From NZ via NY, Activist founders Gabrielle Mirkin and Luke Harwood’s self-discovery journey led them to the California good life.
Moving from New Zealand to New York in their twenties, Gabrielle Mirkin and Luke Harwood were initially attracted by the amazing career opportunities. Arriving in Manhattan to take up the role of art director at Harper’s Bazaar and then Vogue magazine, Gabrielle was in her element, and Luke — who had a fashion brand for many years — couldn’t think of a better city to be in. In the years since, their journey has seen something of a sea change. Following the launch of their raw mānuka honey brand, Activist, the couple traded the bright city lights of NYC for a laid-back lifestyle in Topanga Canyon, where they’re now raising their children — Cisco River (7) and Tallulah Blue (4).
So, Gabrielle, how did you and Luke find yourselves in Topanga Canyon? After five years of living in NYC I became very unwell, literally overnight. I was diagnosed with Lyme Disease (a serious bacterial infection from a tick bite). It wreaked havoc on my life, so we moved back to Aotearoa to take some time out and heal. We lived in a barn on our land in Coromandel and, during this time, our beekeeper friends asked if they could keep their hives here. The property is covered in dense native bush so we happily agreed, and we fell in love with the bees and their potent medicine: the rich golden nectar called mānuka honey. After a year, we decided to move back to the States but this time to California; we had always wanted to live on the west coast to be closer to the Pacific Ocean (and Aotearoa). I wanted to live in Los Angeles but not right in the city as it was too much for my nervous system. I discovered this incredible area nestled in the Santa Monica Mountains called Topanga Canyon. The first time I drove up here I fell in love. The landscape was like nowhere I had ever been before. It’s a beautiful bohemian enclave and has a history of attracting artists, musicians, filmmakers and creatives in general. Topanga State Park is the world’s largest wildland within the boundaries of a major city. There are incredible hiking trails everywhere and it’s 10 minutes from the beach, which was important to us. Luke’s a lifelong surfer, so we spend a lot of time in the water as a family. It is a quiet and peaceful place to call home and has stunning vistas wherever you look. It is also very accessible to the city; you can be in Downtown LA in 40 minutes (when there’s no traffic, of course).
What attracted you to this property? When we moved to Topanga Canyon, we rented a little cabin on this land for a year before taking over the lease on the main house. Then Luke and I bought the property off the owner after living here for about four years. It’s a rather unruly 1.2 hectares covered in California brush and beautiful mature oak-tree groves. We were definitely more attracted to the actual location and the beautiful land than the house. The land is special and was the [Western movie star] Richard Dix estate, before that burnt down in the 1950s. From our driveway, at an elevation of 2000 feet, there are panoramic ocean views that span from Rancho Palos Verdes to the end of Malibu, capturing city lights, Catalina Island and the Santa Monica Mountains. It’s a very peaceful spot.
What was the house like when you bought it? It was extremely rundown. The previous owner had owned it since the 1970s and she was an artist, so it was very rustic with a lot of art studios, sheds, shipping containers and viewing platforms all over the property. We slowly stripped everything back to just the footprint of the home and the native California live oak tree groves. We still haven’t done much to the house, but we’ve done a lot to the general hardscaping and landscaping around the property, basically because we spend so much time outside. Luke does all the stonework and planting; he finds it enjoyable.
How would you describe your approach to curating your space? I don’t think you’d call it curated. It’s more a collection of pieces from over the years and, with the addition of children, a busy home which can’t be laboured over too much. We travel a lot as a family and love to collect objects from around the world.
What informs the things you choose to live with? We put a lot of focus on making memories together as a family. Many of the objects around our home are ‘souvenirs’ or one-offs — memories of different places, cultures and experiences together. Among this we have some old pieces of furniture such as a Percival Lafer 1965 Brazilian sofa which is black quilted leather with a jacaranda frame. Our trestle dining table, bought from an antique warehouse for $250 more than a decade ago, is one of our favourites. We have shared so many meals with friends and family around it, now the kids scratch and carve their names into it. These are the kinds of pieces we like to live with.
What does a regular week look like for your whānau? On a regular week the kids are at their small school and do swimming lessons or art classes afterwards. Luke and I work out of the Activist studio each day; there are loads of emails and calls, product development, and design and educational trainings with our beautiful retailers around the world. We love to do these in person when we can, but otherwise we connect over Zoom and share the magic of Activist mānuka with our community of stores. Movement is a daily ritual and varies from yoga to pilates, hiking, running, surfing or swimming. I cook every night and we eat dinner together as a family.
What rituals do you enjoy in your downtime? We love to walk in the mountains by our home every evening as the sun is setting over the sea. Or go for a swim and surf in the salty ocean. I love yoga, ayurveda. Our weeks are super busy with work and school so on the weekends we like to decompress at home; Luke gardens and surfs, the kids ride bikes and jump on the trampoline, and I like to cook and cold plunge in my neighbour’s swimming pool.
What has the journey been like developing the Activist brand? We’ve built a company that works with natural resources, specifically rare, high-grade, mono-floral raw mānuka honey from Aotearoa, which is our larger playground and one that we have a deep understanding of. Building a brand with limited industrial impact was very important to us. It is our role to present these natural products to the world in their highest and unadulterated form.
I imagine you’re still connected to New Zealand? Yes, our love for Aotearoa runs deep. We come down for Christmas with the kids and hang at our tiny bach in the Coromandel. It’s a special time for us, swimming in the Pacific, surfing, bush walks through the native greenery surrounding us, connecting with friends and family, visiting the bees and the beautiful mānuka and pōhutukawa in full bloom. It’s the place where we come back to ourselves.
activistmanuka.com
Interview Alice Lines
Photography Hazel Redmond