Kia mau ki te tokanga nui a noho. (There is no place like home.) — Māori proverb
This is the second year in my 30-something laps around the Sun that I celebrate Christmas in the Southern Hemisphere. That means it is Summer now, I can’t wear Christmas jumpers and I am eating strawberries.
Every year I design and send a Christmas card I send to my family and closest friends. The theme is constant: a Christmas tree. The media varies depending on the materials and tools I am exploring artistically that year. This link is to the one I sent last year, and these are some designs from previous years:
This year, being in New Zealand, I thought about illustrating the character of the place and the season I am living in on the card. Somehow exotic. My partner and I noticed these perfect-looking Christmas trees that are quite abundant here in Auckland and on the North Island. I think they are Norfolk pines although not as exotic as we thought at the beginning: I saw one in the north of Spain back in June!
In any case, the photograph paints the picture and shows the intention: a wild black sand beach in Aotearoa New Zealand, with a Christmas tree like. I took this photo on our trip to Waiti, near Taranaki. I have been searching for the perfect image of a black-sand beach and tree pair since my partner suggested the idea of a photograph this year.
I always look forward to this time of the year to design the Christmas card. It’s such a giving little project. I love the process of designing it but also the process of hand-writing and signing them, and sending them to our loved ones. I am always so happy to receive those loving messages from friends and family that the card has arrived.
I learned, however, that the New Zealand Christmas tree - the so-called one - is the beautiful Pohutukawa when it flowers in late November and December. The landscape is full of these evergreen trees and these gorgeous red flowers, that paint a very festive scene. Pity I couldn’t capture it this year for this batch - the cards wouldn’t have made it on time. Below are some photos, though, I captured during recent walks. I thought: ‘Perhaps for the Christmas card next year!’. But it seems that this will be our first and last Christmas in Aotearoa New Zealand…
There is no place like home.
Merry Christmas
Meri Kirihimete
Feliz Navidad / Felices Fiestas
Bon Nadal / Bones Festes
✏️✨
And happy sketching!
Ana
Feliz Navidad, Ana!
Feliz Navidad Ana! Xxx