Inspiring Artist - Cymone Wilder

 

Thank god for Maurice Cherry who has done so much work to highlight Black designers, artists, and creatives with his work. I just came across Cymone or "Simon and Moose". Wow, what a breath of fucking fresh air it is to see this person's work. She is Amazing. 

What's this bruh? This is where I share artists that have been inspiring to me in my work sometimes directly and other times indirectly. Check out Cymone Wilder's website here. You can see the many clients she work with , her personal work, merch, and more. Wow is what I keep saying to myself.

video link

I haven't highlighted that many type artists or designers who work with letters but I will do that more because I pull inspiration from them as much as I do illustrators or muralists. Cymone is someone you should watch and follow. Like now, do that now. Here is her IG.

You can read an interview she did with the Nashville Voyager (where she's based) and get a sense of what makes her do what she does. Stay tuned for more.

Did you catch the posts I made about these other amazing artists?

Bisa Butler

Elizabeth Catlett

Mira Nair

Victoria Ying

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Creative Mornings presentation!!!

Dig this? Check out my last inspiration board here.

Ethnic Studies in Every School 2- Purple

 

Just painted this new joint before the San Jose Made show and LOVE LOVE LOVE how it came out. I get in a rut sometimes and returning to this subject matter and composition really helped me do my thing and get loose. Check out some of the process art for this one below.

If you'd like a print of this bad boy, please visit my shop at THIS LINK

What is Ethnic Studies? Short version is that US history is Eurocentric and throughout time either mis-characterized, ignored, or completely barred stories and history from African American, Native American, Latinxs, and Asian Americans. I throw in Middle Eastern families as well. In the late 60s San Francisco State University (my 1st college) and then UC Berkeley were the first schools in the US to create college departments that housed teachers and courses dedicated to some of this knowledge. And to be frank, it is not just about a diverse we are the world photo. It's a bout understanding systems, power, challenging that, and changing the narrative. And that is why some are terrified of it.

Did you like this? Check out the previous "Ethnic Studies In Every School" painting I did (2019). Oh, and have you ever heard of Dolores Huerta? The Contract Buyers League? What about Marie Butchie Tom?

photo credit: My Momma!

2 Sticker Packs Revisited

 

These stickers took over a year to complete and when I did I made them into sticker packs which are fun! My. lovely wife helped me redesign these recently for fun. Check em out eh? They make great gifts for interns, college students, or your team at work.

Affirmations Pack: This pack is all about reminders to take care of your self. It's about affirming needs with 6 phrases: Pause, Breathe, Rest, Focus, Step Forward, and Grow. Get a pack here.

Multicultural Pack: This pack is filled with phrases and words to identify. Black folks and people of color. In it are the following phrases: Black Is Beautiful, Raza, Blasian, Mixed Kid, Blaxican, and Poc Pov. Get a pack here.

Dig this? Check out this sticker sheet for self care

Keep Abortion Legal 2022

 

Been wanting to redraw this logo! I remember seeing it at abortion rights protests in the 80s with my mom. I can't find who designed it but it's tied to the National Organization for Women or NOW. For those who don't go to protests I wanted to let you know if you're following my work I believe in safe, legal and widely available access to abortion for all women and humans with wombs (inc gender non conforming folks). 

1.  I believe whoever's body has the ability to carry a child should have the right to decide if they want to carry that child to term whether they become a parent or give a child up for adoption. To me, this is a basic human right. Non negotiable. It's no longer the dark ages, it's 2022.

2. I believe this is a form of medical healthcare. Like universal healthcare, I believe it should be accessible to all. I believe it should be free. If not free today, it should be at least affordable.

3. If you don't want to get one, it goes against your religion, or you don't subscribe to it-cool. I wouldn't force you to get one. Whether you support this form of healthcare or not should be your choice. But you don't have the right to decide what. my family does. For real, stop fucking w/ folks right to obtain this form of healthcare 

4. The majority of the world does not teach about safe sex, contraceptives, or protection. Access to birth control and education on how to use it for women, men, or people with penises or vaginas is still not as widely available as it should be. This is fucking backward stone age bullshit.

5. All that talk about pro life is BULLSHIT to me! The same folks talking that noise do nothing to make healthcare universal instead of a $ making business. They do not stop the death penalty, their governments from starting wars, men from carrying out mass shootings, or men from raping. In fact what I see when I hear their arguments is thinly veiled control of women and people with wombs. 

6. When we start to talk about race and class the picture becomes even more real. Not having access to abortion disproportionately affects Black and Brown people. The rich will always have more access to abortion and procedure's like it if they choose. They speak one belief while practicing another. Black women, women of color, poor or working class women and gender non conforming folks have less resources, access, and having the ability to have an abortion increases their quality of life and gives them power to decide when, how, and if they will have children.

You disagree? Cool. But just know I stand in solidarity with women, gender non conforming folks, trans folks, and anyone who wants access to abortion. Now and forever. We can negotiate what I want for dinner or what kind of clothes I like, but healthcare is a human right. We moving forward not back. Never again.

ACTION STEP UPDATE June 24, 2022: Make art about issues like this. Support the artists who make it whether that be in film, dance, music, architecture, sculpture, animation, kids books, illustration, etc. Art changes culture and awareness. If you don't make art, support artists! Their work helps organizers and activists working to change actual tangible laws and policy. Why? They just overturned Roe V Wade in the supreme court. 

If I made a print of this to donate funds to Abortion funds would you buy it? Lemme know via comment or email.

Dig this? Peep "Stop Asian Hate"

Check out this platform laid out by the Movement for Black Lives about reproductive justice!

Affirmations Sticker Pack

Yooo, just put these bad boys together in a pack. This is a 6 sticker pack of words and phrases meant to be reminders to self, motivational, and affirming. You can cop a pack for yourself or your team here.

Shop Link

This is some process from one of the stickers in the pack: PAUSE

This is the previous sticker pack: Multicultural

Step Forward Gold Sticker

 

Man many moons ago I did this painting and a whole series of pieces I called "positive wall affirmations". It was a great creative exercise for me since I do a ton of figurative/ portrait work. It's fun to play with lettering since thats how I got my start. But for folks who couldn't buy an original painting, I decided to approach some of those same positive sentiments as stickers. And so far so good.

Cop one here

The last one in the series was "Pause"

Video: National Sticker Day 2022

 

Here are some of the stickers I've made over the past year or two. They focus on affirmations, taking care of ourselves, and affirming cultural pride. If you haven't looked at my shop recently check it out here.

Pause Sticker process

 

 Hey this is a new sticker in a series of self care/ encouragement/ affirming stickers. Sometimes you gotta hit the pause button, or maybe you need to remind someone to do it. 

Wanna see some of the creative process? Check it out:

First I did a bunch of different versions of the same word using different font styles.  The check marks you see are from my homies and my wife telling me which ones they preferred.

I narrowed it down a bit and combined some elements to make it a more simple shape.

I decided on the color scheme and did some rough color versions. And I chose the bottom right one finally.

Then I painted in gouache. Scanned it and then brought it into Photoshop and to clean it up, moving the shadow and letters a tiny bit to make it more symmetrical. I also adjusted the color a bunch because it was tough to duplicate the screen color.

And then here's the final product. I get stickers from a bunch of different places, but one I go to often is Sticker Giant in Colorado who just shipped these to me. What do you think? Dig it? I DO!! I love how it came out and I hope others will dig them. Eventually I'll make a sticker pack of these:

Grow

Focus

Rest

Breathe

Pause

"_______" one more to go!

One day I'll make a video talking about these stickers. But for now i'll just say that many years ago I made a series of paintings called "positive wall affirmations" made to serve people by offering a positive message for the home, class, office, etc. The original one of a kind paintings did ok and made some folks really happy. But the stickers are a bit more affordable, especially if you're not an art collector. 

Anyways, thanks for reading. You can get this Pause sticker here or get a sticker sheet I made a year ago for self care here as well. If you know someone who is learning to make merchandise using their art, please share this post with them.

Breathe Vinyl Sticker

 

Here is a new sticker reminding you to "breathe". Its number four in a series of self care stickers aimed at getting folks to slow down and take stock of what's next and what matters. Cop one for you or for your team HERE.

The last one in the series is REST

Repackaging of the "Multicultural Sticker pack"!

 

I put this out at the beginning of the year as a pack, but now I just redid the packaging which I really like. This pack contains 6 stickers. If you dig, cop one for a friend.

REST Sticker

 

Fam, here is the latest sticker in a new series meant to remind, encourage, and affirm. This one is a gold vinyl sticker reminding you to rest. I know we all got shit to do, but in between wins and losses, don't forget to rest.

Cop one for you or a friend HERE.

Did you catch the last one? It says "Focus"

FOCUS Sticker

 

Here's a new sticker! Part of a series of stickers that are reminders or affirmations. This could be for yourself or as a gift to send to a friend. Cop one here!

If you missed the previous sticker "GROW" check that out too.

#StopAsianHate

Did these letters as an art offering. Please feel free to share.

These hand styles/ letters are a response to the recent attacks in GA, the past yr of attacks against Aapi which have risen 150%, and the historic racism against the Asian American community in the US

Action steps: What can you do?

1. Have u supported orgs that uplift the Aapi community? Start w/the GA families and organizers by following and donating to Advancing Justice Atl

2. Are u willing to Speak up and speak out? Whether you think your followers and friends will give AF, speaking out is a muscle. Let folks know where u stand and engage the comments.

3. Can you uplift Asian American storytellers, artists, musicians, journalists, etc in telling our very unique, specific, diverse, and varied stories? Do this in kid books, film , video games, animation, etc 

4. Can u help dismantle white supremacy and patriarchy by studying them and talking to your kids, fellow co-workers, students, friends, folks about it? The personal is political.

5. Thank you for showing solidarity and showing up.

Here's a piece I did last year showing AAPI support for Black Lives.

 

Free Mumia Now! Covid related

 

Yo, so this brother Mumia Abu Jamal is still on lockdown and He just contracted Covid. Renewed pressure is mounting from everyday people to release him. Mumia is a revolutionary activist and journalist who was railroaded and wrongfully imprisoned in 1982 for a crime he did not commit. Like so many Black activists he's been imprisoned for speaking out against the system and particularly against the Philadelphia police department. You can help put pressure on the Philly DA, governor, etc.

By going to FreeMumia.com or Mumia Official IG you can learn how to help get this brother out of there. 

If you've never heard of the brother or his case read up on the site above and watch the documentary "Mumia: Long Distance Revolutionary" to get up to speed. 

GROW sticker

 

Fam, I created an original painting with the word "GROW" back in 2013. Matter of fact, I painted a whole series of affirmations. In an effort to get back to making pieces that are not only affirming to me (hopefully you too) but to make it affordable, I plan to make some new stickers with affirming letter based art. I painted this piece on paper and got it printed with gold to add a bit of shine. I hope you like it. Stay tuned.

GET A STICKER HERE

Did you catch the last sticker pack? Here it is.

Sticker pack 1- Multicultural

 

Hey fam, here's a pack of stickers you can get to send to a loved one, student, or educator. This includes many of the Black, POC stickers I've been making over the past year. Hope you dig them.

BUY HERE

Download 2 - Ethnic Studies coloring sheet

 

Here's a coloring sheet for all the folks trying to introduce the study and concept of "Ethnic Studies" to their students early. You can download a copy of this from my shop HERE. 

Thanks for your support and here is the previous download-Analog music.

Check out this time lapsed video I made of coloring it in.

New self portrait!

 

Happy 2021 folks. I'm excited to share this new self portrait with you and ready to bob and weave in the new year. As I do most years I'll be using this for my branding on my social media and sites. Want to see past painted self portraits? See below. This one was painted in gouache.

2017

2014

Look out for a post about branding images and business cards soon.

Africana Studies Print

 

Peace, I'm so excited to introduce this new piece to you "Africana Studies". This is a print featuring that phrase and an antique afro pick. The origin of the idea comes from Black, African American, African studies departments in colleges. I hope this print can apply to high schools one day as well, but this is basically an attempt to make a beautiful and affirming decoration for an office, classroom, or building that specializes in the study of Black culture. It could totally be in a home or bedroom but my aim is to reach educators specifically with this whether they be in a larger "Ethnic Studies" department or a sole focus of study at their institution.

COP one here!

Series: This print will be a part of a series of new prints focusing on Black, Asian, Raza, Indigenous studies or programs from an Ethnic Studies program. Stay tuned.

Did you see the "Ethnic Studies" print pack w/ stickers?

Black Is Beautiful Sticker

 

Juiced to share this with you all. A gold foil "Black Is Beautiful" Sticker!!  Cop one!

LINK

Here's a new sticker with a classic phrase "Black is Beautiful" first uttered before my mother was born in an effort to give African Americans pride. Not only in their skin color, but their heritage. The term "Black" is one of many used to describe humans with a darker skin hue but the descendants of Africans in the US did not create the classifications for race, we just flipped them and gave them new meanings.

For me personally, I started to use this phrase publicly as part of a series of drawings and paintings celebrating unsung figures of Black history here in the US and abroad. I love the feeling of affirmation the term gives and hope you too can resonate with it whether you consider yourself "Black" or not. We can all affirm the "Black Is Beautiful" as a statement of pride and a resistance to centuries of "anti-black" imagery, descriptions, and racist messages from the past and today.

Did you catch the last "POC POV" sticker?