A Totally Random Photographic Year in Review

2024 in all it's glory

My dear subscribers, I have abandoned you!

Let me explain. I’ve been swallowed whole by my new zine (a fancy Substack magazine). What started as a “simple idea” has evolved—or perhaps mutated—into a full-time job. And by “full-time,” I mean 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. shifts. Why? Because apparently, I thrive on chaos.

In a moment of wild ambition, I invited 20 some writers to contribute. I figured, eh, maybe half ignore me—plus, a few of them were seriously top-tier, borderline-unreachable types. But shockingly, nearly everyone said yes! (Cue happy panic.)

And then, a handful of spectacular writers approached me. I tried to stay cool, like, Sure, post it on your own stack and I’ll share the link. But who was I kidding? They were too good to resist. So now I’m publishing even more. Oh, and because I clearly have no concept of boundaries, I decided to create custom drawings and artwork for each writer. Yes, for all of them.

Did I mention I’m a visual artist? That’s actually my day job. Most of my photography is abstract—think sidewalks, reflections, textures. But this year, my work took a sharp left turn into who-knows-where. It’s all over the place, just like me. So, in the spirit of my glorious chaos, I’ve assembled an album that is as eclectic as… well, me.

This “random year in review” is my way of sharing my little piece of the world with you. It’s not curated or polished—it’s delightfully messy and entirely honest. I hope it makes you smile (or at least furrow your brow in confusion).

Here’s what you’ll find:

• Me, inexplicably hanging out in parking lots

• Mountains of garbage and moving madness

• My dog (he’s vain and sneaky, always inching his way into the frame)

• Night photos in beautiful places

• An art installation in a cave

• Snapshots from my decade-long, never-finished drawing project

• Me having a loving moment looking into a bear’s eyes

• Floating-in-Scotland, because that’s what I did

Thanks for sticking with me, even when I disappear into my whirlwind projects. I’m thrilled to share this chaotic, creative year with you. Let me know which photos make you laugh, sigh, or go, What even is that?

Here’s to randomness, art, and everything in between.

You will have to come to the app if you want to see all the pictures.

Floating in 2024:

I learned to defy gravity this year

I was invited to join an improv theater group to play the role of a man. Naturally, I sent them a photo of myself dressed as one (complete with a spectacularly drawn beard). It sealed the deal.

The Move:

Cleaning the house for our move led to some unpleasant discoveries. Like the mouse nest I found nestled in one of my wigs. Here’s the gross little package it created. You’re welcome.

Performance and Play:

I’ve been working with a group of disabled kids for 10 years now, and last year we made the leap from drawing to theater. (Yes, I dabbled in theater teaching in 2024.) This is a photo of me and one of my students doing a scene together—I even Photoshopped us into New York, where we obviously belong. Also: • My dear friend and collaborator, dancer Brida did a performance in a field and I got this great shot of her growing with all the other grasses.

Travels:

My sons and I kicked off our yearly journey to America in the most relaxed (read: mildly clueless) way possible. So relaxed, in fact, that we boarded a train going in the wrong direction. It took us a full 45 minutes to realize this, at which point we laughed, shrugged, and waited for a train heading back. No big deal.

Hanging out in Parking Lots and other Street Photos:

I love it when the windshield starts fogging up.

Scotland, how to pick only 6 photos?

Check out this collage Aymeric made me when I was on my way to meet him in Birmingham.

Art Installation 2024:

From the Video Installation in a cave with the artist Trisha McCrae. I made and collaborated on videos for this moody installation. We spent days freezing in these damn caves getting the scenography just right.

My Unending Drawing Project that Inches along:

Do you want me to draw a card for your 2025?

You’ve probably had enough. But. I discovered Substack this year in September, and it has completely changed my life. Thanks Dad.

The middle picture is my "murder board" for the zine, getting all my visual ideas together. When the first volume is finished, I am going to take all this into the parking lot outside my house and paste it on the stone wall.

Here are a few my favorite of my own pieces of the year:

The obvious winner of my me vs. me fiction competition is:

2nd in running is:

In Non-fiction, I nominate one of my favorite essays that just didn’t get as much love as some of the others, so here it is:

Because I am so busy promoting other people’s work these days, I will not recommend anyone other than the published writers in my zine, which I am shamelessly promoting to you, my beloved subscribers. Keep an eye out for the third and final edition of “The Lot” on Sunday.

Please take a look at the zine, and if you are looking for new writers, here is my handpicked bunch. Find these guys there:

Brock Eldon

,

Andrew Robert Colom

,

Cassidy Rose

,

Morgan Beatty

,

Alex Dobrenko`

,

Snaps

,

Oscar Ruto Chemelil

,

John Noire

,

hope(less) on sundays

,

Jon T

,

Magnetic

,

Sophie

,

Keith Long

,

Scott MacLeod

,

James Hart

,

Obsidian Blackbird.

,

Martina Williams

,

Aaron T.

,

Jim Fields

, and

S M Garratt

.

Wishing you the most luminous and most fascinating year in 2025! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support.

Love, Sandolore

Do you have any questions?

Do you have a favorite photo?

What’d you get for Christmas?