We are SO BACK
Hello everyone,
First - so I can just get my plug out of the way, Tall Poppy’s first workshops of the year are live and you can book them here.
With that out of the way, I hope you’ve had just a great January - whether that’s restful, adventurous, summer, winter, whatever I hope that you’ve had a good time.
I feel immensely lucky as I’ve spent the last six weeks setting things up for 2025 and I feel ahead of the curve, prepared and excited. I was also able to spend a lot of time resting, napping and exploring.
At the same time, January is an odd month. It feels, now, that the year has properly started but also really hasn’t. Most folks are back at work, but school hasn’t started again yet, so I’m not doing any day job work. Most people have returned from holidays, but many parents have taken more time off so there’s still plenty of folks not yet around. What that has to do with me is that I feel I should WAIT for life to totally go back to normal, but I’m energetic and excited.
Here is what’s happened since I left you.
I refined Tall Poppy’s book release schedule for 2025. In March we’ll release our first book of the year, July our second, and September we’ll release three at once.
I’ve been bashing out design, of the five books coming out two the design is finished, two we’re up to the third draft and the last one I’ve not yet started. Drafting a book is quite laborious - I first get lots of exemplars and send the artists a document with lots of options - once we narrow those down I then make drafts in InDesign and we have rounds of feedback to refine and improve.
I decided to delay my own book until 2026. The more I sat with it the more there were a half dozen or so more places I wanted to photograph. So this year I want to visit Coober Pedy, Myall Lakes, Broken Hill, the Nullabor and Queensland to take more photographs of Dingoes, the Dingo proof fence and the outback.
Speaking of my work - I’ve been planning the first two exhibitions of the year - one in Canberra in March and another in Broken Hill in May. Both involve a lot of logistics, etc, and there’s a lot to do. This year I want each exhibition of my work to be ambitious, creative and push what I do further. I have three exhibitions and a real chance to do something exciting and new with each one.
I’ve been applying for residencies, book fairs and launches. So far I’ve applied for a month-long residency in Kalgoorlie, applied fort the Melbourne Art Book Fair and the LA Art Book Fair (though with the fires it’s hard to say if it will go ahead) and been emailing venues trying to sort out launch places. You know that feeling of January being both the beginning and not at all really having taken off? Well, yeah, that’s where I’m at currently - I’d like a few more things locked in!
I’ve been slowly gathering stuff from FB market place for the studio. Old tables, shelving, etc. As much as Zuckerberg is a total trash pile I do love trawling used goods. I move into the studio next weekend and with a rental van, my girlfriend and my Mum we’ll be sorting things out. Dream team.
I’ve been talking with a few Universities about some workshops, which would be so fun.
Finally, I launched an ambitious workshop program - I’d love to share this with you now, as over February and March I’m teaching six workshops from my new studio in Melbourne. I’ve worked really hard to make these fun, great value for money and accessible. Please take a look at what’s on offer here and ask any questions that you have, of course!
So with all that said it seems spurious to say that it’s been restful, but I have really, really enjoyed summer (apart from the weather, ofc). I feel prepared, focused and excited. There’s a lot on, but that’s how I like it.
Currently, I would say that I spend each day doing some work. I work seven days a week. I don’t necessarily go into an office and grind 8 hours and go home, but each day does involve some work, or even a lot of work.
In next week’s newsletter I want to share what my foci are for the first quarter of the year and how I’m hoping to balance publishing, teaching, day job work, exhibiting, etc.
In any case, I do hope you’re having a lovely start to the week and please get in touch to have a chat about anything!