Hey, beautiful people! Welcome to my newsletter, which I’m launching in combo with my departure from Instagram.

I plan to send regular emails here updating everyone on the status of my photographic adventures and art projects, such as my current photo project, Mundane Monuments: Architecture Portraits in the Northeast San Fernando Valley.

I also plan to share my thoughts on photography and the visual arts, including their philosophy and craft, and my musings on creativity and culture in Los Angeles, in California, and in the world at large. Heck, I might throw in some law stuff too. (A mini-series on intellectual-property rights for photographers and other artists comes to mind.)

One thing I’m especially excited about with this newsletter format: As far as back as I can remember, I’ve been a writer and I feel at home when I’m expressing myself through writing and speech. Instagram was never designed to be a platform to express oneself in that way. Yes, I wrote detailed captions on my posts, but those captions were mere footnotes, both figuratively and literally, because why is the font on that app so damn small. Honestly, it was awkward to ask my friends and family to squint to try to read my writing on IG.

This newsletter will give me a better structure to express myself through writing and to contextualize my visual art through writing. Not that you “need” my writing to understand my visual art! Indeed, I believe every artform should be able to speak for itself on its own merits. Rather, I see my writing as its own artform — an optional but helpful supplement to understand why I am making any art at all and what my (visual) art means to me and my relationship with my community.

Thank you so much for following me and for coming along for the ride. I appreciate you. My commitment is to keep showing up and keep creating, whatever that looks like from moment to moment.*

(*Sometimes that means withdrawal and rest.)

Much love,

Sam