowing down and stopping has become too much for me.

But this week has to be quieter, even I know that ... although the headache has gone, the cold remains.  I might just chill out a few days more and make sure it goes.  I  play Missy Higgins and listen to the sea in her track, sure it has some kind of medicinal property.  I wash dishes and do laundry quietly and slowly.  It's okay.

Gert meanwhile, has been caught up in preparation for Belgium's local-body elections.  Last night, the country watched as the Flemish Nationalists stormed to victory in Flanders, and so I'm curious. 

Back in New Zealand in 2000/2001/2002 ... what was I studying

The European Union, of course ... via political anthropology classes with the author of this book, Douglas R Holmes.  He was fascinating and we were lucky to have him for more than one paper down there at the bottom of the world.

So you can imagine, perhaps, I'm bemused to find myself in the centre of this nationalist victory here in Flanders.  Other countries in Europe will surely be watching to see how it all plays out as Belgium begins to walk towards their national elections in two years ... with a nationalist government in power in the Flemish half of the country.

I shall observe with interest.  But anyway, meet Luc and Spring, taken during their Friday performance ...

Going Home ... and Missy Higgins.

I found the music of Missy Higgins today, just after finding an old favourite of mine ... Paul Kelly's song, Midnight Rain, via youtube.  I've been searching for it online for years.

He sang with Missy and, curious, I went wandering through her world and found Everyone's Waiting ...see the clip below.

And I watched it and remembered swimming in New Zealand's oceans.  I remembered how good it felt to walk my dogs on the beaches.  I remembered startling one of my favourite dogs out on Long Beach, in Dunedin, when I ran into the surf with her ... fully clothed, one day when I just needed to swim.

Then I hit replay and listened while I wrote to a friend.  Not seeing the flim clip, I heard the familar roar of the surf, the crackle and slosh of the sea ... and something clicked, in my soul perhaps.

And I cracked open a spare moleskin notebook I had here. 

I wrote New Zealand there on its front page, and started a list.

- find a copy of the movie 'In My Father's Den'.

- swim in the sea

- stand and walk in the surf, (photograph that to bring back to Europe when I leave).

And finally, so long after booking the tickets, I let my mind sift through the possibilities ... sunrises with coffee, outside, someplace beautiful.

Seeing my nieces, the Georgia and Katie creatures, who were 8 years younger when I left and now, well ... they're both teenagers. 

And my much-loved favourite sister, Sandra, and my dad ... and one of my brothers, Steve, will be over from Australia.

There might be sunsets and wine, and long conversations ... with friends, like Dave and Jude, Christine and Peter, Fiona and Barry and others ...  but I talk of them here.

Anyway, I'll be letting this song of Missy's take me home in the meanwhile ... and maybe I'll play up loud as we wander New Zealand ... letting Home sink back into my bones and fill me again.

Fans of Flanders ... an interview with 3 New Zealanders in Belgium

Last week was an action-packed rather stress-filled week.

I did a lot, learned a lot, worried a lot.

Monday 24 September and there was a lovely film crew here at the house.  They titled the interview

Life's a Beach!

We had so much fun but I think that comes through.

We were so delighted by Lies editing too.  I imagine many will get a sense of what else might have been said during the hours of filming and conversation that went into this piece.

Thursday there was a corporate photography shoot that became huge.

Then yesterday ... Wednesday 3rd October, there was the launch of CameraJourneys.net.

In-between, a million other things too. 

There was the launch of Benny van Loon's Retro Food project. 

On Sunday, Gert's parents came over for a pavlova and coffee and conversation about Istanbul.  His mum is wandering there now ...

My Nespresso machine was finally sent off for repairs today.  The house is clean. The last of the rhubarb was picked and the plants have been 'tucked up' ready for winter.

The temperature dropped to 10 celsius in the rain today.  I froze.  Quite unprepared for it all.

Maybe that's all ... it's been a mad-busy couple of weeks though, mad-busy.

Interview by Di Mackey, Film by Hanna Kuikka - Wendy Leach, Artist

Hanna and I explored the possibility of merging our interest in people with my passion for interviews and photography and her talent for film back in July.

New Zealand artist, Wendy Leach kindly agreed to be the subject of our first combined effort and while you don't hear or see me, that's me doing the interview.

Following is the 7 minute interview we created.

Interview with artist Wendy Leach from Wendy Leach on Vimeo.

And the full 16 minute interview can be viewed below ...

Full interview with artist Wendy Leach from Wendy Leach on Vimeo.

 

 

What people say about working with me ... and some of my work

 

Any time I raise anything on stage, I ask Di Mackey to join the project. Her photographic work is magnificent and I love her presence: her portraits are stunning, they expose intimacy, humor, and pensiveness; her photographs capture the space, the movement, human interaction deliciously, in a way that one feels invited to an event long after it disappeared from the public scene.

In all her unobtrusiveness when working with the camera, Di is great fun to hang out with, the artists, scholars, thinkers, curators of our big Berlin exhibition highly appreciated her, and when working together in Cairo, Istanbul, Berlin, or wherever else, I enjoy her kindness, humor, and delightful presence. 

I miss her at the time when we are “in between projects.”  One of the first things I will do when starting a huge new project is to ask Di whether she wants to do the photographic work.  I hope she will. 

Shulamit Bruckstein, curator, director of TASWIR projects / ha’atelier.