The Nueva Vida Project

About a year ago I was approached by the Economic Development council for the city of Hidalgo, Texas to help them create a logo for a new citywide initiative focusing on economic growth. The Nueva Vida Project ("New Life" in Spanish) is a program that aims to spark a new life in historical old Hidalgo. By rehabbing old buildings and encouraging new business to move in and grow, the program is already off to a successful start. I was honored to be asked to be a part of such a meaningful project and look forward to seeing it succeed.

Take a look at one of their recent events here.

The Succulent Show!

The succulent show has arrived! Parts and Labour on S. Congress here in Austin have given me a 2 month long residency on their art wall. I've spent about 4 months planning, designing, printing, and assembling all sort of succulent themed designs. We've got tote bags, screen prints, digital prints, magnets, notebooks, and stickers. The show runs from May 17 to June 27th. Check it out if you find yourself on S. Congress.

The Great Outdoors

Go Outside! My 2014 calendar encourages everyone to get away from their cozy apartments and houses and get some sunshine in their lives. This one color print shows a mountain range over the course of all 4 seasons.

Printed by the fine folks at the Steady Print Shop Co, I was excited about using their risograph and the results didn't disappoint. Riso prints are a hybrid between high speed color copies and screen printing and produces some nice quirks and unexpected results.

Southern Livin'

Back in June I received an email with the subject line "Southern Living". I got a little excited because Southern Living and I have a bit of history together. Back when I was a kid, my mom had a subscription to the magazine and I would see the back issues all over the house. Then, when I was in college, I would stock the new issues on the newsstand of the bookstore where I worked. And now that I am in my 30s, I was receiving an email from the travel editor requesting samples of the screen prints that I've been working on the last couple of years. I was definitely excited now.

It turns out they were working on a little piece that featured regional screen printers who were doing work focusing on the cities that they lived and worked in. They asked me to overnight a couple of my prints to see if they wanted to use them. I rushed to Kinko's and sent them on the next flight out. A few days later I got a phone call saying that they loved the prints but were wondering if I could hypothetically come up with something specifically for them that was similar to what I had already sent. They wanted an illustration that showcased not just Texas, but all of what the entire Southern United States represented. And I had two days to do it. And it was July 4th. And I said yes.

So after a few sleepless nights researching and illustrating, I came up with the drawing below. I was happy with it, and they loved it. And about 6 weeks later my mom walked out to her mailbox (she's still a subscriber) and opened her favorite magazine and saw her son's name in it. This one's for her.

Special thanks to Jonathon at Napkin Art Studios for passing along my name.

Also, thanks to Brooks and his gang of professionals at Mama's Sauce for assisting me with the printing of this thing.

From Concept to Completion

Paper was stacking up all over the place so I had to do something about it. After searches through thrift stores, vintage shops, and Habitat for Humanities came up empty, I knew that if I was going to get something to hold the specific paper that I had, I was going to have to build it myself. So a trip to Home Depot was in order for the lumber, paint, screws, and stain, and two weeks of nighttime amateur carpentry work later, I now have a new shelving unit that fits all of my oversize screen printing paper perfectly.