Influx Curated Inspiration

Last month, I attended Influx Curated, in SF with one of my Creative Directors. I have been trying to write about it for weeks and now finally made the time. The conference was organized by Influx Strategic Consulting, a BSSP company. 10 speakers were selected to speak and invite two friends, resulting in 30 speakers total, and all were limited to only 5 minutes each. As the invite read, "Their brief was simple to: instigate, stir, motivate, and inspire." There was a lot of hope flying around, I captured some in my notes and will try to give you a little of what they gave us:

Become a part of the notion for common good.
Connect.
Design can change the world.
The 20th century was all about what we could produce and the 21st century is all about what we can sustain.
Be open-minded.
Be problem solvers and find a way to do things better.
Now is the chance to be both teacher and student.
On a networked planet, connection is frictionless.
Roll up your sleeves and get involved!
The two most inspiring words in the English language are: YES & AND. “And” is the word that unites things.
Have the ability to integrate.
Power of the word: YES. Have no fear, be grateful, be open, forgive, love (acceptance), have honesty, and humanity.
Fear as a motivator is a joke.
Find a way to care and make it personal.
Power of the word: No. How to deal with blocks? Change can be a gift. Don’t get discouraged.
People will have similar ideas, don’t let this stop you.
Some of your most creative works will come from sudden change.
Stop trying too hard to be creative and unique and it will come.
Writers: you must keep storytelling active.
It’s never boring to try to improve something.
Don’t abandon advertising, improve it.
Reality is how you perceive it.
What engages an audience? Give the audience nothing and co-create with them.
Be comfortable with silence.
Story tell, the past inspires us.
Build strong stories and roots for our future.
Break rules.
We live in a culture of fear.
You can find inspiration in everything, and if you can’t, look again.
Have a perception altering experience.
Trust your own intuition and have no fear.
Change is ultimately what we make of it.
Define good: the consumer doesn’t know what is “good” anymore.
Be authentic; the brand itself has to connect with its audience.
Listen.
Create a culture.

These notes I try to reread when I am feeling discouraged. At a time when things are extremely uncertain, we need to look to one another for inspiration. The conference was a gift on multiple levels: as a person who works in advertising, as a writer, and as an art lover. Jeben Berg, who works on Marketing and Creative Strategy at YouTube spoke about online video, its interpretations, and connectivity. But, what I found even more stimulating was that his presentation included a fantastic video of time-lapsed graffiti. I was thrilled to be at a conference for work, all the while watching a beautiful piece unfold amidst a concrete jungle. It was like everything had come full circle, and I was viewing my generation making their mark in more ways than one.

I connected with Jeben to thank him and his response was nothing short of poetic, "One can only hope that a few words of a 5 minute presentation penetrate deep enough to take hold and provide an anchor from which to develop your own courses of action. YouTube is a great free place to launch an online journey but it takes all of the web to give it life."

His art, even more so profound: youtube.com/beakdip



More on Jeben, covered by Juxtapoz Magazine. So many new influences for me to admire and study. I am so thankful to all the people who spoke. A full list can be found here. And a special thank you to work, for sending me.

Story of Graphic Designer and Fine Arts Creator, Richard “Ricky” Watts

“Completing pieces is like growing limbs, you cut one off and a new one grows.” –Ricky Watts

Ricky Watts is a freelance graphic designer and artist based in Northern California. He is proficient in all aspects of graphic design from concept, to production, to completion. A skilled painter and illustrator, exploring many mediums--brush, pen, mouse, pencil, and can–-he feeds his passion for fine art on canvases shown in galleries and commissioned surfaces up and down the west coast.

Ricky Watts has been an artist his whole life, but it wasn’t until his early teens that he got serious about his true passion. He was born in San Francisco and soon after, moved north to Sonoma County. With the encouragement of his family, it was here that he made the decision to do what he loved for the rest of his life. Ricky’s dad was always supportive, “I think it was mostly because of his love for art, he was a painter too, and never seriously pursued it,” Ricky said. Not only just a contributor to Ricky’s pursuit in fine art, his dad also paved the way for his interest in graphic design, “When I was in high school, my dad brought home an old Apple computer from work as a birthday present–-it had Photoshop 3.0 on it--so I started messing around with it and really enjoyed working with the program.”

Growing up, Ricky spent a lot of time drawing and studying typography. Through peers in junior high, he was introduced to graffiti art, which would later become an important aspect of his career. “In eighth grade my friend Jared brought the magazine Can Control, out of Seattle, to math class and after seeing it, I knew I wanted to do it.” Always interested in bending letters, style writing came naturally to him, “Sneaking out in the middle of the night to go paint; it was rebellious and exciting.” He decided he wanted to pursue the art form, both personally and professionally. Into adulthood, his love for aerosol lead to the creation of pieces on paper and canvas, where he turned “rebellious graffiti” into sophisticated works of art.

He went on to complete advanced placement art classes in high school and after graduation, went to college. “I thought to myself, how can I turn art into making money? I’ll go to art school.” He accepted many jobs to get him by while in school–-Blockbuster, Safeway, even a doctor’s office, “I was dead broke, so I took a job at Safeway, where they promoted me to the meat department. It was the worst promotion of my life! I had the cleanup shift--it was disgusting. I lasted 3 months.” He received a degree in graphic design at the Art Institute of California in San Diego and got a job at a print shop where he did just about everything. Designing logos and marketing elements came naturally coming from his background and so did his promotions, as Ricky moved up in his career. But after two and half years in San Diego, a degree, and numerous completed pieces, Ricky decided to come home. He moved back to Petaluma experienced and with an impressive portfolio to show for it.

Ricky continued working for print shops, carried out his passion for painting and drawing, and did freelance anywhere and everywhere in between. “I worked at design during the day and painted at night. I was doing a lot of canvases and exploring other fine art elements.” Being in the industry for the last 8 years, Ricky has developed a very unique skill set. He’s covered all aspects of print media–-designing as well as preflighting and production. He’s designed numerous event flyers, marketing materials and worked on collaborative projects with other artists and designers.

Ricky has finished hundreds of fine art pieces, in multiple mediums, having had his work displayed in many shows and galleries. “The first show I actually ever did was at Sonoma State University, in the Student Union. It brought about a lot of visibility to my work.” Ricky has since done shows as far south as San Diego to as far north as Portland. “I have put paintings in shows and after taking them down, have added to them, only for them to go up in shows again. I have a lot of unfinished projects.” That’s ok, Ricky Watts in himself is a constant work in progress, always reinventing and emerging with new innovations for design and art works.

If you are in need of a fresh new perspective, Ricky is currently taking on new freelance design projects. He also has beautiful prints available for sale in limited amounts, each signed and numbered. For more information, please visit: www.rickywatts.com

Need New Fits? Trust in the Celestials, Celes Clothing Company

Anytime I see something cutting edge I’m on top of it, like a cherry on a sundae. When I came across Celes Clothing Company it was their pop art style lips design that I first noticed – so Warhol, so bright, so me, so different. When I caught word that they were launching their new website this year on April Fools’ Day, I wanted to write a little something to give it a push. Since gentle pushes is what I do best.

Celes Clothing Company was founded in 2001 and is based down in Southern California, in the founder’s hometown of Santa Paula. Currently, a lot of what Celes Clothing is doing comes straight out of the bay, right here in San Francisco. The name “Celes” came from the word, “celestial.” Celes Clothing’s founder, Gabe Chavez thought of it one very clear, starry night following a soccer practice. As he was jotting down potential names for the company in his sketch book, he glanced up at the sky and thought, “Celestial” which later morphed into “Celest” and finally found its true title in “Celes.”

“It’s a really simple story, but the idea behind it is enormous. When someone is having a rough day they don’t look down, they look up for help and motivation,” Gabe explained. His passion for Celes originated years ago, while in middle school. “I remember thinking how interesting it was that everyone was wearing some kind shirt, you might think this was a simple observation, but it really got me thinking, about how cool it would be to have these people wear a shirt that I designed.” And so the dream was born and the brainstorming began, and this was the embryo of what would be Celes Clothing Company.

Celes now is a company with multiple designs for casual skate clothing and decks. They focus on skateboarding as an art form and have an awesome new website: www.celesclothing.com. I was incredibly impressed with the art direction and interactive nature of this site. Not only does it exist as a place to purchase, but it acts as a social site as well, offering many other facets, like a Music section, the Celes Skate Team, and Celes Underground.

While the company encompasses many arts, skating is its true basis. Currently Celes skate team has one solo member, Frank Oliva, myspace.com/bighairfrankthetank. “Celes has gone from having about five sponsored skaters to our current team: count of one! Some people might think that this isn’t a team at all, but I’d rather have one skater that is committed and having fun, then a whole team that only wants to receive free stuff now and then.” They are currently offering sponsorships to qualifying candidates who would like to be a part of the Celes family. But, they select their team members very carefully.

Celes Clothing also sponsors up and coming bands. Their website’s Music page is used mainly to promote and expose theses musicians. Gabe’s hope is that it will eventually act as a blog for sponsored bands to discuss whatever they want to. “As with our skateboard sponsorships, we take music sponsorships very serious and delicately,” he told me. Right now, Celes sponsors the band End Transmission, myspace.com/endtransmissionrock. Members include two of Gabe’s childhood buddies, “They are funny, creative, and serious about their music so I believe it was a good decision to have them on board with Celes. Sponsorships just really depend on how good the band is, and how well they fit in with the Celes lifestyle and attitude.” Soon the band Reborn, from Tijuana, Mexico will be joining the Celes family. “They are a Classic Rock / Metal band that will be breaking necks and driving peoples ears crazy with their melodic music,” Gabe told me. Check them out on MySpace: myspace.com/tjreborn.

Of all Celes’ ventures and the different avenues their company and website explore, I was most impressed with their concept for Celes Underground. Celes Underground division will partner with artists of various types in designing one original shirt – that’s right only Uno. Gabe explains the sheer brilliance of the project: “Celes Underground will be a very unique branch off of Celes Clothing. One of a kind t-shirts will be designed not only by Celes, but by collaborating artists, bands, skaters, and anyone you can think of. Because these shirts are one of a kind (and by that I mean only one will be made ever) each will tell a story.” Pure genius. They are to act as collector’s items, each will come with their story in a booklet, will be featured in a custom package, and numbered. Any artists interested in the Celes Underground project can email: underground@celesclothing.com.

Celes is also currently looking for models. Their recent venture the Celes’ “Exposure Series” proved to be a great success and now they are coming up on the “Exposure Series 2.” Skate decks will feature different models from different cities and cultures. Models will receive you guessed it: exposure, and also lots of promotion on their new site. Her persona will be featured on the deck and the coolest part: the deck itself will be named after her! Contact: Celesmodel@celesclothing.com for more information.

Celes is not Gabe Chavez’s only passion he also skates and loves soccer. These elements facilitate the motivation behind the concepts for his designs. Most all of the designs are currently of Gabe’s creation. But he does receive a lot of help from his friends, Sergio Oseguera, Alex Puga, Miranda Ko, Michele Oralnado who are also a part of Celes Clothing Company.

To purchase Celes merchandise, you can do so at their website, www.celesclothing.com or through their MySpace, myspace.com/celesclothingco. Search for them on Facebook, by looking for "Celes Man." Jump on it like I did, before the herd.

Wait, I’m a Writer? My name is in Four G’s Magazine!

What did you want to be when you were a kid, a Cowboy or an Indian? I wanted to be a divorce attorney. “Little girl from broken home wants to help dissolve marriages peacefully,” the headline read…

I changed my mind quickly when I grew up. In college I took on journalism but never said I wanted to be a writer. All I said was, “I want to have a job where I can write” and I am very fortunate to have a career in marketing that allows me the luxury of doing so. I love my job, but sometimes I miss journalism – interviewing interesting subjects is an exciting experience. And as a writer, there is something to be said for seeing your work in printed form – holding something tangible, in your hands, with your name on it. Something about that byline makes it all worthwhile, and this is why writing for Four G’s Magazine was such an honor.

The magazine is truly a work of art – from cover to cover; each page is bright with color and rich with content. And while the mag contains subject matter that doesn’t necessarily reflect my views or opinions, I respect it, and am incredibly proud to have been part of it. Four G’s creativity and uniqueness gives it a standalone quality that makes it unlike any other magazine I’ve ever seen. It’s the type of book you could look at on numerous occasions and notice something different with each glance.

Four G’s Magazine is the innovative brainchild of its creator Andy Souza, whose imagination and perfectionism have led him to produce an exceptional product. His diligence and dedication to his craft are admirable and I value the opportunity of working with him. Andy’s critique of my work and meticulous attention to detail encouraged me to strive to write better, and the end result is an article I am quite proud of.

Four G’s Magazine’s basis is art and I will always take on anything for art’s sake. My contribution was an article written on San Francisco hip-hop artist, TOPR. The experience of meeting and interviewing him, and then writing a piece about his life and music was truly an honor. To read it you must first buy the mag at: www.fourgsmagazine.com . Do yourself a favor and buy it anyway, it truly is something special. Trust me; you’ll notice right away, its superiority sets it apart from the rest.

*The Four G’s Issue Release Party is Saturday, March 7^th, Club 6, in San Francisco. For more details please visit: www.myspace.com/fourgsmagazine or www.fourgsmagazine.com

SUPPORT: the Phoenix Theater, go to the Guitar Gala

The Phoenix Theater is a place that is important to me. My reasoning for this is extensive but mostly, I feel that Petaluma would be lacking something without it. I was lucky enough to spend many a night at the theater in my youth, watching shows. Because it was right there in town it was easy to go. Do you have any idea how impossible it is for a 14 year old kid to get to the city to see a band perform? I do and I haven’t forgotten.
So many concerts, I might not have ever seen if it weren’t for the Phoenix. Those of you who grew up in the area know what I am taking about. But, have you been to the Phoenix lately? I have, just last year. I went to see hip-hop legends Too$hort, Method Man and Red Man, and for my friend and war casualty Kawika’s memorial. I love the place, it holds memories and it’s got its charm, but is in need of some definite renovation. And since this theater has given so much to the community, it’s only right that we pull together to participate in preserving this historical location and the wonderful programs it offers our youth.
The Phoenix has organized its Carnival and Guitar Gala, scheduled to take place this Saturday. The event will feature close to 20 guitars donated by the Gibson Foundation. Each one has been designed by a different artist, three of whom I know personally: Ricky Watts, Jared Powell and Josh Faure-Brac. I can’t begin to express the pride I take in knowing these three creative individuals and to be blessed with their astonishing work. Other artists include the likes of George Lucas, Seth Green, Stan Lee, Les Claypool, and many others. Please visit, phoenixguitargala.com for the full list.
“I knew in my heart and soul it was something I needed to contribute to. It's such an honor to be a part of this show, with so many great people contributing,” Ricky Watts told me. The artist and local visionary also helped in designing the poster that added to the overall look and feel for the Gala’s promotion and website. “How could I say no? Gibson Guitars donated all the materials and it was a dream come true to deface my very own Les Paul,” he joked.
The Gala is this Saturday, February 28th, at 7pm. It will feature a live Internet auction, cocktail party, silent auction featuring artist memorabilia, and appearances by a few of the artists. Tickets are only $30 each, $50 per couple and information can be found here. 100% of all proceeds will go towards supporting free after-school music, theater and arts programs for at-risk youth of the North Bay and will help to maintain our one and only Phoenix Theater.
Remember: the mission of the Phoenix is to, “foster the emotional, physical and social development of the young people we serve, specifically at risk youth, by enabling them to create and engage in programs for music, the arts, and health and wellness, while preserving and improving the historic Phoenix Theater as a resource for youth and the community at large.” Let that ideal live in your heart and let’s work together to keep it going. After all, children are our future; I was once a Phoenix punk kid who turned out alright.

Cataclysm Hits Petaluma This Month, a show by acclaimed artist Ricky Watts

Forward: I write about many up and coming artists that inspire me, but this article will prove to be of the highest honor to complete. Not only is it about a very talented artist but it is about a dear friend of mine, Mr. Ricky Watts. Who has at times inspired me to pick up a paint brush, forced myself to write when I had no words, and simply to pursue my dreams and do what I love to do. He is a true inspiration to artists of all types everywhere. I’m sorry it took me so long to write it my dear, but I am hopeful it will not disappoint. Much love and respect always...

Cataclysm Hits Petaluma This Month, a show by acclaimed artist Ricky Watts

Ricky Watts has been an artist his whole life, but it wasn’t until his early teens that he found his true passion. Through peers at school he was introduced to graffiti, which would later mark the essence of his desired art form. Later he went on to graduate from the Art Institute of California in San Diego. Since this, he has completed numerous pieces, in multiple mediums, and has had his work displayed in many shows.

This month, Ricky will be participating in his only solo show of the year, including all new pieces- drawings and paintings (acrylics and spray). The show entitled, “Cataclysm” is a series of drawings and paintings based on a drawing he created a few years ago, called “Petaluma 2086.” The piece was created by using Petaluma landmark buildings as studies in combination with images from the artist’s imagination. “I was just going for a futuristic idea of what was in store for Petaluma but the more I thought about it, the more I realized we need to wake up as a society. That drawing is our future if we don't change the way things are going,” Ricky said of the piece. The show’s opening is Friday night, October 10^th, at the Mail Depot, in downtown Petaluma.

When Ricky isn’t making masterpieces or coordinating shows, he’s working a 9-5. During the day he does graphic design and pre-press for a local print shop. But, after work with any and all free time he is drawing or painting. “I have a lot of influences these days. Not just people though. Places I go, things I see or grew up around- life in general,” Ricky said. “Burning Man really opened my eyes to a lot of things this year.”

Open eyes he has and an open mind as well; Mr. Ricky Watts has many definitions of the word “canvas.” You and I would think of a white, blank space; while he might see it as a car, a skateboard deck, a US Postage label- sky’s the limit and the ideas always fresh. One of his most incredible works on a very unusual surface, “Pieces of Me,” is made up of 100 consecutive drawings, each on their own USPS Priority Mail label. The entire work was completed free-style with a Sharpie. When put all together, the piece is 45 feet long.

Painting cars seems like it would be a trying task and a strange assignment, but not if you’re R.Watts. “That one fell into my lap like most ideas. I was approached by some friends of mine to re-paint their truck after some people had vandalized it. I had posted photos of it online and sure enough, a few months later I get approached to paint a delivery van. I've done a few of them now and they've been great publicity for me,” he said.

He makes it look so easy, but is it? Is he ever at a loss for ideas or creatively stifled? “All the time - some days worse than others. I always try to do something else for a little while and take my mind off what I'm working on. Go for a walk, stretch, play online poker for a little while. This usually helps but not always. I've got unfinished paintings that have been sitting around months,” he said.

In addition to his job and his career, Ricky offers a wide variety of freelance services: Graphic design, pre-press and printing, custom art, illustrations, event flyers and posters- just to name a few.He has also contributed to the colorful Four G's (Graffiti, Guns, Girls and Ganja), a young American culture magazine distributed internationally. Ricky and fellow artist, Chris Jehly, designed the cover for the first issue. The easiest place to pick up a copy or a shirt designed by Ricky is at: fourgsmagazine.com.

With his favorite medium, spray paint, 14 years experience and endless other creative skills- "Cataclysm," by Richard Watts is a show not to miss. Aren’t you curious to take a peek into the future? The show will be located at The Mail Depot, 40 Fourth Street, in Petaluma and will hang from Oct. 10^th-20^th. The opening reception will be Friday the 10^th starting at 6:30pm and will feature music by A Case of the Willys, a local dance band will be performing a range of musical styles: "songs you know, songs you have never heard and song you know but have never heard like this before!"

So where will it all go? I asked Ricky what his thoughts were. With Mr. Watts we shouldn’t worry too much. There is no doubt in my mind where ambition like this ends up- there’s no place for it to go but up. “Sure I dream of making it big with shows in Paris and London and then over to New York City for a book signing but honestly, if I make a living doing MY art for the rest of my life, I'd be happy. The wealth and fame are certainly desirable but they're not necessary for me to be happy,” he said.

For more information about the show or Ricky’s work, please visit: rickywatts.com or read his blog.