Art, Travel & Wellness

Welcome to My Blog!

November 2022

Hi, there! My name is Winter, and I'm so excited to welcome you to my blog! This is a space for me to self-publish stories about art (including reviews, commentaries and general art essays), my adventures while traveling and a range of pieces on health and wellness (covering mental and emotional health and healing practices).

As I inch closer toward graduating and prepare myself to step into the "real-world," this blog will center around the stories I'm most passionate about telling. Keep reading to learn about why I'm passionate about art, travel and wellness storytelling, and check out my blog post entitled "Artist Statement" to understand why I love to write.

Art

I spent 16 years of my life in dance studios, bending and throwing my body in the air one day while tilting my pelvis, straightening spin and aligning the back of my head into vertical perfection as I gracefully touched the ballet bar the next day. It wasn't until I stopped dancing, when I graduated high school, that I realized the art form was my saving grace. Dance tamed my anxiety and provided an emotional release to my mind before I was even able to harbor stress in my body. It was the physical form of expression I needed to relax my mind and share my most painful thoughts and emotions while never saying a word.

Now, I write about music, fine art, dance and film to elevate the disenfranchised voices that express themselves and share their experiences through art. I cover predominantly LGBTQ+ and BIPOC art collections to illuminate the stories of people ousted by society to empower their communities and highlight their work to ensure it doesn't go overlooked or misunderstood.

Travel

Exploring the world is when I feel the most alive, but it's a privilege and, I believe, a responsibility to share those adventures and knowledge with those who don't have the same opportunities. I've learned the most about myself, the world and the world in which I wish to live through these excursions, and I hope these stories provide my readers with the same outcome. I write these pieces to inform readers about a culture or way of life completely unknown to them in order to bridge divides and emphasize acceptance of our differences across cultural lines.

Wellness

Mental health and emotional wellbeing is one of the most undervalued areas of coverage in journalism. We rarely talk about trauma, grief, addiction or any of the other hard conversations that are necessary to have to improve our minds and body. I want to change that by not only sharing my story and using this blog as a place to be vulnerable with my readers, but as a chance to tell other peoples' stories. To heal ourselves, we must listen to others and learn about new ways of addressing our pain. If nothing else, I hope readers feel less alone in their struggles as they read about people who are going through similar challenges.

Please reach out to me at whawk@terpmail.umd.edu with any questions or comments. Subscribe to stay updated!