#1
a story about a sweatshirt
Why am I selling a sweatshirt with one of my photographs on it?
Because when I made one for myself a few weeks ago, it lit me up with so much joy. I pulled it on over my head, looked in the mirror, and thought, “That’s my photo on a shirt!” How fulfilling. This photo in particular reminds me of sweet leisure, how much better a baguette and cheese tastes when eaten in bed, and answering my inner child's deepest calls and desires.
When I made this sweatshirt, I excitedly shared the photo above with you all on Instagram. The idea of my work showing up in this wearable-art format feels so natural, whimsical, and fun. So when more than a few of you began filling my DM’s with expressed interest, I thought, why not challenge myself to make this a real, tangible thing? So, we’re running with it.
This photo was taken in Paris in 2019, on a mother-daughter trip that I tacked on to the end of a work trip. I had been commissioned by Maille to journey to Dijon and film the mustard fields in full bloom. After a couple of days of deeply fulfilling and fun work (see the clip below for a hilarious outtake), my mum flew to join me at The Hoxton in Paris. My mum was a flight attendant for TWA in the 80s and flew the Transatlantic route. She has so many treasures that she has collected over her years traveling the world. From the cartouche she bought in the bazaar in Cairo, to the stories of cosmetics she’d resist buying because “you shouldn’t buy products you can’t maintain purchasing”. I definitely adopted this love of collecting items along the way when I travel from her. I also couldn’t resist surprising her when she landed in Paris so I arranged two beautiful yellow ceramic cups I had purchased a few days earlier in Dijon on our hotel room’s desk for her with a little note to welcome her. I watched as her eyes lit up with joy when she saw the pieces.
We spent the following week together exploring, laughing, and drinking lots of coffee in the fresh air. We shared a cozy room and celebrated each day to the fullest like the girlfriends we have grown into. We drank bubbly in bed, went to numerous bakeries (my favorite way to taste a city) and one day, we went to a market and bought the most beautifully ripe strawberries, vegetables, cheese covered in flower petals (swoon), and a fresh baguette. We laid everything out on the hotel bed, put on plushy robes, and dove in. In my opinion, no trip to Europe is complete without this type of market meal, and it’s even more delicious if you eat it in your hotel room with a junky tv show on, or good music playing on the radio.
This time spent in Paris was marked with pure joy, connection, and love, and my hope is that my photo captures even just a fraction of this feeling.
I’m selling a limited run of these sweatshirts, and you can pre-order one HERE. Pre-sales will be open until May 9th; the production time will be 4-6 weeks. I am working with a local artist to create a small embroidered version of my logo based on the evil eye. The logo will be small feature on the sleeve. This protective symbol wards off any jealousy or ill wishes that are directed your way.
I can’t wait to share these with you all and am excited to have you participate in the first edition of BARD.