Giving Thanks to Those on the Front Lines

This photo series, which is on-going, came about after wondering what could I do or how could I help during this time? One way was to use my medium, and create portraits as a small gesture to say Thank You to them and others. 

 We Are in This Together.  After seeing this mural on my friend, Ryan's fb post with his sweet boys, I started to follow this artist, Fred_the artist, on Instagram. His art, which is inspiring and beautiful, is all around the city. I met him after one morning of photographing others at the mural. He couldn't be a more thoughtful and kind human being. 

Sometimes my process is slow in thought, but then once I'm into something I jump into action.
I put out calls on social media looking for people on the front lines. My people came through with names and contacts.

This is just a start.....If you know or are a front line worker, contact me to set-up a time for a portrait. 


Pictured above:

Kathy                   Registered Nurse 
Bob                      Hospice care worker
Jordan                  Grocery Store worker 
                            Metcalfe's Market and h.s
                            student
Wendy                  EMT for Germantown and
                            Menomonee Falls plus her full
                            time job
J.T                        Plumber/Owner  J.T's Repair
                             Service
Fred Kaems           Artist



Artist for hire and follow Fred here  https://www.instagram.com/fred_the_artist/


In need of marketing, Ryan Thompson, https://mention.marketing/
might be of service.

THANK YOU to all that have helped me on this personal project!

*Fun Fact* these are created on mornings throughout the week/weekend. There was one morning that it was "snowing." Ha! I love Wisconsin's seasons!💓

Tall Guy and A Grill Catering

If you're lucky enough to have had food catered at an event by Tall Guy & a Grill, well then I won't say another word. Ha right! Even if you HAD their delicious food have you ever the met THE Tall Guy, Dan Nowak?  BONUS!  Seriously, one of the best guys around, funny, big heart, and smart. He has an incredible staff that turns out locally sourced food to a table near you!

I was lucky enough to be on the board of  Local First Milwaukee for two years, with Dan (president) and was impressed by how well he worked with others, listened, and supported local.💜 

Since the safer at home order that started back in March, he and some of his team had created a carryout  to your car of good eats!  Wednesday with Wings, Thirsty Thursday, Friday Fish Fry ( featuring the beverage all  millennials  love, White Claw) called White Claw Fish Fry, AND Saturday night date packages. 

Get your pre-order in, drive over, easy pick up, eat in the comforts of your home.

AND when parties, celebrations and fun with people come together again, please consider hiring this small but tasty business for your event! 

https://tallguyandagrill.com/
https://www.instagram.com/tallguyandagrill/

http://localfirstmilwaukee.com/

Pictured above- Dana, executive chef and Alissa, catering sales manager- it seems like they have some fun together. ;)

Pushing Paint, Strumming, Singing, and Cracking Jokes

My friend Anjl is a wildly talented artist, beautiful soul and brings JOY to anything she does. She sings, plays string instruments, makes you laugh (both personally and professionally) AND paints! I know, it's almost too much! 💗 Besides that, she is a kind human being, that I'm lucky to call friend. Even tho she's miles away living in Seattle, when we do reconnect it's like no time has passed. 

These photos are part of a promo for painting with Anjl. Our mutual friend, Jason, produced, directed, and will be editing it. 
She traveled back to Wisconsin to be filmed. It was two HOT days during summer (like melting HOT) but she and Jason kept their cool. See what I did there?  The shoot ended at Paddy's Irish Pub in a downpour that flooded streets! Those two days were crazy fun. Sidenote, ever been to Paddy's Irish Pub, sober, raise your hand. It is a surreal place. Nicest owners tho.

What inspires you?
 I am SO happiness inspired. Maybe Joy with a capitol J is the better word? Everything gives me Joy: beautiful things, nostalgic things, all the music and all the people. Especially family.


What keeps you focused or going? The people who come paint with me are 100% the thing that keeps me going. I have no doubt that I get more out of it than they do, and that's OK it's all about me. KIDDING! She's a joker, like I said. I get such amazing feedback from people - this is an email I got last week: "I have told so many people that the first class I took with you(my Wife "made me go")...it really has helped me in so many ways. It is my therapy! I think we might have mentioned before, that I'm a combat Veteran who has struggled immensely with post-traumatic stress, painting has really meant a lot to me since that first class...from thinking I wasn't artistic to actually publicly posting paintings I've done is still surreal! Nothing else has me more positively focused...my psychologist thinks it's one of the greatest things I've done in the past 5 years! I really can't thank you enough for getting me so enthused about art and the way I look at the world, and I'm willing to help in any way I can to repay that to you." 

How long have you been self-employed, Queen of the Castle?
I've been self employed for 8 yeas. The first 3 of those years were great - I was doing freelance design and illustration. I liked doing that, but honestly it was always more about the paycheck than the work. I also do improv with ComedySportz on weekends, here in Seattle. I heard about this paint and sip phenomenon - I got so excited! I thought, between the art and the comedy, I am uniquely qualified to do this for a living! The local paint and sip chain offered me a gig working Tuesdays at a local bar, and I thought...nah. I'm going to buy easels and do it myself. I started my own business, having never attended one of these things myself. 

What's in your fridge?
I'm so glad I'm answering this question today, and not two days ago. I have lots of fresh veggies, a large bag of gourmet tomato basil soup, and a big jug of iced coffee. ( Two days ago the answer would have been just a jug of iced coffee).

Since March 2020, Anjl teaches virtual painting classes. They're a blast! I'm not one to brag but my Starry Night is unlike any other! ;)  
Sign up for a class to paint your worries away while creating a masterpiece!
https://brushcapadesseattle.com/

Follow her on Instagram to see her original art and more.
https://www.instagram.com/anjlkr/

Facebook- her business BrushCapades (she makes up words too!)
https://www.facebook.com/brushcapadesseattle/

Jason is Kickball Media. Funny, that is how I met Jason playing on a kickball team a 1,000 years ago!
https://kickballmedia.com/

Midwestern Music

I'm one of the freelance photographers that work for Love Wisconsin.(more about LW, see previous post, Bridge the Divide).

They gave us freelancers an assignment. 
What does life in Wiscsonsin look like during social distacing? My answer in the form of photos+caption.

“One of the things I love about photographing people is the engaging and connecting part of it. I've always been able to keep a safe distance with my camera, I just never HAD to before. Still, it’s helped lift my spirits to get out and engage with friends at a safe distance. (Although not hugging has been hard for me!)."

I arranged this photo shoot with my buddy, Keith Pulvermacher, keeping in mind the location that fit his style of music. He calls it Midwestern, saying "It's a kind of melting pot of blues, pop, country, soul, and Americana." All of the music he loves.

Keith’s industry has been hit hard with events and gigs being cancelled. But no matter what, the music continues. Keith now plays, like so many others, from basements, garages, and kitchens.” 

I became a full time musican in 2003. 

Lots of things inspire me. Life, art, music, other people, photos, movies, documentaries, I primarily try to pay attention to things and messages I connect with and pull into a song.

 How do I stay focused? That's a tough one. Being a creative I have lots of ideas that I think are cool things to work on. My A.D.D is a blessing and a curse. I surround myself with people who share my vision and they help to keep me on track. 

What's in my fridge: Mostly food that needs to stay cold. :) All of the meat, hummus,veggies, fruit,pickles, the essentials.

Keith's gigs gigs were cancelled for the next few months. 
Find him on Facebook when he does LIVE shows there. Follow on Instagram, Itunes and Spotify.   

https://www.facebook.com/keith.pulvermacher

https://www.instagram.com/keithpulvermacher/

https://www.givesong.org

Bridge the Divide

I started freelancing with Love Wisconsin at the end of 2019. LW's mission is to make WI an even more connected, compassionate and  engaged place by sharing stories with photos viewed with online readers. 

My first assignment was to create portraits of Erica Turner, who runs a podcast with Heidi Wheeler, out of the Cedarburg library. Called Bridge the Divide. She also holds community talks there.

The moment Erica opened the door for me at the library ( I travel with lots of gear) I received the friendliest smile. We fell into an easy conversation about life, race, small towns, books we both had read, art, etc. I met her wonderful husband, Greg, who is a storyteller as well!

Love Wisconsin does Erica's story justice, and I was honored to photographer her. Please take the time to get to know more about her on the LW website,  Facebok, or Instagram.

AS SEEN IN TIME MAGAZINE! UMMM Hello!
The April issue - Apart. Not Alone. April 6th-13th. 
Erica Turner and  Heidi Wheeler are in TIME magazine! 
She asked if she could use one of my portraits of her. She never said it was for TIME magazine! That's how humble she is. 
https://time.com/collection/apart-not-alone/5809175/meet-the-uniters/


Give a listen here. https://shows.acast.com/bridge-the-divide/

Take a look at Love Wisconsin here  https://www.lovewi.com/
Or cut to the chase here.... https://www.facebook.com/lovewiproject/
Or here. https://www.instagram.com/lovewiproject/

Megan Woodard Johnson Art

Meet Megan Woodard Johnson. We met years ago thru a mutual artist friend. Over the years, we gradually got to know each other bonding over art & life. I love her perspective on life. I feel like I've known her much longer then I have. Megan has a real depth as you can see in her work. Plus, she's lovely, inspiring, emphatic, has a good sense of humor and wonder.

My abstract mixed media work brings together collected materials like vintage school books, ledgers, and hand-written correspondence with expressive layers of colorful paint and drawn marks.This combination of found paper ephemera, which carries history of its own, with my intuitive use of color and abstract mark making creates contemporary paintings that celebrate the energy of the present as well as the nostalgia of the past. 

What inspires me? I'm inspired by the connections we make with one another, the idea of collective memory, and the history that builds in a place as people go about their days, experiencing their days there. I really love when you meet someone new, and suddenly find out you have something in common ( and I love that this realization doesn't generally take very long). 

How do I stay focused? I struggle with focus a lot, to be honest. I work pretty much solo in my studio - and have a tendency to let myself get distracted by putzing around at home before I head to the studio, or by scrolling social media once I'm there. But a deadline is a good motivator - even if it's one for a goal I've set myself. Music gets me going when I need to be in a creative mode, or podcasts or audio books when I'm working on more technical things. 

What's in my Fridge? There is SO much in my fridge at the moment (covid19 prepping), but in general there's a range of basic foods to feed a family of four. Always eggs, cheese, milk & bagels (we have 2 teen boys). We often try to prep basics on the weekend so it's easier to assemble decent lunches and dinner- so on a good week there are a few containers of roasted veggies, cooked grains, and some soup. 

Check out her art online and at upcoming shows (when we're back to normal).

http://www.meganwoodardjohnson.com/

https://www.instagram.com/meganwoodardjohnsonart/