5 Questions with Courtney
Courtney Newvine, b. 1989, is a contemporary fine art photographer who was born and raised in Upstate NY on the cusp of the Adirondack Mountains. Courtney attended the Rochester Institute of Technology from 2007 to 2011 and received a BFA in Professional Photographic Illustration. After graduating from art school, she located to the San Francisco Bay area for 12 fruitful years, where she crafted herself a life and worked on her personal art throughout. In Spring of 2023, Courtney returned to NY state, attuning herself back into her roots and a slower life as a forever-evolving visual artist.
Courtney has been featured in group exhibitions in both Los Angeles, CA and San Francisco, CA, as well as online publications over time. More recently, she has been showcased in local exhibitions native to her hometown area. She has been creating work intentionally since her teen years, but her artistic nature has been at the core of her being since adolescence. She continues to make new work, exploring new creative caverns presently.
Courtney is a fine art visual truth-teller drawn to earnest, honest moments, thoughtful composition, and meaningful narrative. Working across portraiture, documentary capture, and still-life, her practice seeks to inspire awe while challenging how images are received—finding significance in the quiet, often overlooked details of everyday life. Rooted in authenticity rather than spectacle, her work reflects a sustained curiosity about human presence, place, and the emotional weight carried by the seemingly mundane.
1. What’s a habit you’re trying to become known for (in a good way)?
I have a complicated relationship with habits. I thrive on routine, yet resist feeling confined by a rigid schedule—a paradox that feels very true to who I am. I tend to ebb and flow between creating, maintaining, or letting go of habits altogether. Recently, though, I’ve been leaning into something that genuinely supports me: consistent planning and preparation for the unknown. I struggle with black-and-white thinking and a need for certainty, so while I continue working on being comfortable with gray areas, I’ve found grounding in intentionally organizing my life, considering multiple outcomes, and having a plan in place. It’s not for everyone, but it works for me—and I hope it’s seen as a strength rather than control. I do all of this while staying mindful of balance, allowing space for fluidity and spontaneity alongside structure.
2. What’s a wildly unpopular opinion you stand by in your creative field?
I wholeheartedly stand behind breaking the rules. I was making photographs long before I knew how to properly use a camera, and then spent four intense years learning the technical “right” ways—the do’s and don’ts of photography. I don’t take that foundation lightly, but I believe it’s just as important to step outside the box, push boundaries, and break rules from time to time. Sometimes that process teaches you exactly why the rules exist; other times, it leads to work that’s far more exciting precisely because it doesn’t conform. It' s a constant push and pull, and one I credit for the way my work has continued to evolve.
3. What food combination makes people judge you but you love it?
Honestly, I don’t think it’s weird at all, but to know me is to know my deep love of dill pickles. As a child, I was fiercely into crafting pickle-cheese-and-cracker sandwiches. It’s exactly what you think it is—and I kind of wish I had one to gnaw on right now. Old habits die hard.
4. What’s the weirdest thing that has ever inspired you?
I probably have a laundry list of oddities that have inspired me creatively in one way or another, but my mind always goes straight to a small obsession with beauty marks—moles and birthmarks. More generally, I’m drawn to the minute features of a person that most people would easily overlook. I seem to notice them instinctively, appreciate them deeply, and find them utterly gorgeous. If you spend time with my work, you’ll see images that quietly support this—sometimes even when the subject is myself. Maybe that makes me a little weird, but I’m more than okay with that.
5. What’s a smell that instantly transports you back in time?
A few things come to mind, but the first is a scent tied to a Barbie I had as a child—Tropical Splash Barbie. I didn’t remember her name at first, but after a little digging, I found her almost instantly online. She came with a tiny perfume, a vaguely floral scent, and while I couldn’t describe it any better if I tried, I know I’d recognize it anywhere. Fast-forward to my late teens: I was somewhere I can’t quite recall when I caught a whiff of it, and the memory hit me immediately—straight back to one of my favorite childhood toys. It’s wild how scent works like that—so deeply nostalgic long after it’s gone, yet instantly familiar when it resurfaces out of the blue.