Ceara Lile Art

24/08/2026

One summer under my belt with my studio in the attic made a couple of things highly apparent:
- Insulation was going to be needed before I tried working in there another summer!
- Those black beams (and black doors and black switch-plates! 😨) sucked up all the light.

So through the cooler months the amazing MÁRIO GREGOR - TATTOO ARTIST 🇸🇰🇳🇿 has installed insulation (and painted the black roof a nice green colour) and replaced all those black switch plates. Then we both moved in and painted up a storm! Almost finished now. Just shelves, organizing and some final paint touches to do and I'll be ready for the great reveal... And ready to start arting again 🎉🎉

07/07/2026

Inkless prints meet plastic waste, machine stitching and hand stitching... This time on paper in this Venn of Us crossover... These little tidbits are currently available at Red Delicious Gallery in Greytown. They are each framed and ready to hang on your wall at home.

29/06/2026

I love the power of nature!
The natural pigments and chemistry of plants working together with natural fibres and metal created the prints on all these pieces.
These are some sneak peaks of silk and wool climate change scarves (more about these limited edition pieces below) I've recently printed with leaves from places special to me, and dyed with pōhutukawa wood.

In order these are:
1 - Mission Garden - geranium and rose leaf prints on pōhutukawa
2 - First Light - mānuka and kānuka branches
3 - Drift - windfall maple and rose leaves with pōhutukawa
4 - Home - windfall oak leaves and mānuka branches on pōhutukawa
5 - Healers - ginkgo leaves and mānuka branches with pōhutukawa
6 - Night - windfall maple and rose leaves on pōhutukawa

I'll be listing them on my website soon... But if you want to snap one of these ones up, just message me for details!

My climate change scarves all carry the story of renewal - of the beauty in resilience and imperfection. They were damaged during unseasonal monsoon flooding in the villages where they were woven, rendering them unsuitable for sale due to holes and staining. My wonderful supplier bought them regardless, selling them onto people like me who found purpose in mending and decorating them, breathing life into them. I have patched some, cut, reshaped and hemmed others, and dyed and printed them all.
So these scarves have each been touched by many hands, adding to their legacy.

21/06/2026

Tūi being a tūi...

17/06/2026

A little snippet from today's photo session...
There's Mildred in the background of this 100% silk satin georgette scarf printed only with what nature has provided - I don't use synthetic inks or dyes. The Autumn windfall Oak leaves sit behind the rugged kānuka... And all are supported by the burnished colours from my latest Pohutukawa dye-bath experiment.

I'll be adding a whole lot of new pieces to my online store in the next week or so. If you'd like to have first dibs just make sure you've subscribed to my emails. All you have to do is head over to my website - cearalile.com - and fill in the form at the bottom of any page. I'll share a link in my bio ❤️

16/06/2026

13/06/2026

Can you tell how thrilled I am to have two of my pieces - The Giver and Seeker - included at Village Arts in Kohukohu?!?

I've admired this gallery since we moved up to the North last year, so I'm stoked to have my pieces in such wonderful company as part of the Alignment exhibition for Matariki. I've never seen these two works hanging side by side and love how they look... Especially when you see how beautiful the whole exhibition looks! (Check out those stunning pieces surrounding mine - there's something for everyone.)

Alignment is on this month and most of July as well. So head on over if you get a chance (and feel free to send me a photo if you do)!

09/06/2026

Today I'm photographing my latest batch of climate change scarves... So here are a few gorgeous sneak peaks from one of them.
My climate change scarves all carry the story of renewal - of the beauty in resilience and imperfection. They were damaged during unseasonal monsoon flooding in the villages where they were woven, rendering them unsuitable for sale due to holes and staining. My wonderful supplier bought them regardless, selling them onto people like me who found purpose in mending and decorating them, breathing life into them.
So these scarves have each been touched by many hands, adding to their legacy.

Soon I'll be uploading them to my online shop on my website (https://www.cearalile.com/)
Head over and subscribe - through the form at the bottom of any page - if you'd like to be first to know when these beauties are available!

03/06/2026

I'm so excited to be part of this exhibition at Village Arts, Kohukohu!
"Alignment" will celebrate the celestial conjunction and alignment of the stars, exploring themes of connections, new beginnings and annual cycles.
This is a mixed-media group exhibition, opening at 11am on Saturday, 13th June, and running through to Sunday, 26th July.