CONTRIBUTORS
JULIA BAIRD
“I would love it if people would think about awe; what it means, why we need it and how they can find it, not just when on adventures, or out exploring the world, but in their everyday lives,” says acclaimed writer and journalist Julia Baird. In ‘Deep blue wonders’, on page 120, she explores the concept of awe, and its impact on our wellbeing, by sharing her own experience of discovering it via her daily ritual of swimming in the ocean. “Water meditates you, nature calms you, and understanding you are a small cog in an enormous universe is a very healthy way to be,” she says. For those seeking such a sensation, she advises: “Spend time in the ocean, in the bush, in the wild, as much and as often as you can.”
ISAAC BROWN
Bondi-based fashion photographer Isaac Brown captured model Victoria Massey wearing an assortment of Simone Rocha styles at a secret location in Sydney for ‘Emotional thread’, from page 150. “I love the shot where Victoria is laying in the long grass. She’s from New York, so she was a bit worried about getting eaten by a snake, but she was very brave and we got the picture,” says Brown of his favourite image from the day. When quizzed on the most memorable moment from the shoot, Brown nominates:
“Our hairstylist Madison Voloshin dancing in the rain. We don’t usually shoot in the middle of a storm, but this time we did. Cameras are waterproof, right?”
BLUEBELLE OTTO
Bluebelle, one of the Otto family’s beloved Burmese cats, was captured this month wearing a stylish pair of sunglasses in a family portrait alongside Barry, Miranda, Gracie, Darcey and twin sister Bogart – see ‘A work of art’, starting on page 164. “The sunglasses were cool. We take inspiration from the mad man in the house, Barry. He has quite a collection and has been helping us build ours,” Bluebelle shares. Describing her experience on set, the feline says “my favourite part was seeing the family together”. She adds: “Bogart and I are the glue that holds everyone together, so it was nice to be recognised for that, but I was pretty happy when everyone left.”
MYLES RUSSELL-COOK
In his day job as the National Gallery of Victoria’s curator of Indigenous art, Myles Russell-Cook comes into contact with our country’s most daring contemporary artists. This month he penned a thoughtful essay on Destiny Deacon, a multi-disciplinary artist best known for her ability to blur the line between comedy and tragedy – see page 94. “Destiny Deacon has a singular aesthetic that is immediately recognisable,” he tells Vogue. According to Russell-Cook, Deacon has radically changed the face of our local scene, and, more significantly, “paved the way for a new generation of artists by challenging audiences to reconsider what constitutes Indigenous art”.