When I started this summer project of photographing the kids and writing about it, I had no agenda. I wanted to just take is slow and focus on a few things I knew I loved. As soon as I committed to that practice things started happening, and they started happening pretty quickly. It almost feels like the universe saw these purposeful steps I took to reconnect with myself and the artist inside of me, and then kind of reoriented to make some space for me again.
The first thing that happened was that I genuinely rediscovered how much I love taking photos. I’ve worked as an interior photographer for the past 15-16 years. While I appreciated the opportunity to make a living doing my passion every day, it did turn into a job and took away a little bit of my love for the creative freedom of the medium. Even when the kids were little I would purposefully leave my camera at home because it felt like work. Using an iPhone always seemed good enough, but there was always a tickling in my brain because I knew the images were too flat - if that makes any sense. The space between the objects isn’t the same, and that’s where the magic hides.
I was falling so in love with some of these images so quickly that I dipped my toe back into submitting to photography shows. I used to love doing that and honestly built up a fairly extensive CV, but I’d taken a long break. Starting maybe 3 weeks ago I started submitting again, and the images keep getting accepted. It literally feels otherworldly. I’m now trying to figure out shipping and printing to send work to galleries across the country, and it just feels like such an incredible second chance.
Another thing that happened is that it really dawned on my how obsessed I am with the intangibility and fleetingness of childhood. That’s what I love about these photos, and that specific subject matter is boundless.
I’m not really sure where I am going or what to do with the images, but I keep wanting to look at them in a coffee table book… I have no idea how to get a book published, but what an absolute joy of a thought.
Focusing just for a little bit on a creative act that was outside of my normal routine lit a fire of creativity inside of me. I’ve never remembered feeling more creative. I’m having trouble sleeping I’m so excited.
In another extradorinaiy coincidence, I’m starting a new/different podcast. It’s one that’s been on my mind for ages… like, why did I start a podcast about the stock market when I knew nothing about it? Why didn’t I start one about art or photography?
The answer to that is because the act of painting is life-giving and every-changing. It fills me with a sense of wonder… but talking about the act of painting is boring as hell to me. Nobody wants to talk to me about mixing colors or selling prints… I barely know how to do those things and am constantly flying by the seat of my pants. Truth be told, Quinn mixes a lot of my colors because she has a gift for it. Truly.
Anyway… so I don’t have a podcast about art because I feel like talking about art is boring and stuffy and not something I would be good at; however, creativity is a different story. We actually talk a lot about creativity in The Penny Lane Podcast and how looking at the market in different ways is actually an innately a creative act. I knew creativity was fascinating, but I didn’t know what to do with that information.
When I started taking the photos and this dam of creativity broke inside of me, I reached out to a friend of mine who I thought might understand the idea. He’s actually a movie producer who lives in LA, and I met him through my husband. He even came to our wedding. I explained this idea to him and he agreed to do the podcast with me, which is just unbelievable.
We are calling the podcast “Move Me Brightly: An Exploration for Inspiration,” and we’re hoping to get it launched next month. This is the elevator pitch: (note - we’ve changed the title since this instagram post)
If you are interested in either advertising on the podcast or if you want to suggest a guest, please click here.
Below is a series of photographs I took last weekend of my daughter and her cousin finding a snail and building a habitat for it from a fig tree. To quote the classic American Beauty, “There is so much beauty in the world.” I could live inside these photos forever.
A gently reminder about the Heirloom Paintings. Click below.
