Rooted in the Wild: A Journey Back to Self

Welcome to Wild Inspired, a creative journal from the edges of the map. This space began with a question I’ve carried for years: What does it mean to live — and create — in conversation with the wild? And, more deeply, how do we uncover our truest, most authentic selves through that connection?

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been drawn to nature — not only to the wilderness around us, but to the wildness that lives quietly within. That part of us that resists being tamed, conditioned or defined. The part that whispers, “Make something,” even when no one is watching.

I never went to art school, but I’ve always been creating — observing, collecting, learning directly from the world itself. Nature has been my greatest mentor. It reminds me that creation is not linear, but cyclical: growth, decay, renewal.




Why Wild Inspired?

Writing has always been a love of mine, so when I felt called to begin this blog, the name Wild Inspired arrived effortlessly. Everything I create begins as a dialogue with the natural world — a rustle of leaves, the rough texture of lichen, the breathless hush before sunrise.

My inspiration isn’t about conquering mountains or chasing adrenaline. It’s quieter, more grounded. It comes from the hush of a beech forest, the salt wind along a lonely beach, the golden stillness of desert light.

Travel has deepened this relationship. I’ve wandered New Zealand’s national parks, trekked the Himalayas, watched elephants move through African dust, soaked in Mexico’s vivid hues, and driven beneath Arizona’s vast, open skies. Each landscape has left its mark — not just in memory, but in my art.

My hand-painted cushions echo Kenya’s earthy tones; my surface patterns hum with Bali’s lush blooms. Each piece, now gathered at Ilka Boutique on Mapua Wharf, is a love letter to the places that taught me about beauty, patience, and presence.





Nature as a Creative Teacher

When I step outside, something within me settles. The noise quiets. The world widens. The rhythm of waves, the flicker of light through branches, the hum of unseen life — all remind me that creativity isn’t something to be forced. It flows through us when we’re open enough to listen.

That’s why Wild Inspired exists: to celebrate art as an act of listening.

Art that grows from intuition and connection, not perfection or control.

The forest doesn’t ask permission to grow. The sea doesn’t seek approval before it crashes on the shore. Creativity, like nature, is wild — and that’s what makes it sacred.




The Wild Within

This journal isn’t only about outer landscapes — it’s also about the inner ones.

The wilderness within us that longs to live freely, to create without fear, to return to our true nature.

I believe we are all wild beings — born with an innate capacity to connect, to create, and to belong. When we peel back the layers of expectation and stop chasing perfection, what we make becomes more honest, more alive.




The Next Chapter

It’s been a year since I last had a studio — a year of movement and quiet transformation.
We relocated from the UK to New Zealand, and I’ve been creating wherever inspiration found me: on the road, in the desert, in an RV, in the living room of our new home.

Now, a new chapter begins. This week, my new studio arrived — delivered by truck and gently placed in our back garden (see a reel of the action on Instagram!). At last, I have a space rooted in possibility again — a place for new, nature-filled work to grow.

For now, it’s about stillness. About listening. About rediscovering that wild flow of creativity that feels most authentic — unhurried and alive.

I’m looking forward to days spent painting again, to finding my rhythm and voice, to flexing that creative muscle and watching where it leads. As Picasso once said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”

So here I am — ready to work, to listen, to create.

Watch this space for new, wild inspired art from my new home studio!

All photos copyright ©Abbey Mae