Capital 12 by Capital

Capital ta l e s o f t h e c i t y

Power woman winter 2014

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issue 12

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CAPITAL CAPITAL TA L E S O F T H E C I T Y

POWER WOMEN WINTER 2014

HONEY PILLS

ISSUE 12

$3.90

INTERVIEW WITH A LOCAL VAMPIRE

THE COVER: A Birthday celebration

I T ’ S O U R B I R T H DAY

Art Direction: Shalee Fitzsimmons Photography: Ashley Church Model: Claartje ten Berge from Kirsty Bunny Make-up: Natalee Fisher Hair: Ben from Willis York Glitter suit: Katie Collier Shoes: I Love Paris

SUBSCRIPTION Subscription rates $77 (inc postage and packaging) 11 issues per year New Zealand only To subscribe, please email accounts@capitalmag.co.nz

C O N TA C T U S Phone +64 4 385 1426 Email editor@capitalmag.co.nz Website www.capitalmag.co.nz Facebook facebook.com/CapitalMagazineWellington Twitter @CapitalMagWelly Post Box 9202, Marion Square, Wellington 6141 Deliveries 31–41 Pirie St, Mt Victoria, Wellington, 6011 ISSN 2324-4836 Produced by Capital Publishing Ltd

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The opinions expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher. Although all material is checked for accuracy, no liability is assumed by the publisher for any losses due to the use of material in this magazine. Copyright ©. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form without the prior written permission of Capital Publishing Ltd.

MADE IN WELLINGTON

e are celebrating in this issue: winter, all the wonderful events in the region, a bumper 96-page issue, and lastly but of course not leastly, our first birthday. Last year when we began this magazine, the city was thrumming with indignation at Prime Minister John Key’s throwaway line that Wellington was dying. What a difference a year makes; the mood in the city now seems to have moved more to optimism and confidence. Indicative of this is the new hotel and conference complex for Wellington that Mayor Celia Wade-Brown has announced. A year ago we decided that our watchwords for Wellington included creative capital, colourful, chic, craft-brewing capital, coffee capital, cultural capital, controversial, cool, coruscating, cultivated, and many more. This is the picture we have tried to offer to you. We are delighted that you, mostly, find it good. We do enjoy your feedback and welcome all comments. Thank you to our readers who purchase each issue in ever-growing numbers, and to our advertisers who also make the magazine happen. Mark Sainsbury takes a classic Jag for a spin this month and shares his pleasure with you all; children’s author Philippa Werry talks about being a volunteer for Anzac Day at Gallipoli and her successful books, and Kelly Henderson talks to thai kick-boxers about fighting to win. Craft beer expert Kieran Haslett-Moore introduces a very experienced and talented new brewer in town. And what sort of birthday would it be without a cake? Food writer Unna Birch has shared a spectacular wintry version with us. We look forward to our second year and implementing many new and exciting ideas. Alison Franks Editor editor@capitalmag.co.nz

CONTENTS

G E T YA G L I T T E R O N , WE’ RE ONE! Bigger, brighter, and blingier

V O LT I N G AMBITION

VA M P I N G W I T H V IAG G O

The power is in Alison Andrews’ hands

Taika sinks his teeth into a new film

10 LETTERS

CHEERS

12 CHATTER

LET THEM EAT CAKE

14 NEWS

SWEET AS

BY THE NUMBERS

BY THE BOOK

NEW PRODUCTS

TELL THE LITTLE CHILDREN

TALES OF THE CITY

DREAMS WORK

WHAT THE FLOCK

GOLDILOCKS WAS HERE

25 CULTURE

A MODEL HOUSE

LOOKING FOR A FIGHT

42 OPINION

WELLY ANGEL

43 SUBSCRIBE

BABY, BABY

45 FASHION

TORQUE TALK

51 COFFEE

DIRECTORY

53 EDIBLES

92 CALENDAR

ROCKING IN THE DEEP

CONTRIBUTORS

S TA F F Alison Franks Managing editor alison@capitalmag.co.nz Lyndsey O’Reilly Campaign Coordinators Haleigh Trower sales@capitalmag.co.nz John Bristed General Factotum john@capitalmag.co.nz Shalee Fitzsimmons Art direction and design shalee@capitalmag.co.nz Jeremiah Boniface

Design

Anna Jackson-Scott Journalist Craig Beardsworth

Factotum

Gus Bristed

Distribution

MELODY THOMAS Journ a li st Melody Thomas is a writer, columnist and producer for radio who uses her work to offset terrible FOMO, or Fear Of Missing Out. Writing for Capital provides just the excuse she needs to pry, consider and explore the world vicariously, all from her little window desk in Island Bay. Catch up with Melody between Issues on Twitter @ WriteByMelody.

KANE FEAVER Ph oto g r aph er Kane Feaver is a commercial photographer who loves to create conceptual and quirky images, mostly of people. When not coming up with new ideas for photos, he spends his time with his wife and their deaf cat who has no control over the volume of his meow.

STOCKISTS Pick up your Capital in New World and Pak’n’ Save supermarkets, Moore Wilson, Unity Books, Magnetix, City Cards & Mags, Take Note and other discerning greater Wellington outlets. Ask for Capital magazine by name. Distribution: john@capitalmag.co.nz.

SUBMISSIONS We welcome freelance art, photo and story submissions. However we cannot reply personally to unsuccessful pitches.

TA M A R A J O N E S Ph oto g r aph er Tamara is a photographer and fashion blogger. She loves working with soft light and falling shadows and definitely isn’t afraid to push the norm. tamarajonesphotography.com

KELLY HENDERSON Writer Kelly Henderson is a freelance journalist who has lived in Wellington for just over three years. She enjoys meeting new people, travelling, reading a good book and dining out with friends.

LETTERS

URBAN MY THS AB OUT PARKING DEBUNKED

MISSED THE POINT

N. Moore, Newlands, (iss 11, May), raised some issues about coming to events in Wellington. While we welcome people coming by bus or train, there are also many convenient off-street parking buildings. A quick check online showed me that if you’re going to St James or the Opera House you’ll find, less than five minutes away, $6 unlimited parking at Hope Gibbons Taranaki St. The parking at 84 Tory Street is even less – $3 overnight or weekend days. That’s $3 or $6 TOTAL, not per hour. If you do find a public on-street park, six days a week there are neither charges nor time limits after 6 pm and none after 8pm on Fridays. So there should be no worries about how long your show and dinner might take. The closure of two private car parking buildings means some habits will change but there is plenty of space to come in and enjoy our amazing events by whatever mode you like. Mayor Celia Wade-Brown, Wellington

Nicola Young responds: Fran Wilde (‘Needs to get up to speed’, issue 11) completely ignored the main point in my article ‘Cheaper by car’; Wellington bus users are being price-gouged by the Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC) because of the inequitable subsidies it gives to train users, at the expense of bus passengers. Wellington has the highest, and least-subsidised, bus fares in New Zealand, so it’s cheaper to drive if travelling in Zones 1–3. The GWRC claims to be committed to increased use of public transport, yet the constant fare increases have had the opposite effect. The Zone One fare was $1 four years ago; now the GWRC proposes $2.50. It’s little surprise bus usage hasn’t increased over the past eight years. Her suggestion that I hadn’t researched the subject thoroughly was mischievous, and incorrect. The WCC’s analysis supports my allegations, which is why the WCC finally agreed to make its own submission to the GWRC’s Public Transport plan: asking for bus fares to be capped, and requesting 50% discounts on off-peak fares. Fran has served Wellington well for many decades, so it’s disappointing she reacted so negatively to a new Wellington City Councillor who’s determined to make Wellington a better place for us all to live and affordable, effective, and efficient public transport is an essential ingredient for a modern, liveable city. Nicola Young, WCC, Lambton Ward

LIKEABLE FELLA What an interesting interview with Cory Jane. He sounds like he is a bit of a character. He’s obviously also a hard working and modest family man who not only has his head well screwed on but also picked a damn good wife. Andrew Williams, Upper Hutt

ENQUIRY

Can you help me find any information on my late Uncle. His name was Murdo Carmichael and he lived at 2, Levin Avenue, Wellington until his death in 1944. He was a soldier in the Anzacs (1914–1918) Reg. No. 10/2885 7th Wellington Infantry Battalion. He was buried in Karori Cemetery, Wellington on the 25th October,1944. Any leads would be greatly appreciated. Ian Macleod Please send to: ian.macleod@tesco.net

Letters to editor@capitalmag.co.nz with subject line Letters to Ed, or scan our QR code to email the editor directly.

C HAT T E R

INK INC.

H E R BA L H E A LT H Naturopath & herbalist at the newly opened Wellington Apothecary, Chantal Cropp, has some timely advice for your winter wellness. Clear a froggy throat or foggy head and awaken the body in the morning: “Squeeze the juice of one fresh lemon and grate a teaspoon of fresh ginger root into hot water. Stir in a teaspoon of manuka honey and add a teaspoon of Echinacea tincture to stimulate the immune system and build resistance to bugs. For those that need an extra hot hit: add a teeny sprinkle of cayenne pepper,” Cropp says

D OWSED WITH MORE PRAISE Dowse Square, at the heart of Hutt City’s Civic Centre, has won a New Zealand Architecture Award in the Planning and Urban Design category. The square unifies the Dowse Art Museum, the street and the adjacent parkland. Athfield Architects designed Dowse Square, which judges Richard Naish, Michael Banney, Stuart Gardyne, and Bronwen Kerr said leavened “civic seriousness with playful delight”.

LEE PARKINSON Tattoos? Is the trend deeply etched into the city’s cultural canvas or will it fade? Lee Parkinson talks about colouring up. How did you choose the designs? I love steam-punk, owls and Dr Who’s Cybermen, so Simon Morse visualised it for me. Where did you have it done? Inside of upper arm, because it’s part of a bigger series of works that’ll end up being a half sleeve. Family – for it or against? I’m all for family. No, seriously, my parents are very traditional and don’t get it – but I respect that, so don’t discuss it, or show them any of my work.

C HAT T E R

WELLY WORDS

MULTITASK SUPREMO A Wellyworder watched impressed as he observed a skateboarder travel twisting and turning at speed down a Mt Victoria street all the while calmly conducting a phone conversation via a cell phone pressed to one ear. Don’t worry, someone will outlaw it soon, said a passing businessman.

BIG UPS A big tick to New World Chaffers, who have a smiling and helpful trolley assistant in the carpark on wet and cold nights to help shoppers lift groceries from trolley to car.

BEACH HEAT

L I K E FAT H E R LIKE SON No longer is Luke the only Skywalker. The Fork & Brewer rebrewed last year’s, to make Skywalker “a sexier and more appealing beer than his father,” says general manager Adrian Klemp. Dark Vader initially had raisin flavours “remarkably similar to Christmas Cake,” says Klemp. After being aged in American oak wine barrels since last July, it had mellowed into a smooth, vanillary beer with almost port-like flavours which match well with richer foods like venison, rich stews and of course, Christmas Cake. “It has developed into what we think is an amazing beer!” Klemp says. Young Skywalker has some slight changes to the malt profile for a smoother beer with less “alcoholic heat” in the mouth while still retaining its ABV of 8.4%, Klemp explains.

Word has it that parking has become an issue in the sleepy seaside streets of Lyall Bay. The sprinkling of wonderful eateries that lure the café cognoscenti mean that parking is now at a premium in many streets. Residents are grumbling about driveway access and we all know how heated parking arguments can become.

MISSING MATARIKI It seems a pity that after several years of championing Matariki, Te Papa has dropped the ball and has no special calendar this year and nary a mention of activities on their website. Surely some of the recent $8 million extra dollars granted could have been used to maintain the progress. Matariki begins on 28 June.

E C O FA S H I O N ANNOUNCED Textile company Stansborough Limited will present their first runway show this year, at New Zealand Eco Fashion Exposed in Lower Hutt. The company created costumes for The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and Narnia’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian, amon g others, but have never done a show of their own. The event is the brainchild of director, Denise Anglesey. It focuses solely on eco fashion showcasing sustainable designer brands and up and coming eco designers. “We’re excited and interest has already been great,” Anglesey says. The event is to upscale from one day last year to four days this year. 23-27 July.

NEWS SHORTS

MORE FISHY BUSINESS

H E A LT H I E R HOUSES

IT’S NOT FA R E

A rental housing “warrant of fitness” has shown around 94% of the homes inspected did not meet at least one checklist criterion. The project aims to make rental housing safer, healthier and more energy efficient. The criteria included a fixed form of heating, security stays on windows, and working smoke alarms; however, 36% of the homes would pass with relatively minor fixes. Dr Julie Bennett from the University of Otago Wellington says they have received “good feedback from landlords, tenants and the assessors and we are now going back to look at the checklist and criteria to make sure we have a robust and usable housing WOF for the rental market.” Bad news for students: the WOF scheme will not be mandatory unless Parliament passes national legislation or a local bill. A third of New Zealanders live in rental accommodation.

Wellington City Council continue to push for cheaper bus fares, faster development of a smart integrated ticketing system and the best possible low-emission buses. Wellington is suggesting future off-peak discounts of 25 percent, and wants the Regional Council to reconsider the bus fare rise planned later this year. Mayor Celia Wade-Brown says “We want to see a fairer deal on fares to get more people using public transport. Cuts in fares could pay for themselves with increased patronage.” The high costs of maintaining and operating trolley buses and other issues such as resilience may mean they are probably not the best choice for a future service. Councillor Andy Foster, who chairs the committee, says “The next generation of vehicles must be high-quality, low-emission and preferably electric.”

Concerned fishermen are banding together to explore the risks of 1080 to trout fishing. They will use desktop simulations and laboratory-based tests to assess whether the aerial dropping of poison will affect the safety of eating the trout. The New Zealand Federation of Freshwater Anglers (NZFFA), Fish & Game, the Department of Conservation and the Cawthron Institute hope to have their research out before the start of the 2014 fishing season, 1 October. “We have always maintained that the risk is the gap in knowledge in this specific area - no research has been done to date,” said David Haynes, President of the NZFFA. Neil Deans, manager of Fish & Game Nelson/Marlborough region said, “the lack of research is a valid point.” For more information, see Capital issue nine.

S ENCETW IO S NS H HOE R A TDSE R

WATER PARANOIA Discrimination in the water! The naturally occurring compound Geosmin has been exiled from Wellington’s storage lake two due to its “earthy flavour” Geosmin poses no health risk and the water was safe to drink. Greater Wellington Regional Council has nevertheless drained the 2,067-million-litre lake, which will be refilled with fresh water over the next two months. Please, a moment of silence for Geosmin.

COLON CASH The greater Wellington region will receive a $3.5m national boost in funding for colonoscopies. “This boost will help Capital and Coast, Hutt Valley, and Wairarapa DHBs deliver up to 393 extra colonoscopies, for patients most in need,” says Health Minister Tony Ryall. A recent symposium in Wellington also looked at addressing ways of increasing New Zealand’s colonoscopy workforce capacity and efficiency to discover the cancer early. “We know that bowel cancers found and treated early can often be cured, and the single largest constraint is workforce – we simply don’t have enough professionals to do the colonoscopies required,” says Mr Ryall.

A R E YO U SHORE? A 200-metre stretch of The Esplanade in Island Bay will be closed to traffic from early June until September, says WCC Infrastructure Planning Engineer Nicci Wood. The closure is part of a trial to improve the area after the collapse of part of the seawall last June. If successful, the road will remain closed to traffic and Shorland Park may be linked to the beach, expanding space for play and dog exercise areas. The public supported permanent road closure at the Island Bay fair in February. “However we’re well aware that a lot of people – including members of the local Italian families with strong fishing histories – like the seawall and foreshore the way it is, so we’ll be doing more consultation,” said Councillor Iona Pannett.

A PRACTICAL APPROACH

WO OLLY RESEARCH New research from Victoria on technology and livestock farming may let you flavour your lamb while it grows. The three year Marsden-funded research project Counting Sheep: NZ Merino in an Internet of Things, explores how New Zealand merino might be grown in future. Prospects include growing your own lamb (lab-grown lamb can be flavoured with rosemary or mint as it grows), woollen casts knitted over broken bones, a new half-dog half-lamb creature, and a wool shed for public use in the city. Opinions range from ‘I would rather die than live in this world’ to ‘this is the most brilliant thing I’ve ever seen’, said leading researcher Dr Anne Galloway. The survey is open until 15 June, 2014.

Wellington Institute of Technology (WelTec) has recently hosted its twentieth engineering student from the South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences in Meschede, Germany. The students have been working on projects at Nuevo, on The Callaghan Innovation site in Gracefields, and at WelTec. Two WelTec students have studied at the German institution, which WelTec Chief Executive Dr Linda Sissons says “offers benefits to the students and teaching staff at both institutions, as well as local companies.”

WHAT LOVE TELLS ME

Masterton Friday 20 June 7pm MASTERTON TOWN HALL

Kapiti Coast Saturday 21 June 6pm SOUTHWARD THEATRE

WELLINGTON SUNDAY JUNE 22 4PM OPERA HOUSE WELLINGTON

MARC TADDEI Conductor / BIANCA ANDREW Mezzo Soprano TICKETS WELLINGTON / MASTERTON TICKETEK.CO.NZ KAPITI COAST DASHTICKETS.CO.NZ

PITA AND THE WOLF WELLINGTON SUNDAY JULY 27 3PM WELLINGTON OPERA HOUSE

MARC TADDEI Conductor DAVE FANE Presenter and special guest BRET MCKENZIE TICKETS TICKETEK.CO.NZ

SONG OF THE NIGHTINGALE WELLINGTON SATURDAY AUGUST 9 7.30PM MICHAEL FOWLER CENTRE

MARC TADDEI Conductor / JIAN LIU Piano TICKETS TICKETEK.CO.NZ CONCERT SPONSOR

FOR ALL THINGS ORCHESTRA orchestrawellington.co.nz

BY THE NUMBERS

HARB OURING FACTS

600 3 10.5 95,000

cargo ships use Centre Port per year number of gantry cranes used to lift containers million tonnes of cargo handled containers handled per annum (Port of Shanghai is the busiest port in the world handling on average 29 million containers... hells bells)

WINTER OF DISCONTENT

number of days the average cold lasts

200 +

viruses that float around waiting to pounce on us

6.1 1.26

million sick days taken per year

4-10

SAY CHEESE

years since Photospace Gallery opened

number of photographic exhibitions held per year

5 +

courses offered in photography

380

estimated number in billions of photographs taken every year around the world

cost in billions to businesses because of sick leave (according to Wellness in the Workplace report in 2013 by Business NZ) likely number of colds a baby will catch in the first year of life

BLIND AMBITION

number of Specsavers’ stores in the Wellington region (1,648 around the world)

number of years since it started in Guernsey UK

age at which near vision starts to deteriorate (and you start looking more palatable to your partner)

number, in millions, of eye examinations conducted per year in NZ (according to NA Assoc of Optometrists)

I GOT STRIPES

MAKE IT WORK DESIGNERS

number of Zebrano stores around the country (three in Wellington region)

128

years a design school has been present in the city (now Massey’s College of Creative Arts)

years offering women with fuller figures designer clothing

1800

students on campus (not counting the other colleges at Massey)

30 26

designers represented in store

Fab Lab – a digital fabrication laboratory with laser cutting machines, 3D printers and mould makers

number of stripes on the common zebra (what? give me a break – the place is called Zebrano okay?)

Compiled by Craig Beardsworth

NEW PRODUCTS

PURPLE REIGN Onesie, $28.50, Made It | Merino round-neck cardigan, $189, Minnie Cooper | Ricardo Beverly Hills Crystal City Luggage, various prices, Moore Wilsons | Addiction boots, $269, Willow Shoes | 42nd St wing chair, P.O.A, Libby Beattie Interior Design | Cushion, $89, Bo Concept | Thierry Mugler Angel, $95, Life Pharmacy

TA L E S O F T H E C I T Y

D O N ’ T S AY SOCCER...

HOM E

Island Bay

WEARS

A great strip

E AT

Mediterranean Warehouse

HO L I DAY

West Coast and Fiordland

FUTURE

The 2015 Under 20 World Cup

The round ball has always bounced for the STEWART FAMILY

“D

on’t say soccer, it’s football” insists Lyn Stewart “That’s what it is all round the world.” Lyn, a charge nurse at Wellington Hospital, is the hardworking mother in a football-mad family. Husband Peter is an Air New Zealand manager and their sons Nick, Callum, and Michael are an upholsterer, a banker and a teacher. With Michael’s seven-year-old daughter they all wear their team strip for the big football events in Wellington. “We chose football”, says Lyn “because Peter grew up playing rugby in Auckland. He said the people he was playing against were pretty big and it was a tough game. But his parents had a hotel where immigrants stayed when they came out to tunnel on the Tongariro scheme and they introduced him to the round ball. He loved it. So it was simple... I told the kids they could play any game they liked as long as it wasn’t rugby ... but I have to say I do love that rugby haka. “Three of us have season tickets, the others go to every game they can. Little Charlotte has been going to the stadium to watch the Phoenix since she was five. Peter and I go to away games often. We saw West Ham play in England, tickets were about $100 each and it was awful. I’d much rather watch the games with the Yellow Fever here in Wellington.

“Real Wellington for us is Lambton Quay, the Botanical Gardens, the waterfront and Zealandia. Milo the boxer needs lots of exercise, so after football in the weekends you’ll find us on the Southern walkway, Mt Albert, or Island Bay which is home. Everyone has always played for the Island Bay Football Club, Nick still does. “Peter and I like most music, but not jazz. I like Runrig, a celtic band. We both work, so we take turns to cook – all sorts, I like baking. I’ve just finished The Luminaries - that took a few weeks, and I like mysteries, Iain Banks, Alexander McCall Smith and so on. “Our favourite holiday spots are West Coast and Fiordland, Stewart Island. Lots of walks. Overseas it’s Europe and Great Britain. I love the history. I think if I wanted anything it would be enough money to retire, now. I’d have to do voluntary work though. I’m a member of Soroptimists International which is a bit like Rotary for women. We are especially looking forward to football in July, the Phoenix against Newcastle in Wellington and against West Ham in Auckland, and especially the Under 20 World Cup here next year.

Top Jason Candler with Callum and Nick Stewart Bottom Lyn, Peter, Charlotte, and Michael Stewart Photograph by Pauline Lévêque 21

opinion

w hat t h e f l o c k

MS Kārea rea Name: New Zealand Falcon. Maori name: Kārearea. Also referred to as bush hawk, sparrow hawk. Status: Endemic, nationally vulnerable. A variable species of raptor with three forms recognised. Birds found in forests of the North Island and north-western South Island referred to as the “bush falcon”, of which there are an estimated 650 pairs. The NZ falcon’s vulnerability is often underestimated in public consciousness because of confusion with the Swamp Harrier – a bird of prey commonly seen feeding on carrion and lazily gliding in the skies above our roads. The NZ falcon is more likely to be seen in active flight than gliding, and rarely feeds on road-kill. Habitat: One of only four falcon species worldwide that are adapted to hunting in dense forests, kārearea are also well suited to hunting in open country. NZ falcons are known internationally as one of the “bravest”, most aggressive falcon species for their dive-bomb defence of nesting territories. Look for them: Kārearea are spotted more often in autumn and early winter when juveniles leave their natal grounds. They are smaller than harriers – roughly the size of a magpie, and their wings sit flat when gliding while the harrier’s form a shallow v–shape. There is a breeding pair inside Zealandia – they need a hunting territory of 7km so the sanctuary can only support one pair – but Dave Crimp at the Wingspan National Bird of Prey Centre in Rotorua, collects information on falcon sightings from all over the country, says, “Recent [Wellington] sightings have gone from Owhiro Bay and Miramar right up to Johnsonville. With plenty of parks in the area to encourage several species of small birds, falcons seem able to do quite well in Wellington.” Call: Distinctive kek-kek-kek. Getting to know the bird’s call will be likely to increase chances of a sighting, and help prevent injury from dive-bomb attack! Feeds on: Live prey – mostly birds, but also lizards, insects and small mammals. Capable of catching prey larger than itself. Did you know? While the female is brooding, the male falcon does most of the hunting, returning to drop the food down to the female or pass it foot-to-foot. Sometimes during a food pass the female falcon turns completely upside down midair! If it were human, it would be: Kārearea are capable of flying at speeds over 100km per hour, and with their world-renowned bravery and impressive midair manoeuvres, we reckon they’d be pretty fantastic fighter pilots.

culture

B i r t h day b e at l e s Beatles specialists Redmer Yska and Chris Bourke will discuss the 1964 Beatles tour of New Zealand, with a focus on the Wellington back story. “Adults wondered what the fuss was about,” says museum marketing coordinator Pippa Drakeford. 15 June, 2pm, Museum of Wellington City & Sea, Queens Wharf

C o n t r a d i c t o ry jewels Local jeweller Moniek Shrijer says New Zealand jewellery tells a unique story. It is “something crafted by hand, imbued with ideas and named.” Finding inspiration from the everyday, from science fiction to the environment, news articles to happenings, this jeweller says sometimes the things that appeal most to her about a found object is that it can become something that is a complete contradiction, like a piece of rough ocean quartz made into something resembling a hand grenade. “I like to play with humour and stupidity in my work. Sometimes the combination is seemingly absurd like the avant-garde necklaces made from concrete. Contradiction is also a quality Moniek attributes to Wunderrūma, the epic jewellery exhibition making its triumphant return to The Dowse Art Museum from Munich. The exhibition which opens 21 June features more than 75 artists (including Moniek) and is curated by Warwick Freeman and Karl Fritsch, two of New Zealand’s most prominent jewellers. “The show in Munich was refreshing, it spoke of a New Zealand that was not a European view. It’s a contradiction to what Europeans might imagine about New Zealand, different from the pristine and natural view they have of us.”

COURTENAY BARBERS EST 1898

Think about it Have you ever wondered why the sky gets dark at night? Could you explain Schrödinger’s cat to your friends? Theoretical physicist Jim Al-Khalili can help you out. The professor of theoretical physics from the University of Surrey will lecture in Wellington on some scientific paradoxes. 20 May, 6pm, Paramount Theatre, Wellington.

Lance & Michael HOURS: 7.30am – 6pm weekdays 9am – 1pm Saturdays 7a Courtenay Place CALL 021 869 288 www.facebook.com/ CourtenayBarbers

culture

turning tricks The New Zealand Film Archive 2014 Film Archive Curator-at-Large Gareth Watkins presents his Tricks n’ Treats exhibition, a home movie look into activities like gambling, drinking, smoking, prostitution and drug use in New Zealand. A peep show is even included. 19 June –16 Aug, Film Archive

High five Five highly commended prizes of $500 each have been added to the Parkin Prize national drawing award this year. Calls for artists are still being made to remind NZ artists to enter the major competition for the $20,000 prize. The award, was launched by Chris Parkin, arts patron and owner of Museum Art Hotel in Wellington last year. Judge Greg O’Brien will announce the winner during the drawing prize exhibition in July. Entries close 20 June

D e e p- f r i e d w h at ?

horse play

MOAMOA: A Decade is the first survey exhibition of work from Korean-New Zealand artist Seung Yul Oh. He achieved early attention while still at art school, with an exhibition in which he deep fried all his paintings. Moamoa, is a Korean word meaning “gather together.” Large-scale sculptural work, interactive inflatables, video, painting and performance works – but nothing deep-fried, unfortunately, are part of the exhibition. Oh gained a Master of Fine Arts from Auckland’s Elam in 2005, and currently divides his time between Auckland and Seoul.

Wellington burlesque dancer Fanciflora Foxglove (Baily McCormick) posed nude in mid-winter astride rearing LOTR stallion Florian, in photographer Mandi Lynn’s Godiva, The White Goddess. The image has been nominated for the Master’s Cup, an International Colour Photography Award. “Yes she actually was on the horse nude. It was in June too, bless her!” Lynn laughs. “Everyone always asks!”

culture

Ukes for hire

Beethoven’s 9 th

A musical brewing

Nine Ludwig van Beethoven symphonies will be played in four days this June. The New Zealand Symphony orchestra will begin at No1 and finish playing at No 9. That’s 346 minutes of his entire symphonic output. Mezzo-soprano Annely Peebo (above) and Wellington’s Orpheus Choir are among those performing. “Combining the full strength of the NZSO with the brilliance of Beethoven’s symphonies is a memory I have wanted to create for some time,” said NZSO Music Director Pietari Inkinen. The orchestra is paying its respects to a composer who reportedly dipped his head in cold water before he composed, would end a performance if he was aware of audience members talking, and probably died of too many pints and a touch of lead poisoning. 12–15 June, Michael Fowler Centre

Neil Brewster: Interislander Freight Services Supervisor by day, Uncle Fester by night. The Porirua resident shaved his head for the part of fat, bald Fester Addams in Wellington Repertory’s The Addams Family - The New Musical. At the Interislander, he oversees the commercial vehicles and handling of dangerous goods. After two knee replacement operations Brewster returns to the stage where he has performed for 13 years, playing roles in Aladdin, Guys and Dolls, Seussical, How the Other Half Loves, Yeomen of the Guard and Pirates. Director of The Addams Family, Ewen Coleman, was presented with Theatre New Zealand’s Meritorious Service Award in 2013. The Addams Family 24 June to 5 July, Gryphon Theatre

Ukuleles on hire from the Upper Hutt City Library have been in great demand. The library ordered 40 instruments for customers who wanted to join the library’s ukulele group but didn’t want to buy straight away. “We ordered 20 but we had to double, the demand was so great” says Helen Thomas, one of the group’s founders. The group began in 2011 with five people. They now have three classes from beginners to advanced players.

Glamorous girls The Glamaphones, 18 women from Wellington’s gay and lesbian choir of the same name are travelling to Dublin to sing in the Various Voices festival. Glamaphones, chair Sue Oakley said more than 3000 other lesbian and gay singers will take part. The gay and lesbian choir from Auckland, GALS, are also singing at the event.

“V

at are you doing toniiiiight?” croons the Germanic voice over the phone, chuckling flirtatiously. I am of course aware that the creature attached to that voice has less-than-pure intentions, and yet I struggle to turn him down. Over the past half hour, Wellington-based vampire Viago has made such a charming impression that most of my preconceptions about his kind now seem outdated; redundant. Cold and lifeless though it may be, there seems to be a lot of kindness left in his heart. Viago grew up in a small town in a country that no longer exists, somewhere between Germany and Luxembourg. His father was the Mayor, his mother a travelling circus performer who specialised in sound effects - “any sound you could name, she could re-enact an exact likeness vith her voice” - and Viago’s childhood was a happy one. It wasn’t until Viago was 38 years old that tragedy struck. “It’s quite funny really…. My entire family and ze whole town vere massacred by a group of rogue vampires. I vas

ze last one that they bit and vhen they vere biting me ze sun vas coming up so they couldn’t finish ze job. I vas saved and yet cursed at ze same time,” he says. You might ask how a European vampire came to be living here, and the answer is love. In 1935, blindly following his heart and sadly arriving months too late, Viago’s coffin got to Wellington. It was obviously a very different city from that we’re accustomed to today. “Back then there vere hardly any vampires in Vellington. It vas pretty difficult because people vere very paranoid about strangers and foreigners and to be a guy zhat zhey only see at night you know, already there is a lot of suspicion. Luckily ze times vere moving fast and before you knew it it was the swinging 60s and … you could do vhatever you vanted and no one asked any questions.” Not unlike the human inhabitants of Wellington, the vampires that live here are of a certain kinds. “Ve are ze more grungy, indie vampires … more into arts and thea-

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A vamp in vellington written by Melody Thomas

What We Do In The Shadows is a documentary-style feature film based in Wellington, following four friends through the trials and tribulations of sharing a flat. The only difference is, these flatmates are vampires. Melody Thomas caught up with one of the stars of the film, 379 year-old Viago.

tre. Ve sort of pride ourselves on that sort of thing. Ve don’t fly a lot in Vellington because of ze wind, but ve like it here because it’s hardly ever sunny,” he says. Dwindling daylight hours means Viago is very excited that winter is here, but more freedom for his kind means more danger to humans, especially certain parts of the population. Virgins are a special delicacy. “It’s ze most delicious and pure blood that you can drink. Unfortunately as ve all know in Vellington it’s extremely difficult to find a virgin,” he says. Some are less vulnerable to attack – vegans for example.“Bleurgh! I don’t bother eating vegans! There’s no iron in ze blood and it’s really watered down … and vegans just look like vampires anyway so that can be confusing.” Describing himself as the “mother goose” of his flat, Viago is responsible for making sure, “everything is running smoothly, zhat ze corpses are cleaned avay, there’s no blood on ze furniture and ze curtains are shut before dawn.” His caring nature has me wondering if he ever feels

bad about draining humans of their blood. “Yah… It’s like eating a chocolate cake or something… It seems like a great idea at ze time and you just can’t stop, zhen afterwords you feel a bit guilty . But vhen you’re faced with turning into a rotten old dusty, shrivelled up corpse or drinking some blood and looking young and sexy, it’s obvious which decision you make.” On that note I decide to tell Viago I’m busy tonight, and while disappointed he remains every bit an 18th-century gentleman, saying, “Another time, perhaps.” As I hang up the phone I’m still unsure as to whether a face to face meeting with this vampire would be the best, or most terrible moment of my life. Probably both. What We Do In The Shadows, a feature film by Taika Waititi (Viago) and Jermaine Clement (Vladislav), in cinemas June 19.

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Routemarch to art Artist Ngatai Taepa is packing to go to Monte Cassino, Italy. He is a guest of the New Zealand defence force in the 70th anniversary of the town’s liberation during World War II. Taepa will join veterans for a commemoration tour. His father brought his Vietnam War medals and showed him how to wear them correctly. “Dad’s pretty chuffed that it’s happening, he talked about Vietnam and he’s never done that before so it was great that he opened up.” Taepa’s family has served in most recent major wars. His great-great-grandfather fought in the New Zealand Land Wars, his great-great-uncle was in the Maori Battalion, and he also mentions an uncle who died in the Battle of Tunisia in WWII. Not only is Taepa a formal observer for the purposes of art but he is also acknowledging his family’s history. Born in Upper Hutt Taepa is of Te Arawa and Te Atiawa descent. His family migrated to the region from Taranaki and Rotorua. Heritage is a strong influence in his art. Although he uses modern materials like automotive paint and acrylic, the work is anchored in Maori tradition. Kowhaiwhai, the patterns that adorn the ceilings of meeting houses on marae, is a theme through much of his work.

Taepa teaches a course in Maori art history at Massey University in Palmerston North. “I feel more of a student now than ten years ago. Teaching continually reminds me of that.” The Monte Cassino visit may influence the work he is preparing for his next show, he says. He often has two or three ideas running at the same time, both in the studio and his mind, but as he gets closer to deadline the dominant idea will surface. All experiences spin and influence one another – he cites the birth of his first child. It generated work for an exhibition at the time but he still feels its influence on work he is doing today. Another idea gestating is the concept of Whare Korero – the house of knowledge. Taepa describes it as “the power of context on a person’s being”. The social, family and physical contexts of a house are inseparable and they all have a bearing on the people inside. This is a new idea and he talks passionately and at length about it. He laughs at what his gallery must think of the myriad of ideas he has and incomplete works in his studio. “I haven’t told them what the show is about yet.” Page Blackie Gallery, Wellington from 24 June

Written by Craig Beardsworth 33

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Rocking in the deep By Melody Thomas | Photograph by Tamara Jones

ermaidens’ dripping wet, guitar-driven nymph-rock makes me wish I were 20 years old all over again. It’s not that their music lacks appeal to an older audience, it’s more that the smoke and drone and sex of their songs is something my young self would have loved to be a part of – especially because at that time most of the fantastic, noisy bands we were exposed to were all-male. I first met Gussie Larkin and Lily Paris West in 2012, when they played a singer-songwriter showcase I was hosting. The Wellington Girls’ College seventh formers had only been been making music together for a couple of months. “I always thought Lily was really cool,” says Gussie. “… Yeah I thought Gus was really cool. And we like nervously flirted with each other… into hanging out. We had to bully each other into playing our songs. It was kind of painful and awkward like, ‘I’ve been writing all these songs about my feelings and I’m 17 and like I guess I’ll play them to you,” laughs Lily. When that earlier, acoustic incarnation of Mermaidens took the stage back in 2012, assuring me they were of legal age to be there (which was half true), I loved them immediately. Their voices were beautiful, but there was something raw and dirty and confronting about the songs that made me take notice. The name Mermaidens was perfect – I could imagine these girls as underwater sirens, their faces and voices sweet right up until the moment they pulled you down to the depths.

These days a Mermaidens gig is a substantially noisier, sweatier affair. Both Gussie and Lily have swapped acoustic guitars for electric, and just over a year ago they got themselves a drummer, Abe Hollingsworth. “When we first started playing with Abe we weren’t too sure what was going to happen… [but] everything came together finally. It’s just so fun as an experience. Standing up and playing guitar and walking around… it’s way more physical,” says Gussie. And while the sound has evolved the sex is still there – at one point Lily half-jokingly tells me that “imagined sexual encounters” are, “the only thing we write about”. Why sex? I ask. “Why not sex? It’s great!” says Gussie. Then, perhaps sensing she needs to say more to shut me up on the subject, she throws her hands up and exclaims, “Oh I don’t know! It’s easier to write about than like, feelings.” She says “feelings” like it’s something gross she’s found on the bottom of her shoe, and the trio crack up. The past year has seen Mermaidens release three-track EP Bones, and play regular sets at Puppies Bar and the Camp A Low Hum festival in February. Another Mermaidens EP, entitled O, will be released on Bandcamp in June ahead of their first ever tour through June and July. “After that?! Whoa! … I hadn’t even thought past the tour,” says Lily. Gussie and Abe nod agreement; Abe adds a dramatic, “Life ends after the tour!” When the band’s thinking like that, you know the shows are going to be good.

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Three blithe men Local men Jared Holt, Kieran Rayner and Laurence Walls are very happy about singing roles in the NZ Opera production of La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi. The opera is about Violetta Valéry, a famed courtesan who falls in love with Alfredo Germont a young nobleman. Holt plays Violetta’s gilted lover Baron Duphol. He is the most experienced of the three, having won the Mobil Song Quest and the Karaviotis Scholarship in 2000 which enabled him to study at the Royal College of Music in London. He is now a senior associate at Kensington Swan Lawyers but continues to sing and speak passionately about opera, “When I hear a really good opera singer it’s as exciting as seeing a great sprinter or rugby player in terms of realising how hard they have worked to make the most from their talents,” he says. Rayner plays the Marchese d’Obigny. Like many people he began singing with the school choir. He went on to study at the New Zealand School of Music here in Wellington and has now been singing professionally for about five years. As a young and still developing baritone he has found patience is vital. “You must wait until your voice is mature enough to sing certain roles. I would love to sing Rodrigue in Verdi’s Don Carlos one day, but I imagine I will have to wait at least another five or ten years,” he says. Walls, a senior analyst at the Ministry of Social Development, began singing out of defiance. The Wellington-born tenor, who plays Giuseppe was studying at London School of Economics when a musician friend told him, “You could have been a very good singer, Laurence.” “I was irritated: ‘Could have been?’ I thought. ‘I’ll show you!’” Laurence laughs. He’s drawn to opera because it tests him on many levels. “Classical singing and performance is such a ‘complete’ activity. It’s an intellectual, physical and emotional experience,” Walls says. La Traviata, 11—19 July, St James Theatre.

Written by Craig Beardsworth Left to right: Jared Holt, Kieron Reyner and Laurence Walls 36

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Volting ambition Written by John Bishop | Photography by Pauline Lévêque

Alison Andrew is a rare creature for an engineer; she’s as interested in people as much as in building things.

are also that in a world where men still hold most of the top jobs she has got to chief executive position on her ability to get the best from people in her teams. She’s now the head of Transpower Ltd, the government-owned enterprise that runs the electricity grid, although her training is in chemical and materials engineering – not the electrical and mechanical qualifications held by most of her male staff. She doesn’t talk about gender issues and doesn’t see gender as a factor in her career. In an engineering world which is overwhelmingly male, she talks of skills and experiences, challenges and opportunities, and describes her management style as collaborative and participative. “Engineers are programmed to think logically, but I have also learned over my management career that it is all about people. How you work with them to get the best out of people, build good people around you and how you empower and motivate to do fantastic things.” Three months into her role, she says the challenge at Transpower is more about meeting customer needs and being smarter not bigger, rather than building a lot of new transmission lines. “We have generation in the south and demand in the north, and therefore we need a grid to work well, not gold plated but flexible, and one that doesn’t fail and is not hugely expensive. It’s a good challenge to achieve all that.” Sitting in a relaxed pose in her seventh floor corner office in Transpower, Alison Andrew exudes confidence. She speaks with an easy charm, a smile constantly and naturally flickering over her face. 39

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“Lots of energy, always lots of things on, family oriented, fun to be with, always gets things done,” is her self-description. She comes to Transpower after an impressive career heading divisions of big companies, some of them bigger than the organisation she now heads. “I came back from the UK with an MBA and got a job at Petrocorp, which Fletcher’s had just bought from the government. I was there at a fantastic time. Fletcher Challenge was New Zealand’s largest company. I worked in three divisions: energy, forestry, pulp and paper. I had an enormous number of challenges. “I had a job on the road selling to customers. I did marketing and sales and business development. I did strategic studies. I did lots of work with consultants, with some great people… wonderful opportunities to learn good processes and systems. “I worked as a manufacturing director in Fletcher Forests, built an engineering team at the manufacturing plant. Then I became the Finance Director for Fletcher Paper. That was a wonderful opportunity because it gave me exposure to all sorts of things I had never thought of doing. I learned a hell of a lot there.” After Fletcher Paper was sold to Norkse Skog she joined fencepost.com which was the e-commerce business of Kiwi Dairies, later merged into Fonterra. “Fonterra was a company where the politics were on steroids, but a really, really fantastic learning experience. It

was the best of times, the worst of times. “At Fonterra I was running a $3-billion sales network globally for food ingredients, really challenging environments and big projects.” Later she headed the New Zealand office of Orica Ltd, a company formed from the break-up of the British based international conglomerate ICI Ltd. “Running Orica in New Zealand was a mini-CEO role. My boss was in Melbourne and as long as I delivered the numbers he left me to it. “We won the award from Fonterra for supplier of the year, and the business of the year award within Orica Chemicals internationally. It was fun business and a great little company. “Then I got promotion to global head of sales for Orica – the biggest supplier of things that go bang in the mining industry.” So is coming to Transpower – a considerably smaller company – a step down? “I have had some big roles, but this role has a lot of interesting challenges.” The big spending days are over. Transpower, woefully behind with the state of its electricity grid five to eight years ago, has now largely caught up. Not all the big projects are over, but they have all been commissioned and are under way. That was the work of her high-profile predecessor, Patrick Strange. Alison Andrew heads an organisation whose job she says is now about meeting customer demand, squeezing

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out efficiencies, and “being smarter with what we do.” Demand for electricity can be “peaky’ when there are sharp but temporary increases. Assets need to be ‘sweated” to produce their maximum efficiency. People should be “empowered” and “enthused”, and coming from her, the language sounds natural, and to reflect genuine intentions and values. “Transpower is really fascinating. Fantastic people, really capable people, smart people here. The electricity industry is intellectually interesting. And I am quite a curious person. So there is a lot to do here. Right now she is dealing with the regulator for the electricity industry, the Commerce Commission which has the power to set the prices Transpower charges generators and distribution companies to move electricity from power stations to homes, farms, factories and shops. To do this the Commerce Commission approves a price path every four to five years. The price path factors in approved capital expenditure and demand, and allows a reasonable rate of return on assets to produce the prices Transpower is allowed to charge. Alison Andrew runs a monopoly under a lot of restraints. She’s aware of the concerns in the industry and public about price rises brought about by increasing transmission charges. Demand for electricity is uncertain. The Tiwai Point aluminium smelter may close; so might Norkse Skog’s

pulp and paper plant at Kawerau. Will technologies like electric cars alter the demand for electricity? What services will large industrial companies want in ten, twenty, thirty year’s time? Hence the emphasis on efficiencies, finding better ways, being smarter. “There are interesting developments in smart technology that can help us get much more efficient – things like sending robots down lines to investigate conductors.” At home with a husband and two teenage boys life changes pace a little; “They are always there with their mates, playing, drinking, jumping into the swimming pool, raiding my fridge.” She and her husband both like to cook, “I love healthy food, lots of salads. I have a Jewish cookbook, beautiful foods with wonderful flavours like slow cooked lamb, and we have 10–20 people over, nothing fancy. During the week, it’s whatever I have in the fridge that I can get onto the table fast.” And five to seven years on, “I will be ready to retire. I have come to a view that careers happen. Some happen because you are open to opportunities and you take opportunities when they come to you.” Alison aspires to be a professional director, but right now the focus is Transpower. “I feel very privileged to lead this organisation, it has a strong, deep and proud history of building an infrastructure asset to serve New Zealand.”

opinion

F or th e go od of li br ari es By Don Hunn

After a long diplomatic career, Don Hunn headed the State Services Commission for ten years. Now on a small farm near Otaki he breeds Gotland Pelt/Suffolk cross sheep. He says they’re exceptionally tasty. He sits on many committees and is chairman of the Library and Information Advisory Commission.

t’s not surprising if you haven’t heard of the LIAC The well-read members of my book club hadn’t. I was asked to do the job by the Hon Nathan Guy five years ago. Three Ministers of Internal Affairs later, I am able to assure readers of the Commission’s importance. LIAC aims to ensure that our national information resources are protected and our citizens have access to the information they want. LIAC was set up following the passage through Parliament of the National Library Act 2003. It was decided then that the focus of any independent body within the national library system should be to advise the responsible Minister on library and information issues, particularly as they bear on the economic and cultural life of the country. While LIAC’s primary interest has remained centred on the National Library it has made an effort to concern itself with all the major issues impinging on the library and information sector, and to ensure it has good links with the principal stakeholders. This broader interest, and LIAC’s determination to ensure freedom of access to information, has been reinforced by the amalgamation of the National Library and the National Archives in 2011. LIAC advised against the merger but the Government decided as part of its policy to streamline the Public Service to bring together the main governmental information activities. The amalgamation is now a fait accompli and LIAC has moved on to other matters. But it remains a concern that the Government’s legitimate wish to better manage its own information functions do not affect the ability of citizens to access the resources of the National Library. In 2012 the Hon Chris Tremain asked LIAC to look at the future of NZ’s public libraries. Given the profound implications of the development of information technology over the past decade, our colleagues around the country are similarly occupied and we 42

have been keen to draw on their thinking. (One such example is the strategic framework published by the Association of Public Libraries Managers (APLM) – which is available online). The first attempt to look at what the public library of the future might look like, has been a report on “community digital hubs” (CDHs). These are community centres – usually having a public library as their core – which also offer free access to the internet through the provision of computers and the assistance of trained staff. The facilities vary with the wishes (and the purses) of the communities they serve, but they can include information advisory services; computer rooms for e.g. children, teens, genealogic research; meeting places; auditoria for entertainment or education; cafes; art galleries; used book stores. The ambition is to provide in the one space a range of experiences which will involve the whole community and allow all citizens to share equally in the digital age. It is an idea which has taken off in Europe and North America where millions of dollars are being invested. New Zealand public libraries provide many of these services already, but the country as a whole has not yet adopted the concept as one which is integral to how we, as an egalitarian society, cope with the new technologies. It is not the only means of achieving universal computer literacy and preserving open access to information for us all, but it offers new and exciting ways of doing so.

Is the community digital hub something which is relevant to us and our determination to maintain a vital democracy and develop a knowledge economy? Send your ideas or comments on the future of public libraries to information@natlib.govt.nz

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2013 Established Designer and Overall Winner: Adrienne Whitewood (Rotorua), at NZFW 2013, Image by Michael Ng

Hung up about clothes Not shy about his controversial 2012 entry, Masterton’s Hohepa Thompson is back for the 2014 Miromoda Māori Fashion Design Competition. In 2012, Thompson’s printed collection Dirty Laundry caused some controversy over a print of the ta moko of Maori activist Tame Iti superimposed on an image of the late Osama bin Laden. He continues to prompt hard questions with his 2014 collection, Locked up. Locked up looks at the prison population of New Zealand, in which Māori make up 51%, despite only comprising 14% percent of the general population. Combining natural prints and imagery found throughout his Māori culture and the style of some of the clothing worn while being incarcerated. Winners & Runners up of the Miromoda Fashion Design Competition will showcase at NZ Fashion Week 2014 in Auckland in August. 49

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C offee f or Health Written by Sharon Greally

e’ve been hearing a lot about coffee and whether it’s good for us, or bad for us, how many cups we should or shouldn’t have a day, etc. Looking at the amount of coffee we drink, maybe most of us are indifferent – we just enjoy it. I’ve even taken to adding a cinnamon stick to my daily cup. Surely that’s got to be good? It’s been around since 2000 BC, where in ancient Egypt it was highly prized and considered a panacea. In medieval times cinnamon was used to treat coughing, arthritis and sore throats. Nowadays it’s used to treat muscle spasms and the common cold, and even if you guys are having a bit of trouble in the tool box – yes, cinnamon is even proving its worth in cases of erectile dysfunction. Studies show it may also help lower blood sugar in diabetics. But back to coffee. The medical folk have been researching the effects of coffee on our physical and mental health, and depending on which side you drink from, the results are stacking up pretty well. What with reduced risk of strokes, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and mental health issues, it’s purely medicinal. OK, I can put up with the possibility of a restless night (actually I find it helps me sleep – what’s that all about?), maybe some staining of my teeth (but red wine does that too…), and feeling a bit jittery if I have too many, but I’m feeling pretty confident that the pros outweigh the cons. According to a study done in 2005, our bodies absorb more antioxidants from coffee than from fruit and vegetables.

Even just smelling coffee has its benefits. Researchers have found that coffee aromas change proteins in your brain that cause stress. Even that red wine that I’m rather partial to can have its negative effects dealt to by coffee. Evidently those who drink at least one cup of coffee a day are twenty percent less likely to get cirrhosis of the liver. Does that mean one cup of coffee outweighs the negatives of one glass of vino? But then again, red wine is good for you too, apparently. Slippery platelets or something… And if you drink more than four cups a day, you are 10 percent less likely to be depressed than those who don’t touch the stuff. Coffee acts as a mild antidepressant, according to a Harvard study, and acts in aiding the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine and noradrenaline, those wee things that lift our mood. Even those of us prone to skin cancers can benefit. Having three or more cups a day means you are less likely to develop skin cancers. For those of a more physical persuasion, a caffeine boost before a workout increases the amount of fatty acids in the bloodstream, whereby your muscles transform those fats into fuel. Apparently this has been a secret amongst athletes for years. And last but by no means least, coffee can increase your intelligence. It improves your attention, your reaction time, and reasoning. What’s not to like?

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Puffed up Puffed cereal company Redding Cereals has brought locally-made, organic, gluten free cereals to New Zealand. Their puffed millet, buckwheat and rice cereals are popped by specialised machinery in their Porirua kitchen, says owner Lian Redding. Puffing the cereal locally is a first for NZ, and his next move is to source New Zealand-grown buckwheat.

Concentrating on caffeine Family business The Kapiti Coffee Company, run by Corban Halcrow along with his parents Warwick and Margaret Halcrow, are bringing coffee concentrate back with a bang...or rather, with a dancing goat. Dancing Goat Liquid Coffee is a branch of the Te Horo Beach KCC roastery, the brainchild of Corban. “Dancing Goat is a result of a cold water extraction method created by Corban using inspiration from cold brew methods and the wine industry,” Warwick says. “He’s a genius.” It consists of roasted coffee and filtered rainwater that’s all. The cold method also results in a high caffeine level just what student city needs?

Y o u ’ v e g o t ta c ha i i t !

Newtown noodles The Ramen Shop has relocated to a permanent Newtown venue. Ramen responsibles Tsubasa Takahashi and Asher Boote have expanded the menu to include not just Ramen (but what could be better?), and are serving the Japanese soup with a Kiwi twist.

Tim and Jess O’Sullivan have brought their chai business, Mister Chai, to Cuba Street. Tim fell in love with chai while travelling in India and learnt to make it there. “I loved the whole chai culture there. No two chais are the same. It varies between families and states,” Tim says. Essential to his brand of chai? “Ginger.” Wellington-born Tim always planned to open the business here. “I’m originally from Wellington and I love the city.” It’s a well-timed first for Wellington as winter approaches. Look for the bright purple street cart next to Floraditas!

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waffling about it Sugar junkies unite. The Library Bar has a new downstairs addition, Wellington’s first waffle shop. My Belgian flatmate, for one, is rejoicing.

Drunken sailors

A Hellenic winter A Taste of Greece is Wellington’s first Greek bakery. “The business is my dream and allows my passion of baking and cooking authentic Greek cuisine to come to reality,” says owner Helen Neonakis. “Many dishes require specific Greek ingredients, sourced from either Greece or Australia. No substitute can be used. We serve Greek coffee imported directly from Greece. Wellington-born Neonakis first opened the space as a cake shop but expanded to hot meals under local Greek demand. She is a first generation NZ-born Greek, the daughter of ethnic Greeks from Romania. Shop 3, 31 Coutts Street, Kilbirnie.

new ground Goodness of Food, Carterton’s gluten-free cafe, is so popular that owner Sean Barnes is teaming up with businessman Rob Tomkies to open a gluten-free and organic supermarket in July. “The growth of the [gluten-free] market is amazing,” Tomkies says. Rather than buying and selling, the store, Grounded Organics, will produce a lot of their product. “We are aiming to make 99 percent of it on-site,” Barnes said.

New Zealand wine exports have exceeded $1.3 billion for the first time, Statistics New Zealand data shows. New Zealand Winegrowers Chief Executive Officer Philip Gregan tells us that “Sauvignon blanc constitutes 85% of our exports, followed by pinot noir, chardonnay and pinot gris. Australia is our largest market, with the United States and the United Kingdom in second and third,” he says. Wine exports are at $1.32 billion up 9.2% for the year 31 March 2014, a $1 billion in the last 10 years. It is currently New Zealand’s 8th biggest goods export.

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A Martini, Please

Carving the way

Olive are opening a cocktail bar in their garden area in June. Owner Karen Krogh says they want to attract a “slightly new audience who are up for staying out a little later. Normally every-body wraps up at about 11, and we want to keep that group.” Benjamin Clothier is working on an herbal theme for the cocktail list, which is reflective of the garden setting, Krogh says.

Selaks is to celebrate its 80th anniversary and the fifth year of New Zealand annual Roast Day on 3 August. Word is the event will honour Selaks’ Croatian heritage while taking a twist on the traditional roast meal. Perhaps family dinner is making a comeback?

All booked up Chef Jo Crabb’s first book is half story, half recipes. “The recipes illustrate the story,” she says. Artist and partner Stephen Allwood illustrated the bio-cook book, whose recipes take much influence from French cuisine. “French have the best food by far,” she says, “although New Zealand has the best seafood.” She and Allwood live part-time in France. Jo runs Carême cooking classes at Palliser Estate in Martinborough.

A fa m i ly a f fa i r Wellington brothers Hadleigh and Spencer Petherick are the duo behind Victoria Street’s new cafe and off-licence liquor store. The little cafe is decorated with things from the boys’ home, creating an “accidental” nautical theme. “It just sort of happened!” Spencer laughs. They support existing local businesses, selling bread from Arobake (“I make the sandwiches every morning,” Spencer says), Wellington Chocolate Factory chocolate, and Six Barrel Soda, and they use Karamu coffee beans.

cheers

A brewer’ s journ ey By Kieran Haslett-Moore

elly Ryan is a natural born perfectionist who beams enthusiasm, a highly skilled and experienced brewer, one of the nicest guys you will meet in the craft beer world and now he calls Wellington home. In June Ryan took up a job at The Fork & Brewer in Bond St. Kelly shot to fame in the craft beer world in the mid 2000’s when he held the job of Brewery Manager at the craft brewery Thornbridge. Thornbridge were one of a handful of English brewers who were pushing boundaries and brewing beers outside the conventional English styles. They initially shot to fame with their flagship “Trans Atlantic” IPA called Jaipur, a beer that seamlessly blended a solid pale English malt character and mildly fruity yeast strain with a big aromatic American hop character. Soon Jaipur was joined by everything from Russian Imperial Stouts and Black IPA’s to barrel aged Scotch ales, Kolsch and Vienna lagers. For four years Kelly was in charge of production and one of the main public faces of the brewery, gaining fame and respect throughout the UK and here. Kelly’s relationship with brewing began when he studied food science at the University of Otago under the late Belgian brewing scientist Professor Jean Pierre Dufour. JP as the professor was generally known was responsible for a significant rise in the number of Otago graduates choosing brewing as a career. “JP was one of the most enthusiastic, passionate people regarding beer that I had ever met,” Kelly said. From university Kelly took up a job brewing at the Tui Brewery at Mangatainoka. He then taught English in Korea before a stint brewing in Scotland at Fyne Ales before he took the Thornbridge role. After four very successful years brewing and living at the Derbyshire brewery’s pub, The Coach and Horses with his partner Catherine, it was time to come home to New Zealand.

His first job back here was as operations manager “and janitor” at Auckland’s Epic brewery. Along with owner and head brewer Luke Nicholas, Kelly was involved in developing Hop Zombie, now one of New Zealand’s cult double IPAs, Epic Larger and the quirky Epicurean Coffee Fig Stout. Next up Kelly set up the Good George brewpub in Hamilton while living the good life and starting a family in Raglan. Good George quickly turned into a Hamilton institution and for nearly two years Kelly steered the brewery through huge growth before leaving to live in New Plymouth. In Taranaki Kelly formed the tiny Brew Mountain nano brewery with his brother before being enticed to his new role in the capital. The Fork and Brewer have been on the lookout for a new brewer for some time. One of the running jokes around town has been that the brewpub’s owners would need to find a brewer as slim and slight as current brewer Lester to navigate the tightly cramped brewing vessels that have been shoe-horned into the Bond St venue. In an industry known for its strapping burly workers this seemed like a tall order, but in Kelly they not only got a seriously talented and experienced brewer but also one who can fit into the brewing space. The Fork and Brewer is an opportunity for Kelly to brew diverse and exciting beers for the most craft-beer mad population in New Zealand. Kelly plans to develop the barrel aging program that Lester began, with some plans to experiment with wild and sour beers while continuing with the range of pale ales, pilsner and stout that the brewpub has become known for. Keep an eye out towards the end of this month for Kelly’s first beers to be hitting the Fork and Brewer taps.

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forest cantina

Let them eat ca ke by unna burch

would like to say huge congratulations to Capital for their 1st birthday, a year of providing the city with such a beautiful magazine! What a wonderful achievement! And nothing says celebration more than a cake does. I used tamarillos as they have just come into season and I wanted to showcase them. The fruit and the yoghurt are tart so the buttercream and chocolate is a perfect balance. I hate cakes that are sickly sweet. If you are creating a cake for a celebration and aren’t the best at decorating, get a florist to design a cake topper for you. It instantly gives a luxe feel to the cake. Mindy at Twig and Arrow in Brooklyn designed this one and I just love the way the tamarillos are incorporated in the tones of the flower. It’s just gorgeous.

Method For the cake 8-9 tamarillos (plus 8 extra for the buttercream icing, so 16 in total. If you use an artificial colouring, you won’t need the extra tamarillos) washed and stalks pulled off ice cubes 3 cups plain standard flour or cake flour (see note) 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 225g butter, softened 2 cups sugar 1 tablespoon vanilla (I used Mexican vanilla from labocaloca.co.nz) 4 eggs, room temperature 1 cup plain yoghurt 1 cup milk Preheat oven to 170°C Prepare 3 X 23cm round cake tins by greasing with butter and dusting with flour.

To remove the tamarillo skins, cut a little cross at the bottom point of each of the fruits (see pic). Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Drop tamarillos into the boiling water and poach for 1 minute or until the skin starts to split slightly. Immediately put into a bowl of ice water and leave for one minute. Remove and peel skins.

Cut each tamarillo in half longways and then in half again so it’s like a wedge. Cut each wedge into thirds until you have two cups worth. Set the remaining tamarillos aside for the buttercream.

Sift dry ingredients.

In mixer, beat butter on medium-high speed. Add sugar. Mix again until light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes)

With the mixer on medium-low, add the vanilla and eggs, one at a time. Srape the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

On low speed carefully add about half of your dry ingredients until just combined.

Whisk the milk and yoghurt together. With the mixer running, stream in yoghurt mixture. Add in the remaining dry ingredients and mix until combined.

Gently fold in the tamarillos by hand with a spatula.

Divide batter evenly between the three cake pans and place in the oven (I had to bake 2 and then 1 separately as my oven wasn’t big enough).

10. Bake until a wooden skewer comes out clean or with little crumbs, about 20 minutes. Rotate pans halfway through baking. 11. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack before inverting. The cakes will be pale on top, not overly browned. 58

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forest cantina

Butter cream 8 tamarillos, skins peeled (see above) 4 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar 175g butter, softened but not melted 2 tablespoons rose water 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract – I used Mexican vanilla 4-8 tablespoons milk

If you want to skip the tamarillo step, just use a little red food colouring gel. But I love the idea of using a natural dye for my food.

Take the leftover tamarillos (see above) and mush up in a bowl. Now, over another bowl, you need to pass the tamarillos through a fine sieve. You don’t want any of the seeds in the buttercream, as this will ruin the smooth texture and put the measurements out for the recipe. There won’t be lots of liquid coming out; it will be a thick pulp, which you need to scrape off from under the sieve with a spoon and put into a bowl. Continue until all the tamarillos have been done. Set your natural dye aside.

Using the paddle attachment of a mixer, mix the butter, icing sugar, rosewater and vanilla together with enough of the tamarillo dye to get the shade of pink that you want. Add enough milk to lighten the buttercream and help it all come together. Beat for a few minutes until light and fluffy.

Dark chocolate ganache glaze drip 115g dark chocolate 75g butter

Notes Cake flour gives you a lighter moister cake. To make it: For every 1 cup of plain standard white flour, take out 2 level tablespoons of flour and replace with 2 tablespoons of cornflour. You have to sieve this FIVE times. This combines it really thoroughly and also aerates the flour for a lighter cake. If you are not a tamarillo fan, replace the 2 cups of tamarillos with 2 cups of blueberries dusted in a little flour to stop them “bleeding” in the cake. To get nice clean slices of cake, warm a sharp knife under hot water and dry well. The hot knife will help you get a clean cut. I wash and warm the knife with EVERY slice.

lace the chocolate and butter in a medium heatproof bowl P over a pot of simmering water. Stir the mixture using a rubber spatula until melted and smooth. Cool slightly before using.

Assembly 1.

Cool cakes completely before icing. Take a cake stand and centre your first cake. Always ice the flattest part of the cake, so place the top rounded part of the cake face down. If your cakes are really domed, I would slice the tops off so that it sits flat on the plate.

Add some of the buttercream to your 1st cake layer, about, 1cm high. Gently place another cake on top and repeat with buttercream. Pile the remaining butter cream on top of the last cake layer and smooth down and around the sides. I use a palette knife.

To get a nice smooth finish, warm knife under hot water and dry well. The warm knife will help you smooth the buttercream. Keep warming the knife as many times as you need.

Chill overnight in the fridge. To get perfect slices of cake, the buttercream needs to be completely chilled so the butter in the icing can re-harden, otherwise when you cut into the cake the layers will all mush together.

Once the cake is chilled top with the ganache glaze drip. I poured the chocolate into the centre and then with the back of a teaspoon encouraged the chocolate to drip down the side. Be careful not to push too much or too quickly. You have to work quite quickly as the chocolate hardens on the cooled cake.

Let the chocolate harden completely before decorating with flowers. 60

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s w eet as Written by Melody Thomas | photograph by daniel rose

‘Tis the season to be sniffly, but thanks to a delicious collaboration between honey-loving food exporter Sylvain Filliol and probiotics BLIS Technologies, you’ve got a much better chance of avoiding sore throats and runny noses this winter.

he story behind the Honeyblis probiotic lozenge is one of two men. French-born Wellingtonian Sylvain Filliol has a history rich with sweet recollections of honey. “My earliest memories are of… eating delicious country bread and butter with honeycomb honey from [my grandparent’s] farm, and looking at the stone fountain outside the farm house… my grandfather had put some moss on it and the bees would land there to drink from the soaked up moss,” he recalls. Filliol wasn’t allowed to go near his grandfather’s hives as a child, but in his late 20’s that all changed. “My grandfather died very suddenly and left his apiary behind. Nobody in my family had any knowledge of beekeeping so I took a beekeeping book from a shelf, read it and went on a fascinating journey,” he says. Filliol’s beekeeping knowledge today is a tapestry that includes collected wisdom from old beekeepers in his French village, a correspondence course from Telford Polytechnic and membership with the Wellington Beekeepers Association. His passion for bees and honey naturally crossed over to his day job as a food exporter and Filliol began exporting New Zealand honey to Europe a few years ago. All of these factors would come together to help create the Honeyblis lozenge. Meanwhile down in Dunedin, University of Otago Professor John Tagg’s childhood experiences were influencing his career in a different way. As a young boy, Tagg had come into contact with a ‘bad’ streptococcus microbe and developed rheumatic fever, which can be deadly. He recovered, but every day for the next ten years was subjected to a double dose of penicillin to prevent a strep infection from returning. Certain that there must be a better way, Tagg had his eureka moment when, as a budding microbiologist, he was introduced to probiotics by a teacher. Curious as to whether

the principals underlying the benefits of probiotics for the intestinal tract could be applied to the oral cavity, Tagg studied Dunedin schoolchildren and found that some didn’t get as many sore throats as the others. In their saliva he discovered BLIS producing bacteria (BLIS stands for Bacteriocin-Like Inhibitory Substances), and turned the K12 strain into the world’s first oral probiotic. It was this probiotic that Filliol first tried in 2010. “Travelling as an exporter I am overseas for eight to ten trips each year and… at least one trip out of two I would always end up with tonsillitis or a cold,” he explains. Filliol’s health-conscious wife Anna suggested he try BLIS K12, and soon after came the idea of transforming the probiotic that worked “marvels” into its current, delicious form. “Most honey lozenges in the market are made up of 1015% honey and the rest is mostly sugar. We were exporting 100% mānuka honey lozenges to Europe and… I knew we had the Rolls Royce of lozenges. Also because it takes about ten minutes to dissolve in the mouth, we knew it would be the perfect vehicle to deliver BLIS K12… the longer it stays in the mouth the better the colonisation,” he says. Filliol approached and made a deal with BLIS technologies and began to design and test their product. Nearly a year later the first Honeyblis lozenges hit the shelves, first selling solely through Wellington pharmacies but soon after picked up by health food stores including Hardy’s nationwide. Three months on the little Wellington start-up sells its lozenges through more than 120 North Island retailers and will soon expand into the South Island. Filliol couldn’t be happier: “To know that people like [Honeyblis] and that they will benefit from it. I have been sick a lot… and it changed my life.”

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A fa m i ly a f fa i r

Life aquatic Wellington diver and photographer Stephen Journée has released a book on local underwater life to encourage people to protect it. “The life in and around Wellington is unbelievable. The more people know the more they’ll realise it’s of value to Wellington as much as something like Zealandia is,” he says. Wellington Down Under (Grantham House Publishing) brings to life all the fish varieties and other forms of marine life that have made the Wellington harbour and the surrounding coastal bays their home over the centuries, from colourful sea sponges, jewel anemones, blue and read moki, seahorses, and jellyfish, to shipwrecks, dolphins and visiting orca.

Poetry in action Kate Camp will launch Maria McMillan’s new collection of poetry, Tree Space (VUP), on 10 June. It is the Kāpiti Coast resident’s first full collection. McMillan is a human rights activist who thinks about “Who gets their human rights recognised, who doesn’t, why, what we should do about it. Trust me, I’m a hoot at a party,” she says. She lives with a demonic kitten, her partner and their two children.

Elizabeth Knox has been awarded this year’s $100,000 Michael King Writer’s Fellowship. The Wellingtonian plans to write a memoir based on illness and violent death in her family. “I want to write a very personal story that intersects with lots of people’s experience,” she said. The selection panel, Kate Camp, David Hill and Iain Sharp, said Knox is “at the top of her game and the subject matter for her memoir - how to cope with ageing, mental illness and violent death in the family - will interest almost everyone.”

H o n o r a ry C at t o n Eleanor Catton received an honorary degree of Doctor of Literature at a Victoria University graduation ceremony on 14 May. Her graduation address was an illuminating explanation of the most important word she has ever learned: ‘if’. “Without it, I believe we would all be lost,” she says. I was fortunate to be at the same ceremony, and to hear her words of what were at the least encouragement, or more, a call to action, and so to reconsider the old cliché: what’s life without a little risk? The full text of Eleanor Catton’s address can be found on the VUW website. Anna Jackson-Scott

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day’s bay taxi

Queens Wharf – Matiu Somes Island – Days Bay

7 days a week www.eastbywest.co.nz 04 499 1282

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tell the little children written by Harriet Palmer | photograph by kane feaver

ar has formed a hazy backdrop to Philippa Werry’s life. Two grandfathers miraculously came home from the bloody battlefields of Gallipoli, a great great aunt was one of the first nurses sent to face the atrocities of World War One and, on a far sweeter note, her parents Noel and Anne met while serving in World War Two. Noel was in the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Anne, who was English, drove for Bomber Command, shuttling crews to airfields. Did their eyes lock across a propeller? Philippa is not sure. While it was an important part of her family’s story, war wasn’t something talked about terribly often in the decades that followed WWII. Not in her family, and she suspects, not in many others either. “Nobody really talked about it when we were growing up. I think sometimes the people who were there couldn’t talk. Or they knew their families couldn’t understand it and they actually didn’t want them to understand it. You can see why they did that but it can’t have been easy for them.” And so despite her being surrounded by survivors, Philippa’s real interest in war and the way it is remembered didn’t begin until she was a mother herself, hauling three daughters to ANZAC ceremonies at the Brooklyn Community Centre and to the crisp dawn service held at the Cenotaph.

She says while the service went on she would watch the bored and often baffled children who were part of the community choir. The microphones didn’t ever seem to work very well and they would be sitting in a draughty hall, squirming and straining to listen to words they didn’t really understand and singing songs they couldn’t quite catch the meaning of. “They didn’t know what we were standing up and sitting down for, they didn’t quite get why we had to be quiet for a whole minute or why the Last Post was played.” Those fidgety, slightly baffled children have since provided the children’s author with the inspiration for two books, both published in the past year, which seek to explain Anzac Day and Gallipoli to Kiwi kids who are more removed from war than any generation before them. The first, Anzac Day: The New Zealand Story, is a finalist in the New Zealand Post Children’s’ Book Awards. Philippa worked hard to provide both historic and contemporary information explaining the history of New Zealand’s role in war and how it has shaped the nation. The second, Best Mates, came out last month. It’s a picture book aimed at five to 12-year-olds telling the story of three young soldiers who are best friends at school and then end up on the beach at Gallipoli together. 67

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The books are timed for the centennial commemorations of the Anzacs who fought in WWI next year. At a time when the topic will be coming up again and again, Philippa felt it was important to have resources to help explain the events of a hundred years ago to our youngest citizens. But how do you explain war and the importance of remembering it without celebrating it? How much do you tell? Philippa agrees writing and telling stories about war, especially for children, can be problematic. Not only is there a risk that it becomes something to be glorified, atrocities can also be hard for smaller children to process. She says she therefore wanted to bring a very balanced approach to the way she wrote and presented the information. She didn’t want to mythologise war and says at some periods in her life she has agreed with the idea New Zealanders should move away from marking Anzac Day as it could be taken to be a celebration of something inherently wrong. “But it is important to recognise both the true cost of war and honour the sacrifice made by so many young men … and by the women and families who saw them leave and often lost them forever.” In order to do this, Philippa has tried to tell the whole story. She includes women, families, conscientious objectors and the Turkish perspective in Anzac Day. “When I was at school, war was basically the story of boys that went away. This time I wanted to show how it impacted on everybody: the families that are left behind, the women who go off and nurse, the woman who

don’t get married because there is nobody left. “It was also important to tell the story of the Turkish men who fought. They were also cold and homesick and they didn’t want to be there, but they were defending their homeland and that’s something that should be recognised.” Respect, she says, it also central to her work – not just for the people who went to war, but also for the children who are reading the stories. “You also need to respect the childhood of children by not presenting them with material that they may not be ready for. Preschoolers for example have little concept of time or history and might believe you are writing about something that could happen to them.” This year, her project culminated with a trip to Gallipoli for the Anzac service at Chunuk Bair where she joined the Gallipoli volunteers’ programme. Following her grandfathers’ footsteps and walking through both the Turkish and Anzac graveyards was a chilling experience. The youth of those who died made a real impression on her, as did the number of people who made the effort to travel to the site to wait for the dawn and remember them. “It was a beautiful night, quite warm and really still. The sky was clear and we saw the stars. When the service started you could see the blue-black hill named the Sphinx by the Anzacs silhouetted against the sky. There was a lovely crescent moon sitting just behind it. “It was incredibly quiet, incredibly peaceful.”

31 MAYâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;24 AUGUST

Principal sponsor Developed and presented in partnership with the Dunedin Public Art Gallery

f e at u r e

dreams work By Melody Thomas | Photograph by Mandi lynn

Claire Prebble the 28-year old designer and creator of beautiful objects is the new Head of Costume at Weta Workshop, and she’s been head-down and steadfastly marching towards this point since she was a teenager.

“A

t thirteen my mother showed me an article about Richard [Taylor] and what they do at Weta… I’d always been creative as a kid and at that moment [I realised] there were jobs in creative industries. I thought ‘Ok cool, that’s what I want to do and that’s where I want to work’,” she says. Growing up in the close-knit, creative community of Golden Bay, just over the Takaka Hill from Nelson, Claire spent her childhood watching and eventually helping her mother and a friend to create works for the World of Wearable Art (WOW) Awards. At just nine years old, Claire entered WOW with a piece made all by herself, and from then on the competition became a huge part of her life. At age 13, finding herself unable to focus on creative endeavour while on a rigid school schedule, Claire sat down for a meeting with her parents and proposed an alternative, self-directed schooling system. They accepted, Claire left school and spent her days learning from local artists, meeting with accountants and lawyers to hone her business skills and, of course, working on her submissions for WOW. “[That system] worked really well for me… [But] it was quite stressful because I felt like I had to prove that it was going to work,” she admits. And she did. That first year out of school, Claire won the Golden Bay Art Award, and sold the winning piece. The following year her WOW entrant Perelandra, currently on display at Te Papa, scored Highly Commended in the Open and Creative Excellence Award sections. Like everything Claire does, entering WOW was not just a fun and fulfilling thing to do, but a part of her long-term game plan. “My focus was to develop a portfolio through WOW… So that I would have something to show Richard [Taylor],” she says.

At 18 years old, Claire became the youngest ever winner of WOW’s Supreme Award, and Taylor told her to keep in touch in case a job came up that suited her skills. On her 21st birthday, Claire was offered her first job at Weta. “Richard said, ‘I’ve got this job and it’s with James Cameron… dressing an alien culture for Avatar’, and I was like, ‘Yes!’,” she laughs, “I went home and packed my bags and moved to Wellington. I didn’t know how long it was going to be for… I thought a few weeks or something, and it ended up being three years on that project.” Since Avatar Claire has worked on The Hobbit, Elysium, Haunt and Prince Caspian, and despite the famously intense nature of the film industry has managed to fill all “down-time” with her own creative projects. It’s been six years since Claire last entered WOW, instead choosing to focus on creating one-off couture and jewellery pieces that have been worn by international supermodels and actresses including Kate Moss, and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley in Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon. Claire would like to work more and more closely with the fashion and music industries; eventually dressing and art directing music videos and editorial shoots for pop stars like Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. Considering the determination she’s shown so far it’s not a stretch to imagine she’ll get there. In the meantime though, she’s focusing on the skills she stands to gain from her new job at Weta. “I have wondered how I’m going to manage my own stuff as well as all the things I need to manage at work, but… it’s the right time. Having a bit of a business mind around creative endeavours is quite beneficial because it makes it all workable, and I am ready to learn all the things it’ll teach me,” she says.

Peach Blossom, winning WOW outfit entered by Claire Prebble aged 9. Design and art direction by Claire Prebble 71

interior

Goldilocks was here Once upon a time Goldilocks came across an empty house tucked away in the forest. It was warm, homely, rustic and full of local goodies â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Goldilocks couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t resist. Inside, three unfinished bowls of porridge lay on the kitchen table. After trying each bowl, she began to feel tired, so chose her favourite of the three chairs to rest on, which soon fell to pieces, so she set off to find a bed to lie down on. Goldilocks found the littlest bed where she immediately fell into a peaceful sleep. Then the bears came home ....

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From left to right, top to bottom Wood crate small, $39.90, Corso de’ Fiori Hydrangea, $16.90, Corso de’ Fiori Falcon enamel pudding basin small, $7.90, Iko Iko Column tea spoon, $16.90, Corso de’ Fiori Candle plate lavastone, $59.50, Corso de’ Fiori Falcon enamelware milk pan, $21.90, LetLiv

The ta b l e “This porridge is too hot”

Acme & co flat white cup, $6.00, LetLiv Kilner preserve jar, $4.90, Iko Iko Round chopping board, $59.00, Corso de’ Fiori Le Creuset grande teapot, $79.90, Iko Iko Wooden pear dish, $24.90, Iko Iko Wooden granny apple dish, $24.90, Iko Iko Acme & Co flat white cup, $6.00, LetLiv Falcon enamel pudding basin small, $7.90, Iko Iko Rockpool plate pale aqua, $19.90, Corso de’ Fiori Finch cereal bowl, $19.90, Corso de’ Fiori Rockpool plate pale aqua, $19.90, Corso de’ Fiori Falcon enamel pudding basin small, $7.90, Iko Iko Column cutlery spoon, $19.90, Corso de’ Fiori Small kitchen canister, $19.90, LetLiv

Styled by Shalee Fitzsimmons Photographed by Ashley Church Assisted by Jeremiah Boniface & Madeleine Wong

Abby round stool, $189.00, Corso de’ Fiori Turkish vintage rug, $1115, The Cotton Store 74

Interior

From left to right, top to bottom Deround side table, $599.00, Corso de’ Fiori Moss ball, $35.90, Corso de’ Fiori Contour photo frames, $19.90–$29.90, Corso de’ Fiori Old & New lamp, $279.90, LetLiv Magnolia spray with 2 green buds, $19.50, Corso de’ Fiori Ivy pointed garland, $31.00, Corso de’ Fiori Hydrangea, $16.90, Corso de’ Fiori

the c ha i r “This chair is too soft”

Quail fox money box, $44.90, Iko Iko Grey wire baskets, $69.90, LetLiv Kelim cushion, $89, The Cotton Store Cotton velvet cushion, $29.90, Corso de’ Fiori Croc winter duvet cover, from $199.00, LetLiv Calfhide rug, $285.00, Corso de’ Fiori

interior

From left to right, top to bottom

The BE D

Hedgehog night light, $179.00, Iko Iko Mandala pompom garland, $22.90, Iko Iko KIP & CO croc pillowcase set in desert, $65.00, LetLiv Candystripe sheeting, from $115.00, LetLiv Croc winter duvet cover, from $199.00, LetLiv Kate & Kate jagger blanket, $110.00, LetLiv Toy Basil the fox, $39.90, Corso de’ Fiori

“This bed is just right.”

house

A model house written by Karen Shead | Photography by Ashley Church

It is common these days for people to work from home and to convert a room into an office, but maybe not so common to run your own business using most of the rooms in your house.

irsty Bunny does just that. She runs her own business, Kirsty Bunny Management (KBM), an agency which manages and books actors, models and talent, from her renovated 1914 property in Brooklyn. She has a dedicated office space, which sits just off the open-plan kitchen and dining area, and also uses the dining table to hold meetings, the spare bedroom as a changing room, and a large blank wall in the kitchen provides the perfect back-drop to photograph models and actors. This wouldn’t suit everyone, but Kirsty loves it. “I love working from home and doing everything here. The only problem is sometimes I work too much, but that’s OK,” she says. Kirsty and her husband, Stu, bought the property eight years ago after returning from a ten-year stint living in London. “It was the first house we bought and my parents told us not to go anywhere near it,” she admits, “but we loved it and saw the potential. “We were a bit naïve as we came in and we thought we would be able to do all of the renovations in a couple of years, but eight years later and we still haven’t finished,” she laughs. “We had no idea of the work involved, but it has been fun.”

Although, she admits, some areas were in a worse state than they had previously thought. “The kitchen was a big job, much bigger than we realised. When the builders lifted up the floor, we discovered that parts of the floor were resting on paint pots filled with concrete, we couldn’t believe it. Our budget was blown and I thought ‘what have we done?.’ “There was an old beam which just had a couple of nails holding it up, and there was a mezzanine area above the kitchen which was damp. It was all really badly done – it was awful.” They were relieved to find that other areas of the house weren’t quite so problematic. They re-painted the whole house a fresh, clean white, completely renovated the bathroom, and changed the layout of a couple of the rooms. What is now Kirsty’s office used to be a bedroom, and their main bedroom used to be a study. “We tried to keep it quite simple,” she explains. And everything is kept very tidy, which, as Kirsty points out, is not just for my benefit. “When you have clients coming into your house, it needs to be tidy, you can’t have dirty dishes in the sink!”

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Sports

house

Although everything is clean, fresh and tidy, there are lots of personal touches. The main bedroom has a photomontage of family and friends in white frames, the lounge has a collection of favourite paintings, and books are on display. And everywhere there are dashes of bright colour, which give the house a welcoming, lively feel. For example, the four brightly coloured chairs which sit around the dining table; the set of floating bookshelves packed with books with colourful spines; a single bright blue lampshade; and a selection of colourful paintings. The underside of a beam which separates the kitchen and dining area is painted bright yellow, as is the inside of the door-frame which separates the kitchen from the laundry. The colour inside is hinted at before you even walk in the house with its bright blue front door and quirky gumboot door knocker. “I like having a blank canvas and then putting in colour when I can,” says Kirsty. Another individual touch is the bookshelves in the office and spare bedroom – they have been converted from old drawers, painted white, some turned on their sides, and a shelf has been ut in the middle. “Stu made those,” Kirsty says, “He loves making things.” As Kirsty mentioned, there are still a few renovations to be done. “We have just decided to retrospectively put in double-glazing in the house as it is very cold,” she says. “And we are going to have to take out the old fireplace, which is a shame as it is a real feature, but it puffs smoke everywhere and it isn’t efficient. We will

put in a wood burner and then sand the floors in the living area and paint them black.” And perhaps the biggest project yet to come is the upgrade of the back garden, which can be seen from the kitchen window. Kirsty and Stu have already landscaped the other garden areas, which have been done in a very neat and uniform way with rectangular block hedges which rise up the hill-side. The main garden area will continue with this theme of hedges and paths, which will also graduate up the hill. “We have just had designs drawn up by landscape architects Moorhead and Newdick, and are waiting for quotes. We will probably go ahead and do it in winter, which is probably the worst time to do it, but at least it will be ready for summer!” So, once that is done and everything is complete, will they stay put and reap the benefits of their hard work, or will it be time to move on? “When it is all finished we are going to sit back and enjoy it for a while. But, who knows? We painted the outside of the house a couple of years ago and maybe when it comes to doing things like that again, it might be time to move on. “But I like living in Brooklyn, it is very central, and I like the house – you just get used to your space.” She admits that if they do eventually move she would want to carry out renovations again, but she has learned from past mistakes. “There would always be things you’d want to do, to put your mark on it, to make it yours,” she says, “but I would like the bones of the house to be in place next time!”

SPORT

Looking for a fight Written by Kelly Henderson | photos by pAULINE LÉVÊQUE

Thai kickboxing is a sport on the rise in New Zealand. Pop into a class at Wellington’s Muay Thai Institute and you’ll find it packed with a range of men, women, students and professionals, all training together in the art of Thai kickboxing.

weekly fitness or self-defence class is enough for most people, but for Whitney Tobin and Bailey Palmer, Muay Thai has become a lifestyle. Both have taken the step to fight competitively and are currently putting in the hard yards, training up to 20 hours per week. The pair are preparing to fight at Porirua’s Te Rauparaha Arena in June, in front of crowds of 700 plus. Whitney will be challenging for a World Muay Thai Council title. She’s hoping to become two-times NZ champion in this re-match against the highly rated Freya Thomson, who has just returned from the world champs. Whitney, 27, is no stranger to major fights such as this. She has previously competed for a South Island title, and in October last year she won the World Kick Boxing Federation title as well. “I’m hoping to get every title,” she laughs. “I’m going to be the undisputed champ.” Bailey, a freelance video editor by day, is also competing at the event in June. She has had three competitive fights in the past but after a two-year absence, this has been labelled her “comeback fight”. “I’m really looking forward to it,” she says. “Hopefully this will be the first of quite a few fights this year.” Head trainer and MTI founder Mark Hampton is working closely with both women in their training. Mark has been involved in kickboxing for more than 24 years and in that time his team has produced many champion fighters. Training fighters is not the sole focus of MTI though. Mark is passionate about teaching people the art of Muay Thai at any level they choose. 82

“I love to train people in Muay Thai, and we built this gym so that people would have a world-class facility,” he says. “It’s not all about the fighters; while we have helped make a lot of champions, we are really focused on people learning the art of Muay Thai and becoming stronger and fitter. If you do want to fight we can take you as far as you want to go.” About 50-60% of those who attend MTI Wellington don’t fight, and you don’t have to have any prior skills in order to join a class. “You can join as an absolute beginner, and you can choose to level up if you want,” explains Bailey. This is exactly how Bailey entered the sport herself. She began taking kickboxing classes five years ago because she wanted to learn self-defence and at the time she didn’t have any plans to fight competitively. Whitney’s main motivation to begin was to build fitness. Originally from Minnesota in the Midwestern United States, she was involved with cheerleading for eight years before moving to New Zealand. After keeping fit for so long, she felt she needed another sport to sink her teeth into, and three years ago decided to try a Muay Thai class. After only two weeks of training she knew this was for her, and six months later she had her first fight. “It’s almost like an addiction,” Whitney says, explaining her love for the fight. “It’s a love/hate relationship of pushing yourself both mentally and physically to extremes that you’ve never been to before. Each time it gets better and better, and each time it gets harder as well because your opponents only get better.”

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SPORT

“It’s a test of skill, to see how you’re going with your training,” Bailey adds. “The adrenaline is amazing, and afterwards you’re on cloud nine.” The training required in the lead-up to a fight is intensive, but for Bailey that’s all part of the appeal. “The fight training is just as addictive as the fight,” she explains. “We’re at the gym until 8-9pm at night, then it’s home to sleep so you can be back here again at 5am…being that disciplined, it transfers over to other areas of your life. If you’re training in the morning and then head to work, I find it really sets you up for the day. It really helps your overall nutrition as well...you have to be disciplined in what you’re eating, which can be hard, but it’s cool knowing mentally that you can do that.” Muay Thai originated in Thailand and is known as the “science of eight limbs” because you can punch, kick, elbow and knee your opponent. Although it is seen as an aggressive sport, Bailey assures me that it’s not actually about violence. “It’s not so much about hurting people…that’s the nature of the skill set, and you’re just testing it...it’s an art form that has been around for thousands of years.” Traditionally Muay Thai was a martial means of attack and defence, and it was common for women to fight alongside men in combat. However, as a result of Buddhist beliefs and superstition, it later became a male-dominated sport. Over time women have been allowed back into the arena though and today they are competing in some of Thailand’s biggest stadiums. Bailey has seen this first hand. “My partner and I go to Thailand to train. We went last year and the year before,” she says. “The first year we went there weren’t a lot of women fighting in Thailand, but last time it was amazing. There were more women in the gym and more Thai women fighting.” In New Zealand too, being a woman in a male dominated sport has its challenges. “There are fewer fights, fewer women, and fewer

women who stay in the sport for a long time, so there’s a lot of turnover in the division,” Bailey explains. Both Bailey and Whitney have faced negative stereotyping. When Whitney first began Muay Thai she attended a gym in Nelson where she was the only girl. One of her friends there, who is also a fighter, didn’t think she would keep going after her first fight, so they made a bet. “He still owes me $100,” she smiles. She highly recommends MTI Wellington for any women who want to train to fight. “This is a good gym because we have such a strong set of girls. And the boys don’t go easy on you. The last thing you want is to be treated differently.” Both fighters agree that the sport is on the rise with women in New Zealand. “Gentiane Lupi [another fighter from MTI Wellington] fought in a four-woman tournament in Auckland recently, the first time it has been on in New Zealand,” says Whitney. “There’s a women’s division in UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) with Mixed Martial Arts…I have noticed more girls coming to the MMA classes, and more girls in general coming to the gym and into the beginners classes.” For these two fighters there’s no going back; the mental and physical challenge continues to motivate them both to train and compete, even through the tough moments. “There’s a real quiet moment back in the changing room and no-one likes to admit it but you’re thinking, what they hell did I get myself into,” Whitney laughs. “But as soon as you walk out into the ring it just all melts away. The lights are shining and it’s just you and your opponent, you block everything else out. It’s an amazing test of how much each of you are prepared. You just have to respect your opponent because hopefully they’ve trained just as hard as you and they’re going to bring out the best in you.”

W ELL Y AN G EL

what wou l d De i r dre d o? Got a problem? Maybe we can help. Welly Angel Deirdre Tarrant, mother of three boys, founder of the former Footnote Dance Company and teacher of dance to generations of Wellingtonians, will sort out your troubles. Who pays for weddings? Our son is getting married and has intimated to us that we are expected to contribute to the cost. Of course in earlier times the bride’s family paid for all expenses and planned the wedding. We recognize that things change. However the event seems to be being planned exclusively by our prospective daughterin-law (whom we like) and marginally because he is not interested, by our son. It is an important family occasion for us and we want to celebrate but if we are contributing surely there should be an open

discussion about how much each party contributes and how it’s spent . Or if it’s their party surely they should be paying for it? Weddings, quite rightly, now belong to the couple getting married and they do the planning and often the paying too. All credit to them. Although I am constantly astounded at the cost of these celebrations as you say they are important family occasions. Your son is probably happy to let his bride plan her day and go with her dreams. I think you should certainly offer to help in whatever way you can whether monetary or other ways. I have made the cakes for family weddings and agonised over them but loved that this was a way to contribute - there will be lots of things she needs help with so have a family dinner and talk and offer to help make their special day the way they want it. If you want to give money decide how much you can afford and give it them to help. You do not say how formal or alternative the day will be but your support will be appreciated in whatever form it takes. And check that the “something borrowed, something blue, something old and something new” is happening!

Brown all over I am irredeemably a surf ’n’sun kind of person. I like myself better with a tan, my friends say I am risking my health with a sunbed, and my new partner gets upset saying I am demonstrating that I don’t care about our relationship by my ongoing use? My children are grown up and independent. I say it’s my life, what do you say? I am with your friends and your partner. It is your life so I guess you can shorten it at will but how selfish and how lovely to have people around you who care. The research is irrefutable so get off the sun bed. Use fake tan if you must but – get a life!

If you’ve got a burning question for Deirdre, email angel@capitalmag.co.nz with Capital Angel in the subject line.

b a b y, B a b y

THE B OOT Y MY TH by melody thomas

rom an increasingly early age, we women are taught to view our bodies through an unforgiving and caustically-critical lens. As a teenager I tried about every diet you could imagine; the one where you throw away half of everything on your plate, or where you eat only tic tacs and gum until dinner time. For the retrospectively-ludicrous “banana diet” I ate nothing else for a couple of weeks, and was forced to stop when potassium overdose started turning my skin grey. All of these diets were completely unsustainable, and every time I “gave up” I would chide myself for not having the “willpower” of the anorexics or the “dedication” of the bulimics at my school. I would have told you I hated my body, but I didn’t really. It might have been chubby and pale but it still functioned perfectly well – whatever disdain I had for it was strong, but it only ran skin deep. A few years ago I found out what it really felt like to hate my body. I was pregnant, accidentally and unpreparedly, but after long deliberation my boyfriend and I decided to keep the baby. We spent a couple of days in a state of ecstatic bliss, and then I started to miscarry. At the time I had no idea how common miscarriage was, and anyway I was young and healthy and convinced I was about to become a mother. Then, after a night of excruciating pain, I woke up and that was no longer the case. It is a weird feeling to be pregnant one day and not the next. When your body betrays you like that, when it fails to do something it is meant to do, then you know what it is to hate it. I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror for a long time. I was disgusted, angry and devastated. So you’d think that when, a few years down the track, my body goes and delivers me a beautiful, delightful, healthy baby girl, I’d finally start to give it a break. But if anything the postpartum body is more of a target for criticism and loathing. On top of the obvious weight gain, there’s stretch marks and loose skin and torn stomach muscles and caesarean scars and swollen-then-deflated87

breasts – it’s a lot to get your head around. Especially if you had no real idea what to expect in the first place. Google image search “post baby body” and see what comes up: dozens of shots of magazine covers, all featuring a glamourous and svelte actress or model-mum, all delighted to tell us about how they “got their bodies back.” Most of the remaining pictures are before-and-after shots of “real life” new mums. They pose in bikinis or their underwear, the changes in their body most obvious in their bellies – still round and swollen a couple of days after labour, flat and smooth a month or two or six down the track. The message is one of success, of mind over matter and a refusal to “let yourself go”. Like you, these women went through nine months of exhaustion, nausea, stretching and swelling, plus anywhere from an hour to a few days of torturous labour. Unlike you, they fit into their old jeans. As Facebook “Fit Mom” Maria Kang put it, “What’s Your Excuse?” The other day I was in a yoga class, and it suddenly dawned on me how ridiculously ungrateful I was being to my body. Here I was, tired but content with my wonderful little family, with all limbs in perfect working order, and all I could think about was how it’d been more than a year and I still didn’t “have my body back.” So I’ve decided to change the conversation, if not for me then for the daughter who looks to me for guidance. Every time we buy into the ridiculous notion that we’re not worthy if we don’t look a certain way, we hand over another piece of ourselves to be examined, criticised and ultimately found failing by industries that stand to make a profit from our insecurities. If we decide to opt out of that relationship, to start questioning the truth of these claims that beauty comes in just one size, and instead find the time to thank our bodies for all the amazing work they do, then surely, bit by bit, we can truly begin to get our bodies back.

t o r q u e ta l k

toy story By Mark Sainsbury

When I was a kid I was addicted to toy shops and the toy departments at Kirk’s and the DIC. It was the sheer excitement of looking at whatever had been the latest thing to arrive. Matchbox toys were my favourite of all.

egardless of the fact we couldn’t afford to buy much there was still the excitement in looking, which may explain why as a supposed “grown up” I am still addicted to the thrill of window shopping. My addiction these days is directed at car yards. So it was a foregone conclusion that when my eyes drifted towards the Landrover/Volvo/Jaguar showroom at Armstrong Prestige where they occasionally show unusual cars, and saw what appeared to be a legendary SS Jaguar100, I was hooked. The SS100 refers to SS Cars Ltd which grew out of the Swallow Sidecar company, and the 100 is because they would do 100mph – pretty fast in 1936. After World War 2, SS was not a designation popular with the marketing department so it was dropped (but curiously resurrected by Norton in the sixties, I in fact own a 650 SS). SS Cars became Jaguar cars in 1945. But back to objects of desire and the car in the window. It turned out not to be an original SS100 – they were built between 1935 and 1939, and now cost anywhere from $600,000 up. This one was what is called a “recreation”. Hand-built by a company called Suffolk in as you might have guessed, Suffolk England, these are made with moulds taken from an original SS100. They make about half a dozen a year and each one costs nearly a quarter of a million dollars. But they really do look and sound the business. Each comes with a build sheet recording how it was constructed and all the specs – it’s up-market car porn. This one was bought brand new and imported to our fair land, but for some reason the owner had a change of heart and with only 1,000 miles on the clock, it ended up at Armstrong’s. Here is where my tragic tale of unrequited childhood longings and the reality of being a car writer for Capital magazine diverge. Forget the Matchbox toys and my nose pressed up against the cabinet glass, Simon at Armstrong’s happily handed over the keys to this $120,000 tribute to the golden age of motoring and said, “go and enjoy”. With a Jaguar 3.8 double overhead cam six and an E-

type gearbox, this thing can roar. Sure it doesn’t have the sophisticated chassis of a modern-day super car but that’s the point. Apparently these cars are so well thought of they qualify for club runs and rallies, although I slightly wonder if that’s not cheating? Once in it you don’t really care. It has a fold-down windscreen which leaves two semicircular windows poking up. Yes, they look fantastic but if you were already having a bad hair day then you are really in for it. My advice: forget them, put the other one back up. Painted wire wheels with knock-off hubs, quality chromed fittings just like the originals and the body painted British racing green, it makes its presence felt. In some ways that can be a problem. Everyone waves or gives the thumbs up and when you park small crowds form around it. This is not the car for someone wanting to stay under the radar. No power steering either, but once moving it’s surprisingly agile and driving through downtown Wellington was a breeze. A real breeze because although it has a basic hood and side windows that clip on, this a car to be used topless. Our photographer Jeremiah was literally whooping with delight as we headed off to the Wellington Aero Club to see if we could commandeer their hangar for the photo shoot. All we really needed was a couple of Tiger Moths to complete the scene but then again the SS was the star. Many purists turn their noses up at “recreations” or “replicas” but this is no shoddy kit car. The engineering quality and finish will appeal to many. In fact as I arrived back from my blast a prospective buyer of mature years was waiting to see it. He had brought his wife and best mate down from the Kapiti Coast to have a look as well and they told me he could talk of nothing else since seeing it advertised. And yes I could see it in his eyes. It was like me looking at the matchbox toys, in your head you owned it. The only difference being a matchbox toy back then was out of my reach. I suspected the SS certainly wasn’t out of reach for this unassuming gentleman. I hope he enjoys it. In fact I know he will. 89