We Are Night Swim

Wow. 2020. Let’s start there.

Not anyone’s first choice in timing on starting a new business. But the cards were dealt, and we had to move forward. Besides, we were too excited to get going to let a global pandemic get in the way. This project is meant to be us pushing through already, so what better a hurdle to jump in the meantime.

Ok, we can move a little ways back, before the doom and gloom. Back to when we could actually attend and throw events, see people, show off our work. Jodi and I had always loved the event atmosphere more than being stuck in a dingy basement, and with every event we did that passion burned brighter. We both got something out of it that was otherwise missing from our day to day, and as the years went on our ideas converged, until the need to do more bubbled over.

The first conversation about it was encouraged by riding high after an event. Knowing glances had been exchanged long enough, it had to finally be said out loud. Christened by a full moon on a particularly hot Texas summer evening, the weight off our shoulders was celebrated with a dip in Barton Springs. Locals howled at the moon, and we basked in the energy around us. This was going to happen.

Then plans changed, as they do. What was going to be an event filled year full of travel and art and friends, turned into worrying about what would happen in every aspect of our lives. Going into the unknown was terrifying enough, now we faced a much larger issue paralyzing the whole world. But, in the end, it was a blessing. It gave us more time to slow down and get what we needed. We were shocked to learn along the way that it wouldn’t be so bad. And with that, our confidence rose.

Securing a space and equipment went better than we could’ve hoped, thanks to the amazing support of our friends and community. Piecing an entire studio together from nothing took place very rapidly. It was important to us to work and exist in a space we liked to be in, and we built it as such. Former studio neighbor and fellow poster creator Ben Nylen caught wind of what we were up to and offered his help. Looking for projects to fill his time, he aided us immensely in the early stages of shop construction and design. We absorbed him into our excitement. From that, a wonderful and deep relationship bloomed, and we are forever in his debt.

So that brings us to now. Early 2021. The world still in disarray, we are forced to fight harder than originally anticipated. But that is where you come in, because you are here, reading my words for a reason. Whether curious about our story, or hopeful for what is to come, we humbly thank you for giving us your time and interest. There is much more to say than I have said thus far, and believe you me I will write them. As we move forward, we hope to offer you everything we’ve dreamed of creating this space.

We are Night Swim. And we are ready.