Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rachael Harms Mahlandt. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Rachael, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.
Hi! My name is Rachael and I have an interactive community project in my yard. Stop by my house and you’ll find a dinosaur diorama, a dinosaur exchange (think Little Free Library but instead of swapping books, you swap dinos), an informational installation called the Bee Stop, two more dioramas, a tiny as well as a micro little free library and more! I also facilitate, spotlight, and promote other spots like this both in my city of Portland, Oregon as well as worldwide! My friend and I co-created a map to all the Portland spots and have hosted workshops, shared supplies, connected likeminded folks to help this movement spread. I have continued our work creating the worldwide Sidewalk Joy Map and now am connected to folks all over including Australia, the UK, and New Zealand!
In addition to running the dino exchange at my house and working on the Sidewalk Joy project I also love to leave little bits of art around. Some examples include putting a tiny door in a telephone pole that has a hidden painting inside, putting up a little make-a-bouquet vase stand for folks to decorate with wildflowers, leaving micro-crocheted beanies on things, painting tiny fairy footprints around town and so on.
When I first started these projects, it was easy to think ‘oh this isn’t quite ready’ or compare myself to what someone else had done. I’m definitely not the most talented at building or art but I reminded myself that the installations that have brought me joy and delight aren’t always necessarily masterpieces. It’s so much more important that the art was THERE than that it was perfect. So I put out my first diorama and was blown away by how much my community loved it. The flaws I saw in it melted away and were easily remedied when I updated it later.
This has been the story time and time again. I had never crocheted before making those first little hats to leave on things (like statues and branches) around town but that didn’t affect how much people loved the project. I see the flaws in the little vases I make to hide for folks to stumble upon. I see other people’s art that is so refined, so detailed, and so lovely. I’m finally able to see that just because someone else does spectacular work, that doesn’t mean mine isn’t worth of being enjoyed also. It’s a very freeing feeling.
Folks used to stop by my house, admire my creations, and ask if I was an artist. I’d always hem and haw and not quite answer. I didn’t FEEL like what I pictured an artist to be. But after years of creating tiny paintings, vases, hats, dioramas, and more… I finally realized I that just like I don’t really feel like an adult, I may never feel like a ‘real’ artist but I certainly am!
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I have an interactive community project in my yard! Stop by my house and you’ll find a dinosaur diorama, a dinosaur exchange (think Little Free Library but instead of swapping books, you swap dinos), an informational installation called the Bee Stop, two more dioramas, a tiny as well as a micro little free library and more. I also facilitate, spotlight, and promote other spots like this both in my city of Portland, Oregon as well as worldwide! We call them ‘Sidewalk Joy.’ My friend and I co-created a map to all the Portland spots and have hosted workshops, shared supplies, connected likeminded folks to help this movement spread. You can read more about the Portland project here: pdxsidewalkjoy.com
I have expanded our work creating the worldwide Sidewalk Joy Map and now am connected to folks all over including Australia, the UK, and New Zealand!
In addition to running the dino exchange at my house and working on the Sidewalk Joy project I also love to leave little bits of art around. Some examples include putting a tiny door in a telephone pole that has a hidden painting inside, putting up a little make-a-bouquet vase stand for folks to decorate with wildflowers, leaving micro-crocheted beanies on things, painting tiny fairy footprints around town and so on. Read more about my art and the worldwide map here: pdxdinorama.com
Over the summer my kids and I took in a flightless bee, named her Harriet, and built her an Air Bee N Bee (a three story, decorated and furnished bee house). We took her on a field trip to meet with folks well-versed in pollinators, learned about how to care for her and loved her for the rest of her life. She was an elderly bumblebee when she came to us so we didn’t have long with her but she left a large impact. We created a pollinator garden in her memory as well as The Bee Stop – a place for folks to pick up seeds, swap bee-related things, and find out more about these amazing creatures. I’m now writing a children’s book about Harriet and our experience caring for her!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I’d say it was really helpful that I knew a bit about building and using power tools. I have experience in marketing, social media, and the like so I think that gave me a leg up in promoting this project as well as developing the map. And I’m deeply interested in people so creating a spot where I get to meet my neighbors has been so fulfilling!
If someone wants to create projects like I’m doing, I’d say they should figure out what area of interest they’d most like to focus on. Some folks create Sidewalk Joy spots to share their extra pottery, some are for swapping plants or puzzles, some are for craft supplies. There are so many ways to create an interactive community spot that would fit your interest and flow.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I’d so love to connect with folks who have interactive community spots of joy like this. The movement is spreading and I’m seeing so many puzzle libraries, Free Little Art Galleries (FLAGS), plant and seed swaps and more popping up. I’d love for folks who already have a spot to connect with me and get on our worldwide Sidewalk Joy Map. Additionally I’m hoping that the resources I’m providing via my website and social media, specifically my blog posts and reels, are of help for someone looking to create a Sidewalk Joy spot!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.pdxdinorama.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pdxdinorama/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/pdxdinorama
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachael-h-b4164164/
- Twitter: https://x.com/pdxdinorama
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PDXDinorama
- Other: https://tiktok.com/@pdxdinorama
Image Credits
Photos of me: taken by Jonathan Harms Mahlandt All others: taken by Rachael Harms Mahlandt
