VOL 04 : SUNDAYS ARE FOR MOTHERS
With photographer, artist and ex social worker Danielle Emma (Wildfire Creative)
Hello friends, I’d love to welcome you to
Volume 04 of the
Sundays are for Mothers written interview series.
Happy Sunday friends!
This week has been a busy one for me! I had Mastitis, we had a weekend away last week, and kicked off the workweek on the back foot, with a chaotic household and didn’t quite come up for air. So I’m posting this Sunday night rather than Sunday morning, though I’m hoping your littles are all snug in bed, and you have the space to grab a cup of tea and indulge in another beautiful, inspiring and real interview of a Mother Maker.
As a mother, and as a woman devoted to not only my creative process, but also exploring different avenues for my creativity, intuition, business ideas over the years - some privately, some publicly, some for arts sake, some as income streams… I’ve learned that the road can feel lonely.
Not always lonely as in physically alone - though of course that can happen too… (sort of? With kids buzzing in and out)… But alone in the sense of feeling like it’s a mystery how any other mother does it. I’ve felt, many times, that I so badly just wanted just a peak behind the curtains of other creatives, who were somehow moving between children, a creative project/ their business/ clients, the home, to their lover, into their community…
I’d ask myself questions like “How do they balance it? Does that exist? Is it just a highlight reel and it’s actually chaos like my BTS? Do the dishes get done, or is she on the laptop next to a pile of clothes needing to be folded…. “
All the way to “I wonder how she decides to price things, Does she get Ideas seducing her in the middle of the night too? What’s her process, how does it all work?”
When I published An Open Letter To Mother Creatives
It became clear that what I had known to be true, and assumed true for others…. was in fact very relatable and we are all dancing and weaving in our own ways through the journey of our motherhood and nourishing the heart with whatever our creativity is channeled into.
For those new here, Sundays are for Mothers is a bi-weekly interview series I’m publishing here on Substack exclusive to my paid community of mother makers.
The series is designed to demystify the mystery of the Mother Maker. To have a peak behind the curtains and feel both the magic and the monotonous moments of this journey as creatives. To be able to explore things like the realities of home life, relationship, raising creative children, making space for ourselves, the struggles, insecurities and celebrations that come with this walk. Intrinsically, this series is FOR YOU, the Mother Maker, to have you feel more connected to others, to dissolve guilt or shame, to spark inspiration, to normalise so much of this world as a creative, and make space for more ease within our own experiences.
I urge you to connect with the women interviewed, please come and enjoy the conversation in the comments, let’s create a little hub (or big hub?) of energy and understanding that I believe, we all crave.
So much love, thank you for being here
Love Kat
P.S This will likely appear too long for some browsers, If so - head to the app or website to read in full.
SUNDAYS ARE FOR MOTHERS VOL 04
Name: Danielle Emma (Fitzgerald)
Hey Dani!
I would love to start by sharing a bit about yourself, your family, your story and what you do.
Hey! Thank you for having me here. I am Danielle Fitzgerald. I’m a mother first. A former social worker of 17 years turned photographer, documentary artist, copywriter and multi passionate creative. As a former social worker, I’m an activist at heart. A sociologist by nature. In my personal photography practice away from my business, I love to dive into societies unseen parts. In my documentary art project ‘Venus 8’ I document the realism, life and histories of the erotic artist. I love to delve into subcultures were many dare not to tread. And yet they exist right on our doorsteps.
Part of this work is bringing the unseen to the seen. A shadow of mine. It’s like you want to look and look away at the same time. It can be confronting, but most of my former career was confronting. A career in social work builds a level of resilience and character in such environments. I feel this makes me an ethical fit to study such subject matter. I am comfortable in societies nether regions. This is likely due to my childhood. A tumultuous, loving, chaotic kaleidoscope of experience, that after years of work, I now look very fondly upon.
My business photography includes, motherhood work, embodied branding, emotive events and soon to be documentary weddings. There are themes of realism, movement, empowerment, embodiment. Allowing my subjects to be seen in telling ‘their stories.’ It truly is a collaboration between artist and muse.
I am originally from the UK and now live in country Western Australia with my three year old daughter and her dad.
What are some key moments in your creative journey so far? (both failures and triumphs)
For those who have upgraded their subscription, you can continue reading below.
For those who haven’t, I invite you to head to a desktop/ email version of this (Not in the app) to have the option to upgrade to a paid reader. It’s $2.25 a week, and you'll receive access to a full archive of over 80+ articles in my library, along with past and future Sundays are for mothers interviews, and an Essay from me each Wednesday. Workshops are coming in 2024 too.
Upgrade now to continue reading this series
Love Kat