Upstate Diary is a bi-annual print publication about the creative possibilities that thrive in communities outside of city limits. Today interview with Kate Orne, creative director and photographer.
Tell me about your place?
I live on 13 acres (5 hectares) of federally protected land about 75 miles north of NYC. It’s an old dairy farm built in 1811. My home and studio overlook a field surrounded by an old stone wall which was most likely built by slaves when the farm was originally established. There is a beautiful maple forest and beyond that a mountain, all of which provide stunning views of seasonal change. There are bears, coyotes and lots of deer right in my back yard. I love this very intimate relationship with nature.
Why did you decide to leave NYC?
I was so tired of the constant noise and the concrete. Having been raised in Sweden, I wanted to return to the sounds of nature. My place is only 90 minutes from the city and so it’s easy to pop in for a day. It was interesting to discover that I actually I felt more isolated living in the city than living alone in the countryside. I also find myself less distracted from my work.
What inspired you to create Upstate Diary?
I learned that this region has a long history of great artists living & creating here: Thomas Cole, Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keefe, Alexander Calder, Bob Dylan, Vladimir Nobokov and Marc Chagall among many others. So, I figured it would be very interesting to feature both historic and contemporary creators connected to the area… et voila, UD was created! It was important to me to create a publication with an intimate voice versus an academic one — to bring the readers “inside”, to experience the subjects in their homes in a relaxed and informal manner. I am interested in content with a long life: no matter which issue one reads, the content needs to remain timeless. The features we did on Carrie Mae Weems, Sheila Metzner and Melissa Auf der Maur in Issue One are definitely long lived because they don’t just address what’s happening in their work at the moment but also what’s going on in their inner lives and their overall thought processes.
Did you have any experience in publishing prior to UD?
I was an editor at Interview Magazine before I became a photographer and I’ve always loved research and editing so the transition into publishing was natural. As a photographer, working in fashion never quite satisfied my curiosity — particularly when it came to capturing the emotional landscape of humans — so UD allows me to go deeper and spend more time in this area. Throughout my career I’ve been committed to projects spanning 5 to 10 years http://kateorne.com and UD is another one. It’s a collection of oral and visual histories.
So is Upstate Diary about any particular place?
It’s actually more about a frame of mind. I was just really fortunate to end up in an area with such a great concentration of creativity. We are expanding and reaching beyond just this region, which is super exiting.
How important is an online presence to UD?
It’s very important because it allows us to feature people we are not able to include in the print editions.
We have readers all over the world, which is very cool, and it just shows how UD’s concept transcends location and how keen its readers are to learn and explore.
Anything particularly interesting in Issue Two?
Oh, there’s lots of stuff. We are the first publication to have been invited to the Alexander Calder Foundation to conduct research and we are super proud of that. What an interesting guy Calder was! The feature includes an intimate portfolio of rarely seen photographs by Calder’s friend, photographer Herbert Matter. The insightful piece on Terence Koh is very special. We documented him and his hubby, graphic designer Garrick Gott, at their stunning and highly creative mountaintop home. We love to focus on places that have rarely, if ever, been seen. I’ve always been drawn to exploring new landscapes, to meeting people that can challenge my thoughts and perceptions…. Griffin Dunne’s place is definitely a sanctuary, where he finds the peace to work on his documentary about his aunt Joan Didion…. there is so much more — you’ll just have to get your own copy (laughing). But hurry, it’s a limited edition of a 1000!
Upstate Diary is about the creative possibilities that thrive in communities outside of city limits. UD features leading artists, actors, designers, musicians and writers going deeper into their private, creative worlds by pairing intimate and insightful interviews with beautiful photography of rarely seen studios, living spaces and landscapes. UD has recently published their second print edition.
Upstate Diary is available at Colette.fr and at many others retailers.
