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violethowler · 6 years

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A speculative analysis on Shiro, Haggar, and the Rift.

I think I’ve done it. I think I may have managed to crack the code and figure out what Haggar’s plan for Shiro was. I was sitting in art history class last night thinking about how fans had so many theories about what Haggar was up to that were ultimately disproved by Season 8 when I suddenly remembered this one line from season 3 that started a chain reaction in my head as all the little details and narrative puzzle pieces we’d been given over the series (even in the butchered version of Season 8 that we got) that not only painted a coherent picture of what Haggar’s endgame had been, but also explained just why she had been so interested in Shiro enough to clone him so many times.

It’s been an ongoing complaint in the fandom that we never find out what Haggar’s plans were for Shiro when she said he “could have been our greatest weapon”. But I was struck by a burst of inspiration while sitting in art history class the other day and realized that the answer had been there all along. It was just that nobody noticed it because it was another aspect of the narrative where the writers took the “show, don’t tell” maxim too far. Ironic, considering that they straight up told us Haggar’s plan all the way back in Season 3. All that changed since then was the “why” and “how”.

In the flashbacks of their resurrection in “The Legend Begins”, Coran’s narration outlines that the reason Zarkon was hunting for Voltron so fervently that he was still looking ten thousand years later was because he was trying to re-open a rift to the Quintessence Field. (That was how the Paladins deduced that Lotor was attempting to do the same with Sincline) Because of her status in the Empire as Zarkon’s right hand and, as others have noted, the sense that despite her deference to him she’s the one ultimately calling the shots, this means that Haggar and Zarkon have been jointly working towards the goal of re-entering the Rift for millennia.

And it makes sense when you think about it. Zarkon may have wanted to reclaim the Black Lion for the sake of his ego, but he was too invested in obtaining all five lions after ten thousand years for it to just be for his ego alone. Haggar’s line in Season 2 that his obsession with the Black Lion is clouding his judgement already read like an admonishment not to let his wounded pride distract him from the big picture even before Season 3, and with that line in Season 3, it basically amounts to “hey dumbass, getting back into the Rift is more important than your battered ego.”

It makes a great deal of sense that Haggar was trying to re-access the rift because all of her projects that we see in arc one play a role in her ultimate success in Season 8. The fact that the Altean mechs are referred to as Robeasts means we, the audience, are supposed to look back on the mindless monsters fought in the first act as prototypes of the intelligently-piloted mecha seen in the third. As for the Komar, it’s there to serve as an energy source. In all of the times that Voltron is shown traversing between realities in Seasons 3 – 6, it’s only ever entered an existing rift (Hole in the Sky, The Legend Begins) or re-opened one that was recently closed (Hole in the Sky, Defender of All Universes). We have never seen Voltron open a brand-new rift between realities all by itself. That’s where the Robeasts and the Komar come in.

In Season 8, we see Haggar tear open a portal to the Quintessence Field after draining the quintessence of at least four different planets, amplified by the Olkari echo cubes, and the White Lion of Oriande. Since she was simply creating an opening large enough and long enough to return Sincline to the main reality, she didn’t need Voltron to pull off just that. This communicates to the audience that it takes a massive amount of Quintessence. Considering the emphasis placed on her Komar, we can surmise that while Zarkon dedicated the Galra fleet to capturing Voltron, Haggar’s primary research has been dedicated to amassing enough Quintessence to tear open a rift to the Quintessence Field once they had Voltron.

But the Komar we see in the first arc has its limits. Its range is limited and can only be used on planets that are within range of Zarkon’s command ship. Not to mention that Season 2 shows that there is a limit to how much Quintessence the first model can absorb before it overloads. This is where Seasons 7 and 8 clarifies the purpose of the Robeast project: attaching the Komar to a mech makes it more mobile, and by designing them to draw on the Quintessence of the pilot as a fuel source, they can absorb larger quantities of Quintessence over longer periods of time.

But by now, you’re wondering where Shiro being the Galra’s “greatest weapon” fit into this. During the wait between seasons four and five, it was pointed out that the bio for the Black Lion on the official VLD website states that the Black Lion “takes the most energy from its pilot”. Given the indications that the lions are fueled by the Quintessence of their pilots, this indicates that a potential Black Paladin needs to generate enough Quintessence in their body to not pass out from the energy drain every time they fly. Ideally, this means that if Haggar found a Black Paladin candidate with enough Quintessence reserves in their body to survive sustained piloting of a Komar-Robeast, she could then clone them to have a mass-produced Quintessence battery.

Zarkon doesn’t seem like he would have been okay with being cloned, mainly because he didn’t want anyone getting access to his genetic material. So Haggar has to look elsewhere for potential Quintessence batteries. That’s where her arena projects come in. It's shown in Season 1 that the gladiator Myzax was also Haggar’s personal project at the time of Shiro’s capture. But the question of why she had him in the arena where he could be killed, and why she kept him alive afterwards, was never textually answered. But in the subtext of what her Robeasts were being used for, we can take a guess. Judjging by how we’ve been shown the robeasts drawing on their pilot’s Quintessence as a power source, I think the energy weapon Myzax used in the arena was also designed to use his own Quintessence as a power source. And given the way he uses it, I think there’s enough details in canon to suggest that Shiro’s Galra prosthetic functions similarly.

With her subtextual desire to find individuals with naturally high amounts of Quintessence in their bodies, Haggar appears to have been using the empire’s gladiator arenas to find potential candidates, and test how their physiology reacts to using weapons that are powered by their own Quintessence. Myzax was the reigning champion of the arena at the time because he was the best she could find. He was a peerless fighter, but his weapon had limitations. The orb needed to be returned to the base of the weapon to recharge. In retrospect, this is implicitly to give his body time to replenish its Quintessence before resuming the attack.

And then along comes this human from a backwater planet that's not even on the empire's radar, who defeats Haggar’s best test subject with nothing but a plain sword and his own ingenuity. He’s a peerless fighter, a symbol of hope for the enslaved prisoners, an amazing pilot, and has all the makings of being a capable leader. Really, he couldn’t be more obvious unless he had “Future Black Paladin” tattooed across his face in Galran. He’s basically everything Haggar could want in a Robeast pilot gift wrapped and offered up on a silver platter. Once he’s spent enough time in the arena that she can be certain his victory over Myzax wasn’t a fluke, she starts the next round of experiments.

She took his arm and installed the prosthetic with an energy weapon powered by his own Quintessence, then tests to make sure that he can survive it. Once she’s certain she has what she’s looking for, she takes his genetic material and starts production of her clone army. But then Ulaz frees him and sends him back to Earth. No wonder she sounds so frustrated when she fights him in the Season 1 finale. After all, if the Shiro-Komar-Robeast combination is the pinnacle of ten thousand years of research and experimentation, what else would she call him if not her greatest weapon?

But after the end of Season 2, the balance has shifted. It’s clear to Haggar after her failed attempt to use the Komar against Voltron that Zarkon will never be able to capture the lions. And with Zarkon’s link to the Black Lion completely severed, her husband will never be able to command Voltron himself. So, she switches gears and starts putting other irons in the fire, fading into the background as she works out a Plan B. Since she can’t capture Voltron, she redirects her energy to destroying it, via Naxzela in Season 4 and the virus in Kuron’s arm in Season 6. She stops sending Robeasts after Voltron because with Zarkon comatose she doesn’t have the resources or authority to do so without Zarkon on the throne. But she still keeps plugging away at the energy requirement for reopening the rift, even if we don’t see the results until at least Season 6.

This, I think, is where things diverge from what the writers were planning for the second and third arcs before they brought Shiro back in Season 3 and had the Keith leaving bit in Seasons 4-6. Back when Season 3 came out, the showrunners said that they had been forced to bring Shiro back early, not that he hadn’t been supposed to come back at all. What this suggests to me is that Keith would still have learned of Shiro’s death in Season 6, but without a body to transfer his consciousness into, Season 7 would have seen him filling a similar role to Alfor’s AI in Season 1.

And then the cliffhanger ending of the season would have been finding a Shiro Clone in the cockpit of the Komar Robeast. In addition to the added implicit horror that every mech they fought was being piloted by a clone of Shiro with enough of his memories to know how to fly and just enough self-awareness to act independently, it would basically have given them a free way to pull Shiro’s consciousness out of the Black Lion and restore him to life.

But since the execs wanted Shiro to be brought back in Season 3, Haggar instead sent one clone loaded with Shiro’s memories (how she got the post-escape ones is a mystery to be puzzled out later) to infiltrate the team and serve as her unwitting spy. Once she had the information she needed (plus Lotor and the remaining two Sincline ships), she pulled Kuron out, crippled the Castle of Lions, and ordered him to lead Keith away. But even underneath her brainwashing, the clone was still fundamentally Shiro, and fought against her the only way he could: lead Keith to the cloning facility and have a fight big and destructive enough to deprive her of a critical resource.

Because when you think about it, if Honerva had still had access to her army of Black Paladin Quintessence Batteries, she would have been able to open the rift and pull Lotor from the Rift in a lot less than three years. The destruction of Operation Kruon and Lotor stealing back the Sincline ships were a major setback for her in the same way that the end of Season 2 was. And by the time she gets her feet back under her, her reasons for getting into the Rift have changed. Whether it was just For Science or she was the herald of some eldritch space god like some of us have speculated is ultimately irrelevant after Season 6 because from the moment she realizes that Lotor’s stuck in the rift, her priority is getting her son back.

But with Operation Kuron gone and no trans-reality ships in sight, she had to start over from scratch. So, she takes her Komar and her Robeasts and heads for the Altean colony, where she knows that she’ll have an army fanatically devoted to her son, all ready and willing to do whatever she asks of them in the name of bringing their savior home. She casts the Druids aside now that she no longer needs them and sends Sendak to Earth to destroy the lions so that Voltron cannot interfere with her plans. It takes another three years, but that’s hardly a drop in the bucket for a woman who’s been alive for millennia. She’s been playing the long game for thousands of years, and she knows how to adapt.

TL;DR: Haggar’s goal of accessing the Quintessence Field never changed, even if her reasons (Power>Retrieve Lotor) and methods for doing so (Shiro Robeasts>Altean Robeasts) shifted over time.

#voltron meta #vld theory #voltron spoilers #vld spoilers #vld haggar #vld shiro #vld kuron #the writers knew what they were doing #they just didn't give enough exposition for us to connect the dots

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boothunters · 6 years

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BootHunter talks with founder of Mark Albert Boots, Mark Barbera, here is some of the story behind this growing American footwear company.

BH – What would you say were the greatest benefits of Launching through Kickstarter?

MB – Kickstarter allowed me to start Mark Albert on a true shoestring budget. I had worked as a landscaper for a couple of summers, and I used $300 of money I had saved to hire my buddy to make the video. The reason behind the Kickstarter itself was to fund the first run of Chelsea boots because the factory had set an initial order minimum that was about $10,000 which I clearly did not have as a 19 year old college student – so Kickstarter was really my only option.

BH – You were inspired at a young age (6th grade) to customize shoes and it was your great grandfather who inspired you. How would you finish the statement, “A fine handcrafted pair of leather boots represents..?“

MB – Not only creativity, but also incredible craftsmanship that cannot be learned overnight. Making a pair of shoes from the ground up requires the know-how to expertly operate machines in over 150 steps from the cutting of the leather to the finishing of a pair.

BH – As with the growth in popularity and completion in the denim market, boots are having a renaissance of sorts. Why do you think this is the case?

MB – It’s interesting because when I got into this industry, I was not a boot guy. I had no idea what the difference was between Goodyear Welt or Blake Rapid, etc. I think that today because of Instagram and platforms like Reddit, many consumers are more informed than ever before about boots and those who appreciate any craft can really become enthusiasts once they realize just how much of an art form boot making is. However, today, a lot of brands are popping up left and right following the likes of Taft. To be completely honest, anyone can fly to Portugal or Spain, choose a stock pattern from a factory, pick some stock leathers and call themselves “designers.” Conversely, the barrier to entry in the domestic footwear industry is much much higher – many of the remaining factories do not have the resources to accommodate small private label brands, and I literally am only in the position I am because I live 5 minutes away from the factory where I design, prototype and assemble each pair in real-time, rather than just waiting a couple weeks for samples to arrive.

BH – You focus more than anyone we know on the workers who craft your boots, what influenced you in your desire to integrate their story in your brand and products?

MB – The factory I work with is such a hidden gem, in that most people in our small town (population 8,000) do not even know it exists. This is completely intentional. The owners and workers have been doing it the old school way for so long that it is truly like a family, and it takes time for an outsider to come in and feel comfortable with everyone. To me, it is completely genuine and natural to highlight these fine men and women because I spend each day, 7-4:30 with them as I also work full-time running design and sales for the factory’s in-house brands. I feel that it is so important to tell their story mainly because they do not realize how incredibly badass and skilled they actually are – for example, I am pretty handy and the first time I tried running some machines, I completely butchered the boots I was working on. I just think its so cool what they do day-in and day-out and they deserve to be recognized as artisans, not just factory workers.

BH – You work with influencers such as BootHunter, how important and why do you consider these types of relationships in your growing your brand awareness and sales?

MB – Much like the factory, the “boot community” if you will, is a lot like a family. Today, the value that engaged followings on social networks like Instagram and Facebook brings to a business is unparalleled. Having real relationships with influencers is worth its weight in gold and it also should be genuine – a lot of brands just assume that sending random products to influencers will make them get behind your products, but its cool because consumers can totally tell when influencers actually support a brand or are just being paid to advertise. Those influencers who I work with are genuine dudes who appreciate quality, so I appreciate their expert feedback alone without the added value of the advertising they do on their profiles. I think that with how quickly retail is changing; brands that grow these types of relationships will have far more staying power than those brands who neglect leveraging influencer networks.

BH – I see that you were inspired to develop your first boot, a Chelsea, by your own search for an affordable and well-crafted example on the market. How do you develop your design ideas such as the Outrider Boot?

MB – Almost all of my newer designs are inspired by the past. I have piles of catalogs from our factory dating back to the 1980s, so I usually find a boot silhouette I like, scour the factory for the paper patterns or the cutting dies, cut my own pieces then meet with our head seamstress. She has worked in the factory for literally 53 years – she is the only one who remembers most of these heritage patterns and how to sew them. Once the framework is in place, I will run a sample pair to work out any kinks. Once the first sample is done, it’s usually a matter of me making the boot modernized with leathers, hardware and outsoles. It’s a truly hands-on design and development process from start to finish. As a designer, having this knowledge of the actual process gives me a huge advantage because I can tell which styles / components will work or give us trouble before starting which saves a lot of time and money.

BH – How would you describe American heritage?

MB – Growing up, I was a history buff. I used to watch the History Channel for hours, particularly programs about WWII and what I consider to be the Golden generation. My grandfather is an example of this type of grit. Folks back then were just darn tough. They worked for what they had and things seemed to be very cut and dry. My grandfather on my Mother’s side was a butcher and immigrant from Hungary. He took pride in his work. In speaking with our older seamstresses at the factory, many of their mother’s were seamstresses as well; they were raised to take incredible pride in their work. Products back then were made to last because they were consciously crafted by folks who brought that pride into what they produced. I feel that this pride is true American heritage and I hope that my products can reflect the pride of the men and women who make them.

BH – What makes an American Boot uniquely desirable?

MB – Mainly, the construction methods and to men, the women and me who are making them. I do not feel that every aspect of foreign-made footwear is inferior. For example, I have seen Indian-made boots with almost perfect upper stitching – probably cleaner than some of my products. Most foreign factories actually have superior and newer machines than most domestic factories. However, it’s a shame because they take that upper and glue the sole on- which immediately makes that product inferior because it will fall apart. Most American-made factories still use the same techniques that were used in that Golden era, like the Goodyear Welt, which makes for products that truly last. This combined with the simple fact that domestic-tanned leather is usually better quality because of the selection of domestic hides being heavier weight creates products that are built to last.

BH – Where do you see your brand and those who make them in the next two to three years?

MB – I hope to be an owner of the factory in the next couple years and continue to push the limits of my creativity to create products that will continue to provide for my amazing family of workers at the factory.

BH – What’s your definition of business success?

MB – I have a lot of successful siblings and family members, and the most important lesson I have learned by watching them is that money does not equate to happiness. Sure, in order to be a business as a going-concern, you must be conscious of margins but I can almost guarantee that if you are solely profit-driven, you will not find happiness or meaning in your work. I am so lucky to be in a situation where I truly love what I do, I love the challenges, and I am used to the uncertainty by now. I suppose my definition of business success is pretty cliché but true, do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.

THANK YOU MARK! … BOOTHUNTER

To Check Out Mark Albert Boots For Yourself, Click Here…

Leather Runs In The Family… Mark Albert Boots

BootHunter talks with founder of Mark Albert Boots, Mark Barbera, here is some of the story behind this growing American footwear company.

Leather Runs In The Family… Mark Albert Boots BootHunter talks with founder of Mark Albert Boots, Mark Barbera, here is some of the story behind this growing American footwear company.

0 notes

stylexplorers · 6 years

Text

BootHunter talks with founder of Mark Albert Boots, Mark Barbera, here is some of the story behind this growing American footwear company.

BH – What would you say were the greatest benefits of Launching through Kickstarter?

BH – As with the growth in popularity and completion in the denim market, boots are having a renaissance of sorts. Why do you think this is the case?

BH – You focus more than anyone we know on the workers who craft your boots, what influenced you in your desire to integrate their story in your brand and products?

BH – You work with influencers such as BootHunter, how important and why do you consider these types of relationships in your growing your brand awareness and sales?

BH – How would you describe American heritage?

BH – What makes an American Boot uniquely desirable?

BH – Where do you see your brand and those who make them in the next two to three years?

BH – What’s your definition of business success?

THANK YOU MARK! … BOOTHUNTER

To Check Out Mark Albert Boots For Yourself, Click Here…

Leather Runs In The Family… Mark Albert Boots BootHunter talks with founder of Mark Albert Boots, Mark Barbera, here is some of the story behind this growing American footwear company.

0 notes

askderynsharp · 8 years

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Unrelated Fic

Greetings from the Leviathan!

...or from the hovel im hiding in wishing another book’s coming out

I’ve been talking to fans of the series and its so nice to still be receiving asks! You give a decrepit old fandom hag hope. Since you’ve all been such peaches I’ve made y’all a gift completely free of charge! what was that? we havent been charging them? Damnit silv you had one job

ANYHOO i’d like to present: Homecoming

“Well, what is it?” Dylan asked through a mouthful of toast, seeming less interested with his newspaper upon noticing Alek’s expression.

“Its from the Czech Ministry of Culture,” Alek said slowly, “About Konopischt.”

From the way Dylan expected more information, Alek assumed this was one of those occasions where the German language sounded like a sneeze in English.

“It was my father’s castle, where I lived before the war,” He explained.

Comprehension dawned on Dylan’s face momentarily before twisting again in confusion.

“What does the Czech Ministry of Culture care about Kono-spich?” he asked, butchering the pronunciation as usual, “And why would they tell you about it?”

Reading the letter further Alek skimmed through the dense honorifics and pleasantries until he found the intrigue of the letter.

“Oh.” Alek said finally, “…Apparently I own it.”

There was some silence as Alek tried deciphering the legal jargon, it seemed the author of the letter had made it hard to read on purpose.

“They want me to surrender the property to the Czech State, I believe.”

“But didn’t you already do that?” Dylan asked, rising to circle behind his chair and read over Alek’s shoulder, “What with the whole chucking your letter into the ocean in the name of true love or whatever.”

Alek snorted at this, but shook his head.

“Konopischt was technically my father’s vacation home, it did not belong to the Austrian government,” He explained, “And here it says…something to do with a treaty following the Great War…yes, apparently its mine now.”

It was all a bit baffling, really. Contrary to what Alek might have believed, being a Prince wasn’t such a worthless title after all. Even if he had abdicated his right to the throne, there were certain things he supposed there were bound to be heirlooms that had nothing to do with his royalty.

“Hrm,” Dylan mumbled, “Do they say anything about a compensation?”

He squinted at the letter, looking for a sum of money.

Upon noticing how Alek looked at him he shrugged, “The boiler’s going to be bust by spring, I know it. We need to start saving.”

“I don’t think the monetary value of Konopischt is equal to the cost of a boiler, Dylan,” Alek said.

“Well maybe we can get a really nice one,” Dylan replied after some thought.

“Well, it looks like they want me to donate it in any case,” He said, “Though you’re right, we could use the money.”

Dylan nodded, “Want me to write my uncle? He’s good at haggling.”

The ludicrous picture of Dylan’s portly Uncle Paulie taking the day off from his barbershop to argue with the Czech State over the estate of a royal family briefly came to mind before Alek dismissed it.

“I don’t think he’d be used to this kind of transaction,” Alek said, “Besides, I doubt he speaks the language.”

Dylan shrugged and went back to his tea, then seemed to realize something. “You can’t keep it, Alek.” He said, “We’d never go there, even with the war over. And it’s a barking castle right? How much would it cost to maintain?”

“We certainly wouldn’t have any money left over for a boiler,” Alek agreed, “Or a house, for that matter.”

Dylan’s hand reached across the table, but Alek retracted his own.

“I know I can’t keep it Dylan,” he said, “But it feels wrong just selling it.”

“That’s what’s practical Alek,” Dylan said softly, “You don’t just inherit something worth so much every day.”

This was true, Alek had to admit. If he had been taught anything by those first five years employed in the society, it was how important it was to keep a stable net worth. But still, it had been his home, surely Dylan could understand that? Immediately Alek shook the thought from his head. It wasn’t about convincing Dylan, it was about doing what was responsible for himself.

“Perhaps I could just…go there…” Alek finally asked, “Just to see it before I…”

“Sell it,” Dylan provided, “And aye, I’d think you’d have a right to that. Say you want to check for damages or something.”

Alek felt too pensive to explain that giving his family home over to the Czech State would be nowhere near the same as reselling an automobile. Studying the letter again, his eyes glanced up to Dylan’s face.

“Would you come with me?” he asked, making him choke on his tea.

“I don’t know any more about Czech property value then Paul,” Dylan said, “Besides, the Boffins are planning some expedition to the Kamchatka Peninsula next year, and Wormwood says he’s looking to determine who will be promoted. If that bumrag Roger gets it I’ll never live it down.”

“Its not about your haggling abilities, Dylan,” Alek said looking to him, “I just…want you to be there with me, if that makes sense.”

Dylan’s mouth opened, studied him for a moment, then closed.

“Aye. Perfect sense.” Dylan said softly, “I ‘spose if we went in December I could be back in time…”

A warm smile spread across Alek’s face, causing the boy to blush.

“Someone’s got to keep you out of trouble, aye?” He added haughtily, to which Alek nodded in agreement.

Dylan didn’t know what he had expected, really. What little he knew about fancy places like these came from memories of Buckingham Palace, Hearst’s Estate, and his brief experience with the castle Alek intended to hide out in for the war. Between them Dylan had an amalgamated image in his mind of where Prince Aleksander Ferdinand of Hohenberg might have spent his time learning French and which fork to use. For some reason he imagined it full of sweeping libraries and portraits of grumpy Clankers staring disapprovingly down at the poor boy as he quietly pretended he didn’t exist. The display they were met with upon arrival, however, was anything but.

Kono-spit-hickey was nothing short of beautiful, nestled in thick green trees overlooking the town below with pristine white bricks and rust-red roof tiling. It looked more like an illustration from a fairytale then any royal accommodations Dylan was familiar with, and upon seeing the inside he found it anything but stuffy and old fashioned.

The interior seemed almost timeless with its pale blue and white arches and delicate pink walls, Dylan half expected the clerk who greeted them to sport a powdered wig in accompaniment to a harpsichord. Instead they were met by a man who bobbed his head politely and lead them through a hallway obscenely decorated with mantled stag’s antlers.

When ‘Deryn’ went back to Ma’s house he knew to expect the stench of the cats mingled with cooking smells and the rusty boiler even before opening the door, but this place seemed so clean and immaculate. How could someplace so cold and perfect be anyone’s home? The beauty and grace of the place was alien and uncomfortable to Dylan, and as always in such places he was eager to be finished with this little tour.

Despite this, Alek seemed to feel the weight of his connection here. His eyes would glance about and fix on portraits and pieces of art, that old sadness emerging after years of being hidden. When he realized they were being directed to a study, a study that had likely once belonged to Alek’s father, Dylan risked reaching for Alek’s hand.

Public displays of affection were almost always out of the question, but surely there was nothing indecent about an old friend showing his support with a gentle squeeze of the fingers. They were lead into a little room and offered chairs politely, it was awkward for everyone when Alek didn’t let go of Dylan’s hand as they sat.

As per their agreement Dylan didn’t involve himself in the conversation, thick with formalities and mentions of strange names he didn’t even recognize it as German at first. He did perk up uncomfortably at the mention of a ‘herrin’ and looked determinately at the floor as Alek politely explained he did not have a wife.

Even so Dylan was a veteran in this situations, and the situation seemed to demand he snatch his hand away lest he resemble a young master’s pet poofter. From there on Dylan pretended to be interested in the conversation, up until talk of Alek’s decision as heir.

“You see, young master, there really is no reason for you not to donate the estate. The Ministry will keep the house in order as your late father would have wanted, and with your current position you are in no state to care for it yourself.”

At this there was a pointed glance at Dylan, and Dylan realized that had he not miraculously recovered from his untimely death this sort of thing might have been Deryn Hohenberg’s responsibility.

“I understand this, Herr Müller,” Alek responded, “But you have not said what the ministry plans to do here.”

There seemed to be some history between Alek and this Müller, as he obviously held some superiority over the boy. Still, Alek stood his ground and insisted upon staying and discussing every little aspect of this transaction, eventually agreeing Alek was owed some small compensation.

Dylan realized too late that he was too quick to rise when thinking the discussion over. Upon being fixed with Müller’s glare he slowly sunk back into his chair and irritably bounced his leg. These people were so barking twitchy.

Finally, finally they were released and lead away from the study. Once out of earshot Alek’s fist began to shake, an angry expression Dylan had never seen on him before crossing his features.

“How can he just sit there? At my father’s desk? When he was only a housekeeper.”

Dylan was about to try and open that can of worms when a maid interrupted them.

“Shall I prepare your room, young master?” she asked politely, head respectfully bowed.

Alek blinked at this, before glancing sideways at Dylan. They had already made accommodations at an inn in town, neither of them considered the idea of sleeping in the actual chateau.

“Aye, you should,” Dylan spoke up suddenly, “Thank you.”

The maid bowed her head and retreated, leaving Alek to glance questionably at Dylan.

“Um…” Dylan sighed and rubbed his neck, “You come back here to say goodbye. I don’t think you just wanted to see that bumrag in your Da’s study and leave did you?”

Alek shook his head and sighed, “No, I suppose not.”

Dylan probably should have shown more humility when he snorted at the offer of his own room, but managed to make something up about wanting to stay in town.

It didn’t really occur to Dylan that the room they were staying in was the place Alek grew up in until he spotted his expression. It was the very same look Dylan wore himself when the Mazikeen lifted off, or when he stepped through the front door of their townhouse after months in the air.

This place was really important to Alek, wasn’t it?

The boy crossed over to a desk and ran his hands over the polished wood, reaching for the drawer twice only to hold back for whatever reason.

“This was where I was,” he said after some time, “I was sitting here…when Volger came to take me away.”

The melancholy in Alek’s voice tugged at Dylan’s gut as he came up behind him.

“Nothing changed,” Alek marveled, “Everything here is exactly as it was before...”

Again Alek’s voice went hard, causing Dylan to retract his hand.

“I half expect to be called to dinner with my parents…everything is so similar…” Finally he seemed to notice Dylan beside him and cracked a small smile, “Except…well. You’re here, Dylan.”

Alek stepped close and wrapped his arms around Dylan, resting his chin on his shoulder, “Thank you for coming,” he said quietly into his ear.

Dylan smiled but pushed him off anyway. Can never tell with these fancy places, whose watching.

“Don’t mention it,” he said with a platonic punch to the shoulder, “I’m glad I was able to see where you came from.”

Alek chuckled darkly. “In a way, this is where everything came from.”

“How do you mean?”

Alek rubbed his arms and looked around.

“When my father gave up the throne he left the royal palace in disgrace. He came to live here with my mother apart from the rest of the family, completely isolated to keep my identity hidden. That isolation lead to their murder, so in a way…” he sighed and looked back to Dylan, “…This is where the war came from as well.”

Dylan frowned at this absurd reasoning, he had assumed Alek was done with that sort of thinking. But there was a bit of logic in it, Dylan supposed. Dr. Barlow said that the Great War would be remembered for generations to come as one of the greatest conflicts of modern man, and this castle hidden in a thicket of trees could represent all of it in a manner of speaking. Maybe that was why Müller and the Ministry of Culture wanted to reclaim it so badly, so they could sweep their dirty history under the rug. It didn’t seem right, erasing Alek’s past for the sake of saving face. Perhaps that’s why Alek was so twitchy.

“Alek,” Dylan asked slowly, “Don’t suppose its proper to show me around?”

Alek looked up, momentarily distracted by his thoughts. Dylan smirked at his puzzled glance.

“How’s about you pay me back for visiting Glasgow last Spring?”

The memory of ‘Deryn’s family tittering and swooning over Alek while describing in uncomfortable detail every daft thing he had done as a child still made him wince. It was about time he got some dirt on him as well.

Alek returned his smile shyly, similarly to how he would back when they first met.

“I’m afraid you wont find any pictures of me as a boy,” He admitted, “I’ve never posed for portraits, and my aunt believed camera’s corrupt the soul.”

The scowl Dylan wore was entirely for Alek’s benefit. Seeing it he brightened and wander to her.

“Though I see no issue with giving you a tour, seeing as I do own the place.”

At this Dylan snorted, then smirked and offered his arm. Alek only rolled his eyes, but there was humor in the shove to Dylan’s shoulder. Together they left the bedroom and Alek lead Dylan down hallways so fine and fancy they made his skin crawl.

When they came to a hall filled with armor and swords Dylan had to resist not laughing outright. It was something right out of a moving picture, a villainous castle damsels were so often rescued from.

From there Alek showed him a shooting gallery, saloon, and attempted to get him out in the gardens but was sorely rejected. He even made a point of showing off the elevator, apparently it had been a new invention Klopp had installed when Alek was a lad. Dylan was baffled by this, the apartments in Glasgow all had elevators without any kind of fuss. It was somewhat humorous that for all its elegance, most fine estates were damn inconvenient.

Just as Dylan was beginning to wonder when Alek might also prefer a bit of friendly alone time they came across a sitting room with a collection of paintings hung about the walls. Dylan wanted to be done with the stuffy room, reminded of tea parties Dr. Barlow made him sit through as an apprentice, but found Alek stiff when he tried to pull him away.

Following his gaze, Dylan’s eyes rested upon a large portrait that hung above the fireplace depicting a man and woman posing elegantly together. Between Alek’s solemn gaze and the ornate frame Dylan could put two and two together. He squinted up at Alek’s parents, noticing they looked older then the teenagers in Alek’s locket watch. It must have been easier to look at those smaller pictures, so young they didn’t feel like parents at all, but the man and woman staring down at them probably were as Alek had seen them last. Something in Dylan tried to find their son in each of their faces, more difficult on his father’s side due to the mustache.

It was awkward, all of a sudden. Awkward to think that these people had once really existed in this fancy place, that he was now in their home latched to their son’s arm. With a pang of humiliation, Dylan found himself wondering what they’d think of him.

Not very highly, he’d reckon.

If anyone understood how a prince could fall for a commoner it was Alek’s parents, but that didn’t change the fact Dylan was far from what they likely imagined for him. Even if they forgave the common blood, the trousers, swearing, and other general transvestisms might be a bit much. Stubbornly Dylan told himself that of course he’d wear a skirt in front of them if they were alive, just the same as he did with his own ma, but then remembered that if they were alive he and Alek would have never met. Furthermore, Alek would probably be an archduke by now, readying himself to be emperor. That was something to ponder.

“I…don’t think I can give this place up, Dylan.” Alek said, shaking him from his thoughts.

Dylan turned his head, eyes wide and mouth hung open ready to protest, but was interrupted before he could.

“I don’t intend to keep it to myself, but I cant just let this place disappear. Its too…influential.”

That was true enough. Hundreds of years from now people would read about the Great War and ponder about the family tragedy that started it all. Just like Fountain’s Abbey, Dylan could imagine a future historian willing to kill to stand here now.

“Well, maybe that’s the answer then,” Dylan said absently.

“What do you mean?” Alek asked, turning to face him.

“I’m just thinking,” Dylan went on, “Why not donate to some historical society that’d preserve it? If this is really the metaphorical birthplace of the war, then perhaps is should be preserved by people who’ll see the value in remembering what exactly it stood for.”

For long minutes Alek’s expression was unreadable, Dylan thought about taking the comment back, but then he slowly nodded.

“Yes…that…that’s exactly what I want.” He said, “I think that’s what Father would have wanted as well. Let this place be a reminder to everyone, what lengths some people will go to for violence and greed, and why we should continue to advocate for peace.”

And for a moment Dylan felt himself transported back to the first months of knowing this boy. Seeing the sadness in his eyes shift to determination, Dylan thought for once that maybe this aspect of his ‘destiny’ was more suited to him. Even still, Dylan didn’t want him to go back to thinking he had to somehow apologize for the war, his own existence being what supposedly started it.

“Should we go tell that Müller bumrag to get stuffed then?” Dylan asked, hoping to brighten his mood.

It worked, a smile spread across his lips in moments.

“Yes, but perhaps tomorrow. Its been a long time since I’ve been here…” Something dawned on him, and he brought a quizzical finger to his chin, “I wonder if I can find my toy soldier collection…”

Dylan hung back, watching him as he marched determinately away dumbfounded.

“Your what?”

#deryn sharp #aleksander #aleksander hohenberg #prince aleksander hohenberg #Leviathan Trilogy #leviathan series #Scott Westerfeld #dalek

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allenmendezsr · 5 years

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artdjgblog · 6 years

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Innerview: Amber Willis / Art Institute of Sacramento

June 2010

Photo: Jim Henson / Date, Photographer NA

Note: Questions for an art history essay.

01) Why did you choose this career?

“Career” can have a strange ring to it, but people like to tend the garden variety comfort of obituary. Certainly, there are aspects to be itemized in “career”, like security and stability and pay check and retirement, as well as other big game Gatorade dumps, but I’ve never received any of this or that in standard. I don’t have a career and as an artist will never be retiring. More like, I have the security and stability of knowing that I’m doing what I feel I’m put here to do and if I have to do something else along the way in the day to day, then I’ll do it. If I make it to an older age and look back at the block that is my time line here, I hope to feel fine with what I’ve managed to piece together and I am so far. But, to call that a career wouldn’t make much sense to me and to definitely call it that at 31 is very strange to me. Anyway, I don’t aim to sound stubbly here. Pay check doesn’t really apply to the work I’m doing currently and if it ever does I won’t dismiss it and who wouldn’t want to get paid for what they enjoy doing and feel somewhat OK at? However, in full I’m paid several times over on a personal level and if others get something out of what I’m doing, then that is a great bonus pizza party all-around. It’s perplexing, or even sad, when people spend their whole lives not finding their voice, identity, the how-to in which to share their view through the one thing that they know they’re supposed to be doing. Still, there is the argument if we really even have to find something in terms of a vocation or a “what do you do”? Why can’t we just go day to day and do what we need to do to get it done? Regardless, it can also be sad when people do find their calling, but don’t fully use it, or use it to manipulate others, or don’t even try to use it if they have to work around it. I don’t know much other than I’ve always enjoyed living, making art and being left alone to do my own thing. Cool if people want to hop along my trolley and it truly means a lot that you want to ask me questions…be warned, if you find me all at once the tire, untier and retired to the tracks.

02) What were the first steps you took to get started in this field? I walked blindly up and then opened my eyes and stumbled down the steps. As a rural Missouri farm boy, I actually grew up in fields. It was easy to run from that life at 18, to taste something new, because I thought I knew all I had to know from which I started. Don’t we all? Well, I butchered. We all get butchered. Sometimes I think I should have just been a farmer or butcher. I could have been both and would have been happy and I still made art on the side. I do wish I would have paid more attention as a child to farm stuff. However, it wasn’t until I realized I wasn’t that great at art when I was 18 to 20 and then reached back into the reservoir pits of youth and everyday life, that I began to find the way(s) I needed to show and tell and feel again…and I’m still growing…and I’m still not that great. But, just feeling alright about doing my own thing and wanting to give something back to the earth. Bob Dylan said it best while in his early 20s, “…it’s took me a long time to get young…” There’s a lot to learn from such complex-simplicity.

03) Any advice for a new grad?

I’m a college drop-out so I may not be the best source in the eyes of some, but maybe there could be something of benefit found in that fact? I’m also a bit of a simpleton. Then again, advice can come from anything, even a house plant. Everybody’s on a path. Just a lot of elbows on some. Some are out just to mow down paths. So, make your own. Stand your ground and follow the place where the heart makes it with the gut. Blow out your own holes in your own jeans, is what I like to say. If you aren’t fully convinced of actual jobs pertaining to your studies, then forfeit those directions and continue to do what you want to do. Re-invent yourself if you must and/or tap into the reason you started and wanted this in the first place. Hit the pillow as satisfied as you can, wake up ready to start over. If you have to work a crap job in the interim, then work it. In the end, it’s all perspective as the correct treasure can be found anywhere. If something isn’t working, change it. Heck, change the diaper if it isn’t dirty. If you’re making art and you feel comfortable, change it. Great baseball pitchers don’t have one throw, ya know? Be real too. Every day is different so every day you should be different. I feel that anyone with the right lens can learn a great deal from working/walking in real life than with what he or she may have studied at school and applying it to a job that makes Mom or Dad or teacher or piece of paper proud…doing something that can be done with a 30 day trial of a software program or by changing the skin on a social network do-whop. No, I’m not saying art/design “jobs” are a no-no. If it works for you, then make it work. It just wasn’t what applied to me and certainly not now. No matter what, soak in whatever fuel is available and pour that into the work you do in the before and during and after hours. Still, you will be human, no matter how hard you work. The older you get, energy levels and valuable resources deplete, it’s fact. But, find ways to work around that and to do what you can. If you really want it, you will do it. If you aren’t making art outside of your day job(s), then there is something wrong. I don’t understand at all a designer who goes to work a design day job but doesn’t make art outside of that. So odd to me. And if it’s because the day job prohibits you (per the rules or rules of exhaustion/life), make art anyway, or kick that day job. Please, if you went to school to study art, that means you must have enjoyed art at some point before, so that means you should at least enjoy making art no matter what for the rest of your life, right? I know so many supposedly creative people who don’t really make art, rather shuffle things around at a job, make a meager pile of things in a year or milk the same jug if they are making art at home…or worse, they simply come home and complain per exhaustion or burnout. Something’s either died in them or they picked the wrong nose entirely. If that’s the case, then change it up. Be honest to yourself. If you don’t find yourself craving, then find dessert in the desert and/or give your free time to something or someone else. I have a wild idea that at the end of life, I hope to get a charge card with a little extra time on it to make a couple more things to share and leave behind my interpretation of this life down here. Even though at the same time, I’m currently already eligible for that card (we all are) and need to use it wisely, and I do the best I can. A little slice of heaven sounds nice, and to have a bit of time to maybe help others get to the party too, or at least help dish out free smiles while waiting in line, well, that sounds pretty alright. In short, pocket all you can and puke it back out. Get quenched, get drenched.

04) Is there anything I should know first when starting my career? Hmmmm, there is that word again. Do want you want to do. Life is short. Don’t let other people suck the life from you and/or take advantage of you or your work. Protect your babies. If you ever feel stuck, find wiggle room or get out completely. Have something to say and have something to play. Stay optimistic but don’t be glossy-eyed. It’s OK to say NO. Let yourself be a human being. Enjoy the little things. Document. Tell stories through the work. Jot down ideas and accomplish them. Make goals and change them. Be a good listener with all senses, on your own accord. Disappear for a bit. Try to tune out when you can or turn off all the things that keep you plugged in. Look up and look down and look sideways. Don’t drive yourself into debt or mess up your credit. Don’t mess up your sleep. Everybody needs to re-charge and sleep is important. Don’t stop making art. If you feel at at loss, then step back and come back soon with a fresh perspective. Step away from your work if and when you must. Prepare to fail. Feed off of failure. Don’t be discouraged if your thing doesn’t get as many “hits” as another person’s thing. It is an odd game, this art and design world. Nobody really has defining answers. Travel as much as you can. Be a human being. I don’t know if these are the first ingredients to know, and everybody learns and behaves and reacts differently, but these are things (among many others) I’ve learned along the way that have become valuable to me. If they help another, then cool, but don’t look at me for answers on life support.

05) Is there anything you have learned in the professional world that may not have been taught in school? My schooling was incredible, opened me up and knocked me down to where I could find myself again. I found a place in myself that didn’t make it feel like “work”. If it ever does feel too much like work, then scrap it or throw a change-up. Step away if you must and then come back fresh. I think there should be more general life stuff taught in school too and maybe some more personal development and self-promotion things. But, it’s hard stuff to pin point. Self-help and tips can be a bit weird. Anyway, I’m fine with getting knocked down in the real world too. It’s healthy to simply head on in. I learned (still learning) a lot by working jobs that aren’t necessarily connected to the art and design world. Though, I do find that art and design can be found in every job, if applying yourself correctly and you may be surprised as who you meet along the way.

06) How did you develop your own style? I don’t believe I have my own style, but I do believe I have my own way of visiting the world and sharing it with others. We all do. But, I think I know what you’re talking about as many people bring this up to me and it’s very odd, yet very kind. I’m nothing special, I just wake up with a different head every day and make art. And I see people who make the same thing over and over all their life (well, with the exception of a few choice individuals) and I don’t see how they can live with that. But, it’s theirs to do, I suppose? First thing, realize that everything under the sun has been done. Second thing, the first thing is only partly true because we’ve all individuals with our own interpretation. Every voice, soul and fingerprint is unique and insert that into the work. Third thing, just make art and at times just don’t think about it. The reach and grab method, more like it. Make don’t think. And always prepare to fail and be fine with that and learn and grow from that. Even if people are real bad apple jerks about it too. Learn from them if you can and learn how not to be, as people who suck can be great leaders in such regard. Help them too if you can and if they are willing. Show the real you. Show growth and process and thinking and spirit in your work. Show me that a human being made the work. I’m more interested with a body of work that has try-hard-fails in it than a Miss American pageant of trophy work. I like a human body of work. I want to appreciate the thing behind it, tap into that. I don’t trust any artist who only shows a small, selective portion, whether they are 6 months or 60 years into it. I prefer what the accumulated stains on a mechanic’s onesie look like than a fixed auto in place. Some of the best work speaks outside of the frame to where it’s occupying more than just a block of prime time programming or cut-throat real estate.

07) What was your first job in this field? Oh gosh. I’ve been a farmhand, groundskeeper, janitor, mental health servant…among others. I’m currently in a cubicle doing data entry and file management and fortunate to have buffer time to answer your questions. It is nice on the extreme hot and cold days. Art and design field?: In the 5th grade I won a county-wide logo contest compromised of ages 6 to 18. Not really a job, but first actual taste of the field. It left me with an odd taste. I got my logo in the papers but the final product was butchered. I recall a sadness when my parents drove me by the finished logo signage. Current field? My 3rd year of college I befriended some bands/musicians and started making poster and package designs on the side of my classes and day jobs. So, I guess that is where it sparked towards the right now. I then dropped-out 4 and a half years into my studies and moved to Kansas City with a band. Shortly after I became a janitor while making art on the side. I even made some art while at work. I miss being a janitor, but it didn’t pay enough and health and time off benefits weren’t provided. When I first moved to Kansas City, I started immediately making band posters for free, for guest list appearances, for cheeseburgers, or if I was fortunate, for five bucks. I did hunt around a bit in the graphic arts section of the paper, even though I had no desire or ambition to work a “real” design job, but I was broke and desperate. I went for an interview at a print shop but it didn’t materialize more than a strange story that I need to spend more time on and release at another date. And just to please a few people (parents, I believe), I sent a packet of work to Hallmark’s headquarters here in town and never heard back. After a few weeks of calls going nowhere, I showed up at Hallmark’s door with my portfolio asking the gruff security lady if there was any way to physically talk to anybody or at least be pointed in the right direction. She ripped me a new one as I left the building crying, vowing to never apply or inquire of an actual graphic design position again. I haven’t…

08) How do you create a good work and life balance? Best question so far (and it applies to anyone), though it has me thinking too much. It’s dangerous, this self-analysis. It can be a struggle and especially if you don’t have your head screwed on right. I like to do my best with making life and work one thing and I’m not talking about making myself the work of art. The last thing I want to do is play God with art or myself, I find many people doing this. There are times when I try hard at the self-promotion coin of it and it can be soul sucking. It can be a beast. It can be a beast just to find balance of it all too. I have seasons, we all do. But, I’m learning and growing more and more with how to read my senses. But, I’m also always changing. I’m a human being and I have to be a human being before any of this art stuff. I can’t do it all, even if I want to. And I realize that if I could do it all, it would never be enough. It’s “whole pizza” syndrome. It can be the poison and it can be the antidote. I just have to chip away whenever I can and however I can. I’d lie if I said I wasn’t a hard worker, but there are so many days in a month where I don’t work hard enough when I do work, even with a day job, marriage, life stuff. I just have to know when to work and when to re-charge my batteries and in what ways to re-charge and also know how to be disciplined. Just chip away. Again, every day is so different even though I’m perpetually glass-half-empty in mindset, but I just am very thirsty. I learned to balance a bit better when I knocked back my client work in-take a great deal in 2007. The year before I felt I could easily teeter to burn out as I was taking more bites than I could possibly chew reasonably and also feeling like I wasn’t as close with who and what I was working for. I decided to take a step back while I was still ahead. Hard to do, but had to be done. It was a great learning year and maybe my best on a whole in terms of output. I’m certain some eyes/minds thought I did the wrong thing by stepping back, but I followed my heart and gut with that decision and am completely fine with that. You have to do what you have to do. I’m still making just as much work now, but am pickier with who I work for and the kinds of work I’m doing. I’m also doing far more work for myself and that is the most rewarding. I can never do enough work for myself. Time is the only thing that tends to beat me. I’m at a good point with feeling more like a visual artist than a graphic designer. I guess I’ve always sort of approached it that way though. It is OK to rock one’s boat or to just paddle all over. What’s really odd to me is when people who haven’t seen me for a while ask, “Are you still making art?”

09) If you could do it all over again would you? Questions like this are so weird and obtuse. Hypothetically speaking, I might be more in-depth on some personal things if I were to go back, especially with the mind I have now. But, things would essentially be so different to the current. The official start date on my own odyssey was in early January of 2002. Things were so much different then, inside and out. I dip into nostalgia’s fly specks often, but I never wish to really insert myself into those points, times and destinations for very long as they served the slice of the time they possessed. I’m sure I’d come away quite horrified most of the time if I did. I know I do when I read my saved writings from early years. But, it’s all about the process. It’s gotten me to right here, so it must have been worth my while. Then again, there are times I am confused by the mirroring of the present. You’ve got me thinking too much. Moving on…

10) How do you feel about a degree from an institute compared to a regular degree? The only degree I got was deodorant. Educationally speaking, it depends. All I know is what I know. I dropped out of college and my Dad said that I should have just gone to an art school like the Kansas City Art Institute instead so that I would have gotten a degree. But, I don’t think so at all (not to mention art schools are way more costly from what I’ve seen). I feel I received one heck of an education where I went and who I was around and it got me to where I am today and I wouldn’t change that. Even though I went to a state school, and a fine one at that, I think I was part of a special art institute. Degree or no degree, from here or there, I’d still be making the art that I wanted, and the way I wanted, in my basement today. I feel I’m using what I’ve learned all the way in life. I don’t feel a large percentage of people truly use what they’ve learned, they just find a comfortable place to plant and then go through motions. I guess there isn’t really anything bad in that, if you’re fine with being a bump on a log. Sometimes I do think it would be easier to be a bump on a log.

11) How much do you make? Money or Art? I don’t make much money at all. I haven’t in 9 years. I knew that going in though. If I do make money, it’s usually spent on junk or cheap supplies. Most of it has gone to regional design competitions and magazines. Which, is getting quite out of hand now on fees and the little guys like me are getting pushed out. I’ve sorta stopped submitting to all that and I had a good run for a while anyway. I suppose I do make a lot of art. I’m in a unique position where I can do whatever the heck I want, usually when I want, and that’s worth more than money. Of course, if working for a client, I do have a responsibility there to tap into what they and I are representing. But, it all works out. In the past there have been times where a client says, “Make whatever you want! I love everything you do!” And then I make it and even keep it in bounds to what we’re doing (I don’t got whole hog on them) and they come back to me very disappointed. Some have even been down right bad apple weirdo about it. It is kind of funny in the long haul and I still got some art out of it. But, I’ve had some incredible clients and the really good ones make up for any bad things that may have come along. And in all business, there are good and bad working relationships. Now a-days though, it is nice to be pickier and choosier with what work I take on and do the majority of the work for me. True, I’d love to make art full-time for money, anybody who has any loving thing on the side would rather do that than work another man’s dream. But, I’m happy with how things are going. I’m actually looking into ways in which to go about presenting myself a bit differently, changing up the gears some. But, am in no hurry and definitely in a good place where anxiety is low and I’m just taking things day to day. Anyway, I try to do my best with making a year’s worth of art in six months. Less is not more. More is way more. More can also be never enough. I don’t know, I am just doing this thing.

12) How much experience counts when producing good design? I don’t know? In our tangible get-to-know-me, warm fuzzy world, sometimes a bunch of experience, sometimes zero. Depends on the product. Some of the worst art and design I’ve seen has come from trained people and/or is in museums. Again, I guess it’s perspective and we all see differently. Some of the best art and design can come from every day working people like my Grandma or some homeless 80-year-old man who one day up and marks the results of his life on cardboard of cereal boxes behind a grocery store (Bill Traylor). My favorite art and design comes from folk art. Feels pure to me. Feels “good”. But, I appreciate formally trained art and design too. I just know what I like, I guess? And I have no idea how to even go about this question of “producing good design” when comparing my world to a man whose spent his entire life in a jungle or what we call a third world. It’s not far off the mark of trying to truly ponder why the billions of dollars the movie “Avatar” made couldn’t be better put to solving world hunger? Had James Cameron been born in the jungle, he might not be making movies and/or movies about artificial jungles. I guess it’s all about location and who you know and how you know and how you want to show and tell to your team of make-shift receivers?

13) Recently with design trends in advertising, TV, etc what do people demand from graphic designers and why? Oh boy. Graphic design, in it’s conventional glory, has kind of died some, at least to me. Though, I still recognize it. It is such a weird world right now, at least with technology moving so fast. Exciting and overwhelming. I’ve never been crazy about it, but I respect it yet don’t really keep up with it. People demand to have their attention held these days, otherwise they are on to the next “new and improved” thing in a few seconds or they will just make their own amusement and find their own fifteen seconds. It means a lot to me when somebody can stop for a few seconds and take something in these days. That is probably more of a big challenge on the viewer than the presenter. I’m trying hard to let in all the little things that seem to be depleting. I’m glad I grew up in a time where I can remember not having the internet or phones in pockets. I’m glad I grew up on a farm. I was never bored. I am never bored now and I don’t need external hickies. Attention spans will only suffer more in generations to come. Maybe we should try to do something about this. Maybe we designed it that way? Somebody did. If somebody really demanded a graphic something of me (sounds very much at gun point), then I’m not sure how I’d handle that. I might tell them to chill out.

14) Looking back ten years within your field do you think it has changed or progressed? It has done a bit of both. Actually, I feel that every ten years, no matter what field or profession, there is a noticeable difference in both. It is inspiring, but overwhelming how everybody is a designer these days, at least that’s what they are telling me. I also feel that so many designers want to jump out of the woom cutting teeth. Slow down and find your soul.

15. How do you feel about almost becoming a celebrity for your creativity? Really?! I wasn’t informed of this. Neat, I guess? I think anybody who either puts themselves, or something of their self, out there for others (most definitely this happens in the arts) and there becomes somewhat of a trickle down from that as a result of it saying something or carrying an identity, this can easily trigger a part of the brain to spark a notion that they are a bullet of special. And today this can be dangerous as children are born into the idea of narcissism with constant craving for technology and the “hey, lookie-me’s”. Sure, we’re all special, looking down the grand scope, but we’re all in this mix together. I don’t know. It is so strange. I guess in a little dish I’ve built this odd little club of people who like my work and that is really neat and rewarding. Magazines in Turkey and Taiwan feature me, publishing houses in Spain and America too. It is interesting to me. An artist told me last year that I was pretty “elusive” and I didn’t known what this meant for a guy like me, but found it alright in a Bigfoot kind of way. Should I be more out in the open? I’ve just always did my thing the way I’ve done it. The other day I met a man at a wedding who has been a big fan of my work since 2002. I wouldn’t call that celebrity, but it was a nice compliment and I hope to have coffee with him soon. He always thought me to be very plugged into the scene or whatever it is, but I feel very much on the outside of all that. Every Spring semester I have a lot of offers for interns. Flattering, but I always have to decline. Celebrity is so strange to me and doesn’t even apply to what I am. Most people’s idea of truly “making it” seems skewed as well. I wouldn’t want to be a celebrity, though art and design world celebrity is much different than other kinds. I’d love to just be at a point where I could live on a few acres in private, make art in my making things barn and for just enough money and support to make it comfortably and to not have my wife and animals work too. For now, I will just continue to make art the way I am making it, even if I don’t truly “make it” in real world terms.

16) Where do you draw the line of what work you make public and what you keep for your personal life? It appears I have a lot of my work and even personal life out on the world wide web, but really I don’t think it’s that much. I am in the process of working on a new personal web site. My site is my personal filing cabinet to share with others. I may widdle down some of the selections upon initial visit for people as the speed of site visiting is so much more rapid now as people are passing and receiving information at such a high rate. I might knock back some of my personal Flickr photo sets to private in the coming months, but I’m also alright with showing my photography as it is another interpretation of how I’m seeing and experiencing the world. I wouldn’t mind exhibiting photography in the years to come. In all, I have over 22,000 images on Flickr: art, design, sculptures, collections and photography. I also have a ton of stuff on my site that includes all of my documentation of my art whereabouts, writings and home videos. I didn’t realize it was all getting so massive out there until recently. I’ve always been documenting and sharing, it’s something I learned from my upbringing and even in college I learned the importance of this. I find it important to show a body of work, but one must not make himself or his things the shrine. I just want to share things. There are some things that I’ve yet to document for others. I don’t keep a ton of private work to myself, but there is some stacking up in my basement, and even some of it will end up for others to see someday.

17) Any regrets? Looking back I don’t really have any regrets. Shouldn’t this question come when I’m 95? I do retain a lot of the past within the present, in a way that a company might file their time line of business. I’m looking at this now and nothing really rings a big bell. I’m a fan of the time line of a life, a body of work or reaction to what is pounding on the outside. My brain just works that way. I do wish I would have taken a year or two to live in another city or more. Maybe gone to Europe? But, at the same time, you never know what you’d gain or lose in such a thing, so hard telling. Also, I feel I was just equipped to take on what I did, mentally and financially (barely financially). I just stepped out on a ledge and did it because it was what I had to do and I like how it’s all lined up so far and if things go right, I will have many more years to do other things. There are some things, like wishing I’d written more and documented more and painted more and learned a few new techniqueds. Though, I have done a great deal of that already and there is always room for development. I do wish I’d kept in touch better with some people or saved up more money along the way. It’s hard though with a lot of life things. It’s sad when people have lots of regrets.

18) Do you think designers have made the world a little better? I don’t necessarily subscribe to this notion, or the plot about design or Coke changing the world. I think many people get caught up in this, picket for it, and not to rain on the parade, but it’s just not my thing. I do know that design can make people smile or think a bit, perhaps become aware of certain things. It can be a powerful tool. It can also be a dangerous one. Personally, I don’t really push for politics in my work, but sometimes they happen and I’m fine with it. All of this doesn’t mean I don’t have a heart, it’s just not where I’m supposed to be speaking and I’ll pass the mic to people who should be and are in such a position. When speaking of making “the world a little better” with every day design of peoples interaction with things, I guess it just depends on the user. Most users probably don’t care and as long as they get by, then that is great. I’m fine with that. Of course, I do find trouble reading most restaurant menus and billboards, things of this typographical vomit nature don’t make sense to me. I get confused easily too. I also have trouble initiating intuitive interactivity with technology (which I won’t even get into right now), but I think that has far more to do with faulty wiring in my brain than somebody trying to make my life simpler in mash button ideology. I’m a simple man. But, the people who probably haven’t been diseased by my brain or $40,000 in academic training, can probably read and function more fluently in this world than me. Most of the time I just don’t feel qualified enough to discuss this topic. An interesting topic it is though.

19) Where do you see design going? Other than what I see in front of me at random, or casually perusing a couple of sites or magazines here and there, I usually don’t seek out the current state of design or ponder where it’s headed. Though, I have seen a lot of things getting pretty samey-so-so. Sort of all bleeding together. But, that happens all the time and my stuff isn’t anything new. In truth, I don’t really care that much and living a real life the best I can, is more important to me. I’ve never really felt like an evaluated voice for such discussion as well. I don’t even feel like a voice for graphic design or art. I’ve been turning down speaking engagements because of this. I just can only do my thing and if others want to tag along, then that is great. Though, this is a good question and in general it must be going?

20) How important do you think formal design education is? Also what are the benefits? If only speaking of design made by trained designers, I’m a fan of all types of education that apply; academic, day jobs or trade(s), life experiences. A bit of everything keeps the toes where they goes. Formal design education is important because you have a collective of shared experiences in the trench together, whether it’s instructors or peers. All walks of life too, especially from the perspective of a rural Missouri farm boy. You also learn to develop what you’ve always carried up to that point, add more to it, or completely fine-tune, re-define. For some, realize how they’re built or better suited elsewhere. Formal training can help you learn control, addition/subtraction and to process and feel, to take critique, to multitask. To find the diamond. To learn how to mine it. Sometimes it can be like learning how to see, walk or tie your shoes again. I was fortunate to turn blindly into a system (Southwest Missouri State University, now just Missouri State University) that was/is one of the best kept design school secrets. It just sort of all unfolded right and I wouldn’t change it, but I do wish I would have worked harder. You can always work harder. But, I am what I am. I was under the instruction of well-oiled Eastern European and Russian influence. I didn’t really know what I had until it was about time for me to leave, but once I re-learned how to tap into my spirit, it just felt so right to me. It also helped that I could relate a little bit with my teachers coming from other countries and cultures because a farm boy studying art and design at a high level can be fairly similar

21) Who were your earliest influences that made you choose design as a career? Jim Henson and the world he immersed himself and the public into, was a big influence on me. Also, early on in if I recognized an apple on a vinyl record, then I knew it was going to be for my ears. That iconic Beatles identity, along with movie titles, comic books, Saturday morning cartoons (way before today’s sorry excuses), sports team mascots, farming logos, and handmade countrified things (in particular stuff made by my Grandma’s hands and the way farmers and rural people make or “rig” things), were huge influences on me in knowing how to choose and identify items of interest as well as how-to in creating my own visual language whether it was in my bedroom, sand box or elsewhere. I sorta call them culture trappings and we’ve all got a set of them and these early blue prints never leave you. My parents also never had a cap on what cultural things I and my siblings could in-take. We lived in the country, but our imaginations soared with the help of externals and it would trickle down from there (and this was well before internet and fancy phones). Later on in high school I plunged really into things like architecture (particularly sports stadiums and skyscrapers) and the graphic art of graffiti. This time was an important crossroads as for a while I wanted to be a sports architect, but a lack of math skills turned me off of that and onto graphic arts and there I went. It also helped that I was highly influenced from a three week session at the first annual Missouri Fine Arts Academy. Anyway, it’s all in there in the work I’m doing now, all the life debris that passes every day, along with a whole slew of influences from the past dozen years or more. I don’t ever aim for my formative years to stop. If I make it to 95, I plan to work harder than I do now. Switching gears from grade school-high school to college, I struggled a bit at the first half of this transition. I was trying to take my rural “best artist” roots and apply them to the big dogs of academics. I was so naive (probably still am), but it wasn’t a bad thing. But, it wasn’t easy. One time in hands-on foundation class I overheard classmates grumbling about how they couldn’t wait until they could start working on a computer. I had no idea what they were talking about and exclaimed with great enthusiasm, “I plan to take the route that doesn’t involve computers!” They laughed this off and told me square that there was no way I was going to work around that. I also thought that typography meant I’d be making maps, which if you really think about it, it kind of is. Post foundations, when the screen barrier was finally put in front of me, I felt at a loss in connection for my work and I fell behind fast. It wasn’t until a long bout with struggling back and forth if I even wanted to do graphic art, as well as visiting design firms and coming away very empty, that I found myself and the way in which I wanted and needed to speak. All it took was simply tapping back into the early reservoirs of why I honestly loved making art and creative purity in the first place. I found myself and a connection to something bigger. It also helped that my instructors encouraged hands-on work, process, identity, ideas, experimentation and opened my eyes a little wider to how I could use my insides as well as studies from the entire scope of the arts and life. Everything applies. All of these factors also coincided and collided with a library visit in which a book by designer Lester Beall literally fell to my feet from atop the shelf. I opened it up and found immediate kinship with his approach to design and visual art as well as the fact that he lived and worked out of a barn with the sheep. I grew up with sheep myself. -djg

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