I have some good news……… yes good news…………… yes I said GOOD news! (finally)
Its ‘Photography’ news 😉
Firstly, and the most exciting part for me is that I have been ‘published’? In an online Italian Arts magazine called ‘Day Dreaming Magazine’. The issue is about Women in art, and unbelievably I have been showcased along side my dear friend and biggest inspiration Katia Chausheva. I first wrote about Katia nearly a year ago now – we became friends through Flickr, and she is now a member of my flickr gallery group ‘numb’. I had no idea she was taking part in the article until now, and I’m so thrilled our work is together for the issue! The April edition doesn’t go live until April 5th, but you can see the preview of it here before anyone else. I’ll also have a profile page on the site as one their artists…….. SO EXCITED!!

The second thing is I have also had a little article written about me in a Dutch online magazine called Digiphoto. It is obviously written in Dutch, so I’ll attach a translation at the end of this entry if you would like to know what it says! 🙂

Thirdly…… This weekend I am about to do the biggest scariest thing I have ever done regarding my photography so far (gulp). I’m going to do a band shoot! They have already been in a lot of the British press – Dazed and Confused magazine, The Times newspaper, The NME…. As well as recording a live session with Radio one at the famous Maida Vale Studios. They are called ‘Crystal Fighters’ and they contacted me after seeing my work on flickr and have asked me to create a ‘dark folklore’ type of shoot. So it’s going to be very theatrical, there are going to be 10 people involved including a make up artist………. So this is going to be a massive learning curve for me! We will set out for the woods just after dawn this Saturday, so wish me luck

Fourthly – (is that a word?) Today I did something for me. Last week was probably one of the worst weeks I have had since my mother died. I was so depressed I could barely get out of bed, and everything finally came to a head on Thursday when my body just gave up, and I collapsed at work. It was pretty much rock bottom for me, and it meant that I missed out on meeting 4 photographers I have been waiting months and months to meet. I can’t explain how low and bad things got, but it scared me… it really did. So, after spending 3 days in bed I felt much better, and today (I can’t believe I’m writing this) I finally bought a Canon 5D Mark II. This may mean nothing to some people, but to me it is a huge deal. It is a top of the range camera, worth about 6 times more than the camera I use at the moment. Its proper professional kit, and the lenses cost about a £1000 each! It is a dream for me – one I could never afford in a million years, but it was a gift from my father. I have been refusing the money from the time he first told me to buy it. He even wrote me a blank cheque, but it was too much and I just couldn’t accept it….. until he told me it was a gift from my mother. It seems when she died, he was sent some money by her pension company, like some kind of sick ‘bonus’ payment for her death. He said the amount was the cost of the camera, and so he gave it to me, ‘from her’.
So I have been starring at that cheque for 6 weeks now, and today was the first day I have felt well in a long, long time. My skin is still healing, but today I felt like ‘the old me’. Stronger and more alive than in a long time…… so I did it, I ordered the camera and a 50mm lens. I still can’t believe it’s coming, and it will be here just in time for the band shoot…. And I have no idea how to work it!!

So that’s it! Today is a happy day, for once I feel normal, and I haven’t cried either, I reckon I score some points for that. So here is the song I always play to myself when I feel like I’m going to get through the day, and everything is going to be alright…………….

So yeah……. finally something nice to write about 🙂 todays a new day right?

** heres the dutch article translation –

“My name is Kirsty Mitchell and I’m a photographer based in London UK. I work as a fashion designer by day for a global womenswear brand but have recently found myself pulled back to my art school roots and my ‘first love’, which was taking pictures. I studied photography when I was 18, which was pre-digital, but moved away from the subject finding the whole emphasis on the darkroom processes too frustrating. Now I’m older and no longer have the freedom that studying provided, I have found that taking photos allows me to channel and express my creative side, ……..something which in many ways has become a form of therapy for me, over what has been a difficult couple of years. I wouldn’t say I look to famous photographers for inspiration, although if I had to name one, I would say the fashion photographer ‘Tim Walker’ because of his fearless ability to realise such magical elaborate worlds.Personally I prefer to concentrate my energies on the ‘flickr’ website ,where I run a small gallery called ‘numb’ and am also extremely involved in a number of other groups. I find there are so many incredibly talented artists on there who know no boundaries, and are just like me – exploring the depths of their imaginations free from any commercial restrictions.
If I had to describe my work, I would call it ‘dark romantic’. I tend to weave between what I can only describe as dream sequences and street photography. I spent almost ten years studying art in one form or another and am heavily influenced by painting as well as music and poetry. I find myself particularly driven by light and the human form… the majority of which being portraiture. I think most people would agree my style is also quite emotional, as it has sadly developed through some of the hardest times I have ever experienced – the most influential factor being the death of my mother in November 08. I also collect vintage clothes and lots of unusual things from flea markets, which include, tribal necklaces, lanterns, birdcages, kimonos etc, and these often appear in my shots. I get a great deal of pleasure trying to create ‘twilight worlds – I once read an article where a photographer was asked why he created similar “dream-like” sets for his pictures – he simply replied “because I wanted ordinary life to be more beautiful than it really is – if it isn’t there, then make it appear” and guess I couldn’t agree more…..! “