I recently spent a long weekend in Wellington; the world’s southernmost capital city and one of my favourite happy-places.
Wellington is a small city, full of art and culture and great places to eat and drink coffee. Bounded by the sea and the hills, it works on a human scale. Everywhere is walkable, even in one of the howling gales for which Wellington is famous.
I arrived in the midst of such a storm. Throughout the flight from Auckland the captain warned that we might be in for a “bit of jostling” as our plane approached Wellington airport. He wasn’t joking.
Although the wind dropped a little over the weekend, it remained a grey and windy time — perfect for black & white photography.
The title of this post comes from the Alistair Te Ariki Campbell’s poem ‘Blue Rain.’ An extract, below, is included in the Wellington Writers’ Walk — a series of “typographical sculptures” placed around the city. It occurs to me that the phase “cube of sunlight” might also be applied to photography.
“Blue rain from a clear sky.
Our world a cube of sunlight –
but to the south
the violet admonition
of thunder.”
— Alistair Te Ariki Campbell. From ‘Blue Rain’ in The Dark Lord of Savaiki: Collected Poems, Hazard Press, 2003
Posted to Sally D’s Mobile Photography Challenge, at Lens and Pens by Sally.
Thanks for the tour – I love Wellington as well. Did you fly in while the ferries weren’t running because of the vile weather?
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Yes. It was as bad as I’ve ever seen it for the first couple of days.
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Never a good place to fly into at the best of times..
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It’s definitely got better in recent years. I don’t know if it’s because the planes are bigger or there are new techniques … but I haven’t had nearly as many “silent-scream” landings. They used to be a regular thing when I travelled to Wellington a lot in the ’80s.
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Many years ago the children and I were the on the last flight to get in before they had to close the airport. People throwing up everywhere. I was too scared to waste time throwing up…
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How terrifying to have your kids with you. I’ve had one really rough landing with the boy-child and it was the scariest because I felt so helpless knowing there wasn’t much I could do for him.
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I hate to say it, but my boy-child wasn’t helping, because every time we hit a big air pocket on the awful trip he screamed with delight and said ‘more, more’. Didn’t do much for all the people who were being sick…
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That’s so funny (though I do feel for the other passengers). How old was he?
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around four…
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They are so funny and fearless at that age!
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Nice. The boat sheds are one of my favourite subjects
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There is definitely something very appealing about boatsheds that makes us want to photograph them. I’m not sure if its the colour palette, or the location but I have seen lots of beautiful images of boatsheds.
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It’s now on my bucket list.
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Thanks; you’ll be very welcome.
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I love the mood you create by doing these in black and white. It does look like a lovely city.
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Thank you Amy. It is a place I like very much.
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Amazing photos Su, I need to plan a trip there soon! 🙂
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YES! That would be a wonderful way for you and Gary to celebrate your return to good health. 🙂
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These are gorgeous photos, Su. Almost eerie. A wonderful effect.
We never made it to Wellington on our trip to the North Island. The boys were very young (the youngest only 3) and it just wasn’t possible to cover the whole length of the island in two weeks comfortably. We chose the Bay of Islands over Wellington. Looks like a return visit with a definite stay in Wellington may be in order one day. I’m sure the boys would love to come if I tell them there’s the head of a giant Dalek there…..
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Thanks Heather. I wonder if Terry Stringer has ever thought of his work as a Dalek head?
I think you are right, trying to cover too much ground on a holiday only means you spend a lot of time travelling. Not fun — especially with kids! I can understand taking the boys to the Bay of Islands over Wellington; it’s much easier to entertain them with beaches and boat trips — and the weather is more reliable. Of course Wellington is home to Weta Workshop, and all the LOTR, etc stuff
that goes with it.
I definitely recommend a return visit!
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Su, all are inviting. But I am particularly drawn to the first with its fantasy-like quality, which calls for many stories to be told. The weather helped to create some melodrama. Happy Photo Challenge.
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Thanks Sally. You are right about the weather; in Wellington it can often be very dramatic.
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I loved coming along on the trip, Su. Thanks so much. We hope to be there one day as well as in many other places in New Zealand.
janet
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Thank you Janet. It really is a must-see place. Hopefully you will make it down here sometime. 🙂
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It’s just like being there, Su. Thanks for sharing.
Leslie
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Thanks so much Leslie 🙂
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🙂
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Wonderful photos. I will be going down to Wellington at Labour Weekend with my son – it is my daughter’s 21st. Now I need to explore it a bit more
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So much to explore! My new favourite place is the National Library (good cafe too)!
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Beautiful place and the snippet from blue rain is wonderful! I read it three times and still find I am pondering – hmmmm
(And great title)
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Love the treatment on these shots Su.
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Thank you Desley. I messed around with a few effects to try and get that slightly blurry, contrast-y look. I like the idea of images as manipulated memory and really enjoy playing with the tools to facilitate that.
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Yes! That’s exactly the look, it’s so cool.
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Awesome pictures, Su – as always! 🙂 The wind sculpture with the admirers is my favourite – what a great sculpture it is! Totally love that angle 😉
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Thanks Sarah. I wish I’d been able to video the girls. The one who was holding on to the statue was singing the theme song from the Titanic movie and “playing” THAT famous scene. She was so funny.
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Aww – I’d have loved to see that!! 🙂 so glad that scene is still anchored in the hearts of women everywhere 😀 Oh, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!! (Facebook told me 😉 ) Wish you a very lovely and beautiful day with your family! 🙂 Much love, Sarah xxxxxxxxxx ❤
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Thanks Sarah. My gifts include getting to do a photography course and one on glass art. Yay for art presents! Hope you have a wonderful weekend. xxxx
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Oh! These are amazing presents!! I’m sure you’ll have lots of fun doing them, especially the one with glass art, I remember you telling me how much you’d like to do that 😀 Please make sure to shoot as many pictures as possible and share them with us afterwards 🙂 You too have a perfect weekend dear! 🙂 xxxxx ❤
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Thank you so much. I’m really eco cited about learning glass art. The focus is on slumping and fusing, which is good — I really don’t think I’m ready to blow glass. I’ll try and take lots of photos. Happy weekend my friend xxxx
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Wow! Really can´t wait to hear more about it!! 🙂 I would love to do that too one day! But I´m also not sure about the blowing part, I think one would need quite a lot of breath to do that, and I´m so tiny, I might not even make a little bubble 😉 Have a very beautiful sunday, my dear friend! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ❤
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😃😃 you would think that it takes a lot of air to blow glass, but I have a friend who is quite tiny, and a few years older than me who has tried it. She found holding the glass on the blowing thing quite hard on her arms, but managed to blow the glass quite well. Perhaps one day. Happy Sunday dear friend xx
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Wow! that sounds amazingly impressive! Ok, you’ve convinced me: if I ever get the chance I’ll try it myself! 🙂 Have a lovely week dear Su! 🙂 xxxxx ❤
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Thank you Sarah; it’s going to be a wet week here. Good time to start experimenting with Klimt clay 🙂 I hope you have a great week.
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As much as I dislike a rainy week it´s certainly very good for being creative indoors 😉 Have a great time, Su! My head is full of possible outcomes of your lovely project… Can´t wait to see it!! 🙂 xxxxx
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Thanks Sarah. My head’s buzzing with possibilities and I’m almost afraid to begin in case reality doesn’t live up to my vision. xxx 🙂
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I know the feeling 😉 But don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll do great! There’s no right or wrong when it comes to art. And if you shouldn’t be satisfied with the result, you simply give it another go until you are – that’s how I’m doing it 😉 xxxxx 💚
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That’s good advice Sarah. I’m such a perfectionist, and my friend Claire (artist and “Little Wing” author) once said that instead of worrying about “not getting it right” and focusing on a whole piece, I should look for something I do like in the work — maybe a small part of it, or the way the colours work perhaps — and focus on that. It’s not only that it allows me to be more positive, but helps me find the techniques, forms, colours, whatever, that really work for me. I think about that advice often, and try to remember it when I’m working. xxxx 🙂
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Your friend Claire´s very wise indeed!! That´s a fabulous advice, and definitely how it works best. If I look at the things I´ve already done, I do see many mistakes I probably wouldn´t make anymore, but I always concentrate on the things I still like about it or on the feeling I had when I finished it 😉 Being artistic is a never ending process and making mistakes is just a natural part of it that we´ve got to accept. But as they say, we can only learn from these mistakes 😉
And I know how it is to be burdened with this need to do everything perfectly 😉 It can be very troublesome at times, but then it also makes us strive to make greater things! Have a very lovely day, and just enjoy the process of being creative, Su! 🙂 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ❤
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Wonderful!
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Belated happy Birthday, Su!
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Thank you 😃
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I love the Grand Head 🙂
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Me too; though it’s sited in a weird place on a street corner surrounded by trees and on a very tall plinth. It’s quite hard to see properly and I couldn’t really capture the way it’s not a “normal” head — but more like a Picasso painting. I read that the council has been criticised for putting it there, so hopefully it might be moved somewhere it can be enjoyed more.
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