If you googled Laurie Farr in 2007 you would find four things. The first is that I am a Chi Omega alumni. The second is my rave review of a college reunion trip in Greece, the third is my mom’s memorial, and the forth is my race results from my first 1/2 marathon and marathon. You will see I was as close to last as you can be, and I am totally OK with that. Google me now and you will find Laurie Callahan and my Rendition Studios.
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| Photo by Emily Schmutz |
I never meant to be a professional photographer. It was an evolution and a soul searching process that led me here. In college, I started as an english major thinking that I would one day teach. I was at the University of Texas in Austin and I was lost as could be. When I transferred to CU Boulder I found myself slightly less lost by my own standards, but more so as far as the college was concerned. I went undecided on paper and worked on filling my core classes. Only in my junior year did I become an Environmental Design major and commit to a path that led me to work in the architecture industry for 8 years… but alas, that still does not tell you how I got here.
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| Photo by Jonathan Castner |
I have always been creative, artistic and loved working with people. Being raised by an engineer and a stay at home mom, I have also always been practical. When I lost my mom to cancer in 2007, being practical seemed like a characteristic to ignore and I began saving and slowly educating myself out of my architecture career.
I don’t relate to knowing what you want to do from a young age and then doing that. In my world, that seems impossible. I would be and will be a million things before my time is done and I love knowing that.
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| Photo by Emily Schmutz |
When I started thinking about my next career, I wanted to be true to who I already was and what kind of person I wanted to be. I focused on what I thought was important. To me, the most important thing is relationships. How people, especially family, relate is fascinating. I strive to capture love, trust, intimacy, pride, connection, breakdowns, happy moments and sad ones. Authentic life. Each year I get better at it an each year it means more to me in different ways. What we give our time to each week, month after month, is important. These photographs define our memories.
I encourage you to live your best life. It is not always easy or even positive but it is important and so are you.
