Catching up & portrait photography mania - Why Am I Making This? Issue #10
Hey everyone,
Here in Maine, it feels like spring is almost here! Temperatures are usually above freezing and some recent days have been downright warm. Of course, the trees still won’t have any leaves until May. I’m not usually one to go crazy over the approach of spring/summer (I hate being too warm and winter is my favorite season), but pandemic winter was very boring indeed, and I’m jealous of my friends around the country/world who are already seeing flowering trees everywhere. Hopefully that will be me in a month or two.
And by me, I mean me, Julien Coyne, an artist (but this month, mostly a photographer) in the general vicinity of Portland, Maine.
I had imagined that March would be a month of catching up on stalled projects. I succeeded in some ways - I finished and sent off a gift-painting that had been languishing since I did the sketch in October and initial painting in January, and I mailed off some things that I had meant to send in December. Here’s everything I sent off to friends:
However, I also did not update my website as I had meant to, ceramics progress has been slow, and I still have one or two unfinished paintings sitting around. I’m sure there are other things on my to-do list that I didn’t do, either, but I’m trying to give myself a break.
The main thing I did a lot of this month (along with my drawing classes) is photography. I met up with my photographer friend Ruby early in the month, and from there felt inspired to do a whole bunch of photoshoots with different people. Here’s a bunch of the photos I liked! (Yes, I met up with Ruby three times, so there’s a lot of her.)
Ruby’s sister Daphne stars in some of them, as well as the very talented artist Lucy, and the uncertain but elegant model Filip. I also did some photos yesterday that will have to wait until next month’s newsletter for me to show them off. (I’ll also probably be posting them sporadically on my photography Instagram.)
To be honest, I was feeling pretty lethargic about non-photography creative pursuits this month (I think spending 6 hours on the computer every week for drawing classes is sapping my energy for drawing and painting). I think that probably after the classes are over I’ll do a bunch of paintings of some of the caricature models, but right now I just don’t feel like it.
Photography has also been fun because it’s a way to connect with old and new friends, which is something that has been missing in my life (and probably yours too) for a while. It also gives me hope for being able to take travel photos again in the future, and for taking pictures of people in other places... lots to dream about.
One thing that has been a challenge, though, is that even though I’m always dreaming about interacting with people again, when I finally do, I feel strange and out of practice about it. I’m more reticent and reserved than I want to be, more socially anxious. I kind of feel like an extraterrestrial. And hanging out with someone is fulfilling, but far more tiring than it seems it should be. I guess the pandemic has really taken some toll on my ability to be a social, easygoing person?
But I’m happy to be practicing, both photography and putting on my human exterior. This way, I’ll be ready when more photography and social opportunities present themselves when the world is more open!
That’s all for this month. More photos, more thoughts, and more miscellaneous art next month.
Thanks for reading!
Julien