Kate Henry [00:00:00]:

Welcome to Honing in a podcast for creative thinkers where we’ll hone our skills, explore our passions, and nurture our dream projects into being. Hi, everyone. Welcome back to honing in. I’m Dr. Kate Henry, and today I am interviewing Stephanie Graham. Stephanie is a Chicago based, lens-based artist and podcast host whose work explores social class subcultures, race and gender, often blurring the lines between truth and fiction to spark conversation. She’s fascinated by how we connect and how our shared experiences shape who we are. Stephanie hosts noseyAF: conversations about art, activism and Social Change, a podcast featuring candid conversations with artists, activists, neighborhood visionaries, and everyday people, creatively shaping a better world.

 

Kate Henry [00:01:02]:

When she’s not behind the lens or mic, you’ll find her curating film screenings, collaborating with artists to expand access to the arts, or catching up on the Real Housewives, a favorite source of inspiration and cultural analysis. Welcome, Stephanie.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:01:20]:

Thank you so much. I’m so excited to be here.

 

Kate Henry [00:01:23]:

I’m excited too. And I also love that you’re so threw in the Real Housewives. I’ve heard you talk about this on other calls as well.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:01:32]:

Yes. I feel like I’m a Real Housewives scholar.

 

Kate Henry [00:01:35]:

I think you are. Yeah.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:01:37]:

Yeah.

 

Kate Henry [00:01:37]:

This is excellent. What is? So, like, I’ll ask you actual questions today about your, you know, your work and the creative things you do. But, like, what is so fascinating for you about the cultural world of the Real Housewives?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:01:49]:

You know what? I think at first, I like bling, like sparkly glamour, leather, gold. And that really happens a lot on the Housewives, right? Or, like, in wealth or, like, gaudy wealth. And so I, I looked to that first to see, like, what they’re wearing and everything. But then I am interested in documentaries, and I felt like when it was first coming out, it was like, okay, these women are living behind the gates, but yet they’re willing to have their lives filmed for TV and then, like, commented on and I don’t know, it was just something about that. And at first, when Housewives was coming out, it would be like, wealthy women maybe in their 60s, who would fight over, you know, oh, you didn’t tell me that you were bringing a plus one to lunch. And that’s actually a problem. You would, like, learn about management. Like, that actually is a problem because she set the table for five and now she needs to scramble, make sure there’s enough.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:02:48]:

Like, yeah, you should have told her so they would have, like, all these things. And it was just like, it’s just good, clean fun, you know, that’s what I think I really liked about it. But then, like, sometimes the topics could be relatable, and you would learn stuff. You would just like learn stuff about, you know, people whose lives you just don’t know. Like, these are like wealthy white women. And I would never be really around that. So I’m like, oh, what is that?

 

Kate Henry [00:03:13]:

Like, yeah, and it’s. Real Housewives has also expanded to be in like many different locations. Do you have any thoughts about that? Our Real Housewives scholar.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:03:24]:

Yes. Now it’s expanded to like all these different cities. Each one has its own sort of style. And it’s sort of twisted because I think the housewives could sort of stop at this point. Because now the women that come on, they’re sort of caricatures of themselves. They’ve seen the show, they know what a housewife is supposed to be about. And it’s hard to get, like, vulnerability. But I did like, seeing just the glitz and the glam and the dinner parties and, you know, just learning about these women’s lifestyles.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:04:00]:

That’s what I think. Now, like, these women are lying. They’re coming on there with like fake designer bags. They’re thieves. Like, there’s like housewives that’s been to jail over like terrible things. I’m like, this is not fun anymore. But I still watch even like the huge. Other Housewives scholars.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:04:20]:

We do go back to like when it was the glory days. Cause you just sort of got to see like what wealth was like. I think I do fall into that whole world of like, you know, wealth is interesting. Like rich is interesting because you don’t see it all the time. But now these chicks have apartments that look just like mine. I’m like, I don’t wanna watch that. That’s not fun. You know, I wanna see like people that are like closing down stores and shopping, you know, and having an opinion about purses that I could never afford or never even heard of.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:04:55]:

You know, this is like next level. It’s like next level living, you know, like there’s worlds that you just have absolutely no idea about. And that’s what we want to see. That’s what I think is. But yet they’ll still be filmed and talk about their lives. It seems like it would be a security issue, but yeah, I think it is cool that it keeps expanding. But it has become a problematic show because of just like all the foolishness. It’s rare that there’s like a queer couple.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:05:23]:

It’s rare that there’s like a plus size person. You know when they have these conversations about maybe, like, colorism or class, you know, it’s always the same. The creator of the Housewives, he’s always leading these conversations, but he doesn’t know, like, he should start bringing in, like, real experts and stuff to like, really depict it. But I think the conversation that happens on the outside of the Housewives is what’s interesting as well, because everybody’s discussing those things. So I think it’s a place to center, like, these real-world conversations around, like, wealth and status and perception.

 

Kate Henry [00:06:00]:

I feel like maybe there is an edited collection about the Real Housewives that you could be an editor for or just write for or just, you know, create art about or, you know, there’s so many other things you could do as well. Or someone who runs a Real Housewife podcast can have you on to talk about this.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:06:17]:

Yes. Oh, my God. That would be a dream to be on a Real Housewives podcast. I’ve thought about, like, I’m like, should I pitch some of these? Cause I listen. It’s a sport. It becomes a sport. I would love that.

 

Kate Henry [00:06:28]:

Well, I think that you should.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:06:30]:

Yes. I’m writing it down. I’m writing it down to brainstorm some, like, Housewives. People always, like, make fun of them, you know, like, where it’ll just be like, women fighting. I don’t know. I get the critique about it too, because it’s women fighting, making a lot of money. They don’t get residuals. You know, there’s like, memes of all of them, and they don’t get paid off of that, you know, so that’s, like, also really interesting and a problem.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:06:57]:

Yeah. So it’s really, really layered. It’s a rich text.

 

Kate Henry [00:07:02]:

All right. Thinking about rich texts, I am curious. I always love to open up the podcast by asking guests how they feel about the word project or, like, the concept of a project. And is that language you use when either for creating art or other things that you make or do, or is there more. Another, more helpful framework that you. You use?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:07:26]:

Yeah, no, I love and use the word project. All of my art projects are projects. I feel like even at one point, I had projects on my site to, like, see what I was working on. I really like that word because I feel like it’s a container. It is a space to def what it is you’re working on, and then there’s a start and a stop. There’s a way to define it. I mean, you can always go back to it if you want to. Some projects will be ongoing, but I love project because it just puts it all in a box, like a file, you know, or like a jar.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:08:05]:

Everything just goes in there. And yeah, I love the word project.

 

Kate Henry [00:08:09]:

I also love it. I’m fascinated with the way that we conceptualize of things and whether making something a project makes it feel more like the end point is like, creating some sort of thing we will extract and have exchange value for. And does that take away from, like, the creative process or the experience of making it? And I don’t think it needs to be that. Like, I think we can think of it as that way, but I also think it is, like, making this a project makes it easier to do and complete.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:08:41]:

Yeah. And it makes it easy to digest. Like, okay, this is what needs to be done, and these are the steps. And then you follow the steps. I think it makes it easily digestible, too.

 

Kate Henry [00:08:53]:

Well, tell me about some of your projects. I am curious when I was thinking of questions to ask you. Today, you are doing work that. Some of the work that you have done has been through the request for an exhibition or a fellowship. And I’m curious if that external request or any guidelines prompts you to approach projects differently compared to something, say that you’re like, oh, cool, I have this idea. I’m gonna create this thing, and I’m gonna share it publicly, you know, so tell me a bit about your process for creating different kinds of projects. And if you feel that doing something that will be, you know, shared through an exhibition or something affects the way that you create or how you create.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:09:38]:

Yeah, I approach everything, I believe, in the same way. All projects, regardless if it’s my personal project, if someone’s asked me to do something, or if I’ve worked on, like, a film project, I think just sort of my starting process is like, okay, what is the question? Or, like, what is the goal? You know, and just defining that and getting as clear as possible. So, like, for example, a project I’m currently working on is looking at prom culture and, like, the sendoff. Like, specifically, like, the prom sendoff. And, you know, there’s controversy. Like, I saw, like, a post that said, you know, the black community could be saved, you know, if they didn’t spend all these proms. And then I’m like, oh, really? That’s what you think? You know, like, if you didn’t spend all this money on these proms. And I’m like, hmm, so now that’s the question.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:10:33]:

And now I’m, like, researching, like, I wonder why they think that. Why are they saying that? And so in my research, trying to figure out, like, okay, how much are these proms costing? Like, how much is your dress costing? What do these prom sendoffs look like? And just trying to decide if I think that’s harming the black community or not, you know, And I might not necessarily have an answer, like, yes, it is or no, it’s not, but just the question is sort of a guide for me to start exploring. So it does start with the question. And then as I explore, you know, the ideas will come to me about what form the project will take, whether that will be in a photo, a film, you know, conversation series. And I think that way as well as, like, in my commercial work, if it’s a TV show, right? And they say, okay, this is, you know, a single dad who is a janitor. You know, okay, what would that couch look like? You know, he needs to have a couch. And so now we, like, research, like, about the couches. Like, what do other maybe janitor’s houses look like or in that income range? Like, what are couches available? But understanding what I’m trying to solve is where everything starts.

 

Kate Henry [00:11:55]:

It’s so cool to hear you talk about the way that research factors in. Into this, because of course it does. Like, I. I’m not a visual artist, and I love hearing artists talk about their creative process in this way. Like, of course research will come into it. But in my mind, I’m like, oh, you just make this beautiful thing and then here’s the artist statement and I can consume it. Right. But like, I don’t know, I’m just like, well, duh.

 

Kate Henry [00:12:21]:

Right. So have you. Have you always approached your art process with this research, you know, like the foundation and research for it?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:12:30]:

Yeah, you know, I don’t know. I went to film school and I think film school and then working in the film industry and having to tell a story. Stories always relate back to somebody, right? They get them from somewhere, obviously. You know, I don’t know if like the Matrix, if that like, really happened in somebody’s life, but, you know. Cause like, there’s like fantasy and stuff, but usually the story is coming from somewhere. And so I think, yeah, stories always come from someplace. So just sort of drawing that line to maybe where it came from. Because you’re really trying to replicate what that world would be, you know, trying to bring it to life.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:13:11]:

So that can only happen by research. Because we all have our own. Our own lives that we can maybe reference. But if it doesn’t match your own life, you could maybe pull something from it. But, you know, it has to start with the research so that you could see where the story’s coming from. If they say, oh, this is about, like, old lady in Louisiana, like, what does that look like? That starts like, oh, okay, it’s like hot sun, you know, not like a mild sun. So that kind of stuff plays an approach about how to bring it in. I don’t know where it came from.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:13:48]:

I’m gonna credit it right now, for sake of this conversation, to film school and, like, learning about research or learning that you had to research. Especially, like, in photography, you know, like, if you wanna make a picture and, you know, you wanna have, like, this beautiful dress. Well, what do you want the beautiful dress to look like? Like, it has to, you know, you have to go to the archives and research.

 

Kate Henry [00:14:10]:

Yeah, yeah. Oh, my gosh. I love. I did archival research in the PhD, and it is my favorite, most delectable thing to do.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:14:20]:

Yeah.

 

Kate Henry [00:14:21]:

Like, so fun to just go through people’s stuff and see it. Things. People maybe were like, I didn’t think this would ever end up in an archive, but I guess you can look at my, like, receipts if you want.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:14:35]:

Right. I’m sure there’s plenty of people in heaven, like, now, why are they going through my stuff?

 

Kate Henry [00:14:40]:

It’s fun. It’s really fun. I didn’t send you this question ahead of time, but I’m curious now as we’re talking about this. Like, I know that some of the efforts that you’re doing are collaborative. Like, specifically, like in your bio, you talk about, like, collaborating with artists to expand access to the art. So we’re talking here around, like, your process of creating projects. So how does collaboration fit into the work that you do? Either through, like, actually, like, creating of the art or, like, scaffolding other, like, entry points for folks to access art.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:15:16]:

Yeah. Well, first, I’m an only child, so it’s fun to work with others because I did not grow up with others. It was just me. So I feel like collaborating. I get to, you know, have a brother or sister for a little bit, which is nice. And when you collaborate with people, that opens up doors that you might not have. You know, it opens up doors maybe for connection, and it also opens up doors with just ideas, like, hey, have you ever thought of it this way? And that’s. That’s really important.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:15:49]:

And also, I think it’s. When I do collaborate. Yeah, it is so that I can, you know, bring a bigger vision to this project and bring more access, like, either visibility, connection, like, literally like, hooking me up with, like, do you know this person? And then also in ideas. And that’s really helpful because it can just make the project even more rich. You know, when you bring others into the mix and people also do wanna help, but they might not know how to help. So when you come to. And that’s why projects are so great. Cause you could say, listen, this is the project, and these are the steps that I’m gonna take.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:16:31]:

This is the goal that I have. And then when people hear that, they know how they can fit into that. You know, whether it’s like them just sending off emails, whether if it’s like, say, like a film screening, them filling popcorn bags, you know, people can collaborate in all sorts of ways and just like, teamwork. And with my background in filmmaking, again, it’s hard to make a film by yourself. Everybody is like, all hands on deck. Like, it does not get done. When our crew, when like Hollywood crews were gonna go on strike, they had a slogan that said, nothing moves without the crew. And it’s just so true.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:17:17]:

Like, you just need people to be able to get stuff done, even if it’s a solo project. You know, if another artist shows me, hey, I did this set of paintings I’m gonna show at this community center, I might say, oh, well, did you also think about this college and, you know, like, oh, do you know that person? So in a way, you’re almost always collaborating with people. They just might call it like networking or something, but it is always, like, collaborating and always being in conversation with people about what you’re doing. And in that sense, you always just have to be making sure that people know what you’re doing and, like, what your goal is too.

 

Kate Henry [00:17:55]:

I love this reframing of networking as collaboration that feels like much more of like, a generous community building activity versus, like, gotta make money, you know, Like, I want all the artists to make money. I want that, you know? But yeah, but also I just like that reframe.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:18:14]:

Yeah, this is really bad, but I saw a movie about Pablo Escobar, and he would always tell people, like, collaborate with me. Yeah, I feel like I got that from him. Like, he’d be like, listen, we need to collaborate on this. You know, like, you need to collaborate. I don’t know if he was saying in a tone like, look, I’m talking to you. You need to. You’re gonna collaborate with me now. Or if he’s like, no, for real.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:18:40]:

Like, we can. He had a collective of drug dealers, you know, and they were all Working together and. Yeah, so I got. I think I feel like I got that from him in that movie.

 

Kate Henry [00:18:49]:

It’s like being like, voluntold to do something, collaborate, hold. I don’t know.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:18:56]:

Yeah, yeah. But he would listen. He would listen to his collaborators in that network because they all were, like, sort of at the same level. So he would listen to, you know, this particular group, but other people, he probably definitely voluntold. I love it. I’m getting so many words from you. I got voluntold enriched text.

 

Kate Henry [00:19:16]:

Okay. Oh, my gosh. Of course.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:19:17]:

Making my list.

 

Kate Henry [00:19:18]:

You just offered us the framework of collaboration versus networking, so I’m going to take that with me.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:19:24]:

Yes.

 

Kate Henry [00:19:25]:

I like that we’re laughing about all this stuff. And I want to ask you about your podcast, which is really a delight. I’ve been really, like, delighting in listening to the episodes and, like, your. Your curiosity shines through it. And you’ve been making noseyAF for a long time, and you’ve interviewed lots of guests. And this is my first year. I’m like 10 months into making, honing in now, and still.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:19:49]:

Congratulations, by the way.

 

Kate Henry [00:19:51]:

Thank you. I love it.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:19:52]:

It’s not easy.

 

Kate Henry [00:19:53]:

No, it’s not. And I’m learning as I go, and I like that Feels good. So I would love to hear. To give us the history of noseyAF. Like, how did you start it? What led you to start it? And also has your approach to it shifted over the years? Like, what are you feeling excited about now with it?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:20:17]:

Yeah. So I started it because I knew that with my own art practice, I needed some sort of vehicle to share about my work. I have a newsletter, but I also needed something else. I thought of a YouTube channel, but at that time, YouTube was like, hi, guys, hit the button. You know, this is what we’re going to learn today. And I got really stuck about how to make videos with that framework. You know, you look to other things for, like, models of how to do that. And that was the only models I saw.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:20:57]:

And so I couldn’t figure out how to make that apply for myself. And then also, you know, just being a woman, I’m like, oh, I gotta always make sure my hair is a certain way, or, like, makeup and outfits. And I did not like that. And so I’m like, well, maybe I could do a podcast, because nobody has to worry about that now. It’s funny how podcasting are now coming back to video all of a sudden, but I just stick with the audio. And I thought, okay, I can use podcasting as A way to talk about my art projects. I use a lot of people and dialogue research in my work, so I figured that these might be conversations I’m having anyway, so maybe it could be a cool way to do this podcast. Also, when somebody would tell me about an artist, the first thing I would do personally, I would go to YouTube and type their name in or to the podcast feed and type their name in and see if I can hear them talking about their work.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:21:58]:

Just like you, we share that idea of, like, liking to hear artists speak about their work. And some of these people I could not find unless they were, like, a superstar artist, you know, that had tons of stuff. And so that would start to frustrate me. And so I thought, you know what? I can interview other artists. And then now if the next person Googles them, they will have a way to hear them speak about their work. So then it became an archive project as well. Those two things, it was like, I can archive people talking about their work. I can talk to people about their work or people who I’m curious about the way that they work, and then I can also talk about myself.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:22:36]:

So I guess that’s three things. And so that’s really how the podcast started now, I feel. And that was like, maybe like 2015. I took a little bit of time off because my landlord was going up on the rent and I had to move home. And I was like, I felt bad telling my mom. Like, mom, I’m podcasting, you know, like, can you turn off your soaps? Like, so I’m like, let me just wait until I. You know, then I ended up getting my house, and I’m like, okay, let me get myself set back up. So now I’ve been consistently at it for, like, maybe three years, because that took me about, like, a year or so off.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:23:13]:

And now I feel like it’s become this third space where it is still an archiving project. It is still a space for me to talk about my work, but I’ve sort of gotten away from talking about my work. I’m trying to get back to that and just using it as a space for just letting artists cook. Just ask them a couple questions and then just let them take it. It’ll be questions that I’m curious about their practice, but if they also have something that they want to talk about, I use that for that. So I feel like it’s like a third space. I do want to, like, expand to maybe having an exhibition of all of the artists who I’ve interviewed or making Zines just as a way to create an archive of nosey in its own way. And then also a way to, like, still amplify those artists who I talk to just to be able to say thank you and then also share their work.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:24:15]:

Now I’ve been like, oh, you should come on the podcast. You should come on the podcast. And I told myself I should stop doing that because I don’t want actually to hear this person speak about their work. But I do think that their work is still important, even if it’s not my personal interest, because somebody else might look them up. So it’s like, that’s been weird trying to figure out, you know, do I really want to listen to this person.

 

Kate Henry [00:24:41]:

Yeah.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:24:41]:

You know, for, like, this hour and then go back and edit. So that’s what I’ve been using as a framework, because I don’t know if you’ve run into this yet, but some artists I’ve spoken to, they’ll sort of start to, like, self-produce their episode, which is also a Real Housewives thing, where they’ll try to, like, set up these scenarios. And I’m like, let me ask you the question.

 

Kate Henry [00:25:04]:

That’s fun. I haven’t noticed that yet, but now I’ll keep my. My ear out for it. I hear you, too, on this, too. Like, when I first started honing in, I was just doing one episode a month, and now I’m doing two. And in the past have been like, oh, my God, how am I ever gonna people to interview? And now I’m like, planning out 20, 26, and I’m like, oh, my gosh, I only get, like, I don’t know, 20 episodes. And because I want some solo ones, I’m like, oh, you know, and like, like, right now, it fits for me to only do twice a month so I can alternate with my newsletter. But yeah, it’s.

 

Kate Henry [00:25:36]:

I do feel that in terms of, like, who do I really want to. To be interviewing on here? And I’ve lucked out so far. There have been no duds.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:25:43]:

So, yeah, I’ve lucked out too. But I feel like I’ve been like, oh, you should be. You should be. And I should be like, oh, let me not say that, because there’s another podcast pep talk for artists. And I like that, that show. And she also talks on there, like, about not being the press. So it’s like, if you think that you could just come talk to me and think, well, I have this show coming up. If it aligns in the production schedule that this episode releases around Your exhibition opening, Great.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:26:15]:

If it hasn’t released it, I could strive for that. But, you know, I had an artist one time come to me, like, listen, we’re trying to get this done for April. And I’m like, no, we’re not trying to get nothing done for April. Like, I’m working on my own pace. Like, especially, like, ma’, am, you are not paying me, so I’m not rushing around. No. Another weird thing that’s happened in podcasting for me is that PR companies have hit me up to interview their artists, which I find really fascinating because I’m like, I know PR is expensive. Your pr, they don’t need to be contacting me.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:26:52]:

Like, you could just hit me. You could email me yourself.

 

Kate Henry [00:26:55]:

Yeah. I have not yet had a PR company pitch me for the podcast. I have before for books and like. Like, productivity books and stuff. And it’s interesting to think about because I. I, thus far, with honing in, have just, like, interviewed folks. Like, I don’t ex. Like, right now, at least I’m not, like, folks aren’t pitching themselves to me.

 

Kate Henry [00:27:15]:

I am, like, reaching out and being like, hey, I think what you’re doing is cool. Can I. Can I interview you? You know, but it feels like the vibe would be, you’d be like, just drop me an email yourself artist, and I’ll, you know, I’ll see.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:27:27]:

And I’m like, wow. I’m like, I think somehow, I’m coming off a lot bigger than what. What’s going on over here? I don’t know what that’s about. Or maybe is the PR person being lazy? I don’t know. I should not diminish myself. But it’s just sort of shocking, you know? Cause I know that PR is such an expensive thing and I’m not there yet to have a PR agency. I wish. I can’t wait till, like, it will be.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:27:54]:

But not yet. So it just shocks me.

 

Kate Henry [00:27:57]:

Yeah. The first time I got pitched for something for PR for, in, like, the productivity world, I was like, look at me, look at me. You know, like. Like, they want to pitch this to me. And it wasn’t something that was, like, on Instagram, where they’re like, do you want to, like, represent our, like, yoga leggings? I’m like, no, I don’t. It wasn’t like a fake pr. It was, like, legitimate. And I was like, oh, this makes me feel good, you know, like, I’m considered in the ilk of.

 

Kate Henry [00:28:20]:

Of folks, you know, like, just, you know, doing this. But it’s Cool to hear you talk about it because it’s like the podcast is really well done. The visuals are amazing, the show notes pages are amazing. So I’m.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:28:33]:

Oh wow. Thank you so much. Yes, it is a lot of work, but I really do enjoy doing it. I feel like I get to play Oprah, which I enjoy.

 

Kate Henry [00:28:45]:

That’s amazing. I love it.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:28:47]:

Yeah.

 

Kate Henry [00:28:49]:

I want to shift and ask you a little bit more about your art and you share in your bio that you’re thinking about blurring the lines between truth and fiction to spark conversation. And I also see, see in your artwork online. I feel that you’re weaving humor and satire and also like tenderness and like these things are influenced by community. Like there’s like a real affective experience of engaging with your art. And I’d. I’m curious about how you think about like emotions or affect with your work. Like is this like as you mentioned before, like I’m curious about this thing. I want to research it, I want to see what’s there.

 

Kate Henry [00:29:29]:

So like, is it something like maybe you’re starting with like what you are feeling or like in some of the like documentary or like interview or featuring work with other folks. Like are you thinking of emotions with them or are you thinking like how the audience may emotionally respond? Does that feel like a framework you think of or. I mean, it’s something I certainly felt as a viewer.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:29:53]:

Oh, that’s really nice. I, you know, it’s interesting. I was thinking about this. I don’t think I like to laugh, period, you know, and I like to have fun, period. And so I want to bring that into my work. I think that humor can soften a lot of seriousness. You could still be serious while being funny, you know, or while enjoying yourself. I don’t necessarily think like, oh, I’m funny, you know, but I try to approach things that will make me laugh or that I’ll get a kick out of maybe more so is probably the thing get a kick out of.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:30:34]:

I don’t think I think about emotions. I think I’m driven always just by observations. And thinking about that question, it made me think like, geez, I should probably get like more in touch with my emotions. Cause I do just move forward with just like pure observation now. I do. Obviously, I’m not like a cold-hearted person. Like I do know when stuff is wrong and makes me sad and when I’m happy, you know, feeling loved, all of that. But I don’t think about the emotion that I want a viewer to have.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:31:12]:

I think I want them to think, like, hmm, you know, I never thought of it that way. Or, you know, maybe I should approach something in this way. Like, for example, I did a series of. There was a time when there was a lot of studies around black women not being married. And it was just like Talk of the Town. Like, it was like CNN. People were doing thought pieces. It just was coming left and right.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:31:39]:

Black women aren’t married. Black women aren’t married. And I ended up doing this piece where I picked all black women that were married. They just weren’t married to, like, black partners. And so I started to post, like, all these interracial couples, right? And people were just like, wow. Wow. I didn’t know, wow. This person.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:31:59]:

This person, like, all these people who had married black women. And I remember I was at a party, and this guy came up to me, and he was like, I really enjoyed that work. And it made him think of an Indian girl he went to high school with. And he’s like, you know, I should have asked her to prom. And I thought about it. Nobody else was going. Was in interracial. And he’s like, you know, when I think about it, he’s like, that could have been my wife.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:32:28]:

And I’m just like, okay. So I feel like him seeing that triggered something in him about, you know, interracial relationships. And it’s like, listen, Black women are getting married. Maybe they’re not getting. They don’t always have black partners, but black women are getting married. And, you know, and, like, why is this a whole big deal? And I just thought that that was interesting, you know, but it was, like, because it was offending me. I’m like, no, we are getting married. You know, see, we’re getting married.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:32:56]:

And so I think it is just very personal the way that I take work. Another series I did, Fellas, where I was photographing, like, black men and their best friends. Well, my friendships, they were always, like, separated. Like, I had my college friends, my art friends, my high school friends, the friends at the gym. And, like, very rarely would they all intersect. But what I would notice about the guys, I would see, they would have, like, the one best friend that would come with them for everything. They would be out to go catch girls. They would be out to.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:33:32]:

When one graduated law school, they would be at the family reunion with them. They would travel. It would always be the one friend. But my friendships were always segmented. And I had another friend. You know, I had other girlfriends who also were like this as well. And so I was just very impressed by that. And I was like, I don’t have a friend that comes with me through everything.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:33:52]:

You know, it’s like, always picking, like, who’s gonna be a good fit for this activity or whatever. At that time, I think some of the friends that I have now could come with me through everything. But at that time, when I was making that work, it was like that. So I think a lot of it is just directed from my own observation and actually, as I’m saying it, I guess in my emotions. So maybe it is emotional.

 

Kate Henry [00:34:17]:

I mean, it also makes me think, too, about the piece that you created with the, like, gold mirror of the children in the front lawns that, like, folks could interact with and, like, see. See themselves with, like, that is, like, a very serious topic. And also there’s this, like, playfulness that is the viewer is cast into. So could you tell us a bit about that project?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:34:40]:

Yeah. So Golden Kids is essentially what it is, dear listener, is golden plexi mirror children. And they sit in the yard, you know, like, they are sort of, like, in stakes that could just be hammered and into the lawn. And now they sit on bases in case I, like, exhibit them inside. But I made that work because, you know, during the summers, during that time, I’m trying to think of when I did that work. But there was just a lot of gun violence, you know, and it was, like, in particular, a lot of children being, you know, lives being taken away. And so that was very upsetting. Cause you’re just like, wow, five, six, seven years old.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:35:26]:

You know, the school shootings, you know, like, Sandy, I’m like, these are, like, babies. They’re just getting started. And I think about friends that are trying to get pregnant. You know, you’re trying to get pregnant. You do all this, and then this happens. Like, wow, that’s, like, terrible. And so I just thought, you know, they’re being taken away. They’re being sent to heaven.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:35:49]:

They’re still here. And, like, they could still play with the kids who are still here. So they’re not. They might be, you know, gone now, but their spirit and their souls are still here with us, you know, on Earth. And so I thought the mirror could be a fun way, you know, and the plexi is also sort of wobbly. Like, it’s not a super clear piece, you know, so it sort of becomes, like, you know, distorted. You could just, like, goof off with it. And then it, like, has, like, weird reflections.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:36:17]:

So I thought that that was sort of fun and the way that I arranged them, you know, they’re just doing all these different shapes of playing hide and seek. So that’s like such a classic childhood game. But yeah, just. Just taking on that. Just, you know, about how powerful and awful that is, you know, for, you know, for just guns in this country. You know, it’s just. It’s just out of control and anybody can get it, which is terrible. So that’s what that work was about.

 

Kate Henry [00:36:51]:

Yeah. And that piece, like you mentioned before, like observation, like your observation as the artist and the creator, and it’s also like this curated way then that we as the viewers are observing and taking it in, you know, So I knew I wanted to ask you about that piece specifically today because it is really like the viewer is engaging in this. Right. Like, especially if you’re like, this is in a literal front lawn and you’re walking by and you can engage with this versus, like, I’m going to a gallery to like, look at things and be like a, you know, like, receptive intellectual person. It’s. I imagine the vibes to everything. You’re like, I’m just walking back from dropping my kid at preschool and I see this.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:37:30]:

Right, right. Yeah. Or your kid, their little kids could play with it too. It’s like, look, you could still play with it and like, interact with it and. Yeah, so it’s like even while they’re in heaven, they still get opportunity to play, you know, with their friends here on Earth.

 

Kate Henry [00:37:44]:

I want to kind of switch a little bit and think about different aspects of your work now. And I’ve heard you talk about your artist Admin hour, which I just think is brilliant. And I know so many people, so many people who I want to recommend to do this. So can you tell us what that is? What led you to make it, like, what is the reception bit? And like, how can folks join it if they would like to.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:38:06]:

Oh, yes. Thank you so much for asking about it. So I feel like this is a community project, essentially. Artist Advent Hour is co working body doubling. That’s what it is. You know, I have benefited greatly from this. I used to work at a college in downtown Chicago and me and my friend, we would meet up. Cause she also worked downtown.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:38:29]:

We would meet up after work and go and work on our art projects in a coffee shop. And we would do this like several times a week. And I got a lot done meeting up with her. We wouldn’t really talk. She also could code. So if I had a question about a website, I could like flip my laptop around and she would be like, oh, and like fix it. Be like here you go. Or if she wanted to read something out.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:38:52]:

And we launched a lot of projects that way and I loved it. And she was a great person to go with because she really wouldn’t talk, you know, like I said, unless we were. I really, really enjoyed that. And I would do that in several ways. Like when applying for grants, see if anybody else is applying, meet up at a coffee shop, work on it. And I really, really benefited from that. Also there’s services like Focus Mates. I think there’s another one called Focus Space, you know, and I think just being, being in, you know, community, watching other people work and like having that focused time, I don’t know what the magic is behind it, but it will make you work, you know, it’ll make you do whatever it is that you need to do.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:39:36]:

And so Artist Admin Hour. I created my own co working space because how much I benefit from coworking but also working in the film industry, you know, it was hard to maintain my own practice. Cause you’re like working like maybe 10-12 hour days and then you come home and you have to work on your own practice, right? Like and you’re tired and you have to go. And so thinking about other creatives or other people who have to, who are like working on their own project, it’s like hey, Wednesday nights, 7 o’ clock central to 9pm central, we are going to work on our projects. I’m here, you’re here. It sort of has that 12 step mentality actually thinking about body doubling like I’m here for you and you’re here for me, you know. And so that’s why I created it. And if folks just want to join it, they could just go to artistadminhour.com it is $30, but if you can’t afford $30 then it’s $15.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:40:45]:

And if you can’t afford that then you just make message me and we’ll work it out. But I think it’s important to be able to work on your own stuff. Especially when you have these full-time jobs or maybe you’re a caretaker, you know, you’re a parent. Just being able to have this dedicated time to work on your own stuff. And especially with the advent stuff like grants, residency applications. I just had the first one on Wednesday and afterwards it was so nice because some artists just hung around and we talked for like another hour after. And you know, I will put myself in spaces to be in community with artists but not everybody will. And so I really thought that, that was nice to just be able to shoot the breeze with other artists about projects they’re working on, newsletters.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:41:33]:

You know, I thought that that was really special. So, yeah, that’s what I hope to be able to bring with artist admin hour. Like we’re all here working on these little emails we gotta get out, you know, these presentations, these grant applications, even if you have to write or do something creative, but letting that be our time and then also adding in the first of the month studio clean so that we can just clean out our studio declutter and just sort of reset ourselves because, you know, messes happen.

 

Kate Henry [00:42:03]:

This is brilliant. I’m definitely gonna join for studio clean. Like, I’m just like, you can’t see but off my. Just a bookshelf, that’s my storage shelf and like it needs to get organized once a month. This is. I love that you’re doing this. Body doubling is such an amazing tool, like, to increase focus and the accountability that other folks are doing this. Like, it’s just like, it’s just a psychologically really effective tool regardless of like if folks are doing different kinds of projects or not.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:42:36]:

You know, I would even remember, like going to my friend’s house and being like, oh, well, Cheryl can’t play, her room is dirty. And they were like, okay, Cheryl, like, we better go to your room and like, that’s going to be our playtime. Cleaning your room, I guess, you know, or just sitting there. You know, I’ve had friends just come sit on my bed while I fold clothes. You know, like there is something about having somebody else there that is just very powerful.

 

Kate Henry [00:42:58]:

Yeah, my spouse, Chris calls this lending someone your ego. I don’t know where they got that term, but it’s like if you’re like, I need to like, like last night I was cooking this like big dinner that had like four different things and I was like, I need you, Chris, to just get a drink and sit over there and like be with me while, hang out with me and talk to me while I’m doing this like multi hour task. Like, lend me your ego to just like hang while I do this thing that I have to do. Right.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:43:24]:

So I. Oh, I love that. I love that. You know, my partner cooks on Sundays and usually I’m just doing my own thing. I should go, I’m gonna go sit with them and just hang out. Yeah. Cause I’m sure that that’s very nice. Outside of just, you know, maybe listening to a podcast or whatever.

 

Kate Henry [00:43:40]:

Yeah, it’s sweet. I do like, and like our little dog come and comes and like, sits in her bed. Like she’s excited to, like, hang out, you know, it’s. It’s sweet. It’s like a really cute way to do that. But yes, Artist Admin Hour. Phenomenal. I will see other folks there.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:43:56]:

Yes, thank you.

 

Kate Henry [00:43:58]:

Another facet of your work that you’re doing is curating film screenings. And like, that’s important to you. I’ve heard you talk about, like, the lack of, you know, like a theater space to do that. So that’s something that you’re, you’re developing. Could you tell us a bit about that?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:44:13]:

Yes. So when I first moved into Chicago, I lived in the Gold coast, which is super fancy. It’s like Magnificent Mile. People will travel to see downtown, Gold coast area. And I had an apartment there. In the Gold coast, everything is at your fingertips. If I was cooking and was out of a tomato, I can run across the street and get a fresh tomato. You know, you can walk to the movie theater.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:44:39]:

There’s like a whole strip of restaurants and bars. It’s all so accessible. And when I moved out of the Gold coast, you know, the next neighborhood I moved in, it was sort of like that, but it wasn’t like the Gold coast, you know, in my neighborhood now is definitely not like that. You have to drive everywhere. The closest movie theater is like maybe like 35 minutes away, you know, when you have to plan for that. And I just thought, I used to have this neighbor who I would always see out. He was always out drinking, and I would always see him stumbling home. Not necessarily like a drunk stumble, but just like, you know, end of the night stumble.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:45:22]:

And I’m like, everybody deserves to have this stumble, you know, to be able to go out, enjoy themselves and walk home, period, you know. But we don’t have that, you know, we can’t go out for, like, get some dinner, walk to the theater, see something. You have to drive everywhere, plan it all out. And I hate that so much because we deserve more than that. Communities deserve that. At the very least to have, you know, cultural centers in walking distance, five-minute drives, you know, close to them. And so my thought to that was having pop up screenings. Now I would always have screenings with my friends.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:46:03]:

You know, we would always like come to each other’s house, we would bring people over and all of that and like, watch a movie, laugh at the show together. And that’s just like such a nice communal way to just be, you know, we’re all together, coming around this one Thing, this film. And that’s why I love movies so much. Cause I feel like it’s such an accessible medium. Yeah. So we would do that. And so I just wanted to, like, bring that to my community that I’m in. And so I live in a neighborhood called Avalon Park on the Chicago south side.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:46:35]:

And so I have, like, Avalon Film House. I think I’m calling it Avalon Park Movie House, something like that. But it’s basically just, you know, a micro cinema. And it’s getting started where it’s just like a movie screen and folding chairs, you know, like in a gym. But I would love for it to become, like, a little micro cinema. That would be great. But, you know, in the meantime, at least, you know, it’s like, hey, guys, this is what we have. At least, you know, it’s free.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:47:05]:

You can come hang out. I got a suggestion from a neighbor to try to make, like, a dinner and a movie, you know, sort of a setup. I’m not sure how I would do that yet. But, you know, it’s just something that’s accessible, something to do that’s in our neighborhood that we don’t have to go out for. And that’s really important, I think.

 

Kate Henry [00:47:27]:

When I go to the local library, which is like, 0.3 miles from my house, like, I. It’s so close to walk there. And they have movie screenings with, like, really contemporary movies. Yeah. Like. Like regularly there. Which is, like, so cool to have that accessible. Because to get to a movie theater from where I live, and I’m like, like a little offshoot of Boston.

 

Kate Henry [00:47:47]:

It’s still like a drive, Highways, you know, like a long. A long hassle and way to get there. And, like, that’s a drive. So if, like, also, like, you’re taking a bus, you know, like, it’s like, a much longer time to get there.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:48:01]:

Yeah. And you can’t, like, hang out when it’s distances like that. Like, you know, that’s too long to. You know. Even if you’re the kind of a movie junkie that wants to hang out in the theater all day, you know, and, like, watch three films. It’s like, you might be like, oh, gosh, I have to start heading home now. You know, it’s like, that’s terrible. We don’t want to head home, Dr.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:48:23]:

Kate. We want to stay out all night.

 

Kate Henry [00:48:25]:

I know. We want to stay out, and we want to have our talks about the movies that we’ve seen. I love your micro cinema. I love your artist admin hour. I want to Close this up today by asking you to share. What’s something you’re honing in on?

 

Stephanie Graham [00:48:40]:

Yeah, you know, this is such a great question. I feel like I’m honing in on being like a serious businesswoman, especially since my practice has moved out into these like community works right now. You know, it takes like real intention, follow up and planning. And I feel like while I’m not on like a film project right now, I’m used to working in the evenings. I’m honing in on like being a serious businesswoman, like you know, 9 to 5, you know, 10 to 4 kind of a thing. And like really making the best use of my time because I was so used to coming alive at 5. You know, like I would be at work and then I’d be like working until the night. But I’m like, I don’t have to do that right now.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:49:30]:

I need to like re pivot myself and reorient myself to make use of the daytime. And so that’s what I’m really honing in on, like learning those skills, learning readjusting my time management, readjusting how I work to take up the full day so that I do have my evenings now.

 

Kate Henry [00:49:52]:

I want that for you. I don’t think you are like a serious businesswoman. I think you are just a serious businesswoman, period.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:49:59]:

No, Mike, thank you. Thank you. Yes, yes. And that’s hard, you know, it’s so much to learn, you know, in this business cohort and thinking about like how I can just generate my own income, you know, if there’s, if there’s never another film project that I crew on again, what is going to be that thing? Can I do it for myself outside of just getting another job? What a blessing that would be.

 

Kate Henry [00:50:31]:

That is a perfect time for me to ask, where can folks find you online if they want to be your patron or if they want to check out what you’re doing.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:50:40]:

Yes. Thank you so much. Well, my website for all of my art, my art projects is missgraham.com M I S S G R A H A M.com and then my podcast is noseyAF.com, N O S E Y A F.com and then artist admin hour is artistadminhour.com so excited.

 

Kate Henry [00:51:05]:

I hope that I’ll see listeners in the Artist Admin Hour.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:51:09]:

Yes, please come.

 

Kate Henry [00:51:11]:

I hope that folks that are local too can check out the micro cinema as well.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:51:16]:

Me too. I would love all of that.

 

Kate Henry [00:51:19]:

And thanks for taking time to chat with me today.

 

Stephanie Graham [00:51:21]:

Yeah, of course. Thanks so much for having me.

 

Kate Henry [00:51:28]:

Thanks so much for joining me. You can learn more about honing in and my work as a productivity coach on my website, KateHenry.com Take Good Care.