MY CONVERSATION WITH JULIE ESTELLE
for this story was – as is the norm these days – done by phone. Remarkably, I could still feel the warmth and sincerity in her voice. “Small things like asking how people are doing, making sure they are healthy and safe, has become important for me,” she says. “We already take too many things for granted and this has made me learn to appreciate every little thing that happens in our life.”
In the final month of 2020, Julie joined Prestige for a cover shoot featuring Louis Vuitton’s High Watch Collection, and she admitted that it was her first photoshoot in a long time. “I actually didn’t work much during 2020 because the pandemic had me concerned about going out. I just feel unsafe. Even now I’m still a bit reluctant due to the ongoing situation. As we can see right now, the PPKM (large-scale social restrictions) is going on again; the number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 is spiking up every day; many countries are going back into lockdown again.”
Reflecting back on 2020, Julie found it to be a life-changing journey. “The situation created by the pandemic situation was unexpected for all of us. At first, we thought it would get better by the end of the year. Staying at home then went on from two weeks to months, to I don’t know when this will end. Nothing went according to plan. I had a lot of things that I had to do, in terms of work, that ended up being postponed. I turned down many jobs and, in the end, didn’t work much.”
Still, Julie accepted work whenever it was possible to be done from home. “I was still working for several brands and created content by myself. Entire photo shoots were done at home. At first it was challenging, because previously I just come and everything was prepared and done with the help from many people. But now, I have to do everything myself. The great thing about it all, however, is that I’ve learned a lot of new things and my perspective on creativity has expanded. Staying at home hasn’t stopped me from creating new things. Limitations open new doors and leads to avenues of exploration which I think I wouldn’t have discovered if all this hadn’t happened.
“But I can’t deny that I miss working outside. Going to sets and events, meeting people, being busy, surrounded by crowds ... basically, human interactions. And, of course, I want to explore more in my line of work. Last year marked the least I had done in so many years.”
Despite being held back by the pandemic, the sister of Cathy Sharon still managed to see the bright side of things. “It feels like the pause button has been pressed. The world has been running so fast and I think it is the right time for us to reflect inward. By slowing down, we can see things clearly, including the small things we may have missed before. Or the things we took for granted because it was easy to get or do,” she continues. “I spent a lot of time on self-care, taking the time to understand myself better and getting a new hobby: collecting plants. Gardening became a new form of therapy for me and I’m grateful that I still have a nice spacious garden to house my new collection.”
All that being said, staying at home for such long periods hasn’t been easy for Julie, much like for the rest of us. “Even though we have adjusted quite will to the Work From Home concept, but still, it feels different from meeting people faceto-face. To be honest, I miss meeting my friends and sharing physical contact like hugging, shaking hands, a kiss on the cheeks and many more. Also, doing all those communal activities that I used to take for granted like eating out, socializing, and, of course travelling. I’m grateful to have had the chance to do so at the beginning of last year, right before the pandemic broke out. It hit us mentally and made me realise that I’m really grateful to be living in Indonesia where most of us still have outdoor spaces. Imagine if you live in a big city like Paris or Milan, where not all apartments have balconies. It changed my perspective on life as I learn to appreciate those things that I used to forget or take for granted.”