10 YEARS of "WholeHearted: The Red Dress Series"
I realized something this week:
Today, May 16th, marks the 10-year anniversary since I took my very first Red Dress self portrait, under the cascading waters of Skógafoss in Iceland. The very first image of what could become a 30+ piece series, still on-going today, and ever dear to my heart.
In fact, since it began, I’ve called it “WholeHearted: The Red Dress Series”.
It began in 2014. I was embarking on my first ever “photography” trip abroad to Iceland. It had been my dream to visit this country for several years, and in the months leading up, I would spend countless hours scouring the internet looking for ANY photos of “a small person in big landscape” or “ethereal woman in a dress in natural landscape” in Iceland. I was trying to find inspiration for the new series idea I had in mind, and the direction I wanted my photography to go.
Now, this was before the days of Instagram, and apparently before the days that photographers began to add “people” to their landscapes, because: “Gasp! How DARE thou tarnish thy pure landscapes with a person!” was the impression I got during all my early research looking such photographers, and even when posting such images myself. 😂
In the end, I couldn’t find any ethereal landscape/portrait crossovers on the internet, especially taken in Iceland. But the idea was in my head, and I couldn’t get it out. So, I reached out to a couple close photographer friends, asked if they wanted to plan an Iceland trip with me (you know you have like-minded friends when the immediate answer is YES), and thus I began planning, booking and organizing my first ever photography trip abroad! A big leap for me, at 21 years old. This ended up being the trip that really kick-started my life as I know it today. ♥
A few months after that trip to Iceland, I wrote a blog about it (which somehow went rather viral for back-in-the-day?!)… In that blog post I shared my personal reasoning behind why I started this series, which I’ll share again here below:
2014:
Why the red dress, you might ask? Two reasons: A. I had very little room in my travelling suitcase for outfits besides the red dress, especially considering I had to save suit-case space for transporting chocolate (yes, that was my most vital necessity for the trip), and B. When I was thinking ahead about creating an Icelandic self-portrait series, I wanted to wear something that would depict "standing out" in a wholehearted sort of way. Not just a bright colour to stand out against the Icelandic backdrops, but also something of a reflection of my thoughts as of late. These photos have been some of my most personal I've ever taken, for the thoughts behind them. As a rather notorious introvert who has always preferred being on the sidelines, who has been afraid of what people think of my looks, awkwardness and quirks, who has been known to ignore get-together messages from people for months at a time (sorry guys), and who is often nervous and worried about the future and anything out of my comfort zone (which is basically everything), I've come to realize these last couple of years have been quite a breakthrough for me in letting go of those fears.
Perhaps it's just been part of growing up, or perhaps it's the snowballing effect from stepping out of my comfort zone and letting one adventure lead to another, gaining more confidence with each one... Or perhaps it's the incredible like-minded friends I've made through photography who have become the most encouraging, uplifting and inspiring influences in my life. All these things have helped me learn to take courage in standing up, following my passions and not being afraid to be different (...chances are nobody's even lookin' at me anyway, so yet another reason not to worry). I am still a quiet introvert by nature, but whether I'm keeping to the sidelines to blend in, or whether I want to take courage in standing out (more specifically finding a balance between the two), I've been learning to accept myself as someone who simply doesn't need to worry about what people think of me.
“So this is what these photos are to me - a way of living more boldly, of being alive, of finding peace in letting go of my fears as I keep pushing forward.This photo series symbolizes my wish to live wholeheartedly. It’s a reminder to myself to let go of fear and doubt, to embrace who I am, and especially to focus on a life lived in gentle love, gratitude and absolute wonder of the world and everything in it.”
Since then, it seems I haven’t been able to stop, and the series has continued throughout Canada, Scotland, Portugal, New Zealand, Faroe Islands and Iceland a few more times. I carry the red dress with me to most places, keeping it close and ready to use when I feel called to it… when I need that extra little inspiration to let go of some personal fears, and to remember to love and embrace who I am.
Fun fact: As you can imagine, a dress that’s spent 10 years travelling the world, crammed in backpacks, rolled through grass and sheep sh*t, torn on mountain rocks, immersed in oceans and lakes, dragged through dirt, frozen stuck to glaciers, shrunk in washing machines, and so on… means it’s not a very pretty dress up close. 😂 For everyone asking where I got it from: This dress was a thrift store find, and has undergone many “surgeries”. In fact, most of it is now made up of my old red bed-sheets, which my lovely mother sewed on to patch/lengthen the dress over the years. Thanks, mom!
Now, this blog could easily get very long, so I’m going to let this “WholeHearted” series speak for itself by sharing the rest of the images below. Please go through at your own pace, soak them in, and maybe let me know how some of these images make you feel when you look at them? Empowered? Nostalgic? Hopeful? Do you have a personal favourite from the series?
I know what each of these images personally means to me, but I’m always curious to know how each image might effect other viewers, too. Feel free to let me know in the comments! ♥
"WINDOW ON ALL TIME" - 2019, SCOTLAND. “SNOWGLOBE” - 2018, ICELAND.Full disclosure: A few years after I started this series, I became aware of another Red Dress photography project here in Canada: The REDress project, which honours 1,181 tragically missing and murdered indigenous women across Canada over the last 30 years. I didn’t know about the REDress project until people began to confuse my images with it, so I just want to disclose that my own series is separate. But I am so glad to know of this other Red Dress Project now, because it is seriously important in raising awareness and honouring the many, many women across Canada who have not been honoured before. ❤️
Just like that, these last 10 years have absolutely flown by, and it’s been beautiful to look back and remember why I started, and to see how far I’ve come today. Not just in photography, but in bravery as well. In stepping outside of my comfort zone so many times over the years, and slowly but surely learning how to truly live. Living more in love, awe, wonder, and wholeheartedness.
If you made it this far, I thank you for being here, and for being a part of this journey! Your support really does mean a lot, and I hope maybe some of these images from over the last 10 years might have been able to resonate with you, too.
May you find peace and beauty around you, wherever you are!
With love,
Lizzy
P.S. To celebrate this 10 year anniversary of my WholeHearted series, I brought back several of my Red Dress fine-art prints into my shop. 🥰
These will have a 25% DISCOUNT until the end of May, 2024. The discount will automatically apply when you add any red dress prints to your cart!