Play, and the art of storytelling
Many of you may not know that in my early twenties, I was part of a group of young women with a vision to change the media narrative for women. We created a magazine called Alive, giving voice to the stories and artwork of brilliant, articulate, and powerful young women from around the globe, with stories about real issues and images that celebrated a diverse understanding of women’s culture.
Now this was 2005 or so, and you may have to re-wind the clock to remember the media landscape at that time. Smartphones and tablets didn’t exist yet; Facebook was the hot new thing (and NO, our parents weren’t on it yet - who would dream of such a thing!). Print, as the industry standard for publishing, was dying, and the internet was the clear path forward - it just hadn’t found its footing yet. Enter the Blogosphere!
We held on to Alive Magazine much longer than we could realistically afford to, and when we shuttered its doors, it was with full awareness that perhaps the same idea in a different decade could have had a very different outcome.
So I audibly grumbled to Ben this morning that I might have to give in and add a blog to my website in order to keep up with needy algorithms of the Google bots for SEO, but that it felt gross and outdated to brand it as such. (I’ve always grimaced at the self-congratulatory tone that seems inherently embedded in the self-publishing platform, most certainly a bit jaded from the timing of its rise to popularity as we were making the hard decision to close Alive’s doors.)
But as I consider the possibility and function of this new area of our website, it feels a little lighter and freer to think of it as a space for Play. So much of our work is really grueling - time sensitive, high pressure, very (obsessively) detail-oriented. But when we step back from it, the thing that keeps us going is the really truly fun part of the work, which is being part of people’s stories. Giving space to their dreams, helping them grasp on to pieces of themselves they hadn’t seen before and build it out for them as the canvas that gives color to their lives.
What you will find here are the stories of our projects, showing the full lifecycle from start to finish - the before shots, the uncomfortable mess of construction, the sample trays, the renderings, the installation and styling, and yes, eventually, the hard-earned finished result.
You may also catch a periodic glimpse of some fun one of us has been cooking or dreaming up. Our staff is comprised of some incredibly talented artists, musicians, and foodies, so we will sprinkle in some of what we’ve been cooking up, creating, or listening to — really anything that’s bringing levity to our lives!
Feel free to follow along by subscribing for email notifications below, set a bookmark, or just remember to come visit from time to time. You’re always welcome to join in the fun!