Layered look suits artists just fine

The cold snap that has plagued Wairarapa this spring has taken all three of New Pacific Studio's latest arrivals by surprise, even though two are from traditionally colder climes.
Norwegian Kari Elise Mobeck and her partner Johannes Sigurjonsson, who is a native of Iceland, left their home in Trondheim with autumn temperatures hovering round 8C and arrived at Mt Bruce to spring temperatures on a par.
"At the moment your weather is colder than we expected, it's more or less the same as home," said Johannes.
The bone-chilling southerlies were probably an even greater shock to Ines Hernandez-Avila who left California "in sandals with bare legs" and temperatures reaching 38C.
She is now " dressing in layers."
Despite the weather the trio of artists are well pleased with New Zealand and are pursuing their particular fields with relish.
Kari is doing sculpture and drawings and Johannes - an associate professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology - is soon to do a stint at Massey University's Wellington campus.
Ines is a Native American belonging to the Nez Perce tribe and also has Mexican heritage.
She is a professor in Native American studies and writes poetry in both English and Spanish.
While Kari and Johannes have been fascinated by Mauriceville, the Wairarapa township settled by Scandinavians, Ines has enjoyed her visits to Pukaha Mt Bruce and exploring the relationship Maori have with the land and forests.