Vulnerability, sacking off instagram and talking about legacy.

What came out of a trip to Dunwich Heath.

I was asked a question a few weeks back- What legacy do you want to leave behind? In truth, I didn’t know what was meant by that, what even is a legacy… But as I understand it now- something you want to be known for or remembered for. I still don’t know the answer. As I see it, people will remember you with their own thoughts/ideas of you, until they don’t. I guess I leave a lasting legacy in my paintings- as something tangible that is. Even then, one day they might be picked up in a charity shop, with someone saying- that’s nice, I don’t know who EC is though. Does it really matter as long as the painting survived. Does it matter anyway… This is not me being maudlin, simply thinking- if none of this matters, then what is there holding any of us back? And why does it matter what people will think?

On Instagram, life is edited in pictures/film, it’s altered, it’s not reality. Why invest in something that doesn’t belong to you. And why are we so obsessed with showing the best of everything?

I’ve been walking at Dunwich Heath in Suffolk all morning and listening to The Summer Portraits by Ludovico Einaudi, which is some of the most beautiful music I’ve ever listened to. As I was taking in the heath, the heather and wild landscape, I was thinking- how we as humans, hide the darkest parts of ourselves. I wonder about balance and if it’s in the darkest places where light is created and shines from- bringing compassion and kindness. Does that light then illuminate corners, cast shadows and what are in the shadows? The past? The Future? What’s been, or what’s to come and how it shapes us but doesn’t define us. And it only matters in that moment. I do know this though- it’s in the darkest places, where the vulnerability is and in the vulnerability is strength. I see vulnerability as something quite beautiful and unique to everyone, it’s the window to the soul. I bring mine to my art, to my dramatic paintings. Paint, is my release.

So back to the question of legacy- I’ll leave mine in something tangible, art or words. As a creative I feel a desire to share my work with the world, anyone that will view it, read it. But it’s doing do it in the right places, investing my time which is so precious in the right way. The other week someone close to me lost their instagram and all of meta, it’s irretrievable. Gone. And it made me think. Thank goodness for not putting all my eggs in one basket! I feel awful for them of course. But I’ve been watching this coming like a rain cloud over the fields. My advice to any creative is to have ownership of at least half the places you show up in, like a website or blog and most definitely an email list- like substack. I use instagram too, but mostly to point people in the direction of my substack and websites, not to build a career on.

How I’m using instagram to build my deepest connections- I use the story feature and I put links on it. I post my latest substack- shareables in my stories, I’ve found this works really well at discovering who I connect with and have formed meaningful relationships with over the years. Eventually I will stop using it altogether as I think most people now know where to find me and my work. I only spend time now on investing in building connections with like-minded people. I love sharing the vulnerability as to be vulnerable is to be human. It gives others a direct insight to my work.

I will be updating my art gallery website when I’m home- both these paintings will be available. If you’d like to meet me in person- I will be having a solo exhibition from the 3rd of October at The Aldeburgh Gallery in Aldeburgh, Suffolk. It runs till the 7th of October.

Emma.