Zuzu's Haus of Cats Presents...

Eli Trier aka Zuzu
  • 5.0 (2)
  • VISUAL ARTS
  • UPDATED MONTHLY

Join AuDHD artist Elinor Trier aka Zuzu (who might possibly be a pile of cats in a sparkly trench coat) as she talks to her fellow artists and creatives about the magic of the creative process - what they make and, in particular, how they make it - their rituals and workflows, inspirations and disenchantments, ebbs and flows.  If you enjoy conversations about art, creativity, neurodivergence, and business, then you’re in the right place.Find out more at https://zuzushausofcats.com/

  1. Ep#19 - Shame, sex, and saying the unsayable - with author Marianne Power

    09/02/2025

    Ep#19 - Shame, sex, and saying the unsayable - with author Marianne Power

    In the Season 2 finale, I had the absolute pleasure of chatting with my dear friend Marianne Power, author of the international bestseller Help Me! and her latest book Love Me!. It was such a joy to dive deep into her incredible journey from journalist to bestselling author. Marianne shared the story behind both her books - from her year-long experiment living by self-help books that became Help Me!, to her courageous exploration of sexuality, relationships, and what it means to live happily as a single woman in Love Me!. What struck me most about our conversation was Marianne's raw honesty about the cost of creating vulnerable art. She didn't shy away from discussing how terrifying it was to write about her most intimate experiences, from her sexual insecurities to her journey through tantra retreats. We talked about the difficulty of accepting praise, the inherited shame around sexuality, and how her Irish Catholic background shaped her relationship with both pleasure and success. Her courage in tackling the subjects that society tells us not to discuss - and doing so with such humour and humanity - is truly remarkable. This conversation was a beautiful reminder of why I love doing this podcast - getting to witness the magic that happens when artists are brave enough to tell their truth, and how that courage ripples out to help others feel less alone in their own struggles. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep19-marianne-power 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    1h 12m
  2. Ep#18 - Unmasking and finding your true creative voice - with illustrator Gracie Klumpp

    08/26/2025

    Ep#18 - Unmasking and finding your true creative voice - with illustrator Gracie Klumpp

    In this episode, I had the absolute pleasure of speaking with Gracie Klumpp, an autistic author and illustrator who tells stories with words and pictures. What struck me most about our conversation was how much we had in common - both being late-diagnosed AuDHD artists who've had to navigate the complex journey of unmasking whilst building creative careers. Gracie shared her fascinating path from film student to animator to illustrator, and how she's now circling back to narrative storytelling through graphic novels and comics. Her approach to letting each story dictate its own medium resonated deeply with how I work with concepts and ideas in my own practice. The heart of our conversation centred around the unique challenges of being neurodivergent creatives in a world that wasn't designed for us. Gracie spoke beautifully about the process of archaeological self-discovery - peeling back layers of masking to find who you really are beneath all the "shoulds" and expectations. We discussed how art can be both a tool for processing our experiences and a way to help others feel less alone, particularly when we're brave enough to explore the darker, more difficult aspects of the human experience alongside hope and transformation. I was so inspired by my conversation with Gracie and I know you will be too. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep18-gracie-klumpp 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    1h 5m
  3. Ep#17 - Painting from a place of wonder - with artist Gabriella Buckingham

    08/19/2025

    Ep#17 - Painting from a place of wonder - with artist Gabriella Buckingham

    In this episode, I sit down with Gabriella Buckingham, a British contemporary painter known for her experimental still life and intuitive landscape work. Gabriella's journey from graphic design student to successful fine artist is anything but conventional - after initially studying graphic design, she made an emotional plea to switch to illustration, launched a greeting card business that swiftly turned into what felt like a “sweatshop operation”, and eventually transitioned to fine art via a supermarket job during COVID! What makes Gabriella truly fascinating is her multifaceted practice that seamlessly weaves together art-making, teaching, and spiritual exploration. She runs online painting courses where she literally “speaks her brain” while demonstrating techniques, and writes weekly esoteric mailings covering astrology, tarot, and energy work. Gabriella's approach to both art and life is refreshingly intuitive. Perhaps most moving is Gabriella's openness about her spiritual connection to her work, including a profound experience with her guardian angel that shaped her business name: From a Place of Wonder. I loved this conversation and I’m sure you will too! ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep17-gabriella-buckingham 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    50 min
  4. Ep#16 - Nostalgia, longing, and landscapes - with artist & curator Victoria J. Fry

    08/12/2025

    Ep#16 - Nostalgia, longing, and landscapes - with artist & curator Victoria J. Fry

    In this episode, Victoria J. Fry opens up about her journey from art school graduate to successful multi-passionate creative entrepreneur. Based in New York City, Victoria is not only a talented landscape painter but also the founder of Visionary Art Collective, New Visionary Magazine, and Warnes Contemporary Gallery. She shares candidly about the post-graduation depression that many artists experience when the supportive bubble of art school suddenly disappears, and how it took her nearly a decade to find her artistic confidence again. Victoria's landscapes are infused with a profound sense of longing and nostalgia, rooted in her childhood experience of leaving the English countryside at age seven. Her dreamlike paintings, dominated by blues and greens, capture what she describes as an eternal yearning for something just out of reach - a feeling that resonates with the Welsh concept of "Hiraeth," a homesickness for a place that may not even exist. Through her intuitive painting process, she transforms these deep emotional experiences into work that speaks to universal feelings of displacement and the search for home, both literal and metaphorical. Our conversation also explores the practical realities of balancing multiple creative pursuits with running a business. Victoria shares her strategies for maintaining both her studio practice and her various enterprises, including setting firm boundaries around weekends and evening hours, embracing the cyclical nature of creativity, and allowing herself the freedom to experiment across different mediums. Her advice for aspiring full-time artists is refreshingly practical: develop multiple income streams, transition gradually from full-time employment, and most importantly, allow the journey to unfold organically rather than forcing overnight transformation. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep16-victoria-j-fry 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    52 min
  5. Ep#15 - Deliberately seeking out joy - with artist & illustrator Helen C. Stark

    08/05/2025

    Ep#15 - Deliberately seeking out joy - with artist & illustrator Helen C. Stark

    I'm absolutely delighted to share my conversation with Helen C. Stark, the brilliant artist behind The Time Foragers Club on Substack. Helen's journey from postnatal depression to successful artist is both inspiring and deeply moving - she discovered her love of creating again through a local art group that literally kept her alive during her darkest moments. From there, she built an illustration career that included creating the first Edinburgh colouring book, before eventually moving to Yorkshire where she stripped everything back to focus on what truly mattered to her: colour, joy, and the practice of noticing beauty in everyday life. What I find most captivating about Helen's work is how she's created this entire world around the concept of ‘time foraging’ - gathering moments of beauty and meaning from both the past and present. Her weekly visual journals are like love letters to the ordinary magic that surrounds us, from blackberry picking rituals inspired by her childhood in France to creating watercolours from earth pigments collected on beaches where the Brontës once walked. Her recent Ode to Charlotte collection, which sold out incredibly quickly, perfectly demonstrates how she weaves together historical inspiration, personal ritual, and artistic practice into something truly special. Helen's approach to creativity feels revolutionary in its simplicity - she's chosen to look for joy as a deliberate act of resistance against the darkness in the world. Through The Time Foragers Club, she's building a community of people who want to carve out time for creativity and noticing. Her story reminds us that being an artist is a lifelong practice of curiosity, play, and finding beauty in the most unexpected places. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep15-helen-c-stark 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    57 min
  6. Ep#14 - Comedy, criticism, & the politics of drag - with drag queen Annie Rection

    07/29/2025

    Ep#14 - Comedy, criticism, & the politics of drag - with drag queen Annie Rection

    In one of my favourite episodes of the pod to date, I sit down with Copenhagen drag legend Annie Rection for a conversation that had me in stitches from start to finish. Annie is a comedy drag queen known for her sharp wit, high-energy performances, and incredible hosting skills. In 2025, she even toured Europe opening for Bob the Drag Queen after impressing him with an impromptu comedy set! We dive deep into the art of drag comedy, exploring how Annie balances multiple creative disciplines - from makeup artistry to joke writing to lip-syncing. She shares brilliant insights about her creative process, including how she approaches structuring a show, and how she manages to translates her material between Danish and English. Our conversation touches on some heavier topics too - the responsibility of being many people's first introduction to drag, the reality of running a creative business, and the recent protests against drag performances in Denmark. Annie's perspective on art as activism and the inherent political nature of drag is both moving and inspiring. What struck me most about Annie is her incredible warmth and vulnerability. She's the perfect gentle entry point for drag newcomers whilst still being razor-sharp in her comedy. Her advice for aspiring creatives is honest and practical - it's hard work, you'll make sacrifices, but if it's truly important to you, it will make you happier than you can imagine. If you've never been to a drag show, Annie's infectious enthusiasm will have you booking tickets immediately. And if you're a fellow creative navigating the challenges of turning your art into your livelihood, you'll find wisdom and solidarity in abundance. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep14-annie-rection 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    1h 13m
  7. Ep#13 - Building an art career without social media - with artist Louise Stigell

    07/22/2025

    Ep#13 - Building an art career without social media - with artist Louise Stigell

    In this episode, I sit down with Swedish watercolour artist, educator, and creative business coach Louise Stigell for an honest conversation about building a sustainable creative practice on your own terms. Louise's journey is one of transformation and intentional choice-making. After burning out from her career as a freelance writer and web designer in 2020, she rediscovered art as therapy and never looked back. What started as painting birds for healing became a thriving multi-faceted creative business that includes original artwork, YouTube content creation, online courses, and voice coaching for fellow creatives. Louise doesn't mince words about what she calls the "pornification of art" on social media platforms. We dive deep into why Instagram's highlight reel culture creates unrealistic expectations and how she's built her business primarily through YouTube and email marketing instead. From her game design background, Louise brings a fascinating perspective on gradually "levelling up" your comfort zone. We explore how she overcame social anxiety to start a YouTube channel and how that confidence translates across all areas of her creative practice. Finally, Louise offers invaluable advice about the tension between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation when you turn your art into your livelihood. She's refreshingly honest about the challenges of maintaining your love for your craft when it becomes your income source. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep13-louise-stigell 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠⁠⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠⁠⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    59 min
  8. Ep#12 - Capturing emotional landscapes - with artist Orla Stevens

    07/15/2025

    Ep#12 - Capturing emotional landscapes - with artist Orla Stevens

    In this delightful episode, the wonderful Orla Stevens takes us on a journey through the Scottish landscapes that have shaped her artistic vision - from the mists of the Trossachs to the wild beauty of Orkney. We delve into how she transforms the often grey and green Scottish countryside into explosively colourful works that capture not just what she sees, but how these places make her feel. Orla also shares her unique practice of incorporating sound into her visual work, drawing what she hears in the landscape and translating music into colour palettes. We chat about the reality of being a full-time artist, and how you're really juggling two full-time jobs. One of my favourite insights from our conversation is Orla's approach to business and art as mutually supportive rather than competing forces. Her teaching and community-building work creates space for her personal painting practice, showing how both sides of an art business can feed each other. ✍ Read the full show notes here: https://zuzushausofcats.com/journal/ep12-orla-stevens 💌 Never miss an episode - sign up here: ⁠https://zuzushausofcats.com/keepintouch⁠ 🎶 Music by the incredible Caspar Riis: ⁠⁠⁠https://soundcloud.com/caspar-riis⁠⁠⁠. Used with permission.

    44 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Join AuDHD artist Elinor Trier aka Zuzu (who might possibly be a pile of cats in a sparkly trench coat) as she talks to her fellow artists and creatives about the magic of the creative process - what they make and, in particular, how they make it - their rituals and workflows, inspirations and disenchantments, ebbs and flows.  If you enjoy conversations about art, creativity, neurodivergence, and business, then you’re in the right place.Find out more at https://zuzushausofcats.com/

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