Laura Hollick - Soul Art Studio

It all starts with an idea!

My ideas usually come to me while I’m hiking in the forest. Once I have an idea, I start playing with it to figure out how I can turn it into reality. Here is one of the initial sketches for the Rainbow Tree photoshoot.

As the seasons are changing from Fall to Winter the landscape in the forest is quite mono-tone. I thought it would look so beautiful to have a tree glowing with rainbow amongst all the other sleeping trees.

To bring the Rainbow Tree image to life I gathered my team and we started to work on the  idea.

I worked with Sue Upton to do my hair and makeup with rainbow accents.

My hair was braided with the same wool and fabrics that were used to wrap the tree.

I worked with photographer Kevin Thom to bring the image to life.

The location for the Rainbow Tree was a bit of a hike in from the road so we used a cart to bring loads of fabric, the ladder and camera equipment to the location.

Then we went to work!

It took over 3 hours to wrap the trees. Once everything was wrapped I changed into my Rainbow dress and we snapped the shot. I always giggle at how fast the photo is compared to the hours that go into making that moment happen.  Kevin studied the composition while I was wrapping the trees so it was easy to put me in position and get the shot.

Here is the final image of the Rainbow Tree.

Rainbow Trees, Laura Hollick. Photographed by Kevin Thom.

Click to watch the video of the making the Rainbow Trees.

What nü Native image do you like best?

‘nü Native Earth’ Laura Hollick photographed by Kevin Thom.

‘nü Native Air’ Laura Hollick photographed by Kevin Thom.

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What to see the behind the scenes creative process for these images?

Click here to see behind the scenes

Transform your dreams into reality with these 5 steps….

‘Follow your heart’ Laura Hollick. Photo by Kevin Thom

The dream of following your heart & making money is not as far off as you might think. Years ago when I wasn’t making money from following my heart, the idea of expressing myself and thriving seemed like a fantasy. It felt like a magical idea that I wondered if I would ever experience.

Now that I do make money by following my heart and have guided others to do it too, I know it is not only possible but probable when you take the right steps.

5 Steps to transform your dream into reality

1. CLARITY
You need to have a clear vision of what you want. You won’t be able to take any action if you don’t know where you want to go. Get clear about your dream.

What do you want?

2. DECISION
You must make a whole-hearted decision to go for your dream all the way. If you do it half way, it won’t happen, it requires your whole Self. Make the decision to go for it.

Have you made the whole-hearted decision to go for your dreams?

3. SUPPORT
It is important to seek out people and environments that support and encourage your dream. A turning point in my own transformation was when I invested in a high-level coach to help me go beyond my small thinking and into my big vision. I highly recommend finding someone who can take you further than you thought possible.

What or Who can support you to transform your dream into reality?

4. ACTION
You must take action! There is no way around this one. You must be willing to put your ideas, inspiration and vision in motion with your action. This means being willing to make mistakes and learn and keep going.

What is the most powerful action you can take now to move you in the direction of your dream?

5. ACTIVE SURRENDER
While you are taking action, let the magic of the journey guide you. Your intuition kicks in when you are in motion. If you want to access your inner guidance system you need to get moving.

Are you letting your intuition guide you?

Take this even further with the telecourse ‘Follow your heart & make money’.

Begin your transformational journey today!

Stephanie is a photographer, designer and photoshop artist. She is one of those rare birds who is able to spot the unseen beauty and transform it into a modern fairytale.

I first learned about her work a few years ago when she was voted Best Photographer in View Magazine.

I approached her and asked if she would be part of ‘The Photographer’s Series’, a series of interviews with select photographers from across Canada. The purpose of these interviews is to explore the vision, creative process and journey of each photographer. Part of my research involved being part of a creative photoshoot with each photographer.

For Stephanie’s shoot, she wanted to explore the idea of temptation. She used apples to reference the biblical story of Eve’s temptation, but she added her own Stephanie twist to it.

This piece is called ‘Temptation II’

During the photoshoot I learned a few things about Stephanie Bell….
1. She has birds flying around in her home.
2. She starts with a concept and let’s it grow as the ingredients come together.
3. She creates a team of support around her to help her realize her visions.
4. She is rather quiet during the creative process, but you can tell there is a lot going on inside.
5. Her post production work is labour intensive, she uses photoshop like a painting tool.

This is Stephanie Bell

To listen to the interview with Stephanie Bell CLICK HERE
To learn more about Stephanie’s work go to: www.emergingdesign.ca

To listen to interview with photographer PAULA TYMCHUK CLICK HERE

Paula Tymchuk was trained in Hollywood to do lighting for films.  She is one of the most sought after Canadian female lighting experts in the film and television industry today.  She started doing photography as a way to explore her own lighting techniques and get creative with the possibilities of light as an artistic medium.

Preparing for our interview on ‘The Photographers Series’ involved doing a creative photoshoot with Paula. Not only did this give me the opportunity to be in one of her creations but it allowed me to witness her creative process.

The shoot was held in my Soul Art studio loft and involved lots of lighting equipment. Since lighting is her native passion it made sense that her shoot would be heavy with equipment.

Here are some shots of the equipment and lighting set up Paula created for our photoshoot…

During the photoshoot it was dark, which surprised me since I knew Paula’s specialty was lighting. She selected key areas to accent, which felt like she was painting my body with light.  She was continuously scanning the set up as if looking for ways to get the light dancing.

I had no idea what the final image would look like.  I followed Paula’s guidance about where to be and what to do. She assured me the image would be transformed through photoshop when she added digitally manufactured light.

What surprised me the most about seeing Paula’s final creations was how much she creates beyond the photoshoot.  I realized the photoshoot was a mere foundation for Paula’s creative exploration.

Here are the final images from our creative photoshoot…

It is amazing to see how Paula went from our studio photoshoot to these other-worldly images.  I wondered if she knew in her minds eye what she was going to do, or if it just unfolded as she went along?

Paula Tymchuk uses light as a medium to gain entry into other worlds.  The only remaining earthly elements are the chosen areas that  provide a bridge into her techno mystical world.  Light becomes a thread that holds our world and the imaginary world together.

To listen to the interview with Paula Tymchuk click here
To learn more about Paula Tymchuk’s work go to: www.roguestormarts.com

To listen to ‘The Photographer’s Series’  interview with Pasquale Marco Veltri CLICK HERE

Many artists and photographers have attempted to capture dancing in a still image.  Some go for the alignment of a pose and others emphasize the physique of the dancer. When I was seeking out photographers to include in ‘The Photographer’s Series’ I wanted to find photographers who were exploring new and innovative ways of capturing images.

When I first connected with photographer Pasquale ‘Marco’ Veltri he told me he wanted to capture the essence of movement using a new technique he called ‘blurry images’.

Curious about how he would do this, I volunteered to dance for one of his photoshoots.

Here is the result of our photoshoot…

Laura Hollick dancing. Photographed by Pasquale Marco Veltri

As Marco got me dancing he snapped away and even got the camera dancing too.  He wanted to find out what would happen if both the dancer and the camera were moving.  The whole thing felt like a grand experiment.

I learned first hand that Marco’s true nature is a creative explorer. He diligently seeks interesting and innovative ways to capture a visual image so  it can communicate a conceptual idea or creative narrative.

When I did see the final results from our photoshoot I was surprised at the beauty and energy  he was able to capture.  There is an abstract quality that illustrates the energy of dancing.  It feels like the dancer and the dancing are one~ poetry in motion!

It made sense when I found out the Marco is also a filmmaker and recently one of his short films was screened at Cannes Film Festival.  He is definitely a creative talent on the move.

To listen to Pasquale Marco Veltri’s interview on ‘The Photographer’s Series’ CLICK HERE

Pasquale Marco Veltri

To see more of Pasquale Marco Veltri’s work www.pmveltri.com

Tom Ma’s photography caught my eye when I saw a fashion shoot he did that incorporated haute couture in distressed ghetto environments. I loved the contrast of the two extremes.

I invited Tom to be part of ‘The Photographer’s Series’ because I was so curious to experience one of his photoshoots. I wanted to experience the contrast of delicate beauty with rough chaos.

I had no idea our photoshoot would end up being dangerous and illegal!

This is what we created during our adventurous shoot…

Photo by Tom Ma. Hair/ makeup Maggie Ng. Costume and model Laura Hollick

Our photoshoot started out fairly tame and then escalated from there. He arranged for Maggie Ng to do my hair and makeup in my studio, we bonded instantly and enjoyed giggles and girl talk for about an hour before Tom arrived.  I created an elaborate costume for this shoot. Since I often create costumes for my own photoshoots it was a joy to create something with Tom’s style in mind.

Once Tom arrived it was time to head out and look for the perfect location for our shoot.  We drove around Hamilton  until we eventually found the ideal spot.

We found an abandoned factory that was in rough shape, the walls were gapping with rusted holes, the ceiling was sagging and the windows were mostly non-existent. Oh, and did I mention we had to break into the building.  Yes, it was illegal, there were signs everywhere warning that this was a NO TRESPASSING zone.   It  felt like the building could collapse at any moment!

There was an element of danger involved in order to accomplish Tom Ma’s vision.

When we finally made our way inside the abandoned factory, we could see that part of the ceiling had caved in and snow was coming through the hole, we did this shoot during the Canadian winter. There was a poetic beauty to this decaying mess. It appeared as if the history of the building was shedding its skin.

I started to see why Tom was drawn to these kinds of locations and I could see similarities between high end fashion and decaying places. They both have layers of intricate stories that bring forth a poetic quality.  Both ask that you discover beauty in a new way.

The thing I remember most about being part of Tom’s creative photoshoot is the way it just unfolded magically. We didn’t have a plan other than to find a factory, once we accomplished that task we let the situation determine how the picture would look.

Photographer Tom Ma

To listen to the interview with Tom Ma CLICK HERE

To learn more about Tom Ma www.tomma.ca
To learn more about Maggie Ng www.maggieng.com