Within our search for content to build out Issue No. 2, we knew we wanted to highlight connectedness. What we did not know at first was how to do it. We purposefully did not want Issue No. 2 to be a timestamp of the year that everyone would surely want to forget, but rather a celebration of the inherent bond we share as humans.
When we first heard about Talia the Wedding Painter, the obvious questions came to mind: “how does that work?”, “where does she sit?”, “how long does it take?”. The whole concept of wedding painting was relatively unknown to us, but we just knew that one interview with Talia would take us into the depths of her art that we sought.
Pulling up to Talia’s house in late May after a long quarantine was like taking a really deep breath after holding your breath under water for as long as you can. The sun was shining through the windows, warming her bare wooden floors that united wall after wall of her artwork. She was effortless and welcoming. There were snacks. We sat and talked for almost 2 hours, peeling back the layers of topics such as human connection, individual characteristics, and the merit of art.
Once the article was transcribed and drafted, over 1,800 words were spilled out onto the paper- much more than our normal 500 word articles. There was a fair amount of editing that was done, but we unanimously agreed to make an exception to our feature framework and publish this article in its entirety. It is our fullest article and one of our favorites to date.
That afternoon was the first time I saw a rebound of hope that the special events industry would survive and flourish out of this pandemic. When Talia described what she saw from her unique position as the artist who blends an entire event into one representative painting, she spoke of such dynamic human connection that an existence without it could not be fathomed.
For this, we are grateful.
