Scenes From Sydney: Women Making Waves - Micaela Campagna

By Jaclyn Carlson In anticipation of CWC's upcoming event in Sydney, today I pay tribute to another creative woman that is making waves in our city's creative scene.

Like Deb Morgan, who we featured last week, Micaela Campagna is a talented woman who wears many hats: while running the city's coolest, yet to be discovered, exhibition/event space call The Corner,  Micaela is also the founder of Dear Henri, a new design studio in Sydney that is set to impress.

I asked Micaela a bit about running her various creative ventures...

Have you always been a creative person? Apparently so! I don't really remember but my parents tell me that I spent all my time as a toddler wandering around with either a pencil or a paintbrush in my hand.

What is your background? I studied Design and International Studies at UTS and majored in Photography. I also spent a year in Milan at the Politecnico di Milano.

How did Dear Henri get its start? DEAR HENRI was born after a recent name change and rebrand from Two Studio. Our new name DEAR HENRI was inspired by one of our favourite photographers Henri Cartier Bresson - we like to think of it as an ode to the Masters!

What is the best part about running a creative business? - Actually enjoying going to work every day is something that I definitely do not take for granted! - Working and collaborating with super talented designers and artists, especially through The Corner which is an gallery/pop up space run by us at DEAR HENRI which offers designers and artists a platform to exhibit or to hold a pop-up store/have a launch etc - Being able to constantly shape/develop the direction of the business and tackle something creative and exciting every day (or most days) 

What are the challenges? Switching off (I find that hard to do)! What advice would you give to other women looking to take the plunge and start their own business? Do it! Don't get stuck thinking about all the variables. If you are dedicated and you know your stuff, then you will be able to make it work (even if it is a slow process). Also, don't forget about what drives you and your original business idea... it is easy to get lost in ideas that are commercially viable but soulless (be careful of these, they may kill your passion!) What’s next? Lots of exciting exhibitions and events at The Corner and also developing our artwork & installation side of the business. We are really excited about being commissioned by other designers (particularly architects and interior designers) to do art installations and custom graphics/art/murals for their projects. We also have a group show planned at The Corner with our friends and industry colleagues Eggpicnic & Nowhere Famous.

Where can people contact you? You can email us at henri@dearhenri.com or check out our new website is coming soon (www.dearhenri.com) but you can follow us on Facebook for updates.

Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Jaclyn Carlson is the author behind the Sydney-based blog, Little Paper Trees. When not documenting her expat adventures, she can be found working for one of Australia’s top design & homewares trade shows. Passionate and prone to wasting hours on Pinterest, she has years of experience in marketing, advertising and PR and aims to put Sydney’s creative women in the spotlight with her monthly column.