How are you doing?
Yep. Me, too.
Deeeeeeeeep breath.
I thought I’d do a few letters in the next couple of months that share a little about what I’m working on in my studio and what I’m working on in the world. I know that many of you read this who know me in many different ways and I’ve had trouble figuring out what to write because I’m never going to be comfortable just sticking to one topic even though that is what every social platform wants you to do.
I believe that we are multifaceted individuals with many interests and I am quietly revolting against the idea of being a brand. All of my work is all of me - every weird idea, project or concept and leaving any of those parts behind feels disingenuous.
Take my last three Google searches:
Lord Lovat (because I am watching Blood of My Blood on Starz (the prequel to Oultander.) He was a real person and he was terrible and the last person ever beheaded in England.
Was John Ritter a womanizer? My husband says yes, but the internet says no. 🤷♀️
How to have a restorative conversation? Always learning how to communicate.
And in the past week I:
Worked on six paintings that will eventually be landscapes of the land I live on in the Ozarks.
Hosted two meetings with my community with the Foundation for Social Connection through a Gates Foundation grant around economic mobility - how people move out of poverty in our community.
Worked on the logistics of the race our Main Street program is putting on this month.
Read a book about hiking through France.
Went to go see Handmade Moments at the Original Ozark Folk Festival.
For a long time, I thought I was supposed to narrow myself down into something tidy and marketable. A “brand.” One clear message, one lane, one way of showing up in the world.
But here’s the thing: I’m not one lane. I’m a whole back road system, winding and unexpected. I paint, I write, I build community projects, I consult, I speak, I experiment. Some of my ideas flop, some soar, and all of them feel like mine.
Every project I take on comes from the same source: me. To leave behind my oddball ideas, half-finished experiments, or side passions just to look more polished would feel dishonest.
So I’ve quietly started revolting against the pressure to be a brand. Instead, I’m choosing to show up as a whole person. Messy, curious, multifaceted. Because my work isn’t separate from my life; it’s the expression of it.
And maybe, just maybe, the more we let ourselves be seen in our fullness, the more permission we give others to do the same.
I’d love to hear how you see yourself as multifaceted. What interests, projects, or passions feel impossible for you to separate from who you are?
And in the meantime you can check out my YouTube video where I’m layering in the messy to create landscapes.
And you can peep the reaction I had to the news about the Department of War. I channeled my frustration into developing an AI illustration which was fun to do as I explore the possibilities of the tech. Obviously channeling Ken and Barbie.
Whatever you are getting up to I’d love to hear and three cheers to all of us who are embracing all the parts of ourselves.
Until next time - Jackie
I completely agree!! We can not be contained in one tidy box!