Who I've run with-Crews/Families

Hey y'all, this is an appreciation post about some of the folks I've run with, worked with, and learned from. Some of these folks I've known since I was a kid, some I met in college or as an adult. All of them have given me a tremendous amount of love, support, ideas, game, and support and I'm happy to work with them.

Top to bottom, left to right: 

1. Trust Your Struggle Collective- (Bay Area, NYC, int'l) Crew of Graffiti writers, educators, muralists, organizers, etc who create large scale murals, gallery exhibitions, and educational workshops. Founded in 2003! I'm a proud co-founder of this crew. Learn more here.

2. Social Justice Children's Book Holiday Fair- (Bay Area) This is a kids book fair founded by authors, illustrators, teachers, organizers, and book lovers in 2017. This fair champions books featuring People of color, queer folks, and social justice minded creators to serve our community. See some photos from past events here.

3. Tone/ Umber: (Bay Area) Both magazines were founded by an incredible designer, artist, and father Mike Nicholls who has been going since 2016 I believe with Umber magazine. A journal to celebrate Black and Brown stories relating to manhood, sports, music, lifestyle, and more. I was briefly a part of Tone , a magazine dedicated to Black men which is currently dormant, but you can see Umber here.

4. Rad Dad Magazine- (Bay Area) Founded by Tomas Moniz in 2005. Rad Dad was a zine and magazine dedicated to helping fathers of all stripes share their experiences, triumphs, and challenges as dads. Read more here.

5. Muphoric Sounds- (NYC/London) Founded by Vanessa Warren in 2008 MS functioned as a booming part of the music blog landscape. We wrote about new and old music primarily focused on Soul, Hip Hop, Jazz, Funk, Electronic, and House. Read some of the pieces here.

6. The Bull Horn Blog/ M is for Movement- (Boston/Bay Area). This is a blog founded by Innosanto Nagara, Alison Goldberg, and Janine Macbeth that highlighted children's books from multiple age groups featuring stories by people of color and social justice minded creators. Read posts here.

Dig this? Check out my interview with Avy Jetter of Oakland Creates

My mural in a book! - Painting the Streets

 

Check out some images from the new “Painting The Streets” book I'm in alongside many of my Trust Your Struggle Collective family and so many more Bay Area artists. Get a copy here.

Here is my first post about that mural as well.

The good folks over at the East Side Arts Alliance and Nomadic Press got together to make this book of all the artwork created in the summer of 2020 in response to the murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Amhaud Arbery, and so many other victims of Police Terrorism in the United States.

Walls by Cece Carpio, Miguel Bounce Perez & Thitiwat Phromratanapongse, Nisha K Sethi, Priya Handa, and Robert Liu-Trujillo. That summer Cece, Nisha, Migs, Thi, and Rob hit the street to paint walls in frustration, solidarity, and creativity as the crew has done so many times in the past 19 years. We’re honored to be featured in this book by Nomadic and East Side.

The book features both artwork, essays, and poetry by artists and writers such as Alicia Garza, The Black Cultural Zone, Greg Morozumi, Leslie Lopez, Robin D.G. Kelley, The Bay Area Mural Program, Rachel Wolfe-Goldsmith, Kufue, Keena Romano, Timothy B, Zoë Boston, Maisha Quint. DonJuan Carter-Woodard, Amiri Baraka, The Illuminaries, Inbal “Bali” Rubin, Dime, Chris Granillo, Pancho Pescador, Oree Originol, Shi Shi, TDK Crew, DeVante Brooks, and words from JK Fowler of Nomadic Press and Elena Serrano of East Side Arts Alliance!

Dig this? Check out this video where I talk about some of my favorite art books

Winter Playlist -by TYS Collective

 

It's that time of the season again, a new playlist from the TYS Collective. Feliz año nuevo to you all. Here's a playlist from the Trust Your Struggle Collective (Hip hop, funk, Reggae, Jazz, Rock, and more). 

To listen go here: LINK

While you're there check out a post about some of the people we lost over the past year. if you're not following my crew on IG, here's the link. You might get some exclusives from the TYS Newsletter though....

Podcast interview: w/NOT REAL ART

 

Whats up fam, I got a chance to be a guest on the "Not Real Art" podcast w/ my TYS sister Erin Yoshi. I wish I could embed it directly here, but please check out this LINK to listen. 

This show was recorded last month and I talk a bit about kids books, illustration, of course the "Art of Rob" campaign on kickstarter, and our crew "Trust Your Struggle". If you're not up on this podcast please give them a listen, Man One and Sourdough have been doing it for a minute and they just brought Erin Yoshi on as an official co-host. Here are some of the folks she's interviewed that I admire!

-Ashara Ekundayo

-Brett Cook

-Nancy Hernandez & Cece Carpio (TYS)

If you would like to hear or see more media features please check out my press page here.

Summer Playlist by TYS Collective

 

Hey, my crew the Trust Your Struggle Collective dropped a playlist of music last month. Some new and old on there. If you're into music, give it a listen here.

If you missed it, I have a quarterly blog post about music I am listening to, the last one was about House music

Dead Prez x Sault remix - Pele Durian Funk

 

Dead Prez classic remixed by DJ/Producer Pele Durian Funk w/ this new vibe UK band Sault is creating w/their focus on music. If the video gets taken down please go to Pele's bandcamp to listen to a whole EP of remixes featuring different artists such as Mos Def, Erykah Badu, Bambu, and more all w/ flips of Sault. 

And please support Dead Prez and Sault by streaming and purchasing their music. 

Exclaimer, the remix is a vital part of not only hip hop culture, but of music and culture in general. Here's a link of some other music I've been listening to a lot lately. HOUSE.

Online Exhibition via SF Int'l Arts Fest

Peace, my crew "Trust Your Struggle Collective" will be participating in this year's San Francisco International Arts Festival which is usually a lively in person event with visual art, dance, music, etc. This year however with Covid everything is online so tune in to see a virtual exhibition of some of our individual and collective works.

Invite LINK

Mural: Black Lives

Before/After

I painted this in collaboration w/ artist & business owner Binta Ayofemi. She came up with the design and Paint The Void commissioned it. Haven't painted a big wall (30' x 50') in a minute so it was nice to get back up on the lift. It was painted with house paint, brushes, rollers, and Montana Spray.Shout out to Nisha K Sethi (TYS) who hooked this up for me. 

Affirming Black Lives w/ the words "Reparations" and "Transformations" is a powerful statement. Despite the circumstances it felt good to collab with Binta and hear from every day folks. There were so many beautiful pieces painted in downtown and East Oakland since George Floyd and Breonna Taylor were murdered. This is not the first time I've painted a wall, banner, or painting in response to police terrorism and I know it won't be the last. But, i'm encouraged by how many more artists (OGs and youngsters) out there taking control of the narrative w/their work.

The work we all create is part of a legacy of resistance. Keep creating young artists! Marathon over sprint. And please take care of each other. We got a long way to go. 

Check out some of the process and close ups. 

Binta's sketch

Mask ready

Sketch

Adding gold

Cleaning it up

Adding gold

Almost there

Binta wanted to let em know

Done

Signed

Dig this? Did you see this post? Police Brutality Over The Years

My homies are my Heroes - Organizer piece

Yo, so I just exhibited this new painting at the "My Homies are my Heroes" show at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts in San Francisco's Mission District. If you're around go see it while it's up for a month. The show is curated by my Trust Your Struggle Sister in arms Nancy Hernandez and it features artwork inspired by the show's title. Some of the amazing artists featured in the show are OGs, established artists, and emergin artists such as Yolanda Lopez, Twick, Spie, Thitiwat Phromratanapongse, Crystal Clarity, Vyal One, Marina Perez -Wong, and more. Check out a few photos from the opening, but know there are many more!

Please go check it out. The opening reception was this past friday. Here is the facebook invite and here is the link to the gallery at MCCLA. 

Of Love & Riots - Jersey City, NJ 2007

Of Love & Riots from Trust Your Struggle on Vimeo.
throwback! This is us painting the first Of Love & Riots show in Jersey City, NJ back in 2007!

Here's a video from the show we did in Sacramento 2015.

TYS @ Sol Collective in Sacramento- Nov 16th

Eyy, if you have friends or family in Sacramento please invite them to this show. Trust Your Struggle Collective is celebrating 16 years at one of our many homes, Sacramento California which is the home of the mighty SOL Collective who have been with us since the very beginning. 

If you've been to any of the group or solo shows at Sol you know its about to be live. Come through!

EVENT LINK.

Trust Your Struggle at Amor Eterno - Oakland

Hey! If you're in the Bay Area, I'd love to see you at this show on Saturday. Wer'e showing some photographs chronicling some of the Oakland work that we've done and showing a bit of our work from over the past 16 years. Come thru to Amor Eterno, an awesome gallery and tattoo space.

INVITE LINK

Cece Carpio - KQED Arts

YES! So juiced to see my sister Cece get featured in KQED Arts as she works so very hard to craft stories and beautiful images of indigenous women and peoples. If you didn't already know, Cece is one of the members of our crew "Trust Your Struggle Collective" Please watch and follow Cece on Instagram.

Throwback- TYS Collective in Sac 2015

Trust Your Struggle - 15 years

Wow, can't believe 15 years has gone by since we started building and discussing what TYS would be. The Trust Your Struggle Collective was founded in the Bay Area (Pittsburg, SF, and Oakland) 15 years ago and still lives from LA to NYC. We are a group of artists, activists, educators, parents, workers, etc who created a crew on the principles of making dope art that speaks about some of the injustices we see.

That was the point and I believe we have done our very best to bring that energy for 15 years. We have painted canvases, paper, walls, black books, classrooms, cultural centers, schools, streets, galleries, banners, garages, restaurants, and our own hearts. We have traveled all over the United States and many places throughout the world and one thing that comes to mind no matter what we do are the people we've met along the way.

It is the grandmothers, aunties, and the homies from around the way who don't have a holiday in their name, a chapter in a book, or a street named after them. It is the folks who gave a dime when they barely had a nickel. It is the folks who stopped to tell us their story, or give encouragement and sometimes criticism. It is the countless friends and family who helped us with their time, money, resources, food, and shelter that make the art and the struggle meaningful. I think we all knew we were not reinventing the wheel with our work or subject matter. We were inspired by so many different artists and movements of the past.

But through all the great times, the bullshit, and the times when we just got by; it means something to bear witness to what everyday people are going through. It means something to be able to help share their narrative. We believe in basic human rights for all, peoples control over the wealth they create, thinking critically about what our oppressors feed us mentally, and being creative when you break it down.

Salute to all the artists out there fighting back with your poetry, movement, words, organizing, brushes, and hearts. Know that you are loved. None of us are perfect. I know you get tired. Keep fighting, we have to keep going so the next generation takes the torch. The oppressors know how powerful the people are collectively.

A new world is coming.....

-Rob / Tres (TYS Collective Est. 2003)

Video - People's Kitchen Collective

Me and my wife volunteered to help with PKC’s mission. Her, much more than me, taking the lead on cooking for hundreds of people. Super proud to work with these homies and all the good people who came to help and eat! Follow the Peoples Kitchen Collective here. Also, my crew Trust Your Struggle volunteered some artwork to be printed along with several other artists which you can see in the video.

Selfie - Kalakari

Hey, check me out with this new hat by the homie Nisha K Sembi. You can cope one at Kalakari.

When She Rises-This saturday in Oakland

When she rises is this Saturday 

When: Saturday March 12th, 8-11pm

Where: Studio Grand Oakland

Who: Cece Carpio, Erin Yoshi, and Nisha K. Sembi (Trust Your Struggle Collective)

Why/How?

In honor of International Women's Day, Studio Grand Oakland and Galeria de la Raza are pleased to bring Cece Carpio, Nisha K. Sembi, and Erin Yoshi, the women of the Trust Your Struggle Collective, together at Studio Grand for this show honoring the stories of women and their resilience. This exhibit specifically looks at the countries of origin of the three artists - Philippines, India, and Japan. Come out and celebrate at the Exhibit Opening :: When She Rises on Saturday, March 12, 8:00pm-11:00pm. DjLeydis DeCuba will help us bring the show in. So much love to Cece, Nisha, Erin, Ani Rivera, Melanie Cervantes, Galería De La Raza, Trust Your Struggle Collective, and the good folks over at the Akonadi Foundation for helping us make this happen. Together, We Rise!

Video: Of Love & Riots

This is a short video by the Sol Collective featuring interviews, work in progress for the show, and some footage from the opening night. The whole event was a blast and it was exciting to get the crew all back together for this rare event. The crew I'm talking about is "The Trust Your Struggle Collective formed in 2003.

Here is a post talking about the idea and theme of the show.

And if you're interested in buying artwork from the show mine is HERE, and you can hit up the other members who showed work at:

Adrian Viajero
Ben Rojas/Mincho Vega
Cece Carpio
Erin Yoshi
Miguel Bounce Perez
Nisha K Sembi
Scott La Rockwell
Shaun Burner

Original art for sale (from Of Love & Riots)

So these are some of the pieces from this summer's "Of Love & Riots" show up in Sacramento at the Sol Collective. In case you missed it, my crew (Trust Your Struggle Collective) created all new works of art and installations for a month leading up to the final week. Many of the pieces sold, but each member was left with a few extras. These are the pieces I created that were not sold. They are all watercolor and pen on paper, ranging from 12" x 18" size framed pieces to 6" x 6". They are labeled with letters that correspond to these prices. If you're interested and/or have any questions, please email me at info@robdontstop.com

All of the pieces are created with watercolor & pen

A. Puppet presidents
11" x 14" w/ frame
$225

B. Last kiss
11" x 14" w/ frame
$225

C. Get that fool
11" x 14" w/ frame
$225

D. Notice
10" x 10" w/ frame
$175

E. Grief
12" x 12" w/ frame
$175

F. Untitled
11" x 14" w/ frame
$225

G. Overseer
19" x 25" w/ frame
$425

H. Last minute
12" x 12" w/ frame
$175