Shop Timory (2021)

How did the massive increase in reliance on digital communication in 2020 affect artists and creators? As influencer marketing rises in popularity, how do artists distinguish themselves from influencers? Is there a line between artist and small business owner, creator and brand, art and marketing? Or is the line disintegrating as the real and digital worlds become more and more intertwined? What is true originality, if such a thing exists?

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In 2021, I started an upcycled clothing brand, Timory, to learn more about the business, marketing, and commercialization sides of artmaking. This project was one of my early explorations into finding marketing tactics beyond social media that worked for my new brand. In addition to posting pictures, stories, and live feeds of my progress on Instagram, I also sent email campaigns from one of my first websites to connect with my audience.

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I was also interested in learning how to sew as a non-digital hobby after so much online time in 2020. Plus, my friends and I had a closet full of clothes that didn't feel like our style anymore, and I wanted to try transforming them into clothes we would wear before discarding them. The name "Timory" came from a combination of the words "timshel" and "memory," encouraging both reflection on and reinvention of the self. 

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Shop Timory may live permanently in 2021, but looking back, it paved the way for Art For Instagram a few years later.​