Laurence Aberhart

Towards the end of last year

Laurence Aberhart

visited Taranaki

and I had the pleasure

of introducing him

to some of my favourite places.

It was a pleasure,

not just because Laurence is a colleague

but also because he is a friend.

Both of us took photographs

and this one

of mine has now found its way on to the

cover of Art NZ. I'm glad because

for some reason it makes me want to smile.

The river is the Waitara

about 20 minutes drive north of New Plymouth.

Famous New Zealand

art dealer Peter McLeavey

went to school in Waitara.

University of Queensland

I was impressed by the stature

of their buildings.

In hindsight

I regret not photographing

more of the campus.

I think I was a bit

dumbstruck.

It was unlike any architecture

I had previously seen.

The blocks of limestone used

in these walls came from Queensland.

Ikebana

While exploring Brisbane recently

I came across this example of Ikebana,

the Japanese art of flower arranging.

There was a sign, indicating who made it,

and what particular Ikebana group

they belonged to. There are hundreds

of different approaches to Ikebana,

often with very strict rules.

It is not showing up on this photo very

clearly but the tray is full of water.

The leaves have been pushed down on a flat weight with some

small spikes protruding upwards.

No wire had been used in this arrangement

and somehow I can imagine that it would

not be allowed.

More Brisbane Views

In the previous post I showed

a photo of a coral reef

that I took in a museum in Brisbane,

not that I like the word 'took' very much

when used in describing the photographic process.

Here are another couple of views

from the same room.

If I was to Photoshop out the penguin in this

photo, I think that the photo would be improved.

Reef

Just back from Brisbane where

I visited a display

of underwater life in tropical Australian waters.

A few months ago I bought a $300 underwater camera

in preparation for a snorkeling visit sometime this Winter to a

Pacific Island or the Great Barrier Reef looking for a scene just like

the one above.

Last Friday, in

Brisbane, I discovered

in a museum,

above water on dry land

a static constructed model of a reef

including fish

that was very like

the one I had envisaged.

There was no glass

through which to photograph.

Two

A week or so ago I was in Norsewood,

a small town less that an hour north of

Palmerston North on the road to Napier. It was called

Norsewood by the Scandinavian

settlers who colonised the area.

Using my new Leica, which has

a fiercely powerful telephoto

lens, I was able to reach this photo.

I cannot explain why

but the image of these

two tree stumps

connects with me

on quite a deep emotional level.

Hot

While travelling a week or two ago, I stopped

at a roadside stall. Sitting on it's own

was this large chilli with this label

on it.