Art Deco Styled Shoot
Updated: Oct 26, 2020
The moment I realized that 2020 was on the horizon I began to plan an Art Deco themed wedding shoot with the Roaring 20's in mind. We had big ideas and big plans. Then, March 2020 and Covid-19 hit us and we thought our March 20, 2020 styled shoot was dead in the water. The wedding and entertainment industry was thrown into a complete shut down and while many other people could and did work from home, we went into survival mode.
As we all learned to navigate the world of Zoom meetings, mask protocol, and social distancing requirements, the styled shoot suddenly got pushed to the back burner. At the front of the stove was trying to reschedule all events from Spring and Summer to Fall and Winter or even to 2021. Kansas City does an average of 30,000 weddings a year. If we assume that those weddings are evenly distributed (they are not) throughout the year, we were looking at approximately 2,500 weddings a month. At least 5 months of weddings got cancelled, changed, or pushed back. That is 12,500 events that were not going to happen as originally intended. Your friends in the industry were not ok. We were in a panic and so were our clients.
Not to be discouraged, however, we did what we do best. We planned a way out of the pandemic. We adapted and changed our tactics. Virtual weddings, intimate venues, and live streaming options were being offered to clients. Large weddings in barns were being exchanged for mini weddings at smaller locales instead. And so, our Art Deco shoot suddenly seemed very important and relative to our times. We moved back into planning mode and emphasized the intimacy and familiarity of the micro-wedding.
Englewood Row Art Gallery and Event Space is a small art gallery that is big on
history. Tucked into the Englewood Art District in Independence, MO it holds a dear spot in the hearts of locals, as it is one of the locations that Walt Disney worked when it was known as A.V. Cauger’s Kansas City Film Ad Service. Current owner, Scott Cauger has kept the Cauger legacy alive and tried to preserve the feel of the 1920's throughout his gallery. From light fixtures and window arches to the preservation of the original flooring in the entryway, one can feel the presence of those who have walked there before.
Not just the art gallery though, Englewood Arts District holds fast to the post WWI esthetic. The Englewood Theater across the street still looks the same as it did when the lights and stars were shining. Ben Franklin's .5 and .10 across the street still shows it's original signage. Traces of the 20's can be seen up and down the street and within the shops themselves. If you get to visit Ella Fair Boutique, and I highly suggest you do, you will see the most extraordinary art deco walls, floors, and blocked glass windows. Englewood was the perfect backdrop for our 20's themed shoot, both inside the gallery and outside on the streets.
Between now and the end of the year, I am going to showcase this wonderful area and the amazing vendors that worked on this project with us. There are so many talented people who work in the Kansas City Wedding Industry and as so many couples are looking at postponement of their 2020 weddings or newly engaged and wondering how to navigate this new era of post Corona Virus, I hope to be able to give some insight on where to go and what to ask in the early stages of planning.
"Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong." -Ella Fitzgerald