This story begins on a bright, sunny June day about an hour outside of the city of Copenhagen, Denmark. I believe there are paths we are meant to cross, and this was one of those instances. What was initially a spontaneous trip to visit Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Center in Skaelsk.r ended with the beginnings of a friendship and a newly found appreciation for a country 7810 miles away—New Zealand, or Aotearoa in Māori. Aotearoa loosely translates to “the land of the long white cloud.” This phrase aptly describes the islands of New Zealand, which artist Virginia Leonard calls home. Her former studio in Davenport, a coastal town just a ferry ride from the city of Auckland, was surrounded by beaches and the sounds of the Pacific Ocean. What follows is adapted from a conversation Virginia and I shared over a delicious meal at her home there, prior to her move to a new space in Auckland.
Jiha Moon featured in Hyperallergic