Hey everyone, how the hell are you all?
2020 has been a wild ride so far, and it's only August. Only. August. Already August? I'm not sure if either is better.
I thought that I'd give an update as to what's been going on in life and some changes I'm making here to my website.
I feel like I haven't taken a breath since the pandemic started. I've been working the entire time - if I didn't think that people loved their retail, well I sure know now. But, that being said, I am so incredibly thankful to still be employed and have a job with people that I enjoy. Do I wish I could have quarantined for a couple months like the rest of the world? Duh.
When quarantine hit, like many others, I had quite a bit of free time. I used this time to pick up reading again and start painting.
Reading
I haven't found interest in books since high school. I think the required reading in college was a buzz kill for me. But with my free time, I found some amazing books (thanks to some amazing bookstagramers) and I fell back in love with reading. So far I've read about 13 books in a matter of 5 months.
To keep it real though, in the month of July I've been in a reading slump. Hell, I've just been in a creative slump. I don't want to do anything but scroll endlessly through social media. I've got a huge list of TBR and about three soon-to-be-released books coming out (anyone else anticipating Midnight Sun like this little Twihard?).
Bookstagram. Guys. If you have not seen some of these flatlays and other amazing bookish posts that people are coming up with, you HAVE to check some out. I cannot believe the creativity there is in product photography. They're killing it. So of course, I found some inspiration in that and have been taking my own bookish photos. It's been a great way to keep up with photography and allow me to post awesome photos to Instagram.
Painting
Downtime during quarantine also allowed me to find a love for abstract painting. I've had so much fun creating dozens of watercolor and acrylic pieces. So I decided to share my art publicly and began selling some of my pieces here on my website back in April. I love seeing these pieces go to amazing people and the joy my art will bring them.
More real talk. I took about a two month break from painting. I was having a hard time coming up with new ideas for a while. So I just stopped. Part of me felt like this was going to just be another short-lived project when I stopped. You know those ones that you're so gung-ho about right out of the gates, but then it fizzles out in the end and it's only a distant memory? Yeah, that's what I thought this was. But this week, I picked up a paint brush and tried out some new ideas, which I'm incredibly excited to share.
Website Update
I've discovered that I tend to have a circular motion when it comes to my art. I rotate through different mediums at different times. At one point I'll focus all my energy into painting, another week I'll be all about photography, and the next I'll lock myself away and write to my heart's content.
At first I wondered why I couldn't stick to one singular thing. Why didn't I have one single hobby that I could get lost in? And then I came to the conclusion that I don't care. I love that I can turn to different mediums depending on my mood. I can curl up in blankets with my laptop and get lost in a story. I have a camera that allows me to take photos anywhere. And when I want to be messy, I can bust out the paint and brushes and smear stuff all over paper.
Having more than one creative outlet is perfectly fine.
In order to reflect my changing tastes, I have updated my website. I've dropped the "photography" from my url, as this website is no longer strictly about photography. Now it's just SWLaRue. Just me.
I'd love to use this single platform to share my many types of work. You can purchase my artwork straight from the website. I'm still available for photography bookings. And I'm thrilled to use my blog for something more than just photographs. I can't wait to share my thoughts and book reviews and travel photos and other fun projects here.
Overall, I am so excited to share it all with you guys.