“Do you even know what you’re doing?” my friend asked.
My grin slowly turned into a burst of laughter, “Actually, no clue.“

I recently received a phone call. An art director really dug my work and was asking if I’d be interested in being a part of their next event. After chatting away about video games and numetal (two topics that I somehow manage to bond with complete and total strangers over and I don’t really understand how or why), I said yes to what would be my very first art show.

After I hung up, it really dawned on me. After all of these years of shooting, I’ve never had an art show before and for whatever reason, the thought never even crossed my mind. It also dawned on me that I really had no idea what I was doing. I had a good laugh… not only at the situation, but at myself. I didn’t find myself scared. I found myself amused. Excited. This was going to be an interesting scenario… and even if it turns out to be a disaster, I knew that it was going to be a fun story to tell.

A couple of days later, I went to go check out the location that myself and a lot of other talented artists were going to be showcasing at. I chose my spot for the show. Like a true rocker, I picked a spot near the bar in the ballroom. Since I believe I am the only music photographer there that night, I figured I might as well go with the vibe. Besides, if I end up getting nervous, I will at least have a plethora of drinks waiting for me nearby.

The next night was my birthday. My very creative friend informed me that I inspired him to want to do an art show. Maybe he was just being nice, but they were nice words to hear. He later entertained the idea that perhaps we should split the costs of a nice art printer together… and suddenly, a whole lot of ideas immediately flooded through my head. It was a rush that I haven’t felt in quite some time.

Now here’s where I suppose it gets “crazy.” Maybe it was that feeling. Maybe it was me turning the big 3-0 and I’m going through some early mid-life crisis without even realizing it. Maybe it was handfuls of different people and companies hitting me up with job offers and ideas. Maybe it was the slew of travel opportunities that have appeared. Maybe it was putting an album about chasing your dreams on repeat. Maybe it was a lot of things… but I realized that I had strayed slightly off from where I wanted to be and my instincts were screaming at me to make a change.

So I made a change. After a couple of solid conversations, I put in my resignation at my current job.

My last day will be Friday, May 24th. Now I can’t yet go into details of what I will be doing next, but I can say that I am excited. The paths I am about to take are daring, risky, and quite frankly, dangerous… but I couldn’t be more excited and ready to face what obstacles might be thrown in my direction and I can’t wait to share this journey with you all.

If you’re in Minneapolis from May 25th through 29th, I will be there as well for all of the pre-Soundset, Soundset, and post-Soundset shenanigans. Come out to the festivities, and if you see me running around, stop me and say hello!

Then, of course, June 13th in Los Angeles, if you’re going to be around… please come to the RAW:artists event for my first art show! It’s at The Belasco Theater in Downtown L.A. from 6-10 PM. For the record, I’m not making any money off of this show. I’m there to share my work and really, I’m also there to just do it for myself and put myself through the experience to learn from it. So please, please, please come support… and for all of my lazy friends who keep saying they’ll be there, please buy your tickets already!! You can pick them up at http://bit.ly/SarahDopeTix.

See you out there…