Hwhup The Deans List? The Jason Dean here, bringing an end to the Weekend like it was the age of men and Monday is the time of the Orc. But hey, good news- at least you didn’t fall asleep on a hornet’s nest after a lifetime of chain smoking.

Anyways. Full docket today, so let’s get into it.

Waves are Words starts this week!!!

Later today, I will be dropping off my pieces for Waves are Words: The Many Voices of Lake Superior. On my way to the airport tomorrow, I’ll be stopping by The Gallery to help out with the install. I'm a little short on words right now, but very full on the feelings. This is such an exciting step to take for my little business- and for me! Six years ago, I started a Facebook page named ‘Waves are Words’ because a lot of people told me they liked the cell phone pictures I was taking.

Look at me now, ma 🥲

New Art in my own space

Here’s what I’ve been cooking up in the lab 😎 Quick reminder- the next couple of months are going to be wave-photo heavy in celebration of my gallery show, so if wave photos aren’t your thing…I mean, how did you come to follow me anyways?

Only one photo today, and I have to say that I’m totally okay with that. I had picked out three photos to edit on Live Stream. I punted on one of them when I started. I scrapped another one after sitting with the edit overnight.

The lesson here is that I am aspiring to excellence. We can argue over whether I ever get there, but that is the North Star that I am following, and if a photo is clearly not in the conversation than it is going to get dropped like a bad habit.

The photo above? Definitely in the conversation. This was a long exposure of some ginormous crashing waves at the Black Rocks. I fixated on this singular rock bearing the brunt of the onslaught of waves but still continuing to stand strong. I used a shutter speed of 1/25 of a second, slow enough to introduce some motion but fast enough to freeze most of the motion. And I love the way the black rocks contrast against the white spray, with gray clouds in the background.

No Live Stream this Tuesday

…since I’ll be flying to Portland. HOWEVER- in order to keep your internal atomic clock finely tuned to Tuesdays at 7:00 PM EST, I will be uploading a pre-recorded video of me editing some photos which is frankly almost just as good 😎

New collab

Heads up- one of my photos will be gracing an upcoming album cover from an upcoming Jacob Schmeltzer release. You may remember Jacob from his 'We’re Dreaming’ appearance; if you haven’t checked out his stuff yet on Spotify then please go do that immediately (after you click through this newsletter to the end)! This is my second collaboration with him on one of his albums (Quiet Reflections being the first) and I’m always incredibly honored to work with Jacob when it comes to his music.

Check out his Instagram for more information on the album release.

New product alert

Looks like coffee mugs are on the menu, boys!

That’s right, I’m dipping my toes into coffee mugs (editors note: don’t worry, he’s talking proverbial toes, not literal ones). Retail price is $16 and at this time are only be available at in-person events. I’ll be debuting this cool product at the TV6 Mother’s Day Craft Show next month!

Marquette Farmer’s Market

I’m excited to announce that I’ve been accepted as a vendor for the Marquette Farmer’s Market! The Farmer’s Market is a staple of summers in the Queen City and I’m looking forward to being a part of it for the first time.

As of right now, the dates I will be there (all Wednesday evenings) are:

Art on the Rocks

The hits keep coming 💪 I’m going to be an exhibiting artist at this summer’s Art on the Rocks. Another summer staple (this is the 66th annual iteration of the event!), Art on the Rocks will take place at Lower Harbor Park on July 25 and 26. More information to come on this, but holy wah am I getting so excited for this summer!

100 Day Project Update

Here’s where ‘We, The Songs We’ve Sung’ currently stands. Like I mentioned last week, I’ll be taking a break from the project for the next week while I’m in Portland, but I’m so happy with how this has turned out and can’t wait for people to see it in person! 😎

Waves are Wednesdays Preview

Since I’m currently swimming in wave photos (puns not intended but also kinda intended) for the next month, my Waves are Wednesdays photos will not be new- but they will be freaking awesome.

Behold: the wave photo I’ll be sharing next Wednesday on my socials:

Thanks so much for being here, for being you, and for supporting the vision and the dream! It’s been a crazy couple of weeks with all of these new opportunities coming to me. It’s surreal and humbling, and I really can’t thank you enough for the part you’ve played in it!

That’s everything 😮‍💨 After a couple of months of quiet, the next few months are shaping up to be quite lively- and oh baby I am ready to do this!

Thanks again, folks. If you’re reading this and are not subscribed yet to my newsletter, click that little button down below and get The Weekender delivered right to your email inbox every Sunday.

See you around,

Jason