Your occupation / artistic discipline

I am an artist and the founder of Art Sessions, where I run in-person art classes and lessons. I paint primarily contemporary figurative and portrait work and live and work in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand. My practice explores the emotional landscapes that exist beneath the surface of everyday life, focusing on quiet moments of pause, reflection, and inner shift that often go unnoticed.

What cities/towns have you lived in (beginning with place of birth)?

I was born in Hamilton and lived in Cambridge initially. My parents moved around a lot during the first five years of my life and were quite nomadic before we eventually settled in Titirangi, surrounded by trees and close to the west coast beaches. I stayed there until I finished university.

In my early twenties, I spent a year living in Mount Maunganui, followed by a few years in London doing the classic Kiwi-in-London experience, which was chaotic and fun in equal measure. I was doing a lot of work as an illustrator at the time and remember setting myself up on a tiny one-metre-by-one-metre kitchen bench, working amongst the chaos of seven other flatmates around me. Eventually, I began missing open spaces and nature and craved the fresh New Zealand air. People in London always felt like they were rushing somewhere, rarely smiling or interacting with each other. I moved back to Mount Maunganui at 25 and have been here ever since.

My husband and I also spent five months living and travelling through Europe out of a Renault Trafic van, mostly in Italy, which was inspiring in so many ways. While we were there, I spent time studying at the Florence Academy of Arts, which was a life-changing experience.

What are the earliest stories you remember hearing?

I was encouraged from a very young age to live in a world of imagination. My mum helped us stay in a child’s world for as long as possible, full of creative play, fairies, songs, and little adventures. Those felt like my earliest stories about the world, that it was expansive, expressive, and full of possibility.

My dad always told us that anything was possible too, that we could be whoever we wanted and do whatever we wanted in life on our own accord, and I remember genuinely believing that.

At the same time, through my early years, I was exposed to a wide range of people and life circumstances. That taught me very quietly not to judge and to meet people with kindness and curiosity. I think those early stories, both imaginative and lived, shaped how I see the world now and why I’m drawn to people and the inner lives they carry.

What’s your favourite Bay of Plenty location? Why?

I love the Rose Gardens at Robbins Park in Tauranga. It feels like a quiet sanctuary of stillness, almost like stepping back in time, and very different to everything else on offer in the area. I also love the beach and climbing Mauao. After all my travels, it’s still one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been.

What’s an average day in your life at present?

I have a two-year-old daughter, Gwena, and I’m currently pregnant with baby number two, so life is pretty full. Because my own childhood was rich with adventure, I’ve wanted to provide the same for Gwena, so she’s still at home with me.

Our weeks are filled with playcentre, beach days, and trips to the pools. I’m lucky to have a few days a week of grandparent help, and on those days I try to get into my studio to paint or work during Gwena’s lunchtime nap. A few evenings each month, I also run private or public art classes.

It’s definitely a season of juggling, but it’s just a season, and I’m making the most of these years.

What’s the one object from your home you would save from a fire?

My paintings, along with the artwork I’ve collected from other artists. They hold time, memory, and relationships all in one place, and are the one thing in this digital age that cant be replicated.

What music was present and memorable from your youth?

Music has always been a huge part of my life. My mum played guitar and sang with my sister and me. My dad had thousands of vinyl records and spent weekends taking me through different genres and decades, giving me what felt like a musical education.

I grew up listening to Fleetwood Mac, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Doors, Joni Mitchell, Seal, Salmonella Dub, Moby, Beastie Boys, and The B-52s, to name a few. The range was vast, and because of that, I now have a very wide appreciation of music and love most genres, including a bit of hip hop and trap.

For you as a creative person, who are three influential artists or thinkers?

Inès Longevial for her emotive use of colour and portraiture, Henri Matisse for his expressive approach to form, and Lorde for her ability to translate inner emotional states into something universally felt.

If you left the Bay of Plenty and returned years later, what are the first three things you’d do?

A coffee from Tay Street Store, a swim at the beach, and a walk around the Mount.

Looking back at your teenage self, one sentence to describe them

Free-spirited and confident, light-hearted with a quirky sense of humour, and focused and driven in both art and sport.

What are you planning for 2025 that nobody knows about yet?

I’ve organised a group exhibition at The Incubator in March with a group of incredibly talented female artists from around New Zealand. I also have some new Art Sessions classes launching, with a stronger focus on traditional drawing and painting skills for people wanting to genuinely expand their practice.

In one sentence, how do you define creativity?

Creativity is a space for self-expression, exploration, and making sense of inner experience.

Where would you like to live, but haven’t yet?

I’d love to do another stint in Europe one day and immerse myself in the language and culture of Italy.

What advice would you offer an aspiring creative?

Make time and space for your creativity and treat it seriously. Keep showing up, even when it’s not working. Learn constantly, experiment, ask for feedback, and don’t wait for permission to call yourself an artist.

What is your dream of happiness?

Happiness is being with people I love, feeling connected, spending time outdoors, fuelling my body and mind well, doing work I care about, continuing to learn and grow, travelling, making memories, and discovering new cultures and perspectives.