Retreat & Return

On finding creative community

I have just returned from Caminha, north of Porto in Portugal where I attend a four day retreat with photography coach and mentor, Laura Adams. It’s always a risk, these trips. Four full days with a group of women I don’t know, in a place I have never visited and me being particular about my own space and routine - it could have gone very badly wrong. But I’ve known Laura for a few years and I trust the community she has fostered, so I batted away any residual doubt and booked my 3am cab for my 6am flight and headed out there.

I did a similar thing three years ago. I jumped in my car at 7am to drive to the north of Wales, very much in flight mode as the ruins of marriage still smoldered in the rear view, powered by the mania of early dating and trying on every identity I could for size. I was mostlyterrified and still fairly grief stricken. In both cases I was greeted by women who share a common obsession with creativity and building community. In Wales there was mountain climbing and diving into ice cold lakes and warming up in hot tubs or next to the fire pit. Midnight portrait shoots and dancing to Harry Styles. We ate glorious food and stayed up late talking, and in that time I managed to start to imagine what my life might look like post divorce, and it wasn’t a wasteland.

I returned to London with a stronger core, a more unshakeable belief that while I may not be fine in the moment, that I would be. The power of finding a network of women who will cheer you on - just because the act of living creatively is worth while and should be celebrated - is transformative.

This time, three years later, I landed in Portugal in a more optimistic state, or at least not stumbling through customs in the wake of a traumatising life event. My new normal is what I hoped it would be. I can design and engineer my future independantly, and I have carved out a day to day that is harmonious most of the time. The ebb and flow of work and play is never balanced, but I can create enough time now to let both find their natural place in my routine. I love my career, I make time for my creative projects. I am present for my son and I make time to nuture my relationships too, including with myself.

In Portugal, I wasn’t running away, instead it felt more like a homecoming. I met an entirely new group of women this time. We shot river portrait scenes at dawn, ate pastel de natas in wide open squares, braved the Atlantic ocean, remixed Vogue shoots with our own models and kayacked out to the estuary on very little sleep. We swapped tips and tricks and props and laughed until we cried. I returned to London with sand in my pockets, full memory cards and renewed energy

Community is transformative. We don’t heal, or learn or create in isolation. Riffing off of each other’s ideas we conjured mermaids and lost ghosts, ethereal water sprites and Dallas inspired portraits, pulp fiction pop aesthetics, and of course, Claudia Schiffer - Just a telephone. The hydrangeas (god, all of them). The white dress from Zara (RIP). A red scarf. Sunflowers from a stall on the corner. Striped towels. Morning light.

Three years ago I met friends that have inspired me and generously offered their mentorship over the years, leading to new connections and a wider community. This year was no different, and hope to return in the years to come.

If you are looking for a creative community and you’d like to learn photography go and check out Lens Eleven and follow the inimitable Laura online.

https://www.lenseleven.com/

I will also be launching the next round of The Artist’s Way in September so get in touch if you are keen to join as spaces will be limited for the weekly check in sessions and accountabilty calls.