Meet Chloe Palmer and Marieke Boorman: Artists – Your Own Small Courage

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chloe Palmer and Marieke Boorman we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chloe and Marieke, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Chloe Palmer and Marieke Boorman: Your Own Small Courage We have both been art educators for years, which is how we originally met. In the summers and holidays we would combine efforts creating camps and workshops, and also spend time making things for ourselves in our spare time. We’ve always been interested in making art objects that bring joy to people’s lives and draw attention to the daily rituals we all participate in. When covid-19 hit and we could no longer offer classes and camp, making ceramics and textiles evolved into our business Your Own Small Courage. We realized that creating something for ourselves that we really love doing, and that was resonating with others was an amazing opportunity. We loved the feeling of starting a business as a collective; the collaborative nature of what we have and how we bounce ideas back and forth is supportive and fun! Early on, we really came to some clarity and agreement about what the intention for our business is. Starting this business during covid and with everything going on in the world in 2020, felt somewhat vulnerable, we felt the importance of putting forth what felt true to us as opposed to trying to invent a product to market and sell. We were very much influenced by how small acts of courage can collectively change bigger things in our world. More recently, we created a product line that honors native plants and our natural world. The wholeness of the process of looking closely at plants and trees and nature; thinking about all of life and our connectedness, is what feels right to us and seems to be what people are searching for in 2021.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
We both grew up with artist/designer parents, so feel fortunate to understand a way of looking at the world, seeing colors, shapes, lines.  Your Own Small Courage started with a blue and white theme that was inspired by living by the ocean, and from the natural indigo dye that we love to use for textiles. So incorporating that into designs for ceramic objects was a natural fit.  It’s been easy to create a brand because of the simplicity of that theme, and we love how it looks and feels. The brand Your Own Small Courage is also something that we hope becomes an inspiration to others. We feel our name represents the courage it took to begin this endeavor, creating a business, as well as standing up for what we believe in. What we’re most proud of now is working in a way that is truly from our own inner voice, representing themes that are close to us. Thinking about designs that represent our connection to the world around us, and that foster connections with other people is exciting. What has helped immensely has been the collaboration, which we believe creates greater growth than working solo.  We do a lot of work separately, on our own, we are both people that need our own space. But then we meet one full day a week and not only share what we’ve made but also talk about all kinds of inspirations that we’ve heard throughout the week.  It’s been challenging navigating the marketing and technical side of things, but we always seem to come back to the message of simplicity. This has been a major focus since businesses are all online now, we are not able to see people in person. So even more we need to not only visually show our work, but express a feeling that people will experience through our communication. Whenever things seem overwhelming and the sense that we have to do all of “the things” in social media, a good lesson is to take things one step at a time, and that it’s ok to keep it simple. In art and business, often simplicity is best.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
When people think of LA they generally think of Hollywood and Malibu, which are so iconic. Both of us moved here from the east and unexpectedly fell in love with LA for its multitude of outdoor activities, which are of course available all year round. We love the Huntington Museum and Botanical Gardens, for its combination of art and nature, and the amazing variety of gardens there. Also Descanso Gardens, Theodore Payne Sanctuary and the Peace and Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens for garden walks. We are based partly in Laurel Canyon, which has great hiking trails nearby, such as the Betty Dearing trail and Tree People, off of Mulholland Drive. We love going downtown, particularly to Little Tokyo. There is a mall on Alameda with a ceramics store called Utsuwa-No-Yakata, they have interesting japanese tableware, some of it handmade. The grocery store in the mall has prepared Korean food, great noodles and other things to get take out. You can also walk from there to the Arts District, check out Hauser and Wirth Gallery and the boutiques in the area. On the way back to Laurel Canyon from downtown, its nice to make a stop in Griffith Park for coffee at Trails Cafe in Fern Dell, they have great coffee, sandwiches and pies, and you can sit at picnic tables below the trees in the park and imagine you’re outside of the city. For a day trip to the beach, Palos Verdes has beautiful vistas and tide pools, its a great place for taking a sketchbook as well as relaxing on the sand. Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Giving thanks and Gratitude is so important. During the past year, we were very much influenced by a book called: Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer. She gave words to many of our thoughts; thinking about other living species in a different perspective. Expressing gratitude to our natural world became an agreement that Your Own Small Courage would grow upon. Actively participating in the reciprocity of our relationship to the natural world in the things that we do with our families now, from organic farming, to teaching, to hiking and camping, to art-making…

Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/yourownsmallcourage

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourownsmall.courage/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yourownsmallcourage

Image Credits
photos by Chloe Palmer and Marieke Boorman