An incredible location in New Zealand served as the inspiration for a painting that holds special meaning to me. In 2005, I was working in that country as a character animator on Peter Jackson's King Kong movie, spending long hours behind a computer screen at the studio. To unwind from the demanding work, I occasionally wandered through the Wellington Botanic Gardens during my rare free moments. The magnificent trees intrigued me, and I captured their beauty with my camera. Years later, I decided to recreate those memories on canvas, drawing inspiration from the photographs I had taken.

While many of my artworks explore metaphysical concepts, this painting was simply a depiction of beauty for beauty's sake. The distant trees were painted with loose, wet-in-wet brushstrokes, contrasting with the sharper details of the main objects in the foreground for a sense of depth. Although I used my photographs as a reference, I carefully decided what to include, add, or omit to enhance the final effect.

My intent was to capture the magical atmosphere of that environment. After completing the painting, I felt I had successfully translated the mysterious beauty of New Zealand onto the canvas.