The Eyes Have It

Secondhand Store, Christchurch. May 2008. Ajr

Whenever I need inspiration – or distraction - I simply click in to my collection of mannequin photographs – filed neatly in my external hard drive as “Mannequins & Other Madness.” I have yet to figure out what it is about mannequin heads that so captures my imagination. Maybe it’s the improbable regalia some of them are dressed in? Their eyes? The ‘distant’ far-away look that some of them have? The uncanny life-like quality of others? And then there is the sheer unexpectedness of their poses and the way they have been ‘called to duty’ to advertise a product, a place, a business. I never tire of photographing them. If you put the word ‘mannequins’ into the search box (above left) you’ll see a few more of my mad girls.

A Small Book of Rugs

"A Small Book of Rugs" Ajr. 2007

Every so often my seemingly divergent passions for words, travel, pattern, colour, books, art and people come together in one happy little package. This is one example – a book I made last year after my Frommers New Zealand research trip. It’s called “A Small Book of Rugs,” and was inspired by my stay at Pencarrow in Queenstown. Pencarrow’s owners, the marvellously hospitable Bill and Kari Moers, have one of the most beautiful collections of Persian rugs I’ve ever seen. I’ve never been inclined to purchase Asian rugs myself – there’s something about all that pattern that makes me dizzy and fidgety; but when I walked into their upmarket B&B last year, I was blown away by the sheer mass and diversity of the imagery in their rug collection. I was transfixed and I kept thinking about them for weeks afterwards – hence this little book production – a fiddly labour of love that took me weeks to execute …..light relief to shutting myself away for months on end to write the 5th edition of Frommers New Zealand. www.pencarrow.net

Southern Slumbers

Queenstown Park Boutique Hotel - Photo supplied - By Stephen Goodenough.

It’s hard to imagine anyone ever being short of a bed in Queenstown; the place has more visitor beds than you can poke a stick at. But it’s a good thing that endless visitors have endless choice and when classy new places like Queenstown Park Boutique Hotel spring up on the hillsides overlooking the very beautiful Lake Wakatipu, I want to tell everyone about it. Just nineteen rooms, five stars and in three words – chic chic chic! I love the crispness of their largely black and white interior decor. It's simple, fresh, modern and enticing. www.queenstownpark.co.nz

More Boys Toys

The photographs I took of Philip Trusttum's "All What Trucks" billboards a week or so ago were a bit 'dark and distant' (a dull day and fast moving traffic didn't make it easy), so I have visited his current exhibition at COCA Gallery, here in Christchurch. It's the first time in a while that the huge scale of the gallery has seemed 'right' because, as always, Phil's works are HUGE. They look perfect here. This is a series featuring toys from Mattell Inc, Tonka and Matchbox - the artist's preoccupation with his grandson, William's toys. Philip is only the second New Zealand artist to be awarded the Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant (2001). www.trusttum.co.nz

An Everlasting Autumn

Harewood, Christchurch. May 2008. Ajr

Autumn seems to be going on forever this year.

Mellow sunny days, blue skies, golden foliage.

We like it all.

Cabbage Patch

Harewood, Christchurch. May 2008. Ajr

Sometimes you see a perfect unexpected composition.

This is one

Spotted this morning walking the country lanes near

the airport

Say Cheese

I have added to my box collection – or, to be more precise, to my ‘sub-collection’ of “Boxes with Writing On.” It came from the new Petrini Restaurant, Wine Bar and Delicatessen at Ferrymead, here in Christchurch. It’s a French cheese box from their fabulous cheese room, which any greedy cheese lover ought to make a bee-line for. And now to the question I keep asking myself - Is it wrong, weird even, to be so excited by a cheese box? www.petrini.co.nz

Confused?

Invercargill, 2007. Ajr

Up with the Birds

The Tree Houses, Hapuku Lodge.

When I was a kid growing up in the North Island, my brothers and I used to make tree huts in the big oak trees that bordered our garden. I loved those trees and my makeshift little hideaways. I blame them for the underlying desire I still have to live among trees. Imagine my delight then, when I discovered these magnificent tree houses at Hapuku Lodge, just north of Kaikoura. I stayed here last year and waking up to see sparrows singing in the branches right outside my lofty window triggered all my stored nostalgia for childhood tree houses. Mind you, it has to be said that the Hapuku Lodge tree houses are another ‘species’ altogether. These are architecturally-designed luxury hideaways and while they pay homage to the tree house concept in their construction and materials, extra comforts like huge bathtubs, fabulous sound systems and divine beds put them in another category entirely. www.hapukulodge.co.nz

Barry's Provocative Unpublished Minutes - 15

" Moose Trap."

Petrini Bites

Lunch @ Petrini, Christchurch. May 2008. Ajr

This was yesterday's lunch - a selection of divine bites at the very classy Petrini at Ferrymead, Christchurch - a restaurant, delicatessen and wine bar that pays homage to Carlo Petrini, the founder of the Slow Food Movement, a man who, when McDonald's planned to open near the Piazza di Spagna in Rome in 1986, organised a demonstration where he and his supporters brandished bowls of penne as weapons of protest. Things are a bit quieter at Ferrymead and that's just the way it should be - gorgeous spot, knowledgeable staff and fabulous deli and cheese room. I'll be returning with an empty basket. Oh and lunch? Salt cod mousse, soft shell crab, Italian confit of rabbit and onion pie and mushroom tortellini. www.petrini.co.nz

The Ultimate White Christmas

How’s this for the ultimate white Christmas – a luxury cruise from Argentina to Antarctica aboard the sparkling new Silversea Cruises’ vessel, Prince Albert II? These stunning photographs were slipped into my In Box last night and I feel bound to share them. Departing Ushuaia, Argentina on December 22nd, the Prince Albert II will take you on an 11-day adventure through Drake’s Passage to the Antarctic, spending six days exploring the jaw-droppingly beautiful scenery and wildlife with experienced naturalists, lecturers and an expedition team. The ship is designed specifically for navigating waters in the world’s most remote regions, including both polar regions and it comes with a strengthened hull and the highest Lloyd’s register ice-class notation (1A) for passenger ships. Factor in luxuriously appointed suites and gourmet restaurants with menus designed by Relais & Chateaux and you’re guaranteed the Christmas of a lifetime. Now excuse me while I write to Santa with my Christmas wish! www.silversea.com

Te Puia Carvings

Te Puia carvings, Rotorua 2007. Ajr

These are four carvings I photographed at Te Puia in Rotorua last year. One of New Zealand’s major attractions, Te Puia opened its revamped facility last year. One of its most striking features is the magnificent sculpture Te Heketanga a Rangi, which forms the entrance to the complex. It features twelve beams reaching skyward, each decorated with an intricate carving. These represent the realm of the Supreme Being from which all things spiritual and physical originated. www.tepuia.com

Huka Magic

When I was travelling around New Zealand last year doing my research for the Frommers New Zealand travel guide, I stopped off at the internationally acclaimed Huka Lodge at Taupo. Perched right on the edge of the Waikato River just upstream from the beautiful Huka Falls (below image), it is a sublime escape. This top picture is the view you get from the very beautiful Owner’s Cottage balcony, looking across the infinity swimming pool to the river. Not a bad spot for a quiet moment is it! www.hukalodge.co.nz

Small Moments of Beauty

All Your Eggs

In

One Basket

Perfect Blue

Fancy cycling through some of the South Island’s most spectacular scenery? Then join the Tuatara Tours team for this brand new adventure, cycling along the flat, peaceful Tekapo canal roads. It’s a leisurely four-day outing (with support vehicle) that includes fabulous views of five impossibly turquoise glacial lakes – Tekapo, Pukaki, Benmore, Ruataniwha and Ohau; a visit to New Zealand’s highest mountain, Aoraki/Mt Cook; amazing panoramic views from the top of Mt John Observatory; a visit to the famous Church of the Good Shepherd on the edge of Lake Tekapo; a stay in Mt Cook National Park; and a visit to….wait for it….New Zealand’s largest letter box! You can watch the Tekapo Canal Trail Video by clicking on www.tuataratours.co.nz

Unexpected Art

How lovely to see Colin McCahon - one of New Zealand's most significant artists - popping up in unexpected places around the city. The elegant posters advertising the current Colin McCahon show at Christchurch Art Gallery are grabbing attention on bus shelters, the sides of buildings, on parking lots. This show is from the collection of the National Gallery of Australia. www.christchurchartgallery.org.nz

In Flight

Australian Outback. April 2008. Ajr

Hawk in flight - Cunnamulla, South west Queensland

Camel Chase

Australian Outback, April 2008. Ajr
It didn’t matter how many times I heard the fact that Australia has the largest population of feral camels in the world, I was always surprised to turn around and see a camel chasing our wagon. That was on my recent Charlotte Plains Camel Wagon Safari in the Australian Outback and this was my favourite camel, Benny, who enjoyed roaming at will while his fellow camels hauled our wagon. That’s him nosing up to my camera on the post I wrote a few weeks back too. He likes the company of humans and he completely won me over with his cheeky, infectious personality. www.charlotteplains.com.au

Aerial Architecture

The Arts Centre, Christchurch 2008. Ajr

One of my favourite Christchurch public sculptures is one of the simplest (deceptively so) and it's one that’s been around the longest – this ‘aerial’ architectural form by Christchurch sculptor, Neil Dawson, at the Christchurch Arts Centre. I love the simplicity of its lines against the ornate Victorian Gothic architecture of the old Canterbury University buildings. The building shown incidentally, houses SOFA (School of Fine Arts) Gallery.