Slender Volumes is a new poetry collection from artist-activist Richard Von Sturmer Photo: Spoor Books
Richard Von Sturmer is an artist-activist, poet and playwright from the North Shore.
A stalwart of New Zealand's creative scenes, Richard was involved with numerous punk bands during the 1980s, including The Plague and The Humanimals and Avant Garage.
But he is perhaps best-known for writing the lyrics for Blam Blam Blam's There is No Depression in New Zealand - often cited as our unofficial national anthem.
Richard is also a Zen Buddhist and spent time studying at the Rochester Zen Center in Upstate New York.
Now, his new poetry collection, Slender Volumes, his tenth writing collection, explores what it means to be curious about our environment and everyday things.
Whether he's describing seagulls standing on a handrail or insects drinking from a pan of water, the lovingly designed collection is rooted in Buddhist folklore, with his home stomping ground of Onehunga playing a central role throughout.
Richard joins Kathryn to talk about his varied career.
