Hello, Arts Lovers.
It feels like an era since I last penned anything for HUXLEY. Perhaps it is – the world has certainly changed.
The events of 2020 threw us all a curve-ball. Some of us caught that ball and ran with it, some fumbled and played on, some lost sight of it completely.
I was probably somewhere between the latter two.
COVID-19 bought the Arts world to a screeching halt last year (in case you didn’t know!) For HUXLEY, this meant there was no where to distribute our freshly printed magazines, the articles we’d spent weeks developing were null and void, and the pipeline of wonderful Arts events of which we’d usually write had mostly dried up.
While I would have liked to have pivoted early like so many artists who found new ways to share their work, or to have drawn inspiration from isolation, the truth is I welcomed the forced break.
Amid the chaos and uncertainty of the outside world, my own smaller world was also shifting. Over a few short weeks just about everything that seemed rock solid changed for me – relationships, creative pursuits, and my business. Like so many others, 2020 was draining. But it also offered an opportunity to unapologetically redefine boundaries, cocoon for a bit and recharge.
I’ve used the past 11 months to take stock of a lot.
“one of the most consistently recurring lessons I draw from other artists is the power of truth, openness and vulnerability.”
I don’t often share my personal life or projects in HUXLEY. The platform is not for me, it’s for all of the North’s artists. However, one of the most consistently recurring lessons I draw from other artists is the power of truth, openness and vulnerability. Compassion can not exist without these.
In all my reflection and refocusing, one of the things that has become most clear to me is that my love for sharing the work and stories of our local artists endures. Nothing lights a fire in me more than talking to artists about the thing they love and then sharing that with you.
Over the last few weeks, I have been quietly chatting with people about their projects and I am so excited to tell you that HUXLEY will relaunch on Monday, 1 March 2021.
Our print magazine won’t make a return just yet (it’s still considered germy among the COVID-Safe and quite frankly it takes a lot of time and financing that just isn’t available right now), but please keep an eye on our website, Facebook and Instagram for new stories.
The North’s artists are back with a vengeance. Come be inspired by their tenacity, creativity and vulnerability at HUXLEY Press.
Sarah Mathiesen
Editor
