Julia Wright of GallivantingGirl

Hey Everyone,
I've wanted to start doing interviews with Artists I admire on here for a while now. I finally did it! I've got Julia Wright with me first! She is a beautiful photographer who focuses mostly on her farm land. I've never lived on a farm, but I feel that in another life I must have, I just love farms so much! Here is your interview! You can find here here on etsy:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/GallivantingGirl?ref=seller_info

Here on facebook:

www.facebook.com/TheGallivantingGirl?ref=hl

and here on her blog:

ramblinggallivantinggirl.blogspot.com

1)Tell me about yourself, how do you spend your days when you're not taking photographs?

I think I was born in the wrong era. I'm a sucker for old movies and photographs and anything vintage. I read a lot of books and magazines from the late 1800s to the early 1900s. I have two Associates Degrees, one in Fine Arts-Studio Concentration and one in Agriculture Business, and I'd have probably gotten one in History and one in Literature if I wouldn't have met my husband and gotten married. I loved college, and school in general. I am curious about everything, every subject, every time period. Even my musical choices are extremely varied. I may listen to classical, jazz, big band, classic rock, folk, country, and rap all in one sitting. I'm listening to Django Reinhardt as I'm doing this interview, he's a new found favorite.

My routine has been thrown off a bit with our house renovations. Usually, I wake up around 7, and roll out my yoga mat. I do a few poses and then make myself some breakfast and a mason jar of hot green tea with honey. I'll sit down at the table and read/respond to emails and peruse the internet a bit while I sip and eat. My almost three year old daughter Joelee (I call her Hoot) usually wakes up around this time. She often asks for pancakes for breakfast (I make whole-wheat pancakes from scratch, they are simple and delicious. I'll give you the recipe if you'd like). After she's done eating we venture out to do the morning chores. She checks for eggs, feeds her Tomcat, and plays with her pet hen while I feed the dog, horses, goats, calf, rabbits, chickens, and ducks. We check their water and make sure everybody is happy. We usually stay out for about an hour playing on her swing or in her wheelbarrow-sandpile.

We venture inside and she usually works beside me. If I'm painting or editing photos, she is usually at the table drawing or painting too. She helps me make lunch most days and after lunch she's 'supposed' to take a nap. On the days she does I try to tackle the business-work side of The Gallivanting Girl. Marketing myself, bookwork, and the other not-so-fun things that go along with running your own business. Other days, I do housework, or other mundane tasks that have to be done. Some days she'll ask to take a drive (that's kid-code for “I want to take a nap, but don't want to admit it”). On those days, I'll grab my camera and take some backroads while she sleeps and try to take a decent photograph or two (I used to log a lot more miles in the truck exploring before I had her, she's starting to like to travel a bit, but I don't push it too much).

The evenings are spent with my husband and Hoot. We make supper, do the evening chores and play a bit before Joe's bedtime. After she goes to sleep, I usually stay up a bit and look for inspiration on the internet. I'm very visual, so Flickr, Etsy, Tumblr, and Pinterest are where I'm usually found. It's just a nice way to unwind before bed. I'll write down a to-do list for the following day, and any notes about the artists or images I've found and then I head off to sleep myself. I'm ready to get back into the house and get my studio set back up. I've got lots of ideas written down to draw, paint, and work on.


2)You live on a farm correct? Or you live near one at least. How often do you do actual farm work? Are you farm girl or just an observer through your lens?

Yes, we live on a small farm. It's more of what a farm would've been seventy years ago. I raise a few animals of various species. Everybody has a lot of room: the chickens and ducks run loose, the bigger livestock live in large pastures, even the rabbits are in grazing pens instead of small cages. They give us food for the table and compost for our garden and it's a nice way to live. I like knowing exactly where our food comes from. I'd eventually like to be 100% self-sufficient when it comes to our food, but I've got a ways to go before that's a reality.

We do farm-work every day. Chores morning and night, and some days we do a bit more intensive labor: trimming goat feet, sorting rabbits or goats, switching pastures, putting up hay, weeding the garden, etc.

3)What is your favorite part about being an etsy seller? Is it the blogging? The actual process of taking photographs? Editing your photographs? I know for me I love how multi faceted the etsy experience is, but I'm always curious about others.



My favorite part of being an Etsy seller is the fact that it has made the world so much smaller. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought ten years ago that I'd have my artwork all across the United States let alone Switzerland, Italy, and Canada. I enjoy blogging about other artists, and the items I've found on Etsy. I also enjoy seeing the success of other shops—it gives me that push to try harder. I've also found that Etsy is only limited by the amount of effort you put into it. If you set up a shop and then do nothing else, more than likely your shop will not get much traffic/sales. If you reach out, talk to other sellers, join teams, and market yourself, the possibilities are endless to how successful your shop can be. I'm still learning (I just opened a second shop, and that has taken some getting used to), and I've taken quite the step back during the house renovations, but I'm hoping to get my shops back on the front burner soon.

4) If you don't mind sharing, what sort of camera do you favor?


I use a Canon Rebel Digital SLR that I've had for seven years or so. It's the only brand of camera I've ever had any experience with. Before I got the digital I had a Canon Rebel Film SLR that used the same lenses. I'm sure there's something better out there, but I'm comfortable with my Canon. I am still learning all the functions, I don't consider myself a professional yet, I probably will never consider myself one. My poor camera has been through Hell and back with me. I really need to have the camera body cleaned as well as the lenses. Too many dirt roads to count. I actually had a horse step on my camera bag once (somehow nothing was broken). I've photographed in all conditions, it's been gritty, muddy, and very well used. But for some reason it has kept up with me.



5) What is your most popular selling photograph on etsy?



There are a couple that have sold more than others. “Wash Day” and “Curious” have seemed to be really popular.

6) What is your favorite?




I think my favorite would have to be “Rush County Barn in Black and White” mostly for sentimental reasons. That was taken when I was just seventeen or so, and at that time I was driving my beloved truck Brutus (who I had to sell when I got married), and I'd be out driving backroads from dawn until dusk. Rush County was one of my favorites to explore. Now I live almost two hours south of where I grew up, so I don't get to travel those same roads anymore.

7) You said you were a goal setter, what are some of your other goals in your etsy life?

One big goal is to be interviewed by Etsy as a featured seller (that's a career changer). I'd like to have a treasury I curate make the Front Page (my items have made it into some front page treasuries, but I've never had one of my own treasuries be selected). I'm also hoping to join a few more teams after I get settled into my new studio space, and just focus more on my business in general. I've got tons of goals, these are just the tip of the iceberg.

September 23, 2012 1 comments