A Note From the Editor: Making Self-Care a Priority

Dear beautiful and bizarre friends,

Issue 27 of Beautiful Bizarre Magazine with Brad Kunkle’s sublime painting, The Near, Far and Leading on the cover is on sale now! Grab yourself a copy, and take some time to nurture yourself while you sit back, relax and immerse yourself in the inspiring stories of 40 incredible creatives from across the globe. I hope they inspire your own practice or of course your collections.

As you read this issue the festive season will almost be upon us and another year will have flown by. I am not sure if it is age or busyness that makes each year rush past faster than the one before! Regardless, it is the perfect time to stop, be present in the moment, and reflect on the challenges and successes of the year that is coming to a close. To consider our work life balance and evaluate what worked for us and what didn’t, so we can recalibrate in the new year and move forward making our self-care, not just our careers, a priority.

This year has been one of incredible achievements for Beautiful Bizarre Magazine! The 2nd Annual Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize was a huge success with the number of entries doubling from last year and our prize pool increasing to over USD$20,000 in cash and prizes. Plus of course my “inspiration” cup now runs over with amazing creatives to feature in the magazine, on the website and our socials over the coming months and years. So thanks again to all the artists whom entered, to our amazing sponsors INPRNT and Stocksy United, our esteemed Jury Panel, and of course congratulations again to all the Award Winners, and the incredible overall 1st Prize Winner Annie Murphy Robinson, with her winning charcoal drawing, Emily and the Ram (conjuring).

As I write this letter, the 1st Prize winners of all Award categories are currently working on their pieces for the Beautiful Bizarre exhibition ‘Ritual’ which opens at Haven Gallery in Northport New York on 14 December. I looking forward to seeing all the amazing works in person and of course presenting the specially commissioned glass sculpture Awards to the winners at the opening reception. I hope to see many of you there so we can celebrate together! Below are the Winners in each Award Category as well as Annie’s winning work.

As you can imagine all of the various projects Beautiful Bizarre Magazine manages on top of our business as usual, publishing the print magazine, puts huge pressure of our small team. I know as artists you can relate to the late nights, the weekends spent working, and the stress attached to the need to regularly meet targets and deadlines. So I would love to hear how you practice mindfulness. What kinds of self-care rituals do you regularly practice? Do you give yourself enough time to relax, unplug? How do you avoid feeling burnt out?

How do you practice mindfullness?

I read Soey Milk say recently on Instagram that she has a date with herself each morning (at the gym!), where she gives herself time to care for and nurture/strengthen her body before she begins work for the day. I love her attitude! I personally try and get out into my garden and walk my dog as much as possible. I practice yoga and pilates weekly, and set aside one night as a date night with my husband so we can focus on our relationship. I also don’t work on Saturdays unless there is a hard deadline that cannot be moved. On this day I try to stay off my screens all together. Instead I enjoy reading a book, sipping some wine, and basking in the spring sunshine.

It is the small things practiced regularly that focus on the self: mind, body and spirit that together build resilience for our busy lives.

Much love xo

Danijela Krha Purssey, Editor in Chief
Connect with me on Instagram @danijelakrhapurssey

Feature image: “Where no one can wake me” by Happy D, featured in Issue 27.