The wind has changed…

Mr. Binnacle in the 1964 movie, Mary Poppins

January 2023 — Hello! I hope you had an enjoyable holiday season with your family and friends. It’s been a while since I sent a newsletter, and you might notice that this one has a new theme and a new format.

As referenced above by Mr. Binnacle* (see footnote), there are some changes happening at Pamela Harris Design. For the past 20+ years I’ve been a freelance graphic designer (and before that, 20 more years employed by others), filling my work days with client projects and meetings. I’ve been fortunate to have such an enjoyable career which has also supported me well. I’m grateful.

Work inspired by Marty Robbins’ song, El Paso

Around the edges of my work day, I’ve always tried to fit in personal creative work — drawing, painting, collage (above: from my 2017 exhibition, The Way, inspired by Marty Robbins’ song El Paso These projects fueled new ideas that sometimes showed up in my ‘day job,’ but they usually took a back seat to paying work and seldom got my best efforts.

Every year the impulse to develop my own ideas gets stronger, and I’m going to run out of time if I don’t just start, starting now. Can you relate?

So that’s what I’m doing, and I’m inviting you on the journey. I’ll document it all in this newsletter, which will land in your email inbox every other week or so. I hope you’ll follow along, and offer your thoughts about the inevitable ups and downs.

I’m still taking some client projects (if you have something in mind, let me know; even if you don’t hire me to do the work, I love brainstorming and consulting!), but I’m excited to be shifting my focus.

*In the 1964 movie, Mary Poppins, Mr. Binnacle was portrayed by Don Barclay. Don is an appropriate avatar for this newsletter. In addition to acting, he was a visual artist. At one point he quit acting completely and turned all his efforts to drawing and painting.