PAULA GOLDSTEIN DI PRINCIPE
INTERVIEW
PhotographED IN NEW YORK CITY
by Skye Parrott
RECENT PSYCHOLOGICAL STUDIES CONFIRM THAT PEOPLE WHO SPEND EXPENDABLE FUNDS ON EXPERIENCES, RATHER THAN THINGS, ARE HAPPIER. THIS IS PARTIALLY DUE TO THE PROVEN INVERSE RETURN ON INVESTMENT THAT THINGS PROVIDE; OVER TIME, WE VALUE OBJECTS LESS AND MEMORIES MORE. BUT WHAT IF WE COULD CAPTURE AND SHARE THE EPHEMERAL POCKETS OF JOY THAT EXPERIENCES PROVIDE? WHAT IF WE COULD COLLECT THEM IN A SORT OF “SCRAPBOOK OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE?”
This exact phrase was chosen by Paula Goldstein di Principe to describe Voyage D’Etudes, the online travel scrapbook she founded in 2014. Filled with idiosyncratic vestiges of far-flung adventures taken by de Principe and an eclectic cast of contributors — a professional hula hooper, an Afghani freedom fighter and a Ukrainian fashion editor, to name just a few — the site serves as a welcome anecdote to sterile, staged snaps of pedicured toes and glasses of rose framed by blue pools. It adeptly accepts the existence of a digital world, using the democratic platform to its advantage, while capturing the joy of living in the moment.
DESCRIBE YOUR CURRENT EMOTIONAL STATE?
Anxious.
WHAT IS YOUR EARLIEST MEMORY?
Giving my newborn sister a tiny blue bear. She cried and I thought she didn't like me from the off. It turns out we would be friends as she got bigger.
WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL SHY?
Really smart people.
A SONG FROM THE FIRST ALBUM YOU OWNED
A SONG YOU HAVE LISTENED TO 10 TIMES IN A ROW
A NEW YORK MOMENT
YOUR MOST PRECIOUS OBJECT
WHAT DO YOU DO BEST?
Tell stories, pull people together, dream.
WHAT IS YOUR RESPONSE TO FEAR?
To hide.
IF YOU COULD RELIVE A DAY OF YOUR LIFE, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
I'd take the chance to say certain things to both my father and grandmother before they died.
YOUR FAVORITE FEMALE CHARACTER
WHAT WOULD CONSTITUTE A PERFECT DAY FOR YOU?
Sunshine, the Sunday papers and a person I love — in other words, I'm exceptionally lazy.
WHAT IS THE WORST VACATION YOU'VE EVER TAKEN?
All-inclusive [trip] to Egypt. NEVER AGAIN.
WHAT, IF ANYTHING, IS TOO SERIOUS TO BE JOKED ABOUT?
I think everything should be able to be joked about, but as soon as it hurts the feelings of someone then it's no longer a joke.
IF YOUR HOUSE WAS ON FIRE AND YOU COULD
ONLY SAVE ONE PHOTOGRAPH, THIS WOULD BE IT.
A SONG YOU HAVE DANCED TO AT HOME
A SUNDAY MORNING SONG
A QUOTE YOU LOVE?
We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty. – Maya Angelou
THE LAST BOOK YOU READ?
"My Life on the Road" by Gloria Steinem
WHAT DO YOU WISH WE TALKED ABOUT MORE?
How wonderful we really think other people are in a real way, like thanking them for the fact they call when you are sad or feel comfy to hug or don't judge your hangovers, rather than how cute they are.
WHAT AMERICA IS TO YOU
A PICTURE YOU WISH YOU'D TAKEN
A PICTURE OF HAPPINESS
A SONG WITH AMAZING WORDS
A ROAD-TRIP SONG
WHAT IS THE BEST RISK YOU'VE EVER TAKEN?
Going it alone.
WHAT IS THE WORST RISK YOU'VE EVER TAKEN?
Going it alone.
YOUR FAVORITE MALE CHARACTER
WHAT DO YOU LIKE BEST ABOUT YOUR WORK INDUSTRY?
Creativity.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE LEAST ABOUT YOUR WORK INDUSTRY?
Politics.
WHAT WAS YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING ENCOUNTER WITH A FAMOUS PERSON?
I would have been drunk. It's all blurry and they were probably almost as awful as I was. I would also be sued if I mentioned it here.
IF YOU COULD HAVE DINNER WITH ANYONE ALIVE WHO WOULD IT BE?
My best friend from school; I haven't seen her in 10 years. I'd ask if she was happy. I really hope she is.
A FRIEND WITH PERFECT STYLE
VFC... obvs.
YOUR FAVORITE CHILDHOOD PICTURE
A RECENT INSTAGRAM POST
JACK KEROUAC OR HUNTER S. THOMPSON?
Jack.
MARILYN MONROE OR BRIGITTE BARDOT?
Marilyn, as I don't like the bigotted comments that Brigitte as unveiled in the last few years (even though she's much more my style icon).
FRECKLES OR DIMPLES?
Freckles. My face is like a piece of paper and I'm very jealous of them.
TRUTH OR DARE?
Truth. I'm very accident-prone.
