My brand name, The Not So Miserable began as a joke, but very quickly stuck. In my late teens, early twenties, I discovered gothic and alternative music and the culture which accompanies it. But I was repeatedly told that I was far too cheerful and smiley to be a goth. It’s true, I am a serial smiler. It’s just always felt rude not to respond to eye contact with a smile. Not that I judge others by my own standards! Anyway, that’s a bit of a nonsense as there is even a term for goths who smile – perky goths.
These days, I’m less into headbanging and wind milling at the local goth and metal night. However, I’m still attracted to the things which drew me to gothic culture at the start of my career. A close relationship with nature, an embracing of difference, a passion for art and literature and a rejection of toxic masculinity.
My website get’s a little neglected at times because I have a full time job and am also a trustee for amazing local charity and community focused arts centre Black Swan Arts. As we all know, there is not enough time to do everything to the extent we want to or feel we should. But lets all just give each other a break. We can only do what we can do.
Qualifications:
- BA Fine Arts, University of Gloucestershire
- MA Design Innovation, Graphics and Multimedia, De Montfort University
Current prominent positions:
- Digital Supporter and Platform Trainer at the University of Bath
- Tech Trustee for Black Swan Arts
- Independent Artist
- Freelance Web Designer, Editor and Front-end Developer
Less official roles:
- IT supporter, will help with home IT issues and tech set up
- Tech enabler, I’m always happy to help people learn and empower themselves
- Human slave to my cat overlords
My brand name, The Not So Miserable began as a joke, but very quickly stuck. In my late teens, early twenties, I discovered gothic and alternative music and the culture which accompanies it. But I was repeatedly told that I was far too cheerful and smiley to be a goth. It’s true, I am a serial smiler. It’s just always felt rude not to respond to eye contact with a smile. Not that I judge others by my own standards! Anyway, that’s a bit of a nonsense as there is even a term for goths who smile – perky goths.
These days, I’m less into headbanging and wind milling at the local goth and metal night. However, I’m still attracted to the things which drew me to gothic culture at the start of my career. A close relationship with nature, an embracing of difference, a passion for art and literature and a rejection of toxic masculinity.
My website get’s a little neglected at times because I have a full time job and am also a trustee for amazing local charity and community focused arts centre Black Swan Arts. As we all know, there is not enough time to do everything to the extent we want to or feel we should. But lets all just give each other a break. We can only do what we can do.
Photo taken by Simon of Etcha Sketch