Wānaka’s sad cloudy season is the very reason Wānaka artist Sierra Roberts found hers.
Miss Roberts, in her own self admission, has been a bit of a nomad, having travelled through Asia, South America and living in Byron Bay where she would surf and save money, just to travel elsewhere for a year.
Like many New Zealanders, she found herself back home in 2020 when Covid-19 meant she would have to make a choice.
"I lived in Salt Lake City for a couple years, working at Snowbird (a ski resort) and studying, doing trips around America and Canada."
She spent a year travelling Asia, much of that time in the Himalayas hiking and another year in South America travelling from the southern tip of Argentina to Mexico.
"We spent a large portion of our time in Peru in the Cordillera Blancas."
Her travel ended in Alaska working at a heli ski lodge, before she ended up back in Wānaka to settle.
She recently became a mother.
"I am focused on just readjusting to life as a mum and spending as much time with my 4-month-old girl as possible.
"The painting will always be there for me. So at the moment there really isn’t a balance. I get a couple hours a week in. But I hope to increase this as we fall into a routine."
But the artwork began in Wānaka, where she spent most of her childhood after moving from Mount Cook when she was 5.
"I started painting in high school, Wānaka has a month or two a year of inversion [no sun] which can get a bit depressing, so painting was an outlet for me to enjoy in the sad cloud season."
Seeing there was a talent, she went on to study fine art in between ski seasons.
"The more I’ve drawn and painted the more passionate I’ve become about it. I loved learning art history in university, but really I just wanted to paint."
Strangely, she was told through her degree that "painting is a dying art", which left her disheartened so that is where the travel bug began.
"My earlier works were inspired by my travels and the incredible people and communities I met along the way. These earlier works were largely focused on bold, statement portraits."
You don’t have to pay too much attention to see that Miss Robert’s art has a heavy focus on females, along with bright coloured birds and flowers.
"As time has gone on, I’ve become really interested in the female experience, the connection between women and flowers and most recently my current works are focused on placement and identity in Aotearoa."
She said Wānaka was a natural choice for her connection with home, because she was brought up here, but also the alpine environment and general beauty.
"I love being so close to my family. I also love the outdoors, particularly alpine environments and it’s wonderful to be surrounded by such a tight group of friends.
"I think Wānaka is the most beautiful and fun place on earth."
She has gathered both domestic and international clients and sells prints of her work which are more affordable.
She bases herself in a studio out by the Wānaka airport on her parent’s property, where it all began.
Most artists cannot name a favourite piece, she is no different.
"Whispers of the Mountain is my current favourite. It was a happy accident that incorporates all my favourite things, alpine, weather, the kea and femininity."
