Houseof x The Happiness Collective
In a scary and uncertain time, the pandemic encouraged us to reconfigure and find joy in the little things in life. Our corner of the world got progressively smaller as we retreated into our homes, longing for adventure and loved ones. At this time, husband and wife Guy and Remi began to establish the Happiness Collective, a place to find original and affordable fine art prints that take us beyond the four walls of our homes and into the extraordinary.
Guy, a fashion photographer and Remi, a filmmaker, began to select their favourite images from their holiday album archives and thus the Happiness Collective was born.
Thanks for coming on our blog and chatting with us, we would love to hear more about how you came to launch the Happiness Collective…
All your prints are shot on a film camera, creating a beautiful nostalgic feeling to each photograph, why is this important to the aesthetic of the Happiness Collective?
Film is important to us because we enjoy the whole process of shooting on film. Shooting film pushes you to be more intentional about the photo you want to take and it helps you stay in the present as you cant see the frame you took and have to wait for the result. The result of film gives each photograph a feeling, a depth, and an aesthetic that we feel can't be matched with digital, and as we want to promote happiness, we feel that film is able to convey that much more strongly which we believe in turn makes the photograph more unique and special.
AGUA SPECTACULAR Deia, Mallorca
Sharp rocks around Deia lead the way to a tur- quoise sanctuary.
MAD HOT We reckon the heat got to this guy, but we’re happy for it cos it makes a great picture!
It must have been so joyful recounting all these memories that the prints evoke, what is your favourite story behind one of the photographs?
Our Mad Hot print was a funny story. We spotted the guy who looks fed up and we were making up our own stories about why he might be feeling like that. Perhaps it was because he couldn't get on a pedalo or have a turn of somebodies lilo! Then we saw him later happily eating ice cream and said hi! He had no clue who we were and we couldn't tell him or ask him why he was previously looking unhappy or that we photographed it!
ICEBERG AHEAD Sydney, Australia Christmas in Australia happens at the beach! Icebergs at Bondi is the most famous rock pool.
How do you envision the Collective expanding over the year - will you be recruiting photographers or accepting applications or just letting things progress naturally?
We would like the collective to grow organically and think that our aesthetic will attract the right photographers as we grow.
The finishing touches to home renovations are usually the prints and paintings on the wall, a really special and personal part of people's homes - how do you want your prints to change the dynamic of the home?
We have seen the impact our prints have had on people's houses. It’s been so lovely to see and hear how happy our prints have made people. We like to think of our prints as being a window to another time and place, having the world on your wall which can ignite all sorts of lovely feelings such as calm, wanderlust, adventure and of course, happiness.
“We like to think of our prints being a window to another time and place.”
Who are your absolute favourite designers/creatives/businesses to follow on Instagram?
We love Modern House, Henry Holland's studio- especially the videos of the pot making, Suitcase magazine, and Nowness. Basically, all interior or travel-based stuff!
Finally, if you could pair one of your prints with one of our lights - which would it be?
In our bedroom, we have a Nebulous Maximous print in Oak and the House of Brass diffuser wall light and we love the way they stand out together in the room!
“we have a Nebulous Maximous print in Oak and the House of Brass diffuser wall light and we love the way they stand out together in the room!”
Make sure you check out their photography exhibition ‘Along the Way’ at Earl of East in Coals Drop Yard, Kings Cross, till 26th June. All prints are original and limited edition. Framed and ready to hang. Prices start from £100.
