2024 CHECK IN : JUNE - DECEMBER 2023
2/28/24
At this point, it’s blatantly clear that I have my own idea of what consistency is… lol. I’m pretty proud of myself, considering. What can I say — life is never a straight line. I hope that everyone has been able to weather the terrain since my last post.
This journey as an artist is ever evolving. It seems that every time I feel like I’m reaching a new plateau of understanding, I’m forced to reconsider and reevaluate my way ahead. I should be so lucky that the universe continues to communicate, conspire, and guide me along. But when life starts lifin’ tho… it’s not always easy to muster up the energy to share. Other times, my perfectionism won’t allow me to get out of my own way — triggering overthinking, leading to procrastination. A vicious cycle, that is slowing being broken down by my will to grow (my understanding/knowledge) within my medium & a want to elevate my career.
Being honest with myself about why I do what I do, how I want to do it, and not being locked into external expectations, has given me the freedom to finally see exactly who I want to be as a photographer, but also who I am as an artist overall. Going forward my goal is to use all aspects (and mediums) of my artistry to support and showcase one another, creating immersive experiences for the audience.
Understanding what YOU do is the most important aspect. Often times we artist get trapped in this place of trying to figure out what’s selling and do that, but that doesn’t always resonate with, inspire, or motivate the artist. Being authentic to one’s self is central to every artist, but can be challenged and often stifled by the business. Figuring out your lane is so important, but being able to live in it is the goal.
Lately, while thinking of ways to bring more awareness to my work, it has been helpful to review what I’ve done from the beginning. Starting out as a hobbyist, I never had any direction about subject matter, beyond capturing images that I wanted to hang in my home. Things that I felt were cool but under appreciated (taken for granted). We live in a world where we often overlook the truly beautiful, but minut, aspects of our experience. I wanted to celebrate that intangible essence of uniqueness — showing that beauty is really in the eye of the beholder. You can show people easier than you can tell them.
Turning hobby into a career, I had to now adhere to the business of it all… my images needed intention and a point of view beyond my enjoyment — looking back now with a better understanding of my medium, I see that unbeknownst to myself, I was already starting a conversation, leading the viewer to see my perspective.
To all that support, your energy is much appreciated. I hope these words motivate you to delve deeper into your passions and build the life you see fit for yourself, not based on the expectations of society. Just do what brings you joy and fills your heart.
I’ve also included some of the videos that I mentioned above. They also serve as additions to my ongoing series “Intersection”, (which you can view here). Enjoy the videos, and thanks again for the check in!
INTERSECTION vid #1
INTERSCTION vid #2
INTERSECTION vid #3