Happy international women’s Month!

Yes, that’s right after Black History Month comes women’s month a.k.a. a two month celebration of me and the rest of the black femmes parading the streets in all our gloriousness. Black excellence at its best if you ask me.

Ha ha ha no but seriously I’m happy to celebrate all of the lovely women in my life and the ones that I will meet later on throughout my life. It’s a great time to give thanks to the women in your life, but also to give them their flowers for everything that they do on a regular basis and beyond. With that being said, I’d like to share some of the amazing women I’ve had the pleasure of working with, and that I genuinely and generally enjoy.

All photos by Lina Bonda

Models: Erica Imoisi, Delvina, Hannah Dubin

First off is a new friend Miss Lena From Callie, who took these lovely images of me, Dell and Hannah at A lovely little manison in western Mass. She is a beautiful rich style gets the shot quick and beautifully. What more could I ask for?

Location: Ames Mansion, North Easton, MA

Intentions I’m setting for this month:

  • create with other women (opportunities, projects and joy)

  • Be true to the energy I live in

  • Slow-up aka slow down to get back on track for the come up✨ you like how I did that?

Clothes collaborative

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I had the lovely opportunity to work with Sam Fields and her team of textile of assistants with this installation/exhibit sponsored by Now+There’s Accelerator program. The work brought attention to fast fashion and the slowness that is undoing the damage that we are creating. Learning more about how our clothes are made, what they are made of and how to better care for them. Touching on some of the malpractice of the work: fair wage, environmental and social impacts and waste in high degrees.

One of my function as part of the team was setting up the shop, “performing” the slow and precise unraveling of donated clothes and labeling each cut from the garment. I was also able to participate in classes and free education. This taught me more about how clothes are made, what supports are needed for different types of garments and the most popular places for the production of clothes sold in the US.

I’m glad that people would stop in like it was a regular shop, say hi, ask questions and some people would ask about our scraps and other things we had going on like our weekly mending sessions where we taught people how to fix their clothes. One less expense and trip to the dry cleaners. We also did a clothing swap at the end of the project which was super fun! I got a few pieces for myself and some of my favorite scraps from my disassemblies.

The biggest thing this project taught me is the importance of knowing the process and how things are done, especially how they are made. I also learned a lot about myself and how thin is too thin to spread yourself. I was in college and working part time retail while also working on this project. It showed me how community feeds you (literally and spiritually) and how a network of people take care of one another. it would not have worked if the neighborhood had been against us setting up, it would not have worked if we were not a good team, didn’t communicate and learn to take care of one another. to work slowly with this group taught me so much about the importance of going slow and and taking my time instead of trying to speed though everything. That time was so pivotal for me in a lot of was so I will always be grateful to have participated


L’Official India Feature

Somerville Studios
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Third times a charm! Another publication with our wonderful team. I truly love working with this group, it’s colorful, creative, and it’s always a party vibe you know?

Team Credits:

Publication: @lofficielindia

Photo: Zemo Zheng IG: @zemovisuals
Model: Lyra Barillas IG @Lyra_barillas
Wardrobe: Anica Buckson IG @xx_anaka_xx  @ennisinc
Hair: Erica Imoisi IG @erica.imoisi
Makeup: Alex Barish @alexbarish.makeup

Millinery Artist: @mariegalvinmillinery

Studio: @somerville_studios

I’m a big fan of the millinery used in this feature! Designed by Marie Galvin, it gave things a much more mystical maleficent sort of look and played up the drama. Lyra is one of my favorite hair clients cause there’s just so much you could do with her hair.

Check out the magazine and let me know what you think of these looks!


Congrats to Tyhara!

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My lovely friend, Tyhara is pregnant with her first baby and a miracle baby at that! to celebrate, we did a photoshoot at my house. 3 looks with easy changes: Neutral, Colorful and Editorial graphic liner! I loved these looks and Dre Photography did an amazing job of capturing it <3

Lady Gunn Magazine: Hair Feature

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Hello hello! It’s been a bit! I’m a great documenter, working on the sharing part 😅 but I was invited to do hair for the lovely Lyra Barillas! She is an amazing actress, model, and cat mom. She wanted some new work for her portfolio and I happily agreed! Luckily we also got this work published in Lady Gunn Magazine. Check it out below for more images from the shoot!

Next we played with an updo version of this style. She has tons of lush hair but it’s heavy so lots of Bobby pins and small sections were needed. I did a partial French roll and added pin curls back in to cover it a bit and keep the texture.

Next were warrior style braids. It screams Jason Mamoa in Game of Thrones in the best way 😂 strong, powerful and practical for battle. I liked keeping the styles a bit tousled so I fluffed up the braids a bit instead of making it super sleek.

The last hair look is my absolute favorite because we get a little edge action! I wish I could have done more but we were cutting it close on time and energy but I’m so happy with how it turned out. We went for perfect pulled back ponytail with these not so baby hair accents and it wired to give her extra intensity on the eyes.

We started with some classic 50’s pin curls. This made things easy for multiple styles and eventually styling her into finger waves. Her hair is long so it’s not the full hair helmet that we traditionally know but I think the point came across.

Paint box 2021

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I never really talked about this but I DID A PUBLIC MURAL LAST SUMMER! This is my first project under my name for the city and I was super proud to work on it! I was hoping to meet some other artists in the area but I didn’t see many people out. Last time I worked on a paintbox project, I was assisting my friend Perla Mabel while watching another friend, Naija Nine work across the street. I did however meet someone from the committee who put the program together! In their Call to Artists, they featured me working on my box along with other completed projects. Got a good Twitter shout out too!

I worked on it quite early so I could finished before taking a few summer getaway trips. It took a total of 2 days. I was practically done the first day but stepping back, I wanted to add more dimension with the tones. Here’s what my original sketch looked like: close to the original but really just inspiration for what would occur once I started working.

These are the final images 😊 Much more vibrant and deep in the way that the waves pop! I also snuck a cute little heart in my design too! I made a little reel working on it here! If you are in the Savin Hill, Boston area, go check it out right next to the Harp + Bard Restaurant

If you visit, PLEASEEEE take pics! I would love to see you in the neighborhood 😊 but until then,

I’ll talk to y’all soon,

E

Happy 2022! 🥳Let's get back to it!

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It’s a new year and mannnnnn am I grateful to not only have made it through the past two years but to have thrived in so many ways. I also feel like I should reintroduce myself since many things have changed for me in the time I have been away from the blog.

Photo by SashaLee Photography

Let me lay down the basics: My name is Erica, I’m 24 soon to be a quarter century old. I make art in the city of Boston and my mission is to create a sense of awareness of self in people that they may have otherwise ignored or had gone unnoticed. From the makeup artistry to my illustrative work, I want people to see themselves in their best light but also shed light on the things that have been hidden.

With makeup, I do this by showing people it doesn’t take much to release your inner self. It’s all about the confidence gained by becoming the reflection of yourself that shows who you are on the inside, outside. Reminiscing on my chameleon days of “new wig everyday” and having 3 opposing aesthetics a week, helped me to find the little details of personal style that brought my inner personality to life. If you’ve ever had your makeup done by me, you’ll hear me say, “it should be you but more refined” but the thing is, I don’t want to define what the refinement is. That’s for you to be curious about and figure out what you are tuning yourself into. Often times, it’s just another aspect of you that lacks visibility.

Taking that into consideration, I never want to mask how I or anyone else feels or expresses themselves. I want to amplify. This goes for my illustration as well. I want to create a space that is tangible for people to feel like they can express things they never have before and explore what that is or what it could mean for them. I have had many highs and lows and dealing with them has revealed a lot about the ways in which I view the world and where those boundaries are or even where they are being created. Emotional and spatial awareness is a big part of my current work as I practice this while making the work itself.

Photo by Mona Miri

I will be working my way back to fashion posts and “style studies”. It’s clearly something I have always loved but it heavily ties into art and the way I like to tell stories. People around me have taught me how to tell better stories and that it can help to push a story forward. That’s why I love costume designers Ruth Carter and Ellen Mirojnick. They use color, texture and historical narratives that are more engaging stories. I want to do that in my daily wardrobe but I’m also working on creating a more sustainable wardrobe. I am back to designing and making clothes for myself again. But as always, my wardrobe is open to independent designers, black-owned, Women-owned and eco-friendly businesses. Moving forward as I want my closet to have a similar moral messaging that hold myself to. So I’m excited to go back to being dressy and cute and adding to my “Chameleon Effect”. I will also be partner with some new people and brands this year so don’t be surprised when I have discount codes for days for you!

Looking forward to more posts and educational resources on here as well as BTS and process work for all of my projects. See y’all later! 😊

I love this little snippet from The Real Daytime that has been illuminating to hear



New Year's in Chicago

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I decided that this year, I wanted to be in a new city and on an adventure. SOOOOO I took a trip to visit a long time friend of mine who was happy to show me around and show me her spots around town!

Chicago has those New York streets where the buildings are tall and tower over you in perfectly gridded streets. But it also feels like boston in the way that everyone minds their own business, unless they are interested. I also love how oddly close to water it is for a city, it reminds me of the Charles River running between boston and Cambridge. Even for the cold, it was really nice.

When I first got off the plane I headed straight to the Omakase my friends had set up and Q Sushi for a 15 course meal. Now when i tell you, every bite was worth it, I mean wow did they really did that. Not only did we have amazing combos but they even had dessert sushi which I didn’t even know what a thing. I got a chef’s choice sake sampler which was amazing! The plum wine and nigori were my favorites 😊

The next day was museum day! The Museum of Contemporary Art is spacious and had some interesting conversations in the exhibits they had. Christina Quarles has colorful self-representative work of how her identity feels and is portrayed because she is both Black and white but white-passing. The way that the bodies in her work overlap and use more relaxed and quiloquial language to emphasize her speech and understanding of her enviornment. One of my favorite pieces was this 3 panel painting that you could walk in between like an interactive triptych.

Across the hall was Bani Abidi who’s work is highly documentative of her people and political war struggles of Pakistan. Her work hit hard in ways i didnt except especially because i don’t know much of their plight as a people. But the pieces that stuck with me were a series of letter to and from various people. They were all sort of sad or hopeless in some way, like pleading for the body of someone that passed or hoping to see a loved one again. This and the watercolor series “the man who talked until he dissappeared”. This series just reminds me of how people slowly but surely lose their voice and fade out to the back ground. In their case it looked like political prisoners but in my case i think about the people who become mousy due to a lack of confidence in others to hear them even when they might want to hear. It reminded me of why my voice is important which leads us to….

Andrea Bowers’ floor, yes, floor, was amazing. The activism and span of her work was absolutely magnificent. She advocates for women’s reproductive rights internationally, cares about land conservation, and immigration rights as well. She uses video, collage, sculpture and does large scale paintings on collected cardboard. She really amazed me but also this aligns with what I want for my work, except getting arrested and using my headshot for my book 😅

After leaving there, we went to the Museum of Illusion which was fun and super silly but more for kids than adults in my opinion. Wish it were bigger but I guess that is the illusion 😏Sadly skippable but glad I went anyway!

Next up was WNDR and wow what a great hidden artist spot. Interactive so you can take pics and videos throughout all the exhibits, they change reguarly ANDDDDDD it has one of Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity rooms. I have a goal of eventually seeing all of them and so far i have 2 under my belt and I’ve seen her work in every state I visited last year (DC, Hawaii, Cali, Chicago and Boston!) They had a lot of cool features but I loved this mirror that basically plays Magic 8 ball with you. it was great because we all got something weirdly relevant to our situations and what we were questioning or needed the most assurance on. Another really cool one was this room where you hear a chorus singing like the’s the Halo opening and it tells you how many people are listening at that very moment. A great reminder that this universe is connected in many ways and being experienced in so many different ways. I also just like chants and the sound of a choir, nothing compares to it’s beauty 🤷🏾‍♀️

I had a really great time and I’m looking forward to coming back in the summer time for a few other bomb ass learning and living experiences! I’ll see you on the next flight! Cheers!

-E

Tori Tori “Daily” Music video

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Hello hello! How are y’all? I hope you are in good spirits! It’s been a while but i want to show you where i’ve been and what i’ve been up to these past few months!

I had the amazing opportunity to do makeup for a music video!! Side Presents, who I’ve worked with on a few other occasions last year, invited me to design and execute looks for ToriTori’s video project and I was beyond words. Tori and I chatted about the concept for the video and styling so we could come up with something that matched the mood and tone. After coming up with a plan, I sketched out a few ideas. Here’s the face chart I created to get a better sense of which direction would be best.

Making face charts with these descriptions really helps the person embodying them set the mood for themselves and how they would like to approach the look. I always think of the attitude that comes with a look and especially for something like this that comes with a bit of acting, I love to add it in. It’s part of stepping into that new reality or storyline. The story of this video definitely read a bit sexy but sinister so with each look there were all varying instances of drama. Red lips for me always read sexy but darkening it made it more vampy. We ended up going for the Classic Sultry look for the video which turned out perfect! take a look at the video and tell me Tori’s isn’t absolutely gorgeous, and if you do, yous a lier 😜

We banged out a music video in a weekend and what a weekend. Cast and crew were amazing! gotta give it us for TLoui and Marly for inviting me to be apart of this project, feeding us goos, hosting us in both of their homes for the video and for keeping us on track. We had 3 locations for this shoot including a dance studio hiding under a hair salon! not to mention the crew was almost am all black production 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 I love working with other black creatives in my city so it made me happy to make everyone look and feel good. Plus a pet talk from me will hopefully get you through anything or at least that’s my hope.

Cast |

Performing Artist: Toritori

Love interest: Junior

Dancers / Friends: Carmen, Patrice, Theralande, Marly

Production/Direction: HomeGrownHD | Christian & Rickey

Makeup Artist: Erica Imoisi

She’s Published Baby! Paprika & Cayenne for Solstice Magazine

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I’m very excited to share some news with you! I’ve been doing more freelance makeup artist work this year and was publish in a UK fashion magazine. This is the first time that I have had work in a publication that wasn’t just proof of existence or experience but a team effort. Here’s the article!

Credits:Photo: Zemo Zheng / IG: @zeemees Model: Kristina ByerleyIG: @kristinabyerley repped @ Maggie Inc. Agency IG: @_maggieInc Model: Eliane Cabral IG: @itseliane repped @ Maggie Inc. Agency IG: @_maggieInc Stylist: Anica Buckson / IG: xx_Anaka_xx HUMA: Erica Imoisi / IG: @Erica.imoisiPhoto Assistant: Joyce Yan / IG: @joyce.yan.94

Credits:

Photo: Zemo Zheng / IG: @zeemees
Model: Kristina ByerleyIG: @kristinabyerley repped @ Maggie Inc. Agency IG: @_maggieInc
Model: Eliane Cabral IG: @itseliane repped @ Maggie Inc. Agency IG: @_maggieInc
Stylist: Anica Buckson / IG: xx_Anaka_xx
HUMA: Erica Imoisi / IG: @Erica.imoisi

Photo Assistant: Joyce Yan / IG: @joyce.yan.94

Kristina In a natural blush red

Kristina In a natural blush red

Kristina is wearing a soft natural look with a berry blotted lip. Her skin is so bright and youthful so I wanted to keep it light. My favorite part of this look is the lip! I learned this technique watching the cool Korean girls come into Sephora. Many of them love dark red lipsticks applied on only the center of the lips which make them look intense but small like you’ve just eaten berries in the forest. One of my favorite colors for that look is Lost Cherry from Tom Ford. On Kristina, I used Kaja’s cushion Lip in red since it had a velvet texture and is great for blending rich color into a softer stain.

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For Eliane’s look I wanted something that worked similarly so I used the same technique for the lips in a softer color. I also added extra foundation over the edges of the lip so it blended into the skin beautifully. Her brows are one of my features of her face so of course I brushed them up to give her a lift and make them the star of the show. To bring that attention back into the eyes, I opted for bronze neutral shadow with an emphasis on a full looking lash line without lashes.

For their last look, we went more experimental. Ever since Rihanna did that blown out blush for the Met gala years ago, I’ve noticed a lot more makeup artist doing this look. It personally became and everyday look for me and I thought our models would love it. Kristina’s version of this look is more of a cool-toned pink with neon like intensity. Definitely gave sailor moon vibes. Eliane on the other hand got a richer glow from within and warm tones that made the reds melt into her skin. Working with them was great! Up for anything and everything I wanted to put them in.

Our team was pretty small, just 6 of us. It really played out well and was super fun. I already love working with Maggie Agency models and our stylist, Anica, is absolutely amazing. Hopefully, one day she’ll style me for something 🥰 In the mean time, I’ve got hair and makeup on lock so I’ll stick to what I do best. While we were out, I got some awesome behind-the-scenes and we filmed a couple Tiktoks too! By the end of the day I had broken my makeup bag and had arms like Popeye but chillin on a rooftop with free drinks and music so it all worked out. Trust and believe the struggle will lead to a stronger victory. Push though cause I know you’ll make it ✨

Take care, stay safe,

E

Dominican Republic Trip

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Hello hello! I hope you are well & thriving 💕

This past month, my friends and I were finally able to take the trip we’ve been planning since March! The intention for the trip was to get away from the chaos of life whether it was a living situation, stuck in too much of the same energy or just needed to be by bodies of water. We all needed a new clarifying experience and the Dominican Republic was it!

The first time I went to DR was in high school for a volunteer trip. We raised money through donations, bake sales and part-time jobs to get it done. It was great because we were able to buy supplies for a school and got to hangout with them and spent a few days helping rebuild a man’s home. My Spanish was probably better then and it was a large group of us so it was a fun 10-day trip.

For our trip, we arrived in Santo Domingo to meet up with some family, grab a rental car and get going . A few ganepas and ripe mangos later, we hit the road for 5hr drive up to our EcoRetreat in the hills: Parariso

I loved this Airbnb! have had themed rooms based on the attractions closest to you. We had Flamingos in a pool with koi fish right outside of our sliding doors! They were so beautiful and relaxed and we even sat outside with them to stretch in the morning or take a quick breather. When you step into the rest room though, there’s an outdoor shower AND A PARROT CAGE. They were so funny and kept trying to get our attention and spy on us showering. Very silly but boy have they seen a lot.

They had great accommodations from the long edgeless pool to the jacuzzi, free use kitchen and resting areas all around the property. We definitely enjoyed it like it was a private resort just for us. It definitely helped that there was breakfast everyday, fresh guava, passionfruit and mango juice, just amazing. I could have eaten like that for the rest of my life tbh but I love the spice of life so I aim to try new things when I can..

We spent a few days at La Playita Beach with a new adventure every day. The first day we hung out at the beach and met our guy who would make all the magic happen, “rainbow braids” is what I like to call him. Compliments and Pina coladas on command! We just relaxed and took pictures the first day. 

Second day, he arranged for us to go horseback riding through nature and by the beach. We ran into a farmer and his cows, a field of orange flowers and back down the road we once came from. It was amazing but I almost lost my flip flops! Luckily our tour guide Juan was nice enough to tie them around his waist for me so I rode barfoot. 

Third day, we managed to take a small boat off to some of the other beaches along the coast. One was really beautiful but was trashed the night before by someone having an absolute rager, or maybe they just don’t get cleaned as often. Either way, super secluded and quiet.

We had one last adventure and it was to ride donkies through the wilderness to Salta de Limon! It was breathtaking to see and feel the mist coming down the water. there were so many people there swimming, jumping off the water and checking out the cave underneath it. Also seemed like a good place to take pictures with a Macaw if you wanted to.

late night dinner

Quick night at el Maraquire, a one night stay at a very interestingly arranged motel. It could have been someone’s home and had a gated project style pool outside of the rooms. It was there that I discovered I had a few HUGEEE mosquito bites on my neck. we did end up shopping at a bunch of little bodgeas for snacks and alcohol which ended up being pretty fun as we drove another 3 or so hours to our next destination.

Last Destination: Casa Cliff

this Airbnb was cute but it just became a nightmare overtime. We walk in to admire the kitchen, 2 rooms, bathroom, pool and the beautiful walk along the beach. it was only after the person taking care of the property left that we realized… most of the furniture was sticky and covered with ants, there were almost no utensils to cook with and the property was poorly taken care of before our arrival. When we went to use the pool, we found 2 crabs living in it, waiting for a drop of water.

The boardwalk was actually nice and lead us to take pictures and use it as an unofficial runway. at the end of the boardwalk was this stone seating area that was perfect to spy on the bar next door and to have a little smoke sess.

We still ended up trying to make dinner only to settle for ordering in. We didn’t end up going to the resturant next door until the day we left. it was a nice spot with good drinks but I’m glad we didn’t make that the main spot.

When all was said and done, we really did have an amazing trip and really got the rest and recuperation that we all needed to take with us back into our respective realities.

Get to Know Me: My interview with Dre

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Hi y’all, it’s been a while but I’m back in action. I hope all is well in your neck of the woods. I’m excited, It feels like the world is picking up speed again and work has been picking up so we are getting there. I had the lovely opportunity to talk with Dre, an amazing portrait photographer in Boston last spring. (Instagram | Youtube ) Her work often focuses on black women and fashion and I was exstatic when she wanted me to be the first guest of her artist interview series called Sessions & Sit-Downs! This is a great chance for those who may not be familiar with my work to see more of the facets of my artistic expression. Check out our interview!

Fun Notes about the look I did: I wanted something that showed how i normally am, I really would rock this look to Home Depot or CVS 😂(which I have) specifically with my shirt. It’s from Lazy Oaf in collaboration with artist Becky Sloan, one of the creators of Don’t Hug Me, I’m Scared on Youtube. I used to stay up all night watching it and the matching conspiracy theories. This may be part of the reason I love chaotic memes and existential thought 😅 but it also opened up the door or what a creative project looked like in terms of medium involved and creating a series.
I hope you all enjoy the video and of course, ask me anything about my space, philosophy or style in the comments 😊

Signing off,

Erica ✨

Closing the year on a high note

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There a lot to be said for how this year has played out but I’d just like to stop and appreciate the fact that everyone tried their hardest this year. Perseverance at its greatest and y’all deserve a round of applause. Even if you couldn’t do everything you set out to do this year, I’m proud of what you were able to accomplish no matter how trivial. We deserve a pat on the back for making it through a fairly chaotic year. I’ve tried to keep my spirits high regardless so I took a bit of time to myself.

I’ve been away cranking out work of various kinds. Crocheting sweaters, oil painting for (almost) the first time, and vlogging to the best of my abilities. I also managed to total my laptop trying to keep my plants healthy. She needed a reset and refresh, same goes for me 😅 I’m gearing up for the new year and trying to improve my personal practices as well as work practices. Creating comforting space has been part of it so I have been doing small home improvements like hanging paintings and cleaning my family home.

BIG thanks to everyone who bought from my shop this year whether it be in person or through the site. I’m working on new launches for next year so keep your eyes peeled for new stickers and more stationary! 😏

‘Till next time: stay safe, create peace in your space and have a fantastic day!

- E

Gallery shows in the days of quarantine

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I’ve had the privilege to be able to go to to the museum and go to exhibits for a few artist over the past couple weeks. One of which was The History of Right Now (aka THORN) by photographer OJ Slaughter. They have taken the time to document this important cultural moment with BLM Movement protests and continues to hit the streets. I was actually able to volunteer with them for the show and may I say, a lovely person, they should be protected at all costs. They set up at Windy Studios on a lovely Saturday afternoon and I greeted gallery visitors with sanitizer, a temperature check and stickies + a pen. This allowed for people to move one way through the gallery but still have the option to voice their opinions on the work. I had a great time not only bringing people in to see the work but to read some of the comments on the work after people came out of the exhibit to them grab a free postcard. It showed that their are ways to show art that are safe and clean even though I considered them to be before the pandemic.

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Okay so it’s been a month since and sadly this artist, doing their job documenting what is our current circumstance with the police in Boston and gets pepper sprayed. For me, it just solidifies the necessity for us to keep speaking and using our voices to the best of our ablities. We have to keep protecting each other, the time is now cause the future can’t wait. As much as it matters to sign petitions, hit the streets and protest, voting, for these who can, solidifies our voices on paper in the halls of where our country’s decsions are made.

Stay safe, wear a mask and find a little moment of Joy,

Erica

Block Printing Experiments

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Hey, it’s been a tough week but a productive one for sure, I wanted to show you some of the progress I’ve been making in my printmaking class:

We started out the semester with an accordian book project! It was a fun challenge for me to figure out how I’d like to configure it and what things I thought worked and what didn’t. All of the prints are reduction prints which was a bit of a challenge because of the multiple prints but also I have a printing press at home to ensure the best printing of the image so it was all done by wooden spoon. Honestly, it was quite fun just to play around with it and layer it. I did 4 layers of transparent black to create this lovely image of my window throughout the summer. It reminds me of hopefulness, the sun’s warmth and prosperity but then I displace it by adding these heavy contrast image of what the world looked like to me in the realm of social issues. This for me hopefully questions the complicated feelings that come about as one makes choices about what emotion they choose to honor or acknowledge.

As much as i love how it came out, there are some major things I would change about it:

1. Better images for the photographs - These are super badly printed images of places I had experienced during the summer while still under quaratine. (I only travelled to D.C. which you can check out in this post)

2. Better glueing or generally different medium - I feel like this would make much better for a zine if I were to document other peoples spaces and the particular issues that they are concerned with

3. A whole new selection of poetry: Yeah, I’m not much of a poet but I love prose. I’d love to find some poetry or some writing that compliments the message a bit better or that illuminates the issues that arise with the image. I might rewrite them but I feel like choosing a work that moves me might be more fun even though it takes more time.

I feel like so much has happened since this project, it felt refreshing to start another print making project. I spent the past 3-4 weeks working on 2 print projects one of which I would also really love to do as a book. This one was the real experiment because while making it I really changed the way that I saw my own actions while working on it. It’s narrative, it’s simple and colorful but still dark and goes through a transformation that I feel in a way everyone has had to go through this year.

Gearing up and Building Momentum

There’s a lot of ideas I have and things I want to do but the time I want to do it is wildly unrealistic. At least where I am right now in the process of growing and expanding, I find keeping things loos and free floating really help me to keep track of all that I’m doing. The past few weeks I’ve been working on new products that I want to sell, projects I want to do and video documentation of all those things. First up are the Prints I will be selling today! It is a lovely set of Black Joy PostCards. I want to fuel people’s interest In the post office again and really enjoy the moment of getting a package or a note in the mail. Another little moment of happiness and joy.

As a kid growing up on the internet, one of my favorite places to spend time was E-Bay. I got to find cool vintage clothing and Japanese fashion that was otherwise inaccessibly to me from the States. It was also how i really learned a bit of entrepreneurship in shipping and packaging orders. My best friend and I even won the science fair based on the ideas we had around better functioning system around tracking orders and the interactions between those selling and their consumers. All to say, you may have more experience than you realize. You have to put in that ground work before you can be the best or even find your groove in things. Same goes for Art and all other endeavors so take you time and keep at it because you never know what or where it might lead you.

With that said, I’m launching my Patreon at the start of October and I would love for you to support me on there. I’m going to have videos, polls on the next projects I’ll do and a gift each month! For now the blog will serve as an update and motivational space to talk about completed works and where my mind is in the art that I’m making the messages I have to share.

Thank you for being present and being be patient and sticking with me and being there for yourself every day

Erica ❤️

Ensuring your Authenticity

As an artist and a young person, it’s hard to not be swayed by everything around you. From your friends and family opinions to the ads catered to you by your “ the federal agent” hiding in your computer, there’s a lot that that can make you question yourself. Take a moment, a day, a week, to have time to yourself and truly bask in the your own feelings and thoughts. Take that time to sort yourself out. Meditate with an incense all the things that you’d like to manifest in yourself and your future. Close your eyes and hold your breath, gently releasing it when you are ready. do this as many times as you need until you are calm and collected. Reassure yourself and the outside world will not unbalance you as much because you know where you stand.

This is how I prepare myself every week. Sundays are for rest and so I clean and restructure and plan the week(s) to come. This has helped me tremendously in giving me the confidence to do more things that make me scared because I prepare. I started my last semester of university this week and it feels like I’m gonna have a good time. First is cinema genre studies with the hilarious Sarah Keller who exposed me to Barbra Hammer’s work and let me say hi to her over Skype! Next is printmaking which I’m no stranger to but I’ve already had my eye open to new ideas for work I want to make. Last but definitely not least, finally I’m taking an African studies course on Black Cinema in America. Granted, I know there’s gonna be triggering and racist notions involved but I’m excited to see what I learn and how that might play into my work.

WIth this blog along with better practices and ensuring my very open and hopeful and authentic self, I manifested an opportunity for myself. No more hoping and wishing, I’m starting now. I took the time to play with some fun projects this week, a little sewing Project and some new sticker designs!

I’m SUPER excited to be showing and selling at “This is not a moment, This is a movement” with the Artivism Initiative. It’s going to be held September 27th, 2020 from 12pm -3pm at the Burncoat Center of the Arts and Wellness in Worchester, MA! It’s an outdoor market that is going to be following the CDC guildlines (and I’ll keep thing safe for you for extra caution!) for more info: on it click here 😊 I hope to see you there!