design for a change

Changes on a global level have kept me occupied lately. To showcase New Zealand design today seems a contrast, yet I find Shane's work both crossing the boundaries of Art and his personal heritage interesting: Shane has Danish, Chinese and Maori ancestors. Isn't it wondrous how we human beings travel the globe and embrace other cultures?


I have been a fan of Shane Hansen's work ever since I came across it several years ago visiting the Gallery The Poi Room in Auckland. I have to find the NZ wood pigeon below as it really speaks to me.

Te Karanga Pitoitoi

Korihi ake nga manu

Takiri mai te ata

Ka ao, ka oa, ka awatea!

Tihei mauri ora

 

The birds call

The day begins

And I am alive


A bit of background on how Shane works: "Shane Hansen likes a strong, clean line. He has drawn constantly for as long as he can remember, but has never indulged in intricate doodles dredged up from the dark recesses of the mind. Instead, his creations spring from a world of bold colours and optimistic clarity, a pop-art invitation to a feel-good New-Zealand celebration." (source Shane's website: here)

"Shane studied art at high school but began his professional life as a fashion designer. He commandeered the sewing machine on which his mother had worked from home churning out nylon jackets and created the label Vampire. (..) He then trained as a graphic designer, eventually combining these two disciplines at Fly, where he was co-founder and creative director, carving out a niche creating innovative marketing and design strategies for corporate clients and retail stores." (source here - Gallery De Novo)

The scrummy bovine series is both hilarious as it is captivating. Shane used to make quite a bit commercial work whereas nowadays he works from home and focuses on his Art.

The bike must be son Nikau's one I imagine!

"The environment Shane grew up in was rich in culture. The walls of the Hansen family home in Manurewa were covered in paintings by Shane's grandfather and great-grandfather, both of Danish origins and both amateur water-colourists. Shane's grandfather took his descendants on painting expeditions that actively encouraged deeper contemplation and appreciation of the landscapes and objects around them.

His mother's side of the family is a mixture of Chinese and Maori influences. His grandfather emigrated to New Zealand from China's Guangdong province and established a market garden in Pukekohe before starting what became a family of 14 children with Shane's grandmother, a woman of Tainui descent. Creativity seems to run deep on both sides of the family" (source: Shane's website)

Shane work is definitely colorful and has a clear identity. It is expressive and focused. Its boldness and presence for me are very much linked to the relative young country that is New Zealand, the ruggedness of the mountains, the clarity of its waters and the brave attitude of its people.

An in depth interview with Shane can be read on a different blog: here.

Occupy Wall street NY

why we matter

We can choose to be un-involved

to stay quiet to not say a peep, not let out a whimper

Because we choose to or because we fear to

How about expressing that which is in your hearts?

How about supporting your voice?

It is perfectly fine to make some noise

if you wish to. If this makes you feel better.

The time is now to make that stand

Not in your back garden or on the front lawn

but a-midst others in society

to find those that feel like you do

who beat the same drum of the heart

Raise that flag! Be brave and sober

Think clear and with purpose

Because that's why you are here now

To discover where you stand

what you think

and ultimately: who you are

What is your purpose here?

Are you going to stand idly by?

or are you going to look after your fellow man?

We do not live to be quiet

we do not live to be complacent

We live to discover who we are

we live to discover how big 

our hearts truly are.

We can express that which is the other

and tell the story

and increase the field of knowing

and the field of belonging

so we can come home

and be home

at last.

Photo by The Guardian, covering the "Occupy Wall Street" story in New York - 19 September 2011: link here.

the hum of love

Maybe we can move

both intentional and unintentional

by simply stating who we are

the definition itself radiating

that what we feel and embody

always telling all

Even without words 

enough can be shared

to build bridges,

mend bruises

fix problems

to sail the seven seas

When we start to remember

that we are more then

the sum of our parts

more then our body

more then our minds

more then the clubs we belong to

That the center of us is our hearts

and that of others too

then there is no need to explain

no need for science play

no room for debates

just the connection

the holding of hand

the caressing of hearts

the soothing of us

A tone of silence

a hum of love

a pulse of life

love spreading

like ever before

around and in us

a galaxy filled with

the booming vibration of all

Instead of thinking about it

Feel it inside of you

Look within and around

It is all the same

Have you noticed?

Can you hear it pulsing in your ears

drumming in your heart?

cake!

What is better then singing happy birthday? CAKE! :D :D



The Olinimals - Olivia's 1st Birthday from Oodlies on Vimeo.



This e-book was made by miss Joi Murugavell, notorious oodlier and peen lover who avoids "felt" like the plague....

life

is worth LIVING:
(love this, there's piggies in it and Mooos and sheepies etc etc, so sold already. Warning it makes some people cry...)

jumping jack

the difficulty is not

making evasive maneuvers when someone else is upset 

by rebuffing their airwaves of agony

but rather

to recognize it and trying to ease them by letting the vibes

move around you like a jumpy dog.

we don't have to immerse ourselves in someone's else's field of misery

to feel all its implications

in order to understand them better and what to do about it.

But it usually happens that way, regardless. 

Look the hurt person or dog in the eye. Listen. Talk a little bit.

Why would you not be there to make them feel better if they need it? 

And who's to say you have better luck with a frantic giraffe next time?

seriously?

No. Often things are too serious already. We try too hard. Does that really help? Hm?


Generally we find we have to make light of a situation. Being stuck in the mud only teaches us to get very muddy boots (I literally experienced this yesterday when my husband and I were building enclosures for our two wild piglets). Better to have a laugh and move on.


I like to share this video today which I think teaches us to never complain again. There is no use for such a pass time although all of us have done this from time to time. How do you feel today?

all is well

Talking is deleted

Words transform

faster then I can think them

I sense images

and feel sounds

whirling around

like a school of fish,

condensing the sea of being.

I can stand there and

hear the loudness of it.

Bearing the weight of them all

Yet I wait

and accept them in.

Capital letters tumble through me

some fart on exit.

Others simply leave quietly.

All is well in the world.

love

Seeking something is giving that something

First and foremost

If you find it too hard to open up

try appreciating it

and from a speck it'll become a seed in the wind

it will start growing and

Blowing a gale

and coming back to you

Unfolding 

Dancing

Being

In you.