From House Fails to Rankin Portraits

Arts, Wellbeing and Lost Houses

For the last 9 months, as long as it had previously taken for me to create a child, I have been trying to purchase a house. This week it fell through, the ramifications of which, I shan’t bore you with, but you can imagine given the current financial climate. I found out while I was en route to a shoot at Rankin’s studios. At first I felt a gut punch. PRs generally don’t enjoy surprises and it felt devastating that this simple thing - to buy a property for my young family - was beyond even my most fabulously persistent means of execution. I then felt guilty for worrying about something so intrinsically materialistic when so many have so little. And finally, it dawned on me that within 5 minutes of this life changing news, I would also have to turn on a smile and pose for a world-famous photographer. A portrait of me, forever marking this day.?

Portraiture traditionally has been used to celebrate success, wealth or status, though numerous recent art projects have rightly aimed to change that status quo. Regardless, I can tell you reader, I felt none of those traditional portrait attributes in that particular moment. The irony to be photographed on a day where a project had failed. Yet, it was to be the most transformative experience I could have had.

Sitting for a portrait is an intimate process and requires trust between artist and sitter. The celebrated artist Jonathan Yeo is reported to have commented to cultural commentator Martin Gayford; "There’s an intimacy to the bubble you are in when it’s two of you in a studio...even though the picture’s going to be seen quite widely. I’m not going to tell the sitter’s story literally, so they can reveal a vulnerability or sadness or hardness or whatever, a complexity in their personality or past that makes the picture more interesting."? When Tinie Tempah was doing publicity for a BBC series I worked on called Extraordinary Portraits, he talked about feeling a sense of legitimacy through portraiture. Speaking to The Guardian he?recalled the “immense pride, inclusion and acknowledgment” he felt, after seeing his picture go up in?a national institution. I'd agree with both observations of portraiture and though?I’m not about to be put in a national gallery, I was shot with a cohort of fabulous, successful women, which to me was a comforting gallery of talent that I was honoured to be included amongst.

The unifying act of being brought together through art was transformative to my mood and how I’ll see that day when I look back.?Engaging in an artistic process, learning more about the future of the form and working with others to create a common goal; made me feel lighter, happier and inspired. I felt connected to those who have sat before me and it reminded me yet again of the value of the arts and the role they have in our wellbeing. Their ability to provide relief from our daily lives, different perspectives and connection. This is why they need to be preserved and protected. This is why they are needed now more than ever, as we navigate a cost-of-living crisis that will affect everyone and the poorest in our society the most.?

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the arts should not be considered the preserve of the wealthy. I know I was very lucky to be in the presence of a famous photographer, not everyone can have that, but the act of creating or being inspired and creating a break from your thoughts is possible for everybody.?The joy of the UK is that there are myriad touch points with culture and ways to get involved. From visiting our many free galleries to going to a local community centre, listening to a friend read a poem or going to a spoken word performance at a subsidised arts centre, hearing someone play a free piano at Kings Cross or going to life drawing classes, baking at home or eating in a gallery cafe, taking photos of the world around you or going to an immersive exhibition, watching an opera or practising Christmas songs with your family. Art Fund and Get Creative Facebook page are two really good routes if you're not sure where to turn to, in addition to your local council website and libraries.

Engaging with the arts can help you create new friends, memories and, vitally, give you a release from the day-to-day. For me, this week will no longer be the day that a 9 month process collapsed around me like a souffle released too soon from the oven. This week will now be remembered as the week I had a portrait created by Rankin, surrounded by successful talented people who made me feel inspired.

And finally...what of the photos? I'd be no kind of PR if I didn't mention the why. They'll be used for an exciting new supportive project that I can't wait to tell you about in due course, until then, happy creating.