Holly from Decor 8 wrote a post the other day suggesting bloggers post about the music they are currently listening to, and it reminded me that I haven’t done so for a while. So here is what I am listening to now, Songs for Tibet, with beautiful ballades from a nice slice of my favourite artists like Joan Armitrading, Imogen Heap, and Dave Matthews. Funds raised from the album go to support peace initiatives as well as Tibetan cultural preservation projects important to the Dalai Lama. It is music to my ears.

Sydney photographer Jamie Williams is one of my favourites – he photographs all the Tibetan events back home and beyond, and has a way of capturing the moment perfectly. I will be featuring more of Jamie’s work soon, but for now I just wanted to show you this one which I love. It is available as a card too, and I bought a set of them a while back for birthdays and special occasions. This image is titled Enlightenment. He also shoots such events like Australian Fashion Week, and various festivals. Check out his flickr set here.

This special documentary created by Australian Lara Damiani, was guided by her burning passion for human rights, social justice and freedom. Starting back in 2006 and funded through personal cash and bank finance, Lara decided it was time to begin filming. Her subject matter just happens to be something close to my heart: The plight of Tibet and the Tibetans.

But unable to secure finance for post production, the project stalled a little while ago until a generous donor unexpectedly came to the rescue. As Lara says, “It’s a perfect example of what can be achieved when people who really believe in something come together”. Please give a large round of applause for Lara as I introduce you to her film “Tibet’s Cry for Freedom”, with this exclusive trailer, narrated by actress Kerri Armstrong…


Find more videos like this on Candle4Tibet


Congratulations Lara, this looks to be a fantastic production, I can’t wait to see it! For more information, please visit Lara’s site here.

well you may be aware that I have alot of things on my mind right now. My plans have become my unplans, and my focus has shifted for the moment. I’ll keep you informed of my whereabouts in due time. For now, I want to share one of the things at the forefront of my mind: I have been receiving many messages over the past few weeks… and I won’t pretend it’s not a little bit exciting to get an email from Richard Gere in my inbox. But I know it’s only because we just happen to share a common interest in humanity…

Today, being the eve of the Olympics, I will be starting another series of posts about Tibet and China for the duration of The Games in Beijing. I love both these countries for the positive attributes they offer the world. And I will be showcasing some of the things that I love about them and how they inspire me.

Starting with this message from my friend Dorji Dolma la in Sydney, with thanks to the ATC and Get Up Australia – two associations that have worked tirelessly to bring awareness to the plight of the Tibetans. Please watch and listen to her message and remember, humanity needs Tibet.

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images courtesy of The Art of Peace Foundation.

“A TibetSydney hand-weave isn’t a rug; it’s a story. A story where one becomes part of the narrative… Here it becomes a calm controversy of textures, palette and meanings between the occidental and oriental, futurism and antiquity, noise and contemplation, skin and intellect…”

I have found I have become so fascinated in the art of weaving – it is such an art, and just the sight of a loom makes me a little giddy. The TibetSydney showroom in Queens St, Woollahra is not only an inspiration for it’s weaved creations, but is also an interior masterpiece, created by famed architect Donavon Hill…

I first learnt about TibetSydney in Vogue Living, and I remember drooling over the images and carefully digesting every single word…

And I remember thinking, how does something so ‘everyday’ like a rug, become so evocative, so rich and layered, so full of depth. And I thought – it is culture. It is influences. It is one’s personal experiences and attachments as an artist that is interweaved into each piece, creating and weaving stories into each creation.

This is something I hope to achieve in my own work, in whatever medium it takes. The idea of weaving one’s cultural experiences and intimate moments into an everyday artefact makes an interior sparkle with life.

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Click here to read the story narrative of the TibetSydney rugs, and the inspiration of the designs.