What I hope for, in bringing this magic soul into this world, is that she loves and honours herself; how she feels, not how she looks, empowering her soul to learn, grow, discover and play. For her to feel connected to nature and to others. To be kind, empathetic and a dear friend. To feel confident to ask for help, share her feelings and find ways that fill her cup, so she can keep being the divine being she is; curious, cheeky, happy and animated. What that means for me, is to love and honour myself and reflect all those things for her to see in action. To be a role model for her, growing alongside her. I’m here for this wild ride 🙏🏽 5 months in, I celebrated with my first yoga class without the babes 🥰 #motherhood #5monthsold #rolemodel #tryingmybest #learningonthejob

This beast of a work is still my biggest yet! UNBROKEN – Camargue Horses, 51 layers (34 litres) of carved acrylic a 2600 x 1800mm board. A labour of love, crafted slowly over 3 years from start to finish. But like all good works they take time and it’s like a wild crescendo at the end, with all the energy building overtime and then it’s done! Exhibited in my WILD show at @allpressstudio in April 2018! Still available if anyone interested 🥰 Tool: @speedball_art lino cutter Paint: @resenecolour lumbersider Board: @framesbydaniel #camarguehorse #art #artist #hannahjensenart #paintcarving #paintcarver #horse

The before and after of motherhood is so visceral and yet also so blurred. I had grown to feel so confident and secure pre-Zara and now there are days I feel in a constant state of unsureness. How do I dress a little human let alone how do I dress myself, running at a whole thermostat higher than usual. I’ve left endless things on top of the car that fly off at the first corner; coffee, leftover pizza, wallet, cellphone; luckily the later 2 being recovered. I’ve been pulled over by the cops for speeding and then let go when they heard the screaming child in the back seat, an understanding knowing of what it’s like to be trying to get home quicker to get the upset baby out of the car. I’ve felt so stretched and unequipped and yet knowing that this is all part of it. I’m growing alongside her, with her, finding my feet as she finds hers. Getting to know her as I get to re know myself on a whole other level and also find more peace on the days I feel such frustration; a deeper dive for grace. Some days I feel so in the flow and others like I just can’t get anything right. What I do most days though (between all the mum & bubs events) is walk, no matter how cold or wet, we bundle up and get outside, often a couple of times, as we are such early birds; to the beach, up in the hills, around the block, new tracks and old, it is my return to me and hoping a beautiful introduction for Zara, to movement and getting outdoors! I adore our adventures together. #motherhood #adventures #frontpack #ergobaby #getoutdoors

C A R N A T I O N S - a frilly bit of magic carved into 58 layers (4 tones) of acrylic house paint on a 200mm diameter board. Safely arrived in Alberta 🇨🇦 Tool: @speedball_art lino cutter Paint: @resenecolour lumbersider #hannahjensenart #art #paintcarving #carnations #floral

Front-pack girl gang, getting out and doing it! I think we can all agree that whatever stage of life you are at, finding epic humans that love and support you through each stage is pretty crucial. An absolute bonus of being a parent is dating, I mean connecting with 😆 rad mums. Makes a huge difference 👊🏽 Rocking the hills with these beautiful women today and a bonus dip in the ocean for this māmā 🙌🏼🌊 #godleyheads #frontpackgang #mumlife #babesinthehills #goodyarns #gratitude

P Ō H U T U K A W A - otherwise known as the native Christmas tree of Aotearoa. A stunning fluffy flower that puts a smile on my dial every summer. This incredible tree clings to the cliffs along many stretches of our coastlines, especially favouring the warm North. These works were created between 2010-2017, a couple of huge paint carvings in there too, biggest being 2.4 x 1.2M 🙌🏼 #art #carving #paintcarving #hannahjensenart #pohutukawa #newzealand #aotearoa

An oldie but a goodie! Love this design, 1956 Southland Centennial Farming Stamp. Little did I know in 2007 when I carved this into 24 layers of acrylic house paint, I would move to the South Island a decade later. 👍🏽 350 x 600mm board #art #artist #paintcarving #newzealand #postagestamp

C A R N A T I O N S - a frilly bit of magic carved into 58 layers (4 tones) of acrylic house paint on a 200mm diameter board. Safely arrived in Alberta 🇨🇦 #hannahjensenart #art #paintcarving #carnations #floral

I began layering this board in July 2017 with 17 litres of acrylic house paint, layered over 65 layers. I then drew this divine Greater Kudu, inspired by my time spent in South Africa on my Dads game reserve; running around the land bumping into these incredible creatures. 8 months of carving and tinkering later, it was finally ready to be a part of my solo exhibition, WILD, shown in Auckland, NZ, April 2018. 1 of 11 large-scale animal portraits created for the show, an exhibition I’m still really proud of 🙏🏽 Paint: @resenecolour lumbersider Tool: @speedball_art lino cutter #greaterkudu #paintcarving #hannahjensenart #art #carving #kudu #animal #wildexhibition2018

S C A R A B - little magic beetle carved into 59 layers (4 tones) of acrylic house paint on a 200mm diameter board. A fun wee carving while baby napped. Safely arrived in Seattle 🇺🇸 Paint: @resenecolour lumbersider Tool: @speedball_art lino cutter #hannahjensenart #art #paintcarving #scarab

Little throwback to this HAMSA, carved into 33 layers of acrylic house paint on a 800 x 1100mm floating ply board. One of thirty works shown at Allpress gallery in Auckland for my PORTHOLES INTO NATURE exhibition in 2015. Having returned from LA, where I carved for 3 months for a group show, I was inspired by the warmth and vibes of Venice beach where I lived (thanks to another epic kiwi for putting me up). Morning swims/surfs and afternoon yoga was daily my ritual. Very grateful for the opportunity to travel explore! Added on New York at the end, which was a melting pot of epicness and total contrast to my time in LA. #art #hamsa #carving #paintcarving #hannahjensenart

S C A R A B - little magic beetle carved into 59 layers (4 tones) of acrylic house paint on a 200mm diameter board. A fun wee carving while baby napped. Safely arrived in Seattle 🇺🇸 Paint: @resenecolour lumbersider Tool: @speedball_art lino cutter #hannahjensenart #art #paintcarving #scarab