Meet Maurice Porcher | Writer, Filmmaker, Series host, Globetrotting Poet.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Maurice Porcher and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maurice, how do you think about risk?
I think about risk the same way I think about eating food. It is an essential part of my life, therefore I have to take risks in order to grow and succeed in anything I set my sights on. Risk taking has had a profound impact on my life. Prior to having purpose, the risks that I took were strictly for the purpose of pleasure and escapism. As you could imagine, some of those risks led to long-lasting disastrous consequences. Since turning 40, defining myself and purpose, I’ve been able to leverage risk taking. I figure I will either succeed and create an incredible opportunity for success, or I will fail and create an alternative perspective at this journey I’m on, which will ultimately lead to a successful outcome. SO win win!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
At Paine Artistry, our brand is about helping artists to tell their stories. Whether that comes from collaborating, documenting, or curating events, Paine Artistry brings artists together to create art by owning our struggle. What separates us is our constant pursuit of creating ways to express artistically in this ever-changing landscape.

What I’m most proud of is our native app called OpusVū. We created that as a response to a failed venture of ours in 2021. Owning a platform that could house our own content as well as content of other Black artists and travelers around the globe was our initial plan. That grew into something much more impactful, and I’m looking forward to unveiling that in the coming months.

I’m most excited about continuing to travel the world in order to creatively document the journeys of Black and Brown artists from all over the planet. Now we just have to find the money and backing to continue doing so lol.

I got to where I am today by remaining creative despite whatever choices I made in life.

It wasn’t easy, but it was necessary. It was necessary because the dark times made me long for the light.

I overcame the challenges I faced throughout those times by staying faithful to the idea that I can make it. There were signs along the pathways of my journey that kept me going. Whether it was kind words from a stranger, sacrifices from friends and family, spiritual markers, numbers, maybe even sheer imagination…whatever it was, I used it to drive me forward because I believed I could make it.

I’ve learned to trust my instincts. I’ve also learned that I need every part of my inner self playing this game of life simultaneously, if I’m going to have a shot at truly lasting, impactful success.

I want the world to know that we are coming, and when we get to where we’re going, get used to seeing us!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would take them to The World. The World is what we used to call NYC growing up in Teaneck, NJ. We called it that obviously because everything was happening there. The World has everything you could ever want. I would take them to Harlem for brunch on Lennox or 8th Ave at BLVD Bistro. We’d then go shopping in SoHo and the Fashion District. Lunch in Williamsburg across the bridge in Brooklyn. Back to SoHo for dinner at some great bourgeois overpriced restaurant like Lure. Venture to Midtown to cruise through time square to see the lights, then maybe to a rooftop lounge for drinks, like 230 Fifth. Back down to the Village to hear some live music at the Blue Note or Groove. Finishing off the night in the LES’s Alphabet City at a lounge.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
although there are many people whose contributions to my journey deserve credit and praise, I’d like to shoutout Louis Anthony McQueen AKA Chef Q out of Rahway, NJ. Tony as most people knew him, was a brother and mentor to me over the last decade or so. We worked together at Port Newark on the docks, and both shared the first and most important zodiac sign which is Aries. He was always a chef, that was his purpose and passion in life. Despite setbacks, lack of time, family issues, etc, Tony made time for his passion. Regardless of pushback from significant others and conflicts at work, Tony sacrificed for his craft.

Watching his journey inspired my journey, mainly because our lives were so similar. When I was struggling to find my way as an artist, I will always remember him telling me to write something down everyday. Whether it’s a paragraph or a word, write. That one word will lead to another, and another. It will grow because you’re finding time to exist in your passion and it will lead to your purpose. He passed away at the end of 2020 from a stroke.

Website: www.paineartistry.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/opusvu/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mauriceporcher/

Twitter: @mauriceporcher

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theopusvu

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/opusxtravelxart

Other: www.opusvu.com/opusvu OpusVu is available for free download in the iOS and Google Play stores.