Creative Connections with Mandy Jakich

Lyndy Wilson is a contemporary New Zealand painter of Tainui descent. She grew up and still lives in the small town of Ngāruawāhia surrounded by the Waikato and Waipā rivers and the majestic Hakarimata ranges, a constant source of inspiration.
Her style can be described as diverse, eclectic and ever evolving which allows her the freedom to explore different subjects such as floral and botanical, abstract, landscape and more recently figurative.
Growing up in Ngaruawahia Lyndy was immersed in Maori culture. Annual regattas At Turangawaewae Marae were always a huge event for the town and a way to celebrate and show pride in their rich heritage.  Lyndy has early memories gathering flax with her Grandmother and sitting watching her great Aunties weave. Hangis at Christmas with the extended family were well loved  ..these early memories inform some of her figurative work. 
In this episode Lyndy talks about studying at The Learning Connexion art school in Wellington, how she manages painting three different genres in her art practice and what inspires each genre, the ways she processes her own emotions through her paintings, her fascination for "the dark side", what she does with her 'failed' paintings and the great story behind her finalist work for the National Contemporary Art Award "Tell Me You Like It Anyway". She opens up about self doubt and learning to handle that, building community, her experimenting Fridays and her tongue in cheek plan for starting up a "husbands of artists support group". 
Thank you to Lyndy for joining me on CC. And thank you as always to my faithful listeners and supporters .
Now on to my chat with Lyndy - enjoy.
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Helen Kerridge is a contemporary painter from the Hawkes Bay. 
Many of Helen’s paintings are set in sparse environments, with a minimal grouping of subjects exude a sense of stillness, contemplation, and a celebration of the beauty to be found in objects and the stories to be told.
Helen has been painting all her life, from as far back as she can remember. She started her photo realistic painting career in New Zealand and the US, touching up professional photographs before the days of Photoshop.
In this lovely episode which I know you'll love, we talk about how her 18 year teaching career in painting started, from community classes to her private painting classes which became hugely popular in the Hawkes Bay area, and how and why she came to full time painting only 3 years ago. She shares how teaching influenced her own painting practice, pushed her out of her comfort zone and kept her learning across genres. 
Helen shares her love of and connection with objects she includes in her paintings like the Crown Lynn Swan and how she likes to learn about the background and stories of these objects. She shares her love of the Old Masters of the 17th century and how they have influenced her work, and how she has created a 'point of difference' in her work with her use of simple compositions and mostly subdued tones, with the occasional addition of pattern. 
I just love the little anecdotal stories Helen tells in this episode. 
Helen talks us through her painting process, how she paints glass and the paints she uses, her colour and paint management, the thin layers of paint she applies, how she decides what to paint, her studio set up (which is not as organised as you'd imagine!), her poratit training she experienced in 2019 and why she prefers to use acrylic paint.
Helen talks enthusiastically about the loaded symbolism in her "The Devil Is In the Details" painting, which was made for a Hospice fundraiser and sold for $40,000, as well as the symbols and narratives in other works.
Nga mihi thank you to Helen Kerridge for sharing your incredible practice and career on Creative Connections. Your work is such a joy to view and it's been wonderful to learn more about your ideas, process and the connections you make. And a big thank you to you for tuning in. 
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Vicki Fox founded Quirky Fox art gallery in 2012. It is located in Hawera, a small town of 10,000 people south of New Plymouth.
Showcasing both established and emerging talents, Quirky Fox invites both New Zealand and international artists to be part of its carefully curated range; all international artists are exclusive to the gallery within New Zealand, while New Zealand artists are exclusive to the gallery within Taranaki. 
Quirky Fox aims to provide a home for artists working in new contemporary and representational styles and introduce their works to both a New Zealand and international audience. 
This episode is a great insight into how a person can get over challenges and use their strengths to create and work on something they are passionate about. Vicki Fox has lived her whole life with a speech impediment. As a child and young person she was teased and never felt she fitted in, even feeling like a "misfit" at times throughout her life. As she has got older she has come to the realisation that the things she was teased about are actually the really interesting, fun parts of her personality. 
 In this chat Vicki shares how she finds her artists and builds her network, what she looks for in an artist and her expectations and management of artists both in New Zealand and internationally. 
We discuss her advice to artists approaching her gallery, how she feels about artists experimenting and changing their style, why she is against AI, pricing work (her least favourite part of the business), the development of her newly renovated gallery space and her exhibition schedule. 
Thank you to Vicki for agreeing to have this chat with me, something I know she had reservations about. I think her story will inspire you.
At the moment Creative Connections does not receive formal funding. Some generous listeners have chosen to support us with a monthly donation of $3, $5, $8 or $10. If you would like to contribute in this way you can click this link to set up your donation. Easy as and you can cancel any time! Thank you so much, every cent is truly appreciated and ensures the continuation and development of the podcast.
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Scott Lawrie is a well known, much loved gallerist and writer who was based in NZ and is now living in Scotland. 
I absolutely loved catching up with Scott again a few months ago while I was living in Turkey. I last spoke to Scott on the podcast more than 3 years ago in episode 62.
Scott Lawrie Gallery began life in 2017 in Tamaki Makaurau Auckland and continues to thrive now in Edinburgh Scotland. As the gallery’s reputation grew the focus pivoted away from art as a business ontology, towards a more authentic, occasionally experimental, vessel for interesting ideas. 
The gallery has hosted over 200 exhibitions, showcasing work by over 140 artists from around the world.
Scott moved from Aotearoa NZ back to his home town of Edinburgh in Scotland in 2022.
In this episode we discuss everything from: giving up alcohol 4 years ago, taking a weight loss drug and how that has affected him, his view of the art world in Aotearoa and in Scotland; to capitalism and how it flattens culture, art for the working class, cultural vandalism, theories of collapse, the purpose of art fairs, funding in the arts and his love of critique.
If you haven't listened already to our first chat on the podcast, I recommend you listen to episode 62 before you settle in to this one. 
Nga mihi nui, thank you very much to the lovely Scott Lawrie for his encouragement and support of this podcast and for joining me again to update us on his life and views. 
And thank you for tuning in again in our first episode of 2026. I look forward to sharing more inspiring stories this year and connecting with my listeners and artists. Thanks so much for your support as well. 
I'm currently in the process of locking in artists for 2026 so please do get in touch if you know of an artist living in NZ who would make a great guest or if you are interested yourself. One of my goals for the podcast this year is to grow my audience and the variety of visual artists I speak to, so I'd be very grateful if you could share the podcast or episodes you've enjoyed with your friends or on your socials. 
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In this episode I speak with Mike and Linda Geers, the owners of Art By The Sea, an art gallery in Hurstmere Road Takapuna, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.
This is a fabulous chat with 2 people who are very passionate about the visual arts in Aotearoa. Linda and Mike see themselves as conduits between artist and audience, as kaitiaki guardians of artists' work, making connections through art.
We talk about how they came to purchase Art By The Sea in 2001 when it was in Devonport, the early challenges they experienced and their move to new premises in Takapuna in 2021. Mike and Linda share how they choose an artist to represent, what they recommend to artists, how they like artists to approach them, what they look for in an artist's work, how and why they turn down some artists, what they expect from their artists and how they respond to their artists experimenting with new ideas. 
We discuss their yearly exhibition programme, supporting charities through group shows and the challenges of owning and running an art gallery, 
Linda and Mike generously share the rewards, honours and life changing moments they have experienced as gallerists who are deeply connected to their stable of artists, their collectors and their audience. There is so much great advice for artists in this chat which I'm sure you'll find valuable.

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See our website for more about us and artist blogposts with images + links of the things we talk about in each episode.

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