Stephens Island Wren

I just realised its only six weeks until my exhibition at Harrisons Gallery, 15th Ave Tauranga. I am part of a 4 person exhibition including myself, Richard Smith, Graham Crow& Lisa Christiansen. I have been painting hard out for this exhibition which explains my lack of blogs lately and in fact I have hardly taken any photos for weeks!!!!

Its a weird time when you are working hard towards something like this - you spend a lot of time on your own, with your own thoughts and inspirations and to be honest it f*#ks with your head a little! I swear its not healthy for you mentally so I have promised myself a holiday after the exhibition opening before I decide to cut my ear off.

BUT heres my latest painting below, put aside for the exhibition. Its titled "Ode to the Stephens Island Wren". Here's the Inspiration behind it. The painting above is an old watercolour of the actual bird which incidentally doesn't actually feature in my painting as, for me, its more about the cat than the wren.

Ode to the Stephens Island Wren.
This painting is inspired by the tale of the Lighthouse Keepers Cat. In 1894 a lighthouse was commissioned on the rat-free Stephens Island in NZs Cook Strait. Lighthouse keeper David Lyall took up residence with his cat Tibbles and before long the cat began bringing in tiny bodies of a golden brown bird. Lyall sent one to the ornithologist Walter Buller who pronounced the bird a previously unknown species of flightless wren. Tibbles subsequent victims were sold to a curio dealer by the name of Travers who recognized the economic value of the species and it is rumoured he put a price tag of fifty pounds on a single bird. In less than a year the cat ceased to bring any more wrens to the lighthouse keepers’ door and after 1895 they were never seen again. Thus the extinction of a whole species was attributed to a single cat.

In reality the birds’ demise was due to more than just Tibbles. The wrens natural habitat was ravaged as the island was cleared to support a farm and there was actually quite a population of wild cats on the Island. Ironically professional collectors also competed with the cats in their haste to procure specimens of the only known flightless passerine before they were all gone.
Interestingly enough, fossil remains of the Stephens Island Wren (named Traversia Lyalli) were later discovered on the mainland and it appears the species was once widespread until the introduction of the Kiore, the Pacific Rat which arrived with the Maori.
No matter which version is closer to the truth, the fact remains that a wonderfully unique species was both discovered and lost to the world within the space of a year. To me the Lighthouse Keepers Cat is one single animal symbolizing the destructive powers of its whole race. Then again, perhaps it is even more than that, perhaps it symbolizes all the introduced animals and havoc they have wreaked on our native wildlife.
In my painting I used a friends’ cat “Ollie” as my model. A big bruiser of a beast he had the perfect air of smugness about him. I kind of regard cats the same way I regard Humans - the individuals I know are wonderful but as a collective race they are hugely destructive and the planet would be better off without them!
I purposefully left out any of the actual wrens – after all they are extinct! Look closer at the cat and you’ll see a small brown feather on his chin.

Kereru from the lookout

At this time of year I like to visit the lookouts above the Whakatane township and photograph the big fat local woodpigeons that hang out there. I have only just today found out the names of these places from http://www.whakatane.com/ which says, "The Puketapu Lookout was once an ancient Maori fortification and it now provides superb views of the town, river, sea and offshore islands and the Rangitaiki Plains. The Papaka Redoubt is also the site of an ancient Maori fortification. Here the Armed Constabulary built a stronghold to protect the town after it had been raided by Te Kooti in 1869. Access to both these tracks is at the intersection of Seaview and Hillcrest Roads above the town centre."

At this time of the year when berries and other food sources are in short supply the woodpigeons favour the blossoms of tree lucerne, a number of which grow at the Lookouts. Or at least used to grow there. I was disapointed to discover a grove of large Tree Lucerne had been cut and the woody trunks left where they fell up at the Puketapu Lookout. A few of the trees remain growing further down the cliff and there was a Kereru feasting on the white flowers among these. And at the Papaka Redoubt there were few of the trees left also, most cut down when they built the new fence I suppose but I must say I am disapointed with the council.

After watching the Kereru absolutely stuffing themselves on the white flowers last year I have to admit I was convinced to try them myself but actually they were pretty tasteless and I can't say I'd reccomend them. Must be a pigeon thing.

The other morning while taking Billy the WonderDog for a walk I found these groovy looking little toadstools. I thought they made interesting photographic subjects but unlike the Tree Lucerne flowers I was NOT tempted to give these little babies a taste test!!!

White Tui, Albino Slug

Its mid-July and I am SO over winter!!! Mind you I've had a yucky cold, not swine flu exactly but it feels like almost piglet status. I had an email yesterday that cheered me up tho. Firstly let me go back to my very first blog - August 12 2007. I had just photographed the most beautiful bird, a rare white tui in a friends garden in Opotiki. Not an albino but a melanistic mutation called leucism. We speculated from her size she was a female and she was feeding on the nectar of a row of flowering cherry trees among numerous other black tuis. The following year she returned to the same feeding spot although not with the same regularity so I wasn't able to get any more shots of her.

Back to yesterdays email from friends Mike and Meg, they photographed the white tui in their garden on the weekend. I was pleased to learn she is still alive and well, perhaps this coming cherry flowering season I'll be lucky enough to catch up with her again.

Here are Micks photos of her.

And just as interesting, Mike sent me photos of this AMAZING albino slug he found in the Ohiwa reserve in January. The usual form is brown with leafy vein-like patterns on its back.

It brings back memories of a pet slug I once had. His name was Tiger (he was a Tiger Slug, not very original I know!) I was living in a little three roomed house, actually a converted tractor shed, on the Waioeka straights. I kept somewhat nocturnal habits at the time and painted til about 3 or 4 in the morning. Tiger would come in under my door at about 11pm for his dinner - avocado, cottage cheese or salmon (unsalted) served in his little bowl which was really a coke bottle lid. I had some great photos of him that I lost when my old computer karked it. Unfortunately I almost lost him when he got too close to my computer chair and I accidentally backed over him one night. He survived but had a terrible limp after that. On a happier note he later turned up with his young fella, a baby tiger slug. Then I moved house and never saw him again. (TRUE STORY!)

I have to say thanks to all those who leave comments on my blog (wow people really read it!) but I have to apologise for not knowing how to reply. I'm technologically challenged which comes from overuse of the creative side of my brain, the other side has shrivelled and is of very little use at all. Perhaps someone can give me some pointers.

Latest Painting, as yet untitled

When I first began writing this blog I intended it to showcase my paintings and photos but looking back over the last year I realise I have been neglecting the art content. So here is a pic of a painting I have just finished. I am yet to come up with a title, a task I often despair over!

Its kind of a strange image, as usual full of metaphores but heres kind of what it is about. Lets begin with the hens eggs. Commonly eggs symbolise new life (& resurrection but not in this case) and to me they always remind me of childhood. A hard boiled egg for lunch was common when I was four years old. I always rushed to scoop out the entire content with toast soldiers so that I could turn the empty shell upside-down and set it in front of my Dad when he arrived at the table. Perhaps I fooled him the first time but after that he played along, pretending to be surprised when he cracked open his egg to find it empty!

The Teddy was Troys but I had one just the same as a kid. So here it is in my painting to symbolise the happy but distant memories of childhood, well used and worn by the passing of time.I almost always include a bird in my pictures and in this case the fantail was chosen as it is common, instantly recognised and sets the whole theme as something which has its roots firmly in New Zealand. Not to mention it is well-loved which makes it work when juxtaposed with my final two elements -a dead branch of boxthorn set in an empty glass. A reference to reality. How life that was once happy and innocent suddenly contains sharp and nasty thorns! Its about growing up and dealing with the sinister side of life and realisation of mortality. Perhaps this also has parallels with some of the nasty introduced species of flora (& Fauna) which have ravaged the New Zealand landscape and put an end to the image of an unspoiled paradise.

The empty glass is seen commonly in the Vanitas genre of painting literally meaning that life is empty and meaningless in the end. HELL How did I get so depressing!

Frosty mornings and persimons

Another freezing morning and a beautiful sunny day to follow. Billy the wonder dog doesn't seem to care about frost beneath his paws on one of our morning walks. Last Saturday morning I gave him a bone straight from the freezer which he took out onto the frosty lawn to chew on. I wonder if dogs get ice-cream headaches? Just as well he has a thick fur coat.





One nice thing about winter are the persimons which are in season at the moment. Diced on cornflakes they are yum...... and a favourite winter food source for these waxeyes too. I photographed them in a friends garden recently.



















On a visit to Sullivans lake last week I was enchanted with the number of fantails there. I stood in one spot on the lake edge and counted twelve! On a still day they flit surprisingly close as they feed on airborne bugs. One almost hit me in the head although I think if it had the fantail would have ended up with the worst headache. I was really pleased with this shot of a fantail in the flax as its quite difficult to photograph them with their tail spread. I can't help but be charmed by them, they are so tiny. I once owned a fantail skull - a most fragile little object but it was stolen and eaten by a mouse. I'm still bummed about that.