In a wild twist, during the process of working on our upcoming Privacy Issue, on sale early June, I have joined Instagram. I’ve been told that I am perhaps the last person on the media planet to do so.
Not so long after Instagram launched almost a decade ago we embraced the platform for RUSSH and have grown a loyal and engaged following. We’ve always had a considered approach to technology – sometimes first to market, as with our RUSSH iPad app, and sometimes a little later once we’ve defined where we sit within the platform – to ensure we engage in a sustainable way that is true to the RUSSH voice.
During the age of the rise of the social media influencer our goal was always to define a shared voice for RUSSH, something that speaks to the creative collective we are and not to an individual taste or aesthetic. I consciously chose not to dilute this by creating a personal brand, and this conveniently played into my natural inclination to feel vulnerable in the public gaze.
In recent times, as many people are experiencing, my personal sense of self and what I’ve been willing to share with the world has been challenged and lately I’ve been questioning with how I identify in the world; wondering if we cannot be observed, if we cannot be found, do we even exist? And whether I even have a right to privacy ...
As we prepare to launch a new meeting place for our creative community – RUSSH Creates – a little later this year, I’m hoping to utilise this account to give a voice to the creative family behind the magazine; our team, image makers and writers, our collaborators and co-conspirers and all of those who inspire us with their ideas and conversations, their creations, music and art.
