Our Artists

Kia ora, I’m Bernadette Ballantyne and I am so pleased you have found me and my art!

Growing up in a small town in Taranaki, I am proud to come from a family of creatives. After earning my Bachelor's of Fine Arts degree in the early 2000’s, I explored various creative careers while teaching primary school for over a decade.

I dove headfirst into my art career and I am so happy with where it has taken me. I resigned from my teaching position in 2022 and the last couple of years have been such a fulfilling time. It has been an incredible experience to focus all of my energy on my art business and I am excited to see where this journey takes me.

I invite you to explore my portfolio and I would love to hear from you.

Commissioned portraits are welcome.

Living & working in Kirikiriroa/Hamilton, Gemma is a printmaker & illustrator with a fascination for capturing the everyday.

Using intaglio printmaking, Gemma represents the beautiful architectural details revealed around our towns & cities.  The clarity of light in Aotearoa creates an abstraction. This presents an interplay between a three-dimensional object & two dimensional pattern.  In her works, Gemma captures this visual relationship through attention to detail and careful manipulation of tone.

In her illustrative work, Gemma highlights whimsical interactions between children. Again, focusing on the everyday, these images capture the essence of childhood. The vintage approach to the illustrations beautifully evokes nostalgia for the innocence children bring to all aspects of life.

Connie has always had a passion for making things since his early years. He was introduced to woodturning in school, growing up in South Africa in the late 1980s. And continued doing the odd turning now and then on a home-built lathe after school. It was always spindle turning and just part of furniture. It got more serious as years passed, although it was always a hobby. 

After moving to New Zealand in 2019, Connie became more intrigued by the artistic aspect of turning and enjoys it more than ever, always seeking something new and different to challenge his skill set. Connie’s latest turnings are often decorated with pyrography and carving, but form and wood grain are always prominent. 

Balsamic Moon is Jessie's labour of love, handcrafting small-batch self-care products using natural, botanical ingredients to nurture the body, the home & loved ones. Each creation is designed to offer practical, preventative care for minor body ailments, harnessing the healing properties of herbs & essential oils.

Retro Vibes, Tactile Delights, Stickers, Stationery & Crafts, Unhinged Humour & Snail Mail Goodness

Foxglove Tokens is very new and created by Jessie (Owner/Operator of Balsamic Moon). Launching a Snail Mail Club, where members receive curated mail packed with paper goods, activities and stationery delights—all delivered by post.

Keep your eyes peeled...you'll find mischievous Foxglove Tokens wherever Balsamic Moon is.

Visit the Greenmeadows Art Studio and Garden of local artist Sally-Ann Riddell, where her etchings, birdhouses, upcycled garden art and hand-built ceramics are for sale.

A printmaker since 2008 with intaglio etchings as her main medium.

Studio and Garden is open by appointment to groups.

Greenmeadows Art Studio – 185 Whitikahu Road

Jacquie is a local in the Gordonton area with family connections to Woodlands Estate. Her painting career has spanned over 37 years, with works displayed in NZ and overseas. Jacquie studied at Whitecliffe 

College of Arts and Design and graduated with a Masters in Fine Art in 2008. These recent works reflect an interest in narrative connected to her ancestral place. The fine fabric-like details in her paintings suggest stories from the past and present.

Hannah is passionate about creating functional ceramics that enhance a person’s inner joy. Her work explores her curious relationship with clay, paint and texture.  

Corneel van Blerk is a South African–born artist working in acrylic, mixed media, and metal. With over 30 years of experience as both educator and practicing artist, her work is held in private collections locally and internationally.

Her art is rooted in themes of gratitude, growth, faith, courage, and resilience in order to inspire and encourage her collectors and viewers within their own life journeys.

Renée Marjolein’s hand cut and printed wood cuts evoke memories and capture a sense of place and stillness. Renée works from her home studio near Ngāruawāhia, is represented by The Mandarin Tree Gallery and teaches a print class at the Waikato Society of Arts in Hamilton.

I create a wide of range products. Each item is original as the timber inspires me or allows the design by the size or grain of the timber. From practical to artistic items and for special occasions. I have been turning wood for approximately 19 years as a hobby. I am a member of the Waikato Guild of Woodcraft which has approximately 100 members. 

I’m a mixed media and felt artist creating layered works inspired by stillness, emotion and the quiet strength we carry through life. My art reflects my love for texture, meaning, and connection, inviting a gentle pause to feel what lies beneath the surface.

Julie Buttons Voss is a mixed media artist whose work is rooted in environmental awareness and sustainable practices. Upcycling and sustainability are central to her creative process. Julie skillfully blends textiles, photography, lino, and woodblock printing, often incorporating found and repurposed materials to give them new life. The environment where I create plays a significant role in her artistic vision, inspiring her to create pieces that not only showcase the beauty of nature.

“Our beautiful beaches inspire many of my paintings. To feel like you can walk into a painting, feel the sand, the light breeze and see the waves crashing in. I like to think that the painting is like looking out the window at somewhere you would love to be. It hopefully makes people remember special days they have had enjoying the beach with their families. 

I adore old dinghies and I just love to imagine the adventures people have had in these beautiful boats. I attempt to make my paintings 3-dimensional so that you can feel like you want to climb inside the boat or stroll down the walkway”. 

Shirley Cresswell is a fulltime artist based in Taupiri, She also spends much of her time in beautiful Matarangi gaining much inspiration for her always popular beach walkway paintings.

After an extensive career as a registered nurse Shirley had a passion to paint. With success in many exhibitions and galleries she went fulltime as an artist in 2012. Shirley is self-taught and has developed her own style and technique painting photo realism in acrylics and by applying paint in many layers she achieves a realist style that captures light in her work.

I am a mixed media artist working with resin, acrylic paints and anything that I can incorporate into my art from the natural world ! 

Most of my creations are practical including placemats, coasters, table centerpieces, serving platters and boards. This is sprinkled with wall art and jewelry made from recycled paint pours. 

My favorite colors are blues and beach themes but I have been pushing myself to use all the other colors of the spectrum! A lot of my work is commission pieces for people, which is challenging and satisfying. 

I am a Waikato-based artist focusing on painting the beauty of New Zealand’s native birds, animals, landscapes and seascapes, using different styles and genres of realism, contemporary realism and abstract. I also incorporate impasto techniques and different mediums in some of my paintings which results in unique and different artworks, working mainly with oil on stretched canvas or board, and also producing porcelain and ceramic sculptures.

Adoring New Zealand colors, especially the bright and vivid New Zealand summer colors of nature I decided to use strong, bright and vibrant colors which prove to be a winner in my artworks.

I have been working as a Graphic Designer and painted part time. In 2009 I did further studies and obtained a Honors Degree in Media studies including Painting, Sculpture and Illustration. I started painting full time in 2010, supplying various galleries such as Art of this World Gallery in Devonport, Monterey Gallery in Howick, Artport Gallery at Auckland Airport, Thornton Gallery in Hamilton, Mandarin Tree Gallery in Gordonton, Artworks at the Hilton in Auckland etc.

I am a self-taught glass artist who developed a passion for glass fusing after retiring from full-time work around ten years ago. I was introduced to this art form  during a weekend and have been hooked ever since. It brings me immense joy to combine colours and create beautiful items that are visually appealing.

I am always open to requests and am willing to customize pieces to match people’s colour choices whenever possible.

Inspired by a lifelong curiosity for how things are built, his work reflects respect for heritage and a commitment to sustainable growth. Using hands-on craftsmanship, Bryce's work sits at the intersection of art and engineering, bringing together native wood, natural elements and metal work.

A Hamilton-based acrylic artist who specialises in landscapes and abstract art. Michele uses vivid, bright colours to help create her individual style.

Harley Moore is a sculptor who crafts natural forms using only alloy
and rivets. His approach involves a unique juxtaposition, employing
industrial materials to represent nature. The riveted alloy
sculptures, hand-beaten, riveted, and polished, are treated to resist
rust, making them suitable for outdoor display. Without the use of
patterns, each sculpture is entirely unique, showcasing Harley’s
dedication to creating distinctive pieces