Meet Colette Whipp

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Colette Whipp. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Colette below.

Colette, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

I’m lucky, I have fantastic support from my friends, family, and husband. We foster for each other a wonderful community that supports artistic expression and mental health, while also leaving time and room for play, which I find incredibly important. In addition, I’ve always related to the goth community, which has taught me there is beauty and strength in the trials of life, to listen to my inner voice, and to cultivate resilience in the face of adversity.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a photographer who enjoys capturing many different types of moments and preserving memories. I love playing with light and shadow, and I don’t shy away from macabre subjects and find them beautiful and worthy of their story being told. It’s special to me because it allows me to slow down and live in the moment. I walk away from my shoots feeling like magic was created between me and the subject, and we can share it with the world. This is how I came across the idea of branding myself with the whimsigoth label; I feel like it combines my favorite values. I’m also passionate about raising awareness about disabilities, and I was fortunate enough to be asked by my best friends to be a part of their film. I was the Assistant Director and Stills Photographer for a film challenge submitted to the Easterseals Nonprofit as part of their disabilities awareness film challenge. Our film 20/80 is a suspense/thriller that depicts the struggles of living with vision impairment. The film premieres on YouTube on April 12, 2025.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Looking back, the three things that impacted me most were curiosity, adaptability, and self-expression. Curiosity kept me constantly learning and exploring new ideas, adaptability helped me grow through challenges, and self-expression reminded me to always have fun with the process and show up as my authentic self—whether I was creating, connecting, or learning something new.

One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever received – and that I live by – is be your own biggest advocate, because no one will care about your art, your vision, or your growth as much as you do. That means speaking up for yourself, setting boundaries, and not being afraid to take up space, even when it feels uncomfortable.

For those just starting out, I’d say: stay curious. Try things. Learn everything you can – not just about your craft, but about how to protect it, promote it, and find your people. And most importantly, don’t lose your voice in the process. The world doesn’t need another carbon copy; it needs what you bring to the table. Make space for joy, stay weird, and don’t be afraid to have fun while you’re figuring it all out.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

One of the most impactful things my parents did for me was give me the space to create. When I was a kid, they’d let me use the last few shots on our old film camera—just those little scraps of leftover film, but to me, it felt like magic. I was completely hooked. They (my parents and grandma) saw how much I loved it and bought me my first film camera and then, eventually, a digital camera.

They never stopped supporting me even if they didn’t always fully get what I was doing. They cheered me on through every weird little project and artistic phase – and they’ve always shown up. They even helped out on our film 20/80 as extras and prop masters, which means a lot to me. Their quiet, steady encouragement helped shape the creative I am today.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Whimsigoth Studios

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