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𝔸𝕍𝕀𝔸𝕋ℝ𝕀𝕏 | 𝓣𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓮𝔂 𝓒𝓾𝓻𝓽𝓲𝓼-𝓣𝓪𝔂𝓵𝓸𝓻
Recently I was blessed to have the honour of spending a day and a half with a hero of mine- aviator Tracey Curtis Taylor aka ‘Bird in a Biplane’. Tracey has organised and piloted multiple flight expeditions with historic aircraft across Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia and America and has devoted her life to the art of flying and inspiring others with her passion. She is a pioneer of aviation both today and of yesteryear.
Tracey has completed multiple transcontinental routes in her biplane, the Boeing-Stearman "Spirit of Artemis". These ‘journeys of a lifetime’ (she has lived many) have been pinnacles of a life filled with achievement and success. Achieving both her personal and commercial licences, gaining her instructor rating and also participating in aerobatics and formation flying- there is no holding Tracey back. She is equally motivated and compelled to inspire and encourage others, especially women, to achieve their dreams and goals.
In addition to being immensely talented, she is also just an incredible person, her experiences have filled her with a knowledge and enthusiasm for the world and our inhabitants which is optimistic, educated and endearing. It was a delight to be able to talk with her in depth about life, her loves and living dreams.
Her latest movie is to be released this year in 2019, trailer below.
‘BIRD IN A BIPLANE’
HIGHLIGHTED JOURNEYS
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA to GOODWOOD, ENGLAND. 2013
In 2013, Curtis-Taylor flew Spirit of Artemis in an eight-week journey, covering over 13,000 km, from Cape Town, South Africa to the Goodwood Aerodrome in West Sussex, England. The journey comprised a total of 38 legs and 110 basic VFR flying hours, and followed the 1928 flight of Mary, Lady Heath, from Cape Town to Cairo, Egypt, travelling over Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Sudan. The journey took five years to prepare for, including finding a biplane which would cope with the heat of Africa.
FARNBOROUGH, ENGLAND to SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. 2015-16
On 1 October 2015 Curtis-Taylor departed from Farnborough, England, flying in Spirit of Artemis, arriving in Sydney Australia on 9 January 2016. The journey was inspired by pioneer aviator Amy Johnson, who flew solo from England to Australia in 1930. The flight path was across 23 countries in 50 legs. She was accompanied by a small support crew in a modern plane who documented the journey for her movie.
Several stopovers were scheduled into the flight, often with the aim of introducing Curtis-Taylor to local communities and to inspire others, particularly women. In Dubai, the plane was part of the Boeing display at the Dubai Airshow in the United Arab Emirates, while Curtis-Taylor was a keynote speaker at the International Aviation Women's Association conference.
In Pakistan Curtis-Taylor was hosted by Squadron Leader Saira Batool of the Pakistani Air Force, and visited a school in Karachi with female Pakistani mountaineer Samina Baig to speak about their adventures and to inspire the children. In Singapore, she met with girls and women involved in the UN Women programme Girls2Pioneers.
US TRANS-CONTINENTAL FLIGHT. 2016-17
In spring 2016 Curtis-Taylor started a US Transcontinental Flight, with multiple stops along the historic US Airmail Routes, flying from Seattle to Los Angeles and the Transcontinental route from LA to NY. The trip was cut short by a crash in the desert, at Winslow, Arizona, due to a loss of engine power. The NTSB investigation reported that "a gray / tan liquid was drained from the carburetor". She and her co-pilot were uninjured but the Boeing Stearman was badly damaged. It was airlifted from Phoenix to Hungary, where it was rebuilt in time to attend the 2016 Farnborough International Airshow, which celebrated Boeing's centenary year. She returned with her Boeing Stearman to LA in June 2017 and finished the flight across the USA with a finale at the American Airpower Museum at Republic Airport NY. This completed her World Flight, flying across five continents. On both US tours the Stearman biplane was shipped across the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, as it does not have the fuel range or instrumentation to cover such distances.
🛩️ 🛩️ 🛩️
IMAGINATION 💜 VISION
Amsterdam- yeep it is ridiculously pretty, and fantastically wonky ^=^
I adore Christmas and New Years. This time of the year has so much ZING and buzz… yeeoww!
POP the Champers, get out the cheese platter and call your loved ones over to celebrate the year. It is reflect and goal set season amigoes! Just like after a motorbike ride, I rationally and methodically work back through the good, spicy and most definitely could be done better next time moments and give them good turn over in my minds eye and ego.
We can pack achievements into days like rice into onigiri balls- every day in every way we are better and better; more knowledgeable, with more space for softness, more multi-coloured and more aware. Time flys and within these jam packed days, somehow looking back always ‘only feels like yesterday’. However there is a comfort in this reflection for when times seem tough- it feels huge when you are in it- but it’s a glinkle in the big picture and will inevitably pass. Look through the corners and as long as no-one has lost an eye, all can be fixed!
These rings were carved by the phenomenal Japanese artist Fumio Noguchi who is descendant of samurai. He lives in Stoke, Nelson, New Zealand- I adore his work. They are my travel companions and remind me of my direction and motivations.
Jurōjin (寿老人) is one of the Seven Gods of Fortune in the Taoist religion. This faith is built on the concept of unity and opposites; yin and yang. Jurojin is the god of longevity and wisdom. This is signified by his large forehead and long ear lobes.
To reinforce my travel buddies for adventure I went to my incredible friend Steph Lusted who set them in silver and engraved the words 'Wanderlust' and 'Vision' upon them. Both make me smile with their jolly expressions ^+^
Otafuku is a Japanese Shinto Goddess representing good luck, happiness and fertility. Despite her homely appearance it was said her sincerity and purity of spirit would encourage even the dark hearted to rethink their agenda.
2015 was my year of Passion and Trepidation. Learning a helluva lot more about love and facing niggles and anxieties head on. It was the year of analysing and recognising emotions and honestly appraising and accepting my flaws and past. I personally and professionally achieved all my hearts desires, and once close evaluated where I wanted to be and what I wanted to achieve next- Miss Squirrel tucks into rebuilding zee nut pile ;) I reordered and recognised vices and honestly evaluated my motives. I have always achieved what I have set my mind to, but this year I challenged myself to push further into the realm of achieving goals where I could not plan or foresee the entire project. Dreams where my heart and mind could see where I was going, but where reality and peoples opinions deemed my ideas unfeasible. Dreams where in the real world I left on international adventures with little to no budget but belief in my skills and personality. I love when people say ‘you cant do that’- where there is a will there is a way, and I have a very large tool kit to draw from.
I learnt first hand that nothing stays the same- home is within you; sometimes we get lured by the notion that we can go back to the familiar. I returned to New Zealand mid year because of an accident and turned this u-turn into the production and exhibition of new artwork- a purpose for being back while I repaired, but myself and my surroundings were on new terms. Purpose and motive needs to be ahead of desire and longing.
Christmas time in Delft, Netherlands
I love getting the coloured felt tip pens out and a HUGE piece of paper and brain bubbling all the achievements, ticked goals, topics or events of interest down on the paper. Highlighted and materialised from your mental blackboard to physical white paper has a powerful effect and a bloody good excuse to use glitter pens and those amazing pencils that have like seven different coloured cores all together, yet don't quite hit the mark for presentations as they always want to stick on yellow so the dude at the back can't see lol. Ever need to resolve a problem or work a direction out- this technique is my go to. You cant deny the pros and cons when they are black and white (or purple), and you cant help but laugh when everyone wants the same colour.
Amsterdam skyline
Persevere, be patient and dedicate everything to your beliefs. Condition yourself to never give up- nothing knocks me down for long. The sports I adore, the languages I speak, the music I play and the passions I follow all knock me back once in a while, and some more than that. But I always keep trying. You WILL have an accident as a motorcyclist, as with snowboarding- a grounding un-elegant whack to the ego, body and spirit- but this just makes us stronger from learning a new lesson. Speaking another language challenges us to navigate bloopers and translations; we’ve all had an awkward turtle cruise by, and so does playing music or creating art. Nothing is perfect- and my god what a plate of bland it would be if it could get that way! Yes, sometimes what you can get yourself into can be really really embarrassing in hindsight- but honestly, it all comes out in the wash.. and well, if it doesn't, who doesn't love retail therapy?…
Technology is the product of imagination but I see real time interaction as like comparing skinny and full fat milk- they both do the same trick but one has a bit more oomph. The media combined with the accessibility of the technology of today, is subconsciously reinforcing unrealistic ideas of ‘perfection’. Things, people and identities don't feel right when they are bought or superimposed and there is no way your ducks will ever perfectly line up. Letting your subconscious float with images or comparisons where the perception is that this is a complete package does no good. Turn off- GO OUTSIDE
Our souls don't integrate and sing an experience by watching it or sticking it on: be. proud. in. your. skin. Media doesn't make your brain PAINT the image in your head. Imagination and vision is the most powerful tool we have, because quite literally, if you can harness this power you can create your dreams. It is only a Western view that dreaming at night is the by-product of a resting body- a huge proportion of the world has known for centuries that this time and these images are much more powerful and alive. Real deal zebras earn their stripes from trial and error and getting up and trying all over again in the savannah with mud and creepy crawlies and all sorts of curveball challenges.
Delft
It will not be long before we can eat, touch, use all our senses and create within a digital existence- the beginnings are already there: the emotive connections to what we see and hear, remote robotics engineering and creative software. What are the pros and cons of this interaction, what really is the definition of ‘tangible’ and what is the cost to us as organic interactive mammals? How does this effect traditional imagination and perception? The balance of power between virtual and real is tipping.. This is the evolution of our race which is exhilarating, but I foresee new frameworks to exist within this that will bring interesting challenges. Core principles of evolution have been the same for millennia- perhaps now a little harder to see through white noise. With open eyes life works out; where once it was a letter now is an email, we fly rather than sail, we can tweet our thoughts and get introduced to other likeminded people in a bat of an eyelid on the other side of the globe- but this all happens for a reason on what your life is doing.
Every day older is a wonder. As a woman and a human, I only see benefits in how we age. We are such incredible creatures with unique energies that grow stronger if we give them the right conditions. Age helps us tweak the mix and refine the ingredients. I have grown amongst elders who are dynamic, passionate, intellectual and openminded, traits which have encouraged me to develop in the same way and gift my time to others who are curious and engaged: learn from those you admire but trust yourself to create your own story. Value age; don't buy into other peoples dismissive attitiude- make your own decisions on your own terms. The people who genuinely value and adore you will stay stuck to you too come hell or high water. As a woman, I feel empowered, within my skin and stronger every day older- not to mention sexier- I worry less and embraced the immensely powerful notion that no-one can hurt me apart from myself and the ones I love. There is a strength and resolve that comes from this that is truly liberating.
The Hague: Hotel Des Indes and the Escher Museum on the far right... more to come on this one!
I have always been very proud of my country, culture and in love with the land of Aotearoa- but my adoration has grown with a new appreciation of what it means to be a New Zealander. My ancestors were some of the first to arrive in The Land of the Long White Cloud; far OUT they had pioneering spirit- whatever we push ourselves to do today is really rather timid and diminished by the enormity of what our predecessors undertook. We have history, colour, passion in our very very new country. Adventure and discovery is in the blood of each and every person who travels to this far land to make their home. History with both good and bad and blood on the hands of both parties. This needs to be embraced and not adapted and appropriated to fit- other mature cultures don't do this- comes back to learning how to be comfortably uncomfortable. We magpie and collect things from all around the world and bring them back home where we refine them- but I’m calling that we are doing to much of this to our heritage also. This cannot be rewritten, refined or embellished. History is not perfect. I am a mongrel- we all are- we are mixed and multicultural. No-one is ‘pure NZ’- we are one people with a culture that is so world leading it is incredible (if not a little fun police sometimes..). I look towards a future in my country where there is unity in diversity and where our history and stories are told in truth by ALL parties. We are a magnificent people- it is no wonder that individuals and teams amongst this go on to do, create and become incredible humans with unique achievements. Our integrity, sense of play and follow through is unparalleled. We don't look for the holes in dreams; when the rest of the world is going ‘WTF?!’ we go ‘soo I’ve got the car keys..’
Even the way we travel is unique. We are spontaneous, courageous and ready to adapt. It is intimidating booking a one way flight with fluid plans and only the first nights acomm organised, but you get into a ripple.. I cant think of anything worse than being tied into a box and an allocated itinerary! Pat on the back wee Kiwis- from our glorious island with a teeny population- we sure get around. ‘Salt of the Earth’ I’ve been called on more than one occasion- yes. we. are. (and not far from J.R. Tolkiens leaf smoking hobbits who get on to Mordor and back to the Shire and everywhere in-between…. urg God we are NEVER going to shake this are we)
Bronze at Scheveningen Beach, The Hague
Kiwis have vision. New Zealanders BELIEVE we can do what we need to do, we grow up encouraged to visualise what we want to be and we are surrounded by idols who reinforce that by setting your mind to what you want, you can and will become what is in your heart. The cherry on the top is that by doing this you will meet the ones you idolise, and that is a very powerful and heart warming thing indeed. Ingenious and driven Kiwi spirits of note that have inspired me: Burt Munro (motorbike designer) to Richard Pearse (aircraft engineer, pilot and 1st man to fly) and Kate Sheppard (suffragette). Lorde (musician), John Britten (motorbike designer), Bruce McLaren (racing driver) to Jean Batten (pioneering aviator- 1st solo flight from London to Auckland) and our beloved All Blacks- what immense power is directed with them on the pitch as all over the globe we gather, anticipate and believe they will win and deliver… that is a LOT of directed energy! Shit- global warming? Maybe our world is just slowly heating because no one likes the cold?!?!! lol… We encourage the underdog, have accessible resources and ATTITUDE. Attitude is everything.
'The Lion and the Mouse' bronze at Scheveningen Beach, The Hague
Creativity comes as a response to pain- if everything was smooth sailing what I would produce would be boring. Evocative art has emotion. Design come from technical skill and ability. My art comes from deep inside me. My creations are the legacy of sensation and sometimes it is not until a while after that I see where they fit in my story and why I have produced them. There is something rather nice about this though as it’s inherently cathartic, and by the time this realisation dawns I am well into another direction. Love and Despair -there is nothing in this world without love, no money and no power- everyone must wake up in the knowledge that someone else is waking up thinking of them, because everyone has someone. Next time you meet an artist at their opening show though, give them a phenomenal quality and loooong hug- it'll be well earned and bloody immensely appreciated (Glasses, your hug midyear was unbeatable xo)
Be effervescent- see those bubble rise off yourself.
The shortest day has past- so my body clock can come from hibernation mode and start winding back towards sunlight (yayyy!) while in the Antipodeans wheel out the barbie, get the smoker hot and toasty for some fresh fish, lay the cray pots and dive for paua. Grab zee ‘kini, your most colourful dress or shirt, floppy hat and soak those rays babio!
Steal your kiddies crayons or treat your paws to the colourful pencil section at the art store. Make use of the brown paper after the F&C’s to draw out those desires for 2016.
What are you super uber duper proud of yourself for this last year?! (Yeah baby pat that back!)
AND
What do you desire more than anything for this one coming?
You deserve it- and hey, don't think it's crazy- there is always something bigger or crazier out there!
Go for it... I DARE you ^+^
𝒞𝓊𝓇𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓁𝓎 𝓁𝑜𝒸𝒶𝓉𝑒𝒹 𝒾𝓃:
𝓙𝓪𝓹𝓪𝓷 | 2014
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