DECADE, MOTHER FUCKERS.
Today marks the completion of 10 years, one decade, of being an independent designer working from the middle of America. Not gonna lie, I feel quite proud right now in this moment. Cheers.
What do you have to lose?
So much. We have lost so much. And there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight to the losing.
As a campaign frame, asking for your vote by asking what do you have to lose is what a snake oil salesman goes with. Or in this case, Donald J. Trump. Our very own P.T. Barnum, charlatan, main character in his theater of the absurd. Think a washed up reality show personality has what it takes to lead the free world? Are you better off than you were four years ago?
There’s a painfully simplistic view of politics we Americans take. We love that question. Better off now, four years in, then we were then. The mark of progress, or something like that. So let’s answer it. Are you better off now, staring down a global pandemic with a terrible government ill prepared and unequipped to lead us out this?
Donald Trump is a conman of the first order. America’s worst person. As he remains in the position of president, at least for now, best to keep in mind all the hugs, weddings, graduations, funerals, sports matches, retirement savings, dinners and movies, pool days, live shows, workweeks, and vacations that we all have lost. Not to mention all the lives and jobs that aren’t ever coming back.
This is your current moment, America. A dark one. Let’s hope we come to grips with it and change course before it’s too late.
Rise Up!
An open call for GIFS to fight white supremacy, racism, and anti-blackness
From the TaskForce crew:
People around the world are standing up for equality and taking on the social and political systems that have long perpetuated systems of oppression. Artists have a unique role to play in driving a narrative of change and supporting the work of activists in our collective fight to address racism.
Art-House America: Film Streams
Film Streams is one of the best things in Omaha. And I’ve been lucky enough to get to work with them on a bunch of amazing projects (like this and this and this). The Criterion Channel recently streamed a feature on the arthouse theater:
Filling a longtime void in the city’s cultural landscape, Film Streams opened its doors in 2007 in downtown Omaha, Nebraska, with a sold-out screening of SEVEN SAMURAI. With the help of filmmaker and Omaha native Alexander Payne, who has been closely involved with the institution from the beginning, Film Streams soon expanded to a second location at the historic Dundee Theater, the city’s longest-surviving neighborhood cinema.
Blacks Who Design
Great project:
Blacks Who Design highlights all of the inspiring Black designers in the industry. The goal is to inspire new designers, encourage people to diversify their feeds, and discover amazing individuals to join your team.
If you’re a Black designer, this site’s for you.
If you’re not a Black designer, this site’s for you too :)
Black Lives Matter
via The Union:
Following the killing of James Scurlock, a 22-year old unarmed Black man in Omaha on May 30, 2020, The Union began mass producing screen-printed Black Lives Matter posters. Thousands have already been distributed for free to our community and we are working hard to keep up with demand.
To help spread the message of solidarity far and wide, we've made some pdfs of the design available here in different sizes. Feel free to download and print from your office printer or use the file to make your own prints.
I saw people today
Specifically, my people. Several of them. Doing what they do, as I stopped by a building I’ve been many times before to pick up a Black Lives Matter screenprint.
It was amazing to see people again in real life. And at the same time incredibly heartbreaking. As we live, strained, in a time of prolonged death and destruction. Images of PPE, food lines, and riot gear danced in my head. Behind our masks, socially distanced (which is awkward), eyes strained. I really just wanted to act like normal.
“So good to see you!”
“How’s it going!”
“Miss you!”
“Stay strong.”
“This is all fucked.”
I started in what would appear to be in my old spot. Just happy to see you. And quickly, it became obvious this new spot is so fucking hard. So sad. A constant struggle. I really just want to smile at you. And see yours.
Goddamn all of this.
My strain is constant.
Yours is too.
Together, that’s where we’re at.
