#03 Passion Projects

Nov 17, 2022

I write this newsletter to structure my experiences and ideas around creativity. It’s mainly a personal exercise in writing, but I’m sure there is something for you as well.

My name is Juho Vesanen and I’m a co-founder of Veli Studio. I’m also editing the studio’s annual passion project Attraction Magazine – a printed and online exploration dedicated to the appreciation of visual curiosity.

#03 Passion Projects

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve endulged myself in this warm feeling of potential success after falling in love with a newly invented passion project. The rush of excitement that comes from starting something new is one of the best feelings I can think of. You spend days researching, dreaming, moodboarding and you’re already mentally identifying yourself as this author of an award winning photobook, breakthrough film director, inspiring entrepreneur or whatever it may be.

After the intial rush starts fading out, you realise how much it actually takes to make that passion project a reality. It’s the easiest thing in the world to mentally skip the process and think of the results instead.

I love this interview with Akira Kurosawa when he was asked what advice he’d give to aspiring filmmakers.

All you need to write a script is paper and pencil. It’s only through writing scripts that you learn specifics about the structure of film and cinema. That’s what I tell them [students], but they still don’t write. They find writing too hard. And it is. Writing scripts is a hard job.
The tedious task of writing has to become second nature to you. You need to get used to the task of writing. You must make an effort to learn to regard it not as something painful, but as routine. But most people tend to give up halfway. I say don’t ever quit, even if it gets hard midway.

They often say that starting is the hardest part of anything, which is true to some extent. But, as Kurosawa points out, developing that initial spark into a routine is what it’s all about. It’s not flashy and exciting every single day, but something will come out of it – guaranteed.

Another thing that I’ve been guilty of, multiple times, is relying on or being too excited about gear. Not having the best gear is a great excuse to not start doing something and an even better excuse to start slacking on the routine of doing it. Some five years ago I got very intersted in photographic darkroom printing. I started out with my dad’s old black and white equipment and later felt the urge to upgrade to colour. The hours I put into finding all the equipment and doing all the research was quite a lot, and so was the money I put into it. I still use that equipment and darkroom quite often, but not as much as I’d like. And I occasionally catch myself fantasizing about a new darkroom with some new gadgets.

When I stumbled upon this video that showed how Edward Weston (1886-1958), ”one of the most innovative and influential American photographers” and a master printer – exposed all of his prints in his darkroom with just a bare light bulb. I felt a little bit ashamed– in myself and my excuses.

However, right now I feel very proud. We’ve just released the third issue of Attraction Magazine, which is our annual passion project. Each issue has followed the same pattern of absolute excitement, followed by a long and dreadful period when resources never seem to match the amount of work that needs to be done. But after months of just sticking to it and getting things done, the amount of joy and fulfillment that follows when you can finally scroll through something physical that has been just word documents and illustrator files a moment ago is so satisfying.

The release of the magazine also motivated me to write this post that you are currently reading – something that has been in the back of my mind for quite some time. So kudos to that.

But right now, I’m going to harvest some good energy by enjoying this small but important accomplishment before getting back to the routine.

CURRENT INSPIRATION

Attraction Magazine, Issue 03 – Urgency

In the third issue, we are exploring the sense of urgency in our personal lives (identity) and in the world surrounding us (society and nature). Urgency, that comes from somewhere deep within us – a driving force that has to surface. However, urgency does not always coexist with importance. But if it does, powerful things can happen, fast.

This topic is explored through interviews, essays, short stories and poems created by, and of, people who inspire us.

Featuring Salomon Ligthelm, Vanille Verloës, Tadashi Kawamata, Julia Kafizova, Hannele Rantala, Omar Contri, Tine Isachsen, Ilkka Halso, Jenni Salonen, Anastasiya Maksymchuk, Antoine Paikert, Irene Suosalo, Aapo Nikkanen, Jon Bregel and Caracara Collective.

If you are interested, you can get a copy here!