April 21st 2018 was my first day in Red Brick Market. On that day, the revamped Canning Hall of Cains Brewery had a grand opening as 'Red Brick Hangar' and I had made a last minute decision to be 'brave' and see if anyone had any interest in any of my prints!
Although I had sold a few prints to friends in the past, I'd never put any of my work 'out there' to the public. It was so last minute, turning up just before the place opened, the wall was bare (see below!) and I only had a handful of mounted prints to display (in a very ad hoc way!) ... but people came, and people bought! So April 21st 2018 was also the birth of Caroline Benzies Photography!
I decided to stay on in Red Brick and eventually made that bit of wall my own, giving it a much needed coat of paint and gradually developing a better way to display my prints.
As my confidence grew, I expanded the range of prints, worked on getting a website up and running and eventually made the decision to move to a bigger bit of wall space at the back of Red Brick!
The saddest part of that was having to take everything off the wall for the first lockdown. However, like many people, that time made me step back and think about how far I had come and what I really wanted to do.
In July 2020, I decided to move to a unit in Red Brick - my very own patch (rather than a corridor space!). It was a scary decision at the time and I didn't really expect more lockdowns BUT I'm still here! When I look back at the earlier prints and the style of work I am producing now, I am really proud at how far I have come. My hobby is now my job and whilst I was always in awe of those amazing stalls you see at big art fairs and events, I've now got several 'big venues' under my belt (and lots of smaller events too!), and absolutely love chatting to people that stop to look at my work. I am so pleased that my work has gone all over the world, some people now have their own little collections, I've had fine art prints hanging in various exhibitions and I now sell in several different venues. STOP PRESS : and whilst writing this, I've just had to fill in some paperwork for some prints to be seen on the the TV ... now that's a first!
I'm not taking anything for granted. I know that many venues/businesses struggle and that the current times are hard for a lot of people. I am very thankful to the team at Red Brick for giving a home to so many small businesses but we do need more people to know we are there & to keep coming back (with coachloads of friends!)
Plans for the future? I'm constantly working on lots of different ideas, I plan to swap round prints on a regular basis, so images may come and go from my website to keep it fresh. I want to increase my range of nature based images (but you just know that they won't be just landscapes!) and produce more original 'one off' prints. I also want to put together more collections of work... looks like I'm gong to be busy!
My next BIG event is the three day Spring Market at the Palm House in Sefton Park (May 20-22nd) and I hope to see lots of people there!
So if you have got to the bottom of this -THANKYOU.
If you like what I do - THANKYOU.
If you've taken the time to comment, like or share a social media post, or tell someone about my work - THANKYOU. If you have ever bought a print - a huge THANKYOU.
Here's to the next four years!