The past couple of months, for me, have been mostly filled with the preparations for Everything I Ever Learnt, the Shutter Hub exhibition opening this week at Cambridge University.

100 photographers from around the world, 158 stunning images, months and months of planning – hung in 10 hours, with 300+ squats, a time lapse video, and several cups of tea.

That image reminds me of something. It ignites a small flame that lights my way through the filing system of my mind. It brings me eventually to the hint of a memory, and that memory guides my interpretation of the image, influences my reaction, connects my thoughts and feelings, and threads them together, binding them into a new collection, to be drawn upon the next time something familiar arises.

Everything I have seen, felt, remembered,
everything, influences and informs every thought I will ever have.

I wrote that. Nice innit? Well, I think so. The exhibition is on until 3^rdMay, and I would love you to see it. It’s all printed on newspaper.


I wrote about deleting my Facebook account and running free. It’s easy, just do it. You can read why I did it here.

I wrote Foodie Finds for Surf4 and included an amazing Easter cake called Colomba di Pasqua and a not-amazing drink called Ocean Bomb (but look at that cute packaging!)

I was invited to a cocktail party at the Canadian Embassy as part of London Fashion Week (I know, I think that’s strange too!) and it reminded me about the time I went backstage at my friends show and trapped a model in a lift door.

I did a track day at Cadwell Park.

I cut my finger on a book about communist era bunkers.

Someone sent me a photo of a squashed toad and said it reminded them of me.

Margaret laid her first egg of spring, and a mole delivered a beautiful piece of blue and white china to the garden.

I won a really special award – Digital Influencer of the Year at the Holland Press Awards. Super chuffed! I love The Netherlands.

I thought I was nominated for ‘best online article’ and when the names came up on the screen, mine wasn’t there. I thought to myself, Karen you’re a bell end! I must have somehow assumed that I’d been nominated – how embarrassing, what a total knobber! The awards moved on, I relaxed a bit, and then Simone Sagi from Visit Holland started talking about the Digital Influencer of the Year. I kicked Polly’s foot, ‘this sounds like me!’ I said, and then, it was me!

My acceptance speech amounted to three words, ‘This is nice!’ And, it really was nice.

I went to Derby. I took my own pillow. It was a success. I was really chuffed to be invited back to Format Festival to give portfolio reviews. It’s one of my favourite things to do – a 20 minute challenge where I sit with a stranger, check out their photography, and do my best to come up with as much advice and as many opportunities for them as I can muster.

On the opening night of the festival, it was late, I’d been watching an Elvis impersonator killing it (literally, whatever ‘it’ was he was karate-kicking it into oblivion) I walked back to my hotel, through the city centre. Ahead of me a woman was shouting. At first I thought she was on the phone, then I thought she was shouting at an invisible person, and then I realised – she was shouting at me! ‘You’re fucking kidding me. No fucking way. You’ve got to be fucking joking! Get away from me!’ She yelled. She thought I was following her.

I look like a stalker.

I also ate a miniature custard éclair and got given a Twix and a papercut of a myna bird.


I went on a mini-tour of the North West – Birmingham for meetings, Chester for some consultancy work with a hotel and restaurant, and Manchester, to speak at the art school.

And then I came home and watched Columbo on the tele.

At the beginning of the year, nothing to do with resolutions but more to do with the holiday downtime and opportunity to think, I decided to leave Facebook.

I deleted the app from my phone at first. For a day it felt like something was missing. For a week l left it and realised, there were only a handful of people who I was in touch with on Facebook and nowhere else. I messaged them, exchanged details, exchanged lovely conversations via iMessage, and, was nearly tricked into thinking I should stay on Facebook. But no, this was me taking the time to reach out personally, and this is the way it should continue.

People told me things like ‘Wow bold move!’ and ‘I really wish I could’! as if I had announced I was moving to the other side of the world or signing up for a marathon.

I’d noticed the pattern: pick up phone – check email – check Instagram – check Twitter – check Facebook – lose hours looking for something of genuine interest.

I’d thought that I was staying on Facebook  as a means of keeping in touch with friends, but I realised, I wasn’t communicating, just scrolling endlessly for something worthwhile, and, when I found it, brain too exhausted from reading rubbish to have the energy to write anything of value… tap… I communicated my response through a picture of an approving ‘thumbs up’, or even a ‘heart’, if you were lucky. How is that social?

It wasn’t easy to leave. Not for any sentimental or social reason, but because Facebook make it pretty difficult to do so. It’s designed to keep you there, to keep you scrolling. To keep you looking for something uplifting that will give you that endorphin boost.

Post something and keep fingers crossed for multiple likes and a dopamine hit.

Not anymore.

In an ideal world I’d just socialise, in the real world. But there’s not time for all of that, and it’s hard to get together with everyone. I like sharing stories and images, and always have since before the internet, when I was a child that wrote letters, and postcards, and made telephone calls whilst sat on the bottom stair.

Telephone calls. Why not? What an advancement the telephone was, yet we’ve gone back to one line (if you’re lucky) ‘telegrams’ through Facebook.

Facebook is training us to care less, scroll more, and forget how to properly communicate with our friends.

Remember those coverall emails or photocopied round-robin letters that people used to circulate at Christmas? We thought they were impersonal and almost an insult to receive, but now you’re happy with a digital thumbs up? There’s some psychological conditioning there!

The alternative to keeping in touch or performing to a large audience, (which is essentially what you’re doing on Facebook, don’t kid yourself that it’s personal), is obviously to use other social platforms like Instagram (or MeWe?) but if you want to share a lot, like me, what’s wrong with a newsletter?

When we were all desperately unsubscribing from mailing lists to get towards the Mecca of inbox zero and free up our time, we didn’t stop to think what we’d do with that time – scroll social media searching for interesting content that speaks to us.

Why not sign up for that newsletter instead? Everything in one place, a quick skim for the bits you’re interested in, just delete it if it feels too much, or save it to a folder and read it on a quiet evening, instead of clutching at your phone every five seconds to see if someone’s posted something of value, shared a new meme, or liked your cat picture (they used to love my cat pictures!)

For me, this is the way forward. Although I have every intention of starting the ‘anti-email party’ I also would rather be free of Facebook and receive a compact digest of news. Bring back the round robin! (Ah, cute!)

Would you like to join my mailing list? I’ll send you good things every now and then.

Welcome to 2019. I’ve not left the country since last year, but I have left the house, so that’s a bonus. Here’s the lowdown on where my January went. Spoiler alert: there are no gym memberships, new years resolutions or diets here…

I have eaten a lot of condiments. I could pretend it’s in the interests of research, but really it’s because I just like sauce. You can read more about Remoulade and Black Garlic Ketchup in my latest Foodie Finds for Surf4.

I had my first ever Five Guys. Yeah, whatever. It’s interesting that they cook their fries in peanut oil though.

I made cauliflower porridge. I won’t be making cauliflower porridge again.

I deleted my Facebook account. I’d been thinking about it for ages, I kept it for so long, thinking that I didn’t want to lose touch with people, but in reality I wasn’t really keeping in touch with people, I was just scrolling and tapping a picture of a thumb every now and then. What an absurd use of time!

I joined the library. This has meant a flurry of reserving random books for 60p a go and hopefully waiting for an email to say they’ve arrived in Norfolk and can be collected. More waiting than books at the moment, but it’s early days.

My super hair friend reinstated my protective fringe helmet and worked hard to make me look tidy and smart. Then I lost part of a pretzel in my hair whilst trying to scratch my head with it.

Tutti Biscotti started a plant stall, she’s not been able to push her cart over the door threshold yet, but give her time and I think she’ll have a thriving business, or turn it into a bar cart.

The Toiletries Amnesty was featured in both Health Triangle and Amber magazine, and Dominique from That New Dress did a fantastic ‘beauty clear-out’ vlog explaining the whole process of donating toiletries, on her YouTube channel.

I was quoted in El Pais, in an article about Gorjuss artist Suzanne Woolcott, who, many years ago I discovered through eBay and gave her her first solo exhibition. She’s created an amazing empire, self-taught, against adversity, and I think she’s all the aces!

Thomas Cook quoted me in this ‘Insiders View’ on Italy in September.

My article on Cheese Valley has been shortlisted in the ‘Best Online Article’ category in the Holland Press Awards. I’m really chuffed, it’s obviously fabulous to be recognised, but also, that article stemmed from such a bonkers and brilliant trip that I am just glad to be reminded of it as often as possible.

We went to IKEA and a display of toilet brushes collapsed on Adam.

Shutter Hub launched the Shutter Hub Membership Bursary Fund which will be made available to photographers who are on low income and would benefit from the opportunities Shutter Hub offers. Photographers will be able to apply or nominate other photographers to receive this bursary.

Two Shutter Hub exhibitions came to a close – Out of the Ordinary in Fleet Street, London, and OPEN 2018 in Amsterdam. The next exhibition, Everything I Ever Learnt, will launch in April at Cambridge University.

I was a judge for the British Photography Awards and therefore invited to the ceremony at The Savoy for an unusual pot-luck dinner  (I had noodles, rice, chilli chicken, rocket and mozzarella salad, ‘parisian’ potatoes and a lamb chop!) We’d been prewarned not to disturb the celebrities and high-profile guests. I wondered who they could be. My money was on David Dickenson, but it turned out to be Anthea Turner, a retired page 3 girl and the guy who played Nick Cotton in Eastenders.

I had a quick blast in a Jaguar F-Type R super-charged beauty at North Weald with Experience Megastore and a cup of tea in a double decker bus.

I did a Car Limits Driver Training Day at North Weald too. It was minus five when I left the house, dark and early in the morning. It was bitterly cold, the ice stayed around all day, and I expect everyone thought I was a thermal underwear sales person the amount I banged on about my long johns.

And, I finally finished putting some tyres to their test as part of a collaboration with Bridgestone. I wrote about it here, Tyre Trials: Bridgestone Weather Control A005.

Someone told me recently that they’d like to be reincarnated as a cat. I thought maybe a cat too, but then I thought, no, blackbird! They sing beautifully, dress well and they are still out exploring in the evening as the light fades.

There was a bald blackbird living round here before, and whilst I can’t 100% confirm its identity, I am pretty sure I saw him with hair the other day.

Please tell me what creature you’d be reincarnated as, and why – this could be the most beautiful comments stream ever!

It’s New Year’s Eve, and I realise – I’d make a rubbish pen pal. I’m always running out of time to write to you. I start and I stop, and I start again. It’s been months since I’ve written to you properly, and sometimes I wonder if the world has just moved on, and if I’m just writing to myself.

I mean, I’ve got google analytics, I know I’m not writing to myself, but you know, am I still writing with a quill when everyone’s moved on to biros?

These past few months have been incredibly busy – living, thinking, working, eating, lots of behind the scenes project organisation and sitting in front of a computer screen. (When are we starting ‘Karen Harvey’s anti-email party’?)

So, in an attempt to catch up, I made an orderly list of things that might interest you, possibly…

I saw a totally black bumble bee at the garden centre. (You can see this too if you check out my ‘things’ highlights on Instagram).

I made friends on the train with a blind man who had just taken up archery.

I competed in the Lotus Cup UK Speed Championship at Hethel. I rescued the rescue lady from a locked toilet.

I had the longest phone call of my life. Five hours.

Adam and I gave blood. He has rare special blood. I’ve got the standard stuff.

I had an excellent lunch at Caxton Grill with Lynsey, and wrote Foodie Finds #14 for Surf4.

I went to bed at 7.30pm on a Saturday night and slept for 14 hours straight.

I spoke to Stylist  about the Toiletries Amnesty, Eluxe magazine ran a feature on us, and we had our 50th location sign up, our first overseas one, Tanzania.

Tutti Biscotti had an allergic reaction to Method cleaner and had to go to the emergency vets in the middle of the night. I tried to let Method customer services know, but the woman was too set on telling me how she likes to clean her toilet!

I fractured a bone in my foot. I was over vigorous with my physio therapy exercises for my shredded Achilles tendon.

We took the Shutter Hub OPEN 2018 exhibition to London. It was epic. I can say that, because it was epic. 150 photographers, 220 images, over 500 people at the opening night. Democratising photography, apparently.

Dorsett City sponsored the exhibition, so I stayed with them in London for the week. Ate salt beef and gherkin beigels from Beigel Bake. Taught myself a trombone solo on a noisy wardrobe door (Achy Breaky Heart, if you’re asking).

A week later we opened Out of the Ordinary at St Brides, just off Fleet Street.

I sprinted at the Rockingham Grand Finale Sprint in October. I am really going to miss Rockingham.

I went on a research trip to Rotterdam. Ate flowers at Op het Dak, drank homemade cherry cola at Kaapse Maria and hung out at the studio of artist Daan Roosegaarde. (Read all about it, here). I can’t wait to go back.


I spent a night in London with CEO Sleepout, under the stars, badly prepared with a wafer-thin sleeping bag, a coat from the 90s, and an umbrella. To say it was an experience is an understatement really.  (Read all about it, here). My kind sponsors raised £666, but I’d prefer to focus on the amount with Gift Aid, £825.

Adam and I went to Mallorca. What an absolute joy! The weather was warm, the mountain roads were steep and windy, and we stayed in the most splendid places. (Read all about it, here and here).

I reviewed portfolios, beautiful portfolios, at Photomonth London International Photography Festival.

I gave a talk at London Metropolitan University at The Cass’ Festival of Employability and Entrepreneurship.

I made art from emotional blackmail and exhibited it in RCA Secret, to help raise money for student bursaries. I went to their artists’ party, ate ice cream and tried not to dance to Dirty Cash.

I was a guest on the symposium panel at FIX Photo Festival in London. I also helped clingfilm some cheese.

I was invited to host a conversation with photographer and filmmaker Mal Woolford, about his work, Still Still Far Wide, at the Magic Gallery in Charing Cross.

And then I went to Amsterdam for a week to install, promote and launch the Shutter Hub OPEN 2018, because it was so epic when we showed it in London that we were invited to take it to 5&33 Gallery in Amsterdam too. (And that was epic, even if I was totally shattered by the end of it!)

Then it was Christmas.

And now, here we are.

It’s over 2018, it’s been good, but it has to end.