#Winning (Hashtag Winning)

Hope On The Eventide.....

In life there are ups and there are downs. Sometimes we get lost in the monotony of the day to day and the turmoils of life that we forget to stop and appreciate not only the triumphs of life but also to stop and "smell the roses." It is a healthy practice to measure your growth by looking back and seeing where you started. For me, this photography journey started at a very young age. I then picked up a little bit of photography during a failed attempt to get a photography degree from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. At that point in my life, I was a young twenty something that thought they knew everything and didn't stop to appreciate the art of photography and what it could provide me in terms of inner peace and the ability to see the world in a different perspective. You guys already know about my first Sony a6000 and me losing it in the UK so I won't rehash that incident (I'm still hurt by it tho...probably always will but lessons learned right?).

One year after my mom passed away, I took the shot I've appropriately named Joy In The Mourning on the Edgewater Pier in Cleveland, OH. The name Joy In The Mourning conveys the process of finding joy in the art of photography while simultaneously mourning the loss of my mom.

The photo cover for this post was taken in the same spot - just on the underside of the same pier. And, while "Joy" was taken right after sunrise, "Hope" was taken right as the sun was setting. When trying to come up with a name for the piece, my sister Angie's comment of the photo giving her a feeling of hope struck me. "Hope On the Eventide. And then we had two photos, taken in the same place, complimenting each other in perspective, name, and space as part of the healing process. I like to say that, for me, Joy In the Mourning brought Hope On The Eventide.

So how does this relate to winning? Well I'm happy to announce that the black and white version of "Hope" will be exhibited as part of the Gurushots "Very Best of Black and White" exhibition at the Bridgeport Art Center in Chicago, Illinois for a whopping SIX WEEKS! The exhibition starts on Friday, September 23, 2022 and ends on Sunday the 4th of November, 2022. I'm so very excited for this achievement and it is truly a proud moment for me. These companion photos - my babies - my twins have both been printed and displayed in galleries. In each case of these images being selected to be printed for galleries around the world, they beat out THOUSANDS of other entries for the honor of being printed and displayed in person rather than virtually. If you happen to live in the Chicagoland area and have some free time, please check it out! There's a post about another major win on the horizon -- pun intended. I can't wait to talk about that one too!

As always, thanks for the ❤️

-- The Soaring Phoenix