Gathering Voices Around the Fire: The Hearth Tales Project

Project Overview

Client:
Hearth Tales (Self-produced series)

Industry:
Arts & Creative Media

Project Goal:
To craft a digital space that celebrates creative journeys across New Zealand and beyond, Hearth Tales shines a light on artists, makers, and cultural voices—capturing their stories in intimate, human-centred interviews. The aim is to weave connection, inspiration, and community through narrative, instead of conventional art promotion.
Background:

Hearth Tales was born from a desire to peer behind the visible work and into the lives of Aotearoa’s creative souls. In an increasingly digital music and arts landscape, founder Rich McCoy sought a platform where artists could share not just their materials and methods, but their lived experiences, motivations, and how they navigate life, culture, and creativity.

The project grew organically, beginning with a handful of recorded interviews across disciplines—from painters and printmakers to filmmakers, poets, and sculptors—each one a brief but rich tale aligned around art, craft, and the personal frameworks that sustain these creative lives.

Our Approach

Narrative Philosophy

  • Human first, titles second: Rather than foregrounding resumé or technique, interviews open with the artist’s story—where they come from, what shapes them, how they live their creative life.
  • Short, heartfelt, anchored in place: Having highly produced episodes can dilate stream. Instead, Hearth Tales keeps things grounded and relatable—each artist quote acts like a window into their world, not a CV.
  • Diverse creative voices: The series spans disciplines—painters, musicians, weavers, illustrators—revealing the connective tissue in creative practice.

Design Philosophy

  • Minimal, story-first front end: Clean layout puts the artist image and quotes centre stage, without distraction or unnecessary flair.
  • Seamless for ‘read’, watch or ‘hear’: Each artist entry invites people to read excerpts or listen to the conversation—fitting for those who prefer either format.
  • Support embedded in the narrative: The “Become a Patron” button is positioned gently, inviting support through storytelling resonating with the viewer.

Reflections

Hearth Tales is less a site for commerce—and more a living anthology. Every conversation feels like being drawn into someone’s studio or home, around a shared fire of creativity. It’s about how stories hold culture, how art frames life, and how hearing deeply human conversations can shift perspective.

It’s not an interview page. It’s a collective of creative heartbeats subtle but charged—nudging us to see, feel, and connect.

Showcase

Showcase

hearthtales - screens