A Deep Dive into the Past Decade of My Life

Jun 14

We have a closet at my parent’s house that is filled with photo albums from photographs my dad took of us growing up and our hallway is lined with formal portraits of our dead relatives dating back 100 years. Photography was in my life before I could even choose it to be.

I grew up in the woods in central Virginia with two older siblings. Half of my family lives next to each other alongside the family farm my aunt runs. The other half is a conglomerate of 50+ people scattered across Virginia and Florida.

I was in dance classes starting at 3 years old and started competitively dancing in 2011. I also cheered growing up and returned to the sport in 2011, cheering for our high school, both on the sidelines and at competitions. Both cheer and dance taught me how to choreograph routines involving many people, understand rhythm, and a plethora of other handy skills. Dance encouraged me to create stories to represent, causing me to fall for the art of it all.

Throughout all my K-12 years, art class was the highlight of my day. Through high school alone I believe I took seven art classes. Our photography classes in school were based in the darkroom. We were using 35mm film cameras, developing our own b&w film, and creating our own silver gelatin prints.

*A cow birthed two calves and chose one. The other escaped and had to be wrangled - August, 2013*

2014

Beginning in 2014, following in the footsteps of my older sister, I began photographing weddings. These were small weddings or those of family members but I loved that I was able to document one of the most memorable days of these couples’ lives before I even graduated high school. In the fall I started my senior year of high school with three art classes, AP Art, Portfolio, and Ceramics. These classes inspired me to pursue a future in the creative arts.

In photography class, we practiced creating self-portraits by doing 30-day challenges. This was a great exercise to force ourselves to come up with new ideas, execute our ideas, and understand what it takes both in front of and behind the camera to make an image work. I enjoyed these challenges as they encouraged me to come up with a whole story based on a word or phrase given to us.

2015

We ended our year with a senior art show for the community. I framed many of my images in old window frames. Seeing my work displayed gave me hope that I would continue creating work that I would want to share with others.

I graduated high school in the spring and continued to work small photography jobs over the summer. I was accepted into the #1 public arts school in the country and was excited to really embrace this path. Once I began pursuing my Bachelor of Fine Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University, I was introduced to an entirely new side of the art world. The BFA program at VCU is very special as it encourages an interdisciplinary learning experience. The first year of the program is called Art Foundation (AFO) and focuses on four main studio classes: Drawing, Space, Time, and Surface. Every person pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts goes into these four studio classes, divided into two a semester. Then, after the first year, students apply to what major they would like to go into. My first semester at VCU was centered around Drawing and Space. Drawing focused on 2-dimensional works made with pencil, charcoal, and pen & ink. Space was an exploration of space, focusing on 3-dimensional art at a multitude of scales.

*In progress live model drawing, November 2015*

2016

The spring semester focused on the Surface and Time studios. Surface was a continuation of 2-dimensional works, mainly using paint as a material. Time was an exploration of art that had a beginning and an end. This included video, sound, performance, and installation pieces. All of these studios were exciting (and stressful) and helped create a solid foundation to build upon. I finished out my first year with an acceptance into the Photography & Film program.

In the summer, I began working for Chanco on the James, the summer camp I spent six summers at growing up. I worked as a counselor but quickly realized I wanted to be able to document all of the fun the kids were having so they could cherish those memories for years to come.

*My first darkroom project, September 2016*

In the fall of 2016, I began my photography-specific classes. The one I was most excited about was Darkroom. In this class, we learned about large-format cameras, specifically the 4x5. These are huge cameras that have huge negatives. Working with that camera taught me how to be intentional about the photographs I was creating and truly appreciate the whole process from the sun to silver. The other studios I was taking focused on digital photography and video work. I also discovered a new love for creating short films.

During this time I started working for the student-run weekly newspaper at VCU, The Commonwealth Times, as a photographer. This was at a pivotal time for students as I was able to document many protests and student-led events in Richmond. This photojournalism experience influenced my style when it comes to documenting weddings and other events.

*Photographing with the 4x5, October 2016*

2017

In the spring, as a continuation of the darkroom class, we had a class called Processes & Techniques. Here, we learned about the many phases of photographic history with cyanotypes, daguerreotypes, calotypes, and the tri-color gum bichromate process. I had a lot of fun in this class and really embraced the spooky vibe that an antique process can give. I also continued learning about video work and how to make personal projects that tell an emotional story.

In the summer, I headed back to Chanco on the James with a brand-spanking-new position: creative media. I photographed campers, edited thousands of photos, and uploaded images every day so their parents and loved ones could see how much fun they were having. I would post these photos on social media to increase engagement and attendance. I also videoed the activities and created wrap-up videos at the end of each session to show those picking up the campers how fun Chanco is.

The fall semester introduced the class to artificial lighting, working in a studio, and creating concepts that warranted a larger series of work that weren’t just 1-2 week projects but months long or semester-long. This is where I was introduced to the Hasselblad, a medium-format camera with a waist-level viewfinder. One of my friends in class checked one out from the school to use in our studio class. I used it to create one image of dried flowers in an old glass bottle.

I began to work part-time at Michael Kors as a sales associate which was a slow immersive experience into the world of fashion. I was basically Andrea in The Devil Wears Prada.

2018

My best friend became pregnant and I was blessed to be a third wheel on that journey. It made me think a lot about motherhood, creation, and the divine feminine. The work I was making in school developed into research on the spiritual relationships between women and the environment. I was taking human spirituality courses so that also pushed me to think about this dynamic. I explored this relationship through photography and videography, channeling inspiration from Justine Kurland, Sally Mann, and Ana Mendieta.

During the summer I returned to Chanco on the James to continue the position from the previous year. I went from a summer-only job photographing and videoing activities at the summer camp and running social media to working year-round on many events and promotional materials. This led to me creating fundraisers by designing and selling merchandise to working on the capital campaign, helping raise over four million dollars to construct and renovate buildings on campgrounds.

As August rolled around, I entered into my final year of undergrad. I got to see my Goddaughter be born which will be one of the highlights of my life. The series that I had worked on previously adapted into my thesis project, Oh I Can See Her Now; a body of work consisting of digital and film images along with a poem engraved on wood. I started working with the Hasselblad which really connected me to the project. I loved having a physical image being made -> the sun exposing film with the occasional euphoric accident.

2019

At the beginning of the year, I adopted Benny from the Goochland Animal Shelter. He helped me get through the last semester of school and forced me to have a lot of outdoor time and exercise.

Our class created a gallery exhibition to display all of our thesis projects. We also had the opportunity to give artists talks about our work to the public at a local art center.

During this last semester, I enrolled in a fabric-dying class. It was one of my favorite classes I have ever taken. We learned about natural and synthetic dyes, how they react to different fabrics, and how to sew. Our final project was a kimono. I hand-dyed my kimono with indigo with different techniques to create the illusion of octopus tentacles and water ripples. The hope was to remind others to take care of our oceans.

After graduating cum laude from VCU in 2019, I continued to work for Chanco on the James as well as additional companies. From event coverage to headshots I was doing it all, filling my plate up with contract work.

In the winter I worked part-time at David’s Bridal which pushed me back into the wedding industry. I enjoyed getting to know brides, hearing their plans for their weddings, and of course, helping them find their perfect wedding dresses.

2020

I officially started my business, Casey Lee, LLC, in February 2020. Shortly after, Covid encouraged us to enjoy the people in our lives and to be happy which I was glad to encourage. I began photographing portrait sessions for individuals and families. I also hosted boudoir portraits (#selflove). As a result of the wedding industry blowing up in 2020, my sister and I started a wedding photography business, The Cole Sisters.

*Kirstin & Chris on Kodak Portra Film, October 2022*

My man, Rob, and I moved out of Richmond to Moseley during the summer. We moved into a farmhouse built in 1852 with a large backyard for our Benny boy. The move helped me reset and get back into the mood of creating. In the fall, I pioneered another part-time position: The Communications & Media Director for The Episcopal Church of the Redeemer in Midlothian, Virginia. I built their website, photographed events and headshots, and kept parishioners connected to the clergy through weekly videos. Very soon after I began another similar position, this one at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Powhatan, Virginia. St. Luke’s was the church I grew up attending so it was very personal to be able to work for them. This was the third organization in the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia (Diosova) that I had a position with.

2021

In 2021, I had a full schedule of weddings, portraits, and communications work. As a one-year anniversary present of my business, I fulfilled one of my goals -> buying a Hasselblad. I had used one in school and I had this feeling that it would inspire me to create a new type of imagery. Which it did! I brought this camera with me everywhere. Since the ratio of the images is square, it forced me to compose and see images in a different way.

While working hard and keeping busy, I still felt something was missing. As a child, I had always wanted to be an architect. Unfortunately, I was talked out of it in high school because I was told it was not a “creative” field. This was disappointing so I chose to have a creative education. I revisited this and chose to enroll in Architecture classes at a local community college. This was not a new journey to replace everything that I had worked so hard for, but a new journey to add to the other creative work that I was doing.

2022

After the soft launch, I applied to graduate programs in architecture. There is a three-year Master of Architecture program that is designed for those who do not hold bachelor's degrees in architecture which is perfect for me! The programs I applied to were scattered around the east coast so I had the opportunity to travel in the spring to visit the colleges I was accepted to.

2022 was the year of traveling for me. I began the year in Guatemala to celebrate a friend’s wedding. I spent my birthday in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Georgia. The spring was filled with college visits to South Carolina, Louisiana, and Florida. At the beginning of the summer, I jetted off to the other side of the world with my bestie and her family to India. I stopped at the UAE on the way and afterward headed to Greece and Turkey with my sister.

I began pursuing a Master of Architecture at Clemson University in the fall of 2022. It was a whirlwind of a first semester and I felt great about the path I decided to venture down. I would return to Virginia on select weekends to photograph weddings and portrait sessions. I finished my first semester of grad school with a rag-tag group of friends that have a passion for architecture just like me. I launched the print shop in October and am so happy to be able to share my art with others.

2023

2023 began with a travel grant to learn about the historic use of Adobe as a material. I had the opportunity to visit southern Colorado and northern New Mexico, specifically Taos, to photograph, visit, and learn about these adobe structures. Everything in my mind comes back to our relationship with Earth so I was very interested in how to use earthen materials to build structures.

The next semester of school was a steep learning curve with the introduction of many computer programs but I ended the semester with work that I am proud to have created and excitement for the next year of school.

Right as the semester ended, I headed south to Miami to accompany my friend for a beach shoot she had scheduled. While down there, we shot through ten rolls of 120 film, taking portraits on the beach, in the water, and on an abandoned sailboat. As we strolled through the city, I fell in love with the art deco architecture of South Beach. In mid-May, my parents, their friends, and I went on a nine-day tour of the Northeast. Starting in Virginia we went through nine states up to Maine.

Now that I am receiving a formal education in architecture, I am bridging the two fields of architecture and photography, as well as my background in environmental portraiture, in the work that I am creating. This has turned into a new body of work highlighting the dichotomy of the natural and built environments. I explore this topic by traveling to a variety of places to document how the relationship between the two varies. The images in this body of work are created using my Hasselblad 500 C/M on medium format film. Since I bought the camera in February of 2021, I have taken my Hasselblad to five countries and twelve states and shot hundreds of rolls of film. I hope to continue this exploration by visiting new places each year.

Many of the images I create are available as fine-art prints in my print shop. I am happy to share the beautiful relationship between the natural environment and the built environment as art objects.

If you have made it this far, thank you! I hope you check back in later to see what I get into next.

Casey Lee

The Print shop

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Casey Cole