inspiration

"...that's how the universe works– in my world. [...] they don't give you what you want, they give you what you ARE."

Erykah Badu’s acceptance speech for her Fashion Icon Award at the 2024 CFDA’s. Andre 3000 presented her the award and I started crying. it felt full circle in a way… even down to their collaborative performance back in September. Both are icons who stay true to themselves and have had a huge impact on me. Since her world debut in 1997, I’ve seen her mindset and fashion sense play a huge role in my mom (who was also a brand new mother at the time) and our home. Her mindset, life philosophy, and fashion sense then trickled down to me naturally as life went on. Seeing Badu perform live with my mom in 2017 was one of the greatest highlights of my life. I cried there too lol

This fashion award seems long overdue, but it came right on time. Ms. Badu has shown true style transcendence with time. I’m posting both her recent breakfast club interview and acceptance speech because she explains her relationship with fashion in such an honest a future-forward way– down to the creation of her beautiful headpiece which started out as an ai 3D rendering. The “analog girl in a digital world”. She and Andre both are perfect examples of how to EVOLVE… as people and as artists. As an alien flute player myself, I love the direction Andre has taken with his music creation. His latest album “New Blue Sun” always gets played when I need to declutter my mind and just BE. Maybe I’ll make another post about his fashion influence– hopefully one day he’ll get an award too because it’s well deserved.

I’ll never miss a Badu interview. She’s the funniest and always drops pieces of wisdom in between the lines (the sagittarius in me loves that). This interview was so good; watch the whole thing! My favorite moment is specifically from 47:54 to 53:07; which inspired this blog post. As an artist, and even as a person, sometimes you have to let things go. Whether it be your creations, people, or even situations that may happen to you. When you harp on certain things, or feel the need to “own” something or someone, it’s hard to truly get what you want. Let it go and let things come to you.

Much love to the Goddess, Erykah Badu, and an eternal thank you for all you’ve done (and are doing) for the world and for artists.

the history of graphic design - vol. 2, (1960—today)

 
 

this book is amazing and my graphic designer’s dream! it’s HUGE (use my headphones as a size reference lol). spanning from the year 1960 on forward to today, you can only imagine how much is in here! later on, i’ll share some of my favorite work from each decade in this collection.

i’m so grateful for my boyfriend who surprised me with it <3 it’s been a couple weeks, and I’ve yet to fully digest it all.

meta graffiti (2008)

 

meta graffiti: graffiti art films is a short film series (of about 20 films) released in 2008/2009 featuring artists out of stockholm, berlin and copenhagen. while these short films test the overall framework of graffiti, they still maintain the two key elements of what makes graffiti culture what it is: STYLE and MISCHIEF.

support your local library

 
 

at the very beginning of the year, i told myself one of my main objectives is to cater to, and heal, my inner child by doing all of the things i loved to do (and always wanted to do). one of the things i loved as a kid was going to the library, whether it was the local library or the school library. naturally, my first move was to get a library card! pictured are some of the checkouts i’ve gotten since january (i apologize for the sucky quality, these are screenshots from my tiktok).

to my surprise, i was able to find a lot of my comfort movies on my first visit! death proof was one i’ve never seen, but was so excited to find! yes, that movie has been available for free on youtube for so long, but i love watching dvds— i even have my own personal dvd collection that i’ll make a post about one day! while streaming movies is amazing and convenient, there’s not always going to be wifi around… that’s my philosophy— plus, there’s nothing like flipping through the booklet and exploring all the features in the dvd menu (from a graphic designer’s point-of-view anyhow). fun fact, my graphic design professor in college actually designed a lot of dvd home screens for movies!

these are the films pictured (click for trailers):
hausu (1977)
run lola run (1998)
death proof (2007)
paprika (2006)
ichi the killer (2001)
night of the living dead (1968)

i also found a book, 1000 record covers, which was a great inspiration early on in the year when i was designing a lot cover art. this book i want to purchase myself soon! another book i got was style tribes - the fashion of subcultures. this book was super informative and provided great visuals of current (at least up until 2014) fashion trends around the world and their origins.

the gist of this blog post is… SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY! why? our local libraries are important to our communities because they offer a wide range of free services, resources, and opportunities that aid in personal growth and community learning. supporting our libraries ensure that the services they provide can continue to run.
also, it’s free information, the internet doesn’t always provide the truth.

here are some ways you can support your library:

1. donate - libraries rely on donations from individuals, organizations, and businesses to fund programs, services, and resources.
2. volunteer - volunteers are always needed to help with various library programs, including shelving books, hosting events, and reading to children.
3. attend library events - attend library events and programs to show your support and enjoy the many benefits of the library.
4. spread the word - share information about the library with others to promote its services and attract new patrons.
5. use the library - make use of the library's services and resources, borrow books, movies, and music, and attend programs to show your support

modulations (1998) - cinema for the ear

 

i watched this documentary the other day, and i’m rewatching it now. it’s called “modulations”, brought to us by filmmaker lara lee. it’s so well done! the visuals, paired with the heart-pumping beats, beautifully encapsulates the time. documenting where humans and machines merge, it traces the evolution of electronic music as one of the most profound artistic developments of the 20th century.

although i was only a baby at the time this documentary came out, watching it now takes me back to my childhood. i was raised by a mom who grew up in germany– and i have a gang of family members who still live there… of course, they are certified electronic/techno/club/house heads! this documentary takes it all the way back to the 1910s– personally, i love electronic music from the late 50s and 60s by the likes of the amazing else marie pade (whom i’ve drawn so much inspiration throughout the years.

modulations takes us on a journey through europe and the states, to hip-hop, to metal. check it out!

“the world is not meant to be good/bad, black/white, one or two, one or zero. it’s not binary. it’s chaos.”