CONSIDER THIS
WORDS Kim Newth PHOTO Sarah Rowlands
Société Publishing’s limited-edition journal – Consider – is a pool of calm in anxious times, bringing together delightfully curated stories, poems, and beautiful images from around the world.
It is a special publication in every way, consciously produced to avoid any use of plastics and with a water-base soft-touch cover.
It is fully recyclable, though the creative founders of this ‘book-a-zine’ – publisher Julianne Liebeck and copy editor Conor Patton – would obviously prefer readers pass it on once they get to the end, rather than consigning it to the recycle bin.
Christchurch knows Julianne first and foremost as the dynamic owner of Mods Hair, while Conor’s professional career is with Bayleys as national auction manager. Together, this couple relish taking on stimulating new challenges. Their vision recently paved the way to The Tack Rooms, a luxury boutique accommodation and events offering in the central city.
“Julianne is the creative force while I’m the one that comes along behind organising things,” quips Conor.
With a passion for the arts, Conor and Julianne also embrace publishing as a vehicle for curiosity and as a way to mindfully connect with people and share their stories. Julianne first launched société magazine at the time of the Christchurch earthquakes to capture the city’s creative spirit as it started down the long road to recovery.
“We are long-time supporters of micro- finance projects in third world countries,” Julianne observes. “We’ve always believed in participating in the community and giving back in some shape or form. Publishing is part of that too, and it gives us purpose.”
Conor agrees, noting how rewarding it has been to gather stories for the Consider journal.
“We met some amazing people in our travels and through connections along the way. For example, our designer in Athens [Christina Biliouri] introduced us to Greek scholar Angelos Varvarousis, who has contributed a thought-provoking piece for the journal [Who is Afraid of Change?].”
This is a treasury containing so many gems, such as the story about a small team of filmmakers and photographers practising photojournalism with a humane heart (What Took You So Long?) and the tale of a sculptor slowly carving out a legacy on the remote island of Kastelorizo, (the real catch). There is no advertising to distract the mind or eye, with costs instead being slowly recouped through sales.
With world travel in limbo, Consider also provides a healthy dose of escapism. The next edition will draw on Julianne and Conor’s experiences last year travelling overland from Beijing to Istanbul on the old Silk Road.
Living well in their own special part of the world is a core goal for this couple, whose next exciting endeavour is taking them to a block of land in Waipara. Julianne spent part of her life in Greece, and this slice of North Canterbury feels a little like that to her.
“A lot of people there are very passionate about food identity; they enjoy their community and way of life. We have yet to figure out exactly what we will do, but we know it will involve grapes and organics. We will give it our best within our means. Life is all about playing the long game.”