A RAWking Night in New York

Well. Voilà! Tomorrow marks one-week after my first showcase in NYC with RAW: Natural Born Artists. Here is a little picture of last Thursday:

Departure and Arrival

Chaos. Rushing around the house to get ready, pack, decide what work to bring apart from the pieces to hang, finally I was “ready.” I ran out the door and jumped into my mom’s car with two re-usable shopping bags full of stuff – including clothes and makeup for later.

Nervous we would miss the train, we hurried to the Poughkeepsie station. Luckily, we made it with a few minutes to spare – and we were off.

We arrived a little early to La Pomme – too early to enter – so we went to find food.

Set-up and Interview

Back at the venue with our sandwiches and my Starbucks, the photo/videographer approached me for my interview (part of a press packet RAW puts together for its artists). Stressed and makeup-less, I pleaded for a little more time. She accepted – begrudgingly.

I finished my food and promptly went to put on makeup for the interview. Problem was, the bathroom had no light; I wasted much time searching for light+mirror in order to not look like a clown – or accidental goth/emo.

Once the beauty was properly applied, I found Lisa and she interviewed me. It was not the first interview I’ve been a part of – having studied journalism and written news stories/etc., however it was the first where I was in front of the camera rather than behind. It felt rather odd, to be honest. I’ve had job interviews and things, but I had never before been questioned on “tape” about my art and my goals as a photographer – etc. Naturally, I had a combination of verbal diarrhea and speechlessness. Fortunately I managed to get through it and go back to hang my work – which went surprisingly quickly and efficiently.

Lights, Camera, Action

Before I knew it, people started arriving. Strangers and familiars. (One person told me the line to get in wrapped the block!) People arriving stopped to look at my work first (perk of being next to the entrance!). Some friends showed up and a long-lost cousin. People from different areas of my life came out to support me, and I was excited! Completely thrilled with the strong response to my work, the number of people taking my card, and the compliments. Elated. I talked with someone from Raine Magazine – a publication that promotes up and coming artists, designers, etc – who seemed to really appreciate my work.

Throughout the evening there were live aspects to the event, including a short film, a musical performance by Verity in Stereo, and a lingerie fashion show. Really a fantastic night of creative mingling and great work.

Thank you to everyone who made this possible.

Read about the experience leading up to the event: The Pre-RAW Experience
See what I put up: “Sentiments” by Caylena Cahill
See what you can buy from that night: Pieces for Sale (from “Sentiments”)