Juxtapost: Contrast / Harmony

Written By Rocky Walls

Introducing Juxtapost, an almost-weekly article series by me, Rocky Walls, that explores the tension, harmony, and insight found in life’s contrasts. But, I’m getting ahead of myself. First, some background…

I’ve always been attentive to detail - obsessively so. I rarely see just one side of things, and I’m rarely satisfied with how things are. I can offer compliments, sure, but I always see an opportunity to improve, too. That drive has helped me in my work, but I’ve also been told it can make me very frustrating to work with. Welcome to my brain.

Stripes and Spirals I
a piece that demonstrates juxtaposition (chaos & order in this case) found in a lot of my artwork

In high school, I thrived in math and science while spending my free time designing, drawing, and creating. That mix of analytical breakdown and artistic buildup never felt like a contradiction to me - but I’ve come to realize it’s not how everyone’s mind works. Over time, I’ve also come to understand that my experience living with bipolar disorder plays a significant role in all of this.

After a few especially low episodes, I took Mental Health America’s online screening for bipolar disorder and got a perfect score :-/ (and, yes, I am aware that an online screening is not the same as a diagnosis from a mental health professional). So, I started studying the condition, borrowing books from the library, and attending therapy. Today, I navigate life with more awareness of the ebbs and flows and more appreciation for the way my divergent mind works. The obsessiveness, the risk tolerance, the hyper-focus, the hunger to see something from every possible angle - they don’t happen in spite of being bipolar. In many ways, they happen because of it.

That shows up everywhere in my life: in filmmaking, photography, artwork, even how I approach relationships. I now embrace that the quality of everything I create is a result of this internal tug-of-war - of being unwilling to stop at the first, second, or tenth version of something.

So why start Juxtapost?

Because it’s hard for me to fit into one branded box. I’m a filmmaker, but I’m also an artist, a photographer, a husband and father, a chef, an entrepreneur and so on. Rather than write about just one topic, I’ve decided to write about many - through one consistent lens: juxtaposition. Duality. Contrast. Tension. Harmony. That’s where I find meaning, and that’s where I want to invite others to explore and discover, too.

Juxtapost is about flipping the page and studying both sides. It’s about holding two ideas at once and sitting with the discomfort - or the clarity - that comes from that.

I’m not writing this series because I have answers. I’m writing it because I constantly live in the questioning.

And if a lot of what you see online has started to feel a bit too one-sided, too absolute, too clean and tidy - Juxtapost might be for you, too.

What to Expect from Juxtapost

Juxtapost is an almost-weekly article series of bite-sized reflections from a multidisciplinary, neurodivergent creative. Drawing from all corners of life - filmmaking, art, family, business, and quiet moments of observation - each post explores how seemingly contradictory ideas can work in harmony. Through the lens of juxtaposition, contradiction, and balance, I’ll invite readers to consider how juxtaposition and duality shows up in their own lives. The pieces are short enough to read in a few minutes, but they’re designed to linger - sparking mindfulness, dialogue, or simply a moment of pause.

Every Juxtapost ends with a gentle call to reflect, an open-ended invitation to think differently, and a reminder that two (or more) things can be true at the same time.

Here are just a few topics we’ll be exploring:

  • My YouTube Confession: Occupying vs. Moving - Why I prefer movies over YouTube or television and what that might say about closure, attention, and energy.

  • The Dark Side of Hygge: Cozy vs. Cliquey - How coziness, when overprescribed, can become exclusive and what that taught me about cultural storytelling.

  • Snooze Hacking: Avoidance vs. Momentum - How I turned my morning routine into a series of nine-minute rituals and what that revealed about avoidance vs. momentum.

  • The Hedonic Treadmill: Growth vs. Success - Why our company chose to shrink on purpose and how that changed my view of success.

If you’ve ever felt like life doesn’t move in a straight line… or like success is more about harmonizing than balancing - I hope you’ll follow along and jump into the conversation.

Next Steps:

🧠 Think about it - Contrast creates clarity. Agree or disagree?

💬 Talk about it - What kind of contrasts or contradictions are you navigating right now? Drop a comment below to talk about it in the open or reply to one of my emails for a private conversation.

👉 Sign up for the email list to get each new Juxtapost in your inbox. Don’t let the algorithms decide whether or not you’ll see the next one.

Rocky Walls

Rocky Walls makes his directorial debut with the documentary feature film Finding Hygge. The co-founder of 12 Stars Media, a video production company focused on telling stories that help make the world a better place, Walls led his team on a mission to discover what role hygge plays in making Denmark one of the happiest countries on the planet. He and his wife Jessica live in Fishers, Indiana, with their three sons.