The theme of this volume is "Missing", asking everyone what it is that they have or will miss the most from the last 102 days, something that is uncommon and not often asked after a period in our lives that human history would rather forget.
What song do you think everyone should listen to once in their life?
Corinne Bailey Rae - Put Your Records On
What book is a must-read?
Etaf Rum - A Women Is No Man
What film is a must-see?
The Princess Bride
In the last 102 days, what did you miss the most?
My friends and loved ones. Having two homes - Edinburgh where I got to University and Leeds where I grew up - always brings about the feeling of being between two places and never fully in one. When I am at university I miss my family and friends at home, and when I am at home vice versa. In the last 102 days, this feeling was enhanced by all the uncertainty that came with the pandemic. The travel restrictions around the UK and abroad not only made loved ones feel even further away than usual but the precariousness of whether everyone would be able to get back to Edinburgh when summer ended also added to this.
In January 2021, as the 2nd lockdown hit Scotland and I was in the midst of my third year studying Economics and Politics, I decided to set up Rachel Astrid Art. My small business began as an Instagram account selling prints of my acrylic paintings with 50% of profits going to Scottish Women’s Aid to support their amazing work in ending domestic abuse in Scotland.
Since then my work has been featured in magazines, as the cover of a podcast, on postcards for charity drives and one piece was selected alongside 24 other inspirational artists from around the world to feature in the She Decide Virtual Gallery. All my pieces are created with the intention of bringing a sense of warmth to whoever is looking at them. To create this I often use suns in my paintings and images of people’s faces that have no features to symbolise anyone.
In the last 102 days, I managed to expand my business further by having a stall at a makers market, where I was able to meet many amazing artists and lovely buyers in person for the first time, and having my work featured in a gallery for this upcoming year. If life had been ‘normal’ for that time period these great new experiences may have never happened as I may not have felt I had the time to seek them out and prepare for them.
