“When following a burning to ignite a creation from within, a yearning to explore beyond perceptions, a desire to question and inquire, a quest for extraordinary experiences and freedom, a relentless pursuit of truth, and wonder at reflections of beauty… it makes life a fantastic ride.”

DJ/Singer/Songwriter
Los Angeles, CA
http://voomz.net/ 

What comes to mind when your hear:
Art/Design: Surrealism
Beauty: Everywhere
Culinary: Vegetarian
Fashion: Is Art
Film: David Lynch
Literature: Jack Kerouac
Music: Magical
Online: LOVE, but offline is where real love is made.
Photography: Newton
Stage: Miss Saigon
Television: The Universe
Quote: “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” – Carl Sagan

What project are you working on next:
An EP with my band, Voomz.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
So many. Probably photography would be at the top of the list though.  I used to draw and paint and would love to get back into that one day too.

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved:
I taught myself pro tools and wrote, produced, and recorded an album all from my tiny little bedroom. It turned out way better than I could have expected since there were many learning curves to production, but it was still far from what I wanted. The album led to some amazing opportunities though,  and I laugh when I hear it knowing how amateur it was.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you:
Realizing we are the creators of our own realities and learning to take personal responsibility and acceptance for my part in all things that happen in my life, both good and bad.  And focusing on the great.

What makes you truly happy:
Dancing on top of things and champagne picnics.

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Reading things that are either educating me or inspiring me.  And juicing fresh fruit every morning!

“The cables are snapping, but the elevator is empty.”

Purveyor of Ocular Amusement
Brooklyn, New York
www.emilyniland.com

What comes to mind when you hear: 
Art/Design: Make
Beauty: Find
Culinary: Delight
Fashion: Sex
Film: Escape
Literature: Record
Music: Mood
Online: Grid
Photography: Time
Stage: Emotion
Television: Spectacle

Can you describe the moment you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
When I was around eight years old I used to paint small rocks from our gravel walkway with different nail polish designs. I then decided to set up a stand by the road selling the nail polish rocks to the neighborhood kids. I liked it and it was fun to make, but I couldn’t believe anyone would actually pay money for that crap. Not much has changed in that regard.

What project are you working on next: 
An animated pilot episode for an independent series contest that MTV is having. It’s a comedy that focuses on consumer culture, social degeneration, and the human preoccupation with bloodlust and vanity. It also involves Juggalos.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
China painting. Specifically, two series focused on Famous Instances of Cannibalism and Amusement Park Tragedies. QVC will have an absolute field day.

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved: 
Getting my illustrations published in magazines and online. Being able to pay my bills with my art. That’s pretty ridiculous.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you:
When I was four years old I almost drowned. Luckily my dad was there to save me, but I learned at an early age not to take life for granted.

What makes you truly happy:
Keeping busy. Exploring new places. Being self-reliant while knowing I have the moral support of my family and friends.

“Learn from your experiences in life however good or bad they may be and don’t dwell on them.”

Makeup Artist
Los Angeles, CA

What comes to mind when you hear:
Art/design: True expression without words that provokes a unique feeling that differs from individual to individual.
Beauty: Culture, Mother Nature, Hawaii Islands, redwood trees, texture, color, black and white
Culinary: Latin cuisine
Fashion: Dior ,Chanel, Dolce and Gabanna
Film: As Cheesy as it may seem I love my 80′s movies! Pretty in Pink, Fast Times at Ridgemot High, St. Elmo’s Fire, all the brat pack movies I adore! The big hair, poptart makeup, fluffy fashion, bebop music and neon make me smile. It’s just a feel good moment that lets you escape your everyday worries.
Literature: I’m not much of a reader, except fashion magazines and even then I mostly just look at the pictures of makeup and study what I like or don’t like. However, If I had to pick a book it would be a Dr. Seuss book called, “Oh the Places You Will Go”. I love this book because it’s a simple message and encouraging message for all of us that wish to follow a dream.
Music: Now this is my absolute passion! I can’t live without music and I love all music genres. I really love Indie rock, classic rock and roll, Hip Hop, Techno and Trance and even some country. My favorites right now are Foster the People, MGMT, Band of Horses, Phoenix and Peter Bjorn and John. If I want to get motivated I will listen to Paul Oakenfold, Tiesto or DeadMaus.
Online: Todays, “online” is a blessing and a curse. It’s great to have and abundance of information at our finger tips, however I think we are losing good old fashion human contact.
Photography: Zhang Jingna is a fashion photography that I had the opportunity to work with and it was an amazing experience. I love her vision because it goes beyond fashion and really provokes a feeling when you see her work.
Quote: Socrates: “True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, & the world around us.”
Stage: Stomp, Phantom of the Opera, The Nutcracker, Grease and Annie.
Television: I admit I was a sucker for Desperate Housewives and Grey’s Anatomy. I like the GCB now too.

Can you describe the moment you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:When my sister did my makeup at 13 years old. I loved how all that blue eye shadow (it was in the 80′s) made me feel and I wanted to recreate it and add more! She was definitely more experience in doing my makeup, but from that moment I fell in love with the power of makeup and how it can change not only how you look but how your feel. It’s very therapeutic for me and when I’m doing someone’s makeup it never feels like work.

What are you trying to communicate with your art: My passion for natural beauty. I love all things natural, the ocean, the tree’s, the mountains and the sky. I don’t think we need to mask our face with makeup to bring out our beauty.

What project are you working on next:
This is a mystery, because everyday it changes, but there is talk of a music video with some big names that I’m excited about. I can’t reveal it yet….but stay tuned.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet: I would love to learn photography. I love to take pictures of anything and everything, but I don’t have a clue how to work a professional camera.

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved:
One accomplishment that I’m very proud of is mentoring other artists and helping them to be successful in the industry. It’s always a good feeling to see someone who has assisted me in the past doing great things! I strongly believe in helping others and “paying it forward” and when you actually see the people you have helped being successful it’s such an amazing feeling!

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you: My brother was killed at the age of 27 and we were very close. I admired him because he followed his dreams and always stayed positive with a smile on his face. He inspired me to do what makes me happy in life no matter how challenging it may seem at the time.

What makes you truly happy: My family makes me happy. They are my biggest fans and always support me in whatever I do. I can’t tell you how many times I have had to ask my mom to buy me things for my kit, because that next job is “going to be a big one”. Even my 8 year old son get’s excited when I work with someone he knows of, especially musicians. I’m so thankful to have the family I have because being a makeup artist can be quite the roller coaster of a ride sometimes and it’s wonderful to have a strong support system that keeps cheering you on.

http://www.dripbook.com/makeupbyperalta/splash/ 

Tomorrow is another day

What comes to your mind when you hear the word below:
Art/design: My father
Beauty: My mother, haha!
Culinary: I’m half Japanese half British so it has to be ‘REAL’ sushi in Japan & Jacket potato in UK. and chips of course!
Fashion: I try not to take the modern day fashion too seriously, I do sometimes and I think that’s really silly and vain .?but coming from a theatre costume back ground I am always fascinated by the history of how fashion changed.?Also the techniques, I really admire the tailors. I am passionate about the image that I try to create, not the fashion itself, I love fashion but there is a side I absolutely hate as well. it’s like marmite I guess, you love it or hate it.
Film: Silent and black & white films are my favorites.
Literature: I only read books in Japanese, at the moment my favorite writer is Yumeno Kyusaku, his work is very surreal and quite avant-garde as well. I find him very fascinating. Also my mother has the influence on me on this category, she writes too. I would love to publish a children’s picture book with my mum, she writes the story, and I do the drawing. We will sell millions!
Music: Jazz. That’s the area my father has influenced me a lot. I like jazz from the 1920′s to about the 60′s. I like dancing to it too.?a bit of Charleston, tiny tiny bit of Lindy hop. I like music that makes me want to dance.
Online: Never ending.
Photography: Film. I really wish we can still shoot on film in fashion. It would be so different!
Quote:Maybe it’s not a famous quote but t it’s my motto?’Whatever will be, will be’?'Que sera sera’ but it doesn’t mean I don’t work hard!
Stage: ‘Shockheaded Peter’ directed by Julian Crouch and Phelim McDermott in London. It was the best play I ever saw.
TV: I don’t own a TV

Can you describe the moment you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
To be absolutely honest, I still don’t know! but I guess from a very young age I knew it and I never really questioned it.?I think the way I was brought up was rather unusual in a small conservative town in Japan. my parents had no intension of making me work in a 9-5 office job. so that’s a massive thank you to my great parents.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
I want to leave a strong image on the viewer. Something that doesn’t age, so that the image will be stuck in their head for a very long time.?Thats what does to me when I see a piece of amazing work or image.

What project are you working on next:
I will be shooting with my partner Yu, he is a photographer. The project is a secret, it’s quite experimental but I know it’s going to be great.

Which medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Drawing

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved:
Learning new things all the time but still being true to myself.
What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you??Coming to London. I moved to London when I was 18. I think it really changed me.

What makes you truly happy:
Lot’s of things, when everything goes extremely well on a tough and hard shoot or project. Also a well deserved pint of beer after that great work makes me happy!and of course, when I see my parents and friends back in Japan once a year.

http://www.karinatanabejones.com/

It’s easy to see the style you walk around wearing, but what about in your home? Do you pay careful attention to current trends and colors?
Admittingly, I am very eclectic. My ‘home home’ is in London and there I have an old train set from the 1920s that runs around, a fireplace, and so many candles. I always have to surround myself with things that inspire me, so I am often mixing old and new. I would say my overall home decor style would be a fine line between modern and old world and romance.

You’re back and forth between London and L.A. quite a bit. Do you prefer one location over the other at this point?
I do miss London when I’m not there, but I feel very fortunate to have the ability to go back and be all things British and come [to L.A.] and really enjoy the American way of life. In L.A. you have a better quality of life, just by being outdoors, seeing architecture alone, and really what you can get for your money. London is very expensive, but once you’re there you feel like you’re in the center of the world.

So, I have to ask. Topshop London or Topshop New York?
What’s so innovative about Topshop in London is that it’s like the gateway to the world for a lot of young artists and designers. I like the philosophy that you don’t have to break the bank to have great style. The New York Topshop likes to highlight already-made-it designers, and though the clothes are still fabulous, it’s definitely a lot more mainstream.

Any inspirations come to mind when you’re out shopping for clothes, accessories, etc.?
I’m always drawn to things that have to do with experiences in my life and growing up with strong women. I grew up in Portugal, lived in London and traveled a lot. Much of what I’m drawn to has abroad inspirations. But I certainly don’t live and die by my style, or my inspirations. I often wear my mood and my feelings on my sleeve.

Which designers do you regularly flock to when you’re in the mood to spend big?
I love Givenchy. Obviously not for everyday purchases. Georgia Harding makes incredibly lovely clothes — each of her garments is like an art piece. Prozenza Schouler, Erdem, Alexander Wang, the list is endless.

You’ve traveled a ton growing up: India, Machu Picchu, Galapagos, Portugal, Peru, and on and on … What kind of impact has that had on your career?
I didn’t realize that it would be as valuable as it is. Traveling really opened up my mind and gave me a level of sensitivity and understanding. When I walk into a room for a meeting I feel like I have some kind of worldly wisdom that a casting director will notice. It’s also helped me to understand different kinds of character because I have a deeper well to draw from. Casting directors will listen a little more to what you have to say if they know you’ve lived in a mud hut or been to India.

Is there any one place abroad that moves you the most?
There are so many, I can’t even begin. Africa was such a surreal place. It’s so humbling to go to a place where you’re no longer the hunter, but you’re also the hunted. You take a wrong turn in Africa and, well, let’s just say no iPhone app is gonna get you out there when an elephant herd is coming through. That always grounded me as a human being. I’m not a practicing religious person, but I went to the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and the history was so profound. I think back and I’m so thankful I went.

Would you ever move abroad, for good?
I would definitely love if I have kids to settle down in a country like Italy, Spain or France. I would find it important for them to grow up speaking another language.

Speaking four languages already, the transition wouldn’t be all that hard for you!
It’s funny because in the circle of friends I grew up with, I know the least languages. You don’t think about it much when you’re out of the States, but then its like, shit that’s fucking cool.

In terms of acting, have you been happy with the roles you’ve been cast in so far?
Playing the Queen of England in ‘The Tudors’ was a big highlight. One time, when I was meeting one of the heads of a major studio, he would barely look at me and I was so upset. Later, I found out he was nervous around me because he assumed I was so posh and proper because of the ‘Tudor‘ role. I’m like, “I don’t live in a castle or court, it’s acting!” But still, no matter what role, no one wants me in a bikini because they think that’s too disrespectful.

If you weren’t an actor …
I would love to be a dancer. I honestly don’t know if I’m any good at it, but I love it. I’ll dance to anything. Literally, anything with a bit of a beat and I’m off. Madonna and Michael Jackson are pumping through my veins.

Beauty: Youngblood Cosmetics.  They are a cruelty free line of makeup and when I was introduced I fell in love.
Culinary: Chef Eric Greenspan and his grilled cheese, Baco Mercot, Dalia Lounge, Malo in Silver Lake.
Fashion: My current obsession, long white dresses.
Film: I just watched again A Woman Under the Influence – It’s incredible and the performances are so real it’s painful to watch.
Literature: I am reading 2 books now, Jon Krakauer’s Under The Banner of Heaven  and Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer.
Music: I’m very partial to my man’s music.  He’s a super talent and has the voice of an angel.  My favorite is when he is practicing around the house.  Check him out Chris Pierce Music on itunes.
Photography: Cindy Sherman is an extraordinary artistic influence on me.  I find her work thought provoking and exciting.
Stage: The last play I performed in was Paula Vogel’s “How I learned to Drive”. It is wonderfully honest piece of writing and working on the character of Lil ‘Bit challenged me to stretch way beyond my comfort zone.
Television: I’m obsessed with everything HBO.  True Blood of course and I never miss an episode of Game of Thrones or Boardwalk Empire.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
I think I wanted to be a ballerina first then I decided a circus performer was more my calling.   I started creating and performing skits for anyone who would watch and I had a dress up box that brought hours of fantastical entertainment to my childhood.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
That every person has a story and a voice worth listening to.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
True Blood season 5 is coming in June.  In addition I have two films headed to festivals this year.  K-11, a twistedly delicious prison drama directed by Jules Stewart.  I play Crystal, a transgender  who runs with an eclectic crew.  The second film is Boot Tracks with Stephen Dorff, Michelle MonaghanWillem Dafoe.  Need I say more?  It has everything I love in a film and it’s directed by David Jacobson!

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Sculpting

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
I’m still here.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
Wow. My brain just got scrambled. I’m not sure I can think of one specific thing. My Mom has had a pretty big impact on me so maybe it was the moment I decided to reincarnate into this life and I chose her.

What makes you truly happy:
Creating

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Hiking, the beach,  working up a really good sweat.

For more information on Tara Buck, visit www.tarabuck.com

“Wake up!”

Artist/Illustrator
Los Angeles
http://art.stevekim.com/ 

Famous Quote
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. —John Watson

What comes to your mind when you hear:
Art/Design: Everyone
Beauty: Everything
Culinary: Money
Fashion: Sex
Film: Fake
Literature: Sermon
Music: Temporary
Online: Desperation
Photography: Pretty
Stage: Cheesy
Television: Advertising

Can you describe the moment you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
It’s a feeling I’ve always had. Making has always meant living. And not making has always meant not living. The curious thing is how easy it has been to reject both. After a time, it’s also been relatively easy to embrace.

What project are you working on next:
I’m retooling and rethinking my illustration portfolio. I’m studying Zbrush, a massively intuitive 3d program, and other related software. My feeling is that it will help me in the long run creatively, but it is, to say the least, a speculative venture.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Music. I have a digital piano that stares at me daily. Also, writing.

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved:
Strangers following me on the internet.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you:
Breaking up.

What makes you truly happy:
Freedom. Freedom to do anything, to do nothing, to be anything, to be nothing.

“Your skin ~ Your masterpiece”

American Manufacturers of All Natural Skincare
Walla Walla, Washington
http://www.inlovewithbodycare.com 

What inspires us:
family, freedom, real love, humor, travel, convesations with strangers, difference, rain, natural beauty, challenge, art, new, old… inspiration can be found in most things if you’re looking for it.
Art / Design:
Norman Rockwell, Van Gogh, Mom, Raquel Isely, Alyssa Isely, grafitti, intriguing, vivid, vintage, modern
Beauty:
natural beauty, smoky eyes, great lipstick, confidence, daring makeup, In Love With Bodycare

Culinary:
Fresh and spicy!! And chocolate. Mom and Charity Isely
Fashion:
Vintage, edgy, feminine, unique, sexy, grunge, rock n’ roll, Zac Posen
Film / TV: 
Film-Brothers Bloom, Hot Rod, Big Fish, Kick Ass, Casablanca, Benny & Joon, Ryan Gosling. TV- Flight of the Conchordes, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, The Mentalist
Literature:
Mark Twain, Jack Handy, Dr. Suess, Charles Dickens, Peter Pan, Pippi Longstocking, Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close, Red Sky At Morning, funny, complicated, spellbinding
Music:
David Isely, David Ford, Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Johnny Cash, Angus & Julia Stone, Quincy Harper,  Ryan Adams, The Beatles, Gaslight Anthem, Ella Fitzgerald, Sinatra, Led Zepplin, Joe Purdy, so much more…
Photography:
candid, bold, captivating, bright, vintage, moment capturing, Daisy Isely, Alfred Eisenstaedt
Stage:
Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde, Much Ado About Nothing, A Streetcar Named Desire

The Concept:
True bodycare, real purity. Our skin is a reflection  of how we treat our bodies, and our bodies are directly affected by what we do to our skin. The IN  LOVE concept is to work with the harmony of the skin body connection to achieve remarkable results.   To only put on the skin ingredients that also nourish the body, and to put into the body that which will promote all over health and beauty.

The People:
We are the Isely girls, the IN LOVE family.  The only rules we live by are purity, effectiveness, honesty and fun. We cannot be limited to what we are told by someone else. We were raised to think outside the box, and we believe in balance.   The balance of nature and science… convenience and results… sustaining the earth and enjoying it… of fun and more fun… the balance of logic and genius. We do what we want, we want to have it all… and we always have fun.

The Difference:
Our company upholds the values we would want from anyone else. Purity, results and honesty.  We also choose to go beyond the normal, seeking and using resources that are not yet common knowledge. The ingredients and methods we apply are a product of open minded research to find and use in our bodycare, the most amazing natural compounds and progressive science, and make it accessible to those with the same standards as ourselves. We believe that class is something you were born with, not based on what you can afford, and that is why we present luxury without snobbery. We feel that there is no need to sacrifice one standard for another, and that if you stay true to what you really want, the ultimate can be achieved.

The greatest advancements come from those not afraid to explore beyond what is already known!

“Hold that bus!”

Musicians
London, UK

Famous Quote:
“A man’s work is nothing but this slow trek to rediscover, through the detours of art, those two or three great and simple images in whose presence his heart first opened.” – Camus

What is the first word that comes to your mind when you hear the words below:

Art/Design: Beauty
Beauty: Art, design
Culinary: Feces
Fashion: Pastiche
Film: Immortal
Literature: Vain
Music: Tragic

Online: Instantaneous
Photography: Trite
Stage: Pretense
Television: Dangerous

Can you describe the moment you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
Nope. I believe we’re all born for the purpose of creation.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
A myriad of emotions expressed through the nonsensical process of inspiration and influence.

What project are you working on next:
A fourth Crocodiles album.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Terrorism

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved:
Survival

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you:
My father’s death.

What makes you truly happy:
Creativity

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Tea, Books, and Basketball.

What are you trying to portray with your pictures?
I want people to truly enjoy natural beauty.  I don’t like doing forced things; I prefer not to use a lot of lighting. I’d rather portray the beauty in everyday things, models, garment, people, etc. Nothing too contrived.

What was your favorite shoot to date?
There are so many! If I had to pick, I’d say the shoot I did in the Desert. It was very simple and clean and used about 3 or 4 models. Although it was 110 degrees and miserable, everyone involved got along really well and it was so much fun. It allowed us to bond and provided a great, positive environment for the shoot.

What inspires you? Are you always ready with a camera just in case?
I try to always have a camera at the ready, but often times I use my phone. It’s the simple moments that are so moving and beautiful, like perfect lighting with a friend at brunch.

I know you’re the co-owner of The Little Branch, how did you make the jump from photography to floral arrangement?
When I was getting started, I shot a lot of weddings. Along with my very creative business partner, a weird yet organic idea came about after her friends asked her to do the flowers for their wedding. And here we are about 5 years later! There is a big design process involved: you have to pick a palette and design an esthetic from the bride, her style, wedding feel, color preferences. It draws from both of our strengths and creates a really beautiful product.

Do you see yourself branching out to any other form of media in the future?
I’ve begun to dip my fingers in video. It’s so important to branch out into new things in order to grow within this every growing technological world. After all, you have to change with the times unless you want to be left behind.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today?
Definitely my son, who is now 8. I was out of work for a while when I had him and couldn’t shoot but wanted to do things for him and to grow myself. I wanted to show him that you can do what you love; you don’t have to do what others want. It was a struggle for me to figure out what I wanted and I don’t want my son to go through the same things. I want him to always reach for his dreams!

For more information on Annie, visit: www.annieedmonds.com

“Use the sword, not the butter knife”

Singer/Songwriter
Los Angeles / Sydney, Australia
kittyclementine.com

What comes to your mind when you hear:

Art/Design: Minimal
Beauty: Love
Culinary: Over-rated
Fashion: Huh?
Film: Night on Earth
Literature: Hemmingway
Music:Waits
Online: Kill me
Photography: Nude
Stage: Midsummer Night’s Dream
Television: Don’t have one

Can you describe the moment you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
I’d been doing nothing but creating since I left school.  I was tired and broke and tired of being broke all the time so I decided to give it all up and train to become a chef.  The moment I first realized creating was something I absolutely had to do was the moment I picked up the phone to call culinary school. It was an overwhelming and inexplicable dread.  I knew then, that if I didn’t create I would be miserable for the rest of my life.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
I have a sneaking suspicion that my art is trying to communicate me.

What project are you working on next:
The next album!  It’s going to very, very dirty and very, very bassey.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Sound design.  But I hate sitting in front of computers.  So I’d first need to invent a thing that worked like a theramin but sounded like anything you pleased.  I’d like to conduct a world of sound out of thin air in a manner that looks like a ninja-attack dancing in slow motion.  Yes that please!

What is one great accomplishment in this industry that you have achieved:
Making this album.  The people that collaborated and the bizarre synchronicities that went into pulling those people together just when they were needed, was like a magic trick I never thought I knew how to do.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on you:
Birth is pretty significant.

What makes you truly happy:
My friends, a big communal dinner and a good glass of red!

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Yoga without it I’d be a goner!

If I’m not the perfect example, I’m probably the warning

Scenic Artist & Illustrator
Californian from New York
http://www.seductionkills.com/

What/Who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:

Art/Design:
Hapshash and Coloured Coat, Phil Kutno, Eduardo Recife, Bonnie MacLean

Beauty:
Alphonse Mucha

Culinary:
Definitely Thai. It’s so colorful! Plus I love insanely spicy food and they’ve never let me down. The best I’ve had was in Bangkok off the back of a bike…mmmm..

Fashion:
Maybe Helena Bonham Carter? I’ve never seen her in anything that I wouldn’t wear myself. Also, any jewelry by Enrique Muthuan

Film:
Director Tarsem Singh and his Production Designer Ged Clarke. They’ve done commercials together for like 20 years but then they made a one of my favorite films called “The Fall.” Every frame could be it’s own gorgeous photograph..

Literature:
Emily Gould, Sloan Crosley, Richard Hell, Luke Davies, David Shields, & Matt Taibbi

Music:
White Denim, Mutemath, The Black Keys, Tame Impala, Black Dub, The Tallest Man on Earth, Baths, ARMS etc. I could go on and on..

Online:
Hugh McLeod – Gapingvoid.com

Photography:
Jim Marshall, Rankin, Peter Lik

Quote:
“Gazing on beautiful things acts on my soul” – Michelangelo

Stage:
Mark Fisher and Stufish Entertainment have created some of the best stage design I’ve ever seen. Two of my favorites have the Roger Waters “The Wall” Tour and their Vegas Cirque-du-Soleil.

Television:
What I consider to be mandatory viewing is LOUIE, Seinfeld, Arrested Development, The Daily Show, and Breaking Bad.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
Hm, well if I were to take it back  to sandbox days…I would have to say during the hours and hours I spent playing with those wooden mosaic blocks. They instilled a real sense of color and aesthetics, and probably a little OCD.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
While everything’s tied together, what you see at first glance isn’t necessarily what it seems. I’d like to think the viewer can create their own story.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
I recently designed the album cover for Day Dreamer by the artist Mike Clifford. Right now I’m working on some personal pieces that I’ll add to my blog in the near future. theconsciousink.blogspot.com

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. Mainly poetry/lyrics. It would be cool to publish them eventually.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
Anytime someone can relate to or have an emotional response to my work, I feel a great sense of accomplishment.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
I put all of myself into relationships, so I’m most impacted by the inevitable ups and downs that come along with them.

What makes you truly happy:
I truly happy when I’m working with music, and visualizing the emotion that a song provokes in you. Music videos, album art, live shows…anything. I live for it

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Oddly enough, I think constantly striving for balance is what keeps me sane.

“Be Mighty” something my father has said to me since I was a little thing. I have it tattooed on my inner left wrist.

Photographer 
Brooklyn, NY
http://www.samanthawest.net

What inspires you as an artist:
FACES: Those with stories in their eyes, character in their teeth, knowing smiles, wrinkled by time or smooth as silk. I find it beautiful when people posses indisputable uniqueness. LIGHT: how it undulates and changes with the seasons, how it casts shadows against buildings or falls across the face, highlighting bright eyes and fantastic noses.

Art
I love the Pre Raphaelite period in painting, because I am a great romantic and first found relatability in the females depicted in their paintings.
I studied Art History at University in Scotland and I find it hugely influential. Any period, any medium, just give me a bit of time to do some research and I will find something that I love.

Beauty
ICONS: Tilda Swinton to Isabella Rossellini to Sarita Choudhury. I truly believe women become more beautiful with age. You earn your face over the years through wrinkles, and time, and laugh lines…these women are not afraid to be raw and honest.

Culinary
You can always taste love and passion. I adore cooking. I prefer to eat in season when I can. Everyone should know how to roast a chicken and make a delicious mashed potato. I have been gluten free for about a year and it has changed my life as well as provided me with a challenge to find alternates to the staples I have loved since I was a child. Roast every vegetable with some olive oil, salt and pepper and you are pretty much good to go.

Design
My alternate personality wears drapey clothing and lives in a minimalist, bright, modern, Scandinavian environment, but the true me is a nester, collector, dsiplayer of said collections, and dreaming of having a green thumb. I love old things with a bit of history, I love being surrounded by plants, shells, succulents, rocks, wood, and gems. When I visit homes, I tend to be drawn to the odd things that are quite old, fairly classic, and a bit used and have a story. I love when people display bits and pieces from their travels around the world, mixed in with gems they find thrifting, pieces that have remained in the family for generations, mixed together with something new.

Fashion
Elsa Schiaparelli is highly underrated but she was a genius. Adolfo was a Spanish designer who has made some of the most chic and beautiful vintage pieces I have had the chance to see up close. Alexander McQueen’s designs are just fascinating. They go beyond clothing.

Film
My favorite films as a child were The Adventures of Robin Hood with Errol Flynn, The Black Stallion, Terry Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, as well as High Society with Grace Kelly and Bing Crosby. They still remain my favorites today. I also recommend Night on Earth, Caro Diario, and Mr. Lonely.

Literature
Kurt Vonnegurt is great to read out loud, as well as E E Cummings.

Music
I am lucky to have some great musicians as dear friends; CANT (Chris Taylor), Twin Shadow, Ben Frost, Baby Alpaca, Delta Spirit. I have been listen to the new Chairlift album (Something) as well as listening to this gal from New Zealand called Bachelorette.

Photography
The work of Julia Margaret Cameron, Avedon, Penn. Sarah Moon and Lilian Bassman are both great heroes of mine and were so modern and ahead of their time, everything they produced still holds up and is so fresh compared to what is shot today. It is timeless photography, which I greatly admire.

Stage
Ballet, Opera

TV
British comedies, particularly Black Books and Peep Show. I will completely dork out of Game of Thrones, I think it is just awesome. I love a good Masterpiece Mystery, I cannot help it. Luther on BBC is such a good series. Idris Elba is a babe.

I’m in the middle of domestic bliss. I organize the garage, run menial errands around the house — just try to keep my sanity, basically. Bottom line is I’m so anxious to start working again. Although, it is nerve-racking knowing only the concept of what I’m entering and not the hard facts. I would liken the relationship between  actors and producers to falling in love. Right now, I’m still in the dating process and I’m not sure if they love me back. So, I pretty much stay home, obsessing about it, wondering what they’re thinking.

What has it been like working on the show?
Amazing. It feels great to be a part of something that people are actually watching, and liking. Starz has given me a home and I want to repay them through hard work and a really good show. I guess that makes me a little competitive.

Tell me about your first big role.
It must have been ‘Bandits.’ I had just come out of theater school and was very excited. There was one scene that I’ll never forget. I was standing on top of a three-story mobile home, 40 feet in the air on top of a roof — and I hate heights. The camera was in a crane floating off of the roof and I was supposed to speak into the camera while standing, but my legs were shaking so badly. I was so nervous that I couldn’t get the lines out of my mouth.

So, did you jump?
Yeah, I jumped. I faced my fear of heights … and it was terrible. I still can’t watch that scene.

What do you love about being on camera?
I’m inherently shy, though no one in my life would tell me that. There’s something about being on stage that I find exhilarating. It requires a certain presence of mind that I find difficult to operate in day to day life and I find that very attractive. That’s when I realized this was something I could actually pursue. That this is a world and career.

If you weren’t acting, what do you think you’d be great at?
I think I would have put all my energy into being a landscape architect. But, I mean, everyone has fantasies about altering decisions in their lives. I don’t have any regrets.

What’s the hardest part for you about delivering a line?
Being able to use my nerves towards a positive outcome. Trusting that I’ll be able to tell a story without actually turning to the camera and saying: Can you see that I’m feeling this specific emotion?

Any habits you can’t quite shake?
I’ll have these dreams. First, they’ll be work-related in some way, studying a script or something. Then, it’ll turn into a panic, like I’m performing naked in a church or can’t remember my lines or I’m walking through quick sand. And then, the dreams just enter some state of complete absurdity. Mostly something my subconscious should be embarrassed about. But that usually just means I’m beginning to feel comfortable with a character. Odd, I know.

You’ve been in a wide range of movies. Is there any genre you haven’t been involved in that you’d like to?
Western, hands down. I’d love to ride a horse.
Ah, boys and their love of cowboys.
I did have a childhood fantasy of being Jesse James with a gun. Who doesn’t? Man, that’s such a stupid answer.

How would you describe your perfect, no-pressure evening?
Cooking a nice dinner, having some friends over and just sitting around making each other laugh.

Oh yeah? Do you fancy yourself a cook?
I can handle myself, I’m decent. I like to challenge myself in the kitchen. I’ve made everything from legs of lamb to homemade ice cream.
Wow, and I’m eating cereal for dinner most nights.
Well, I mean, I do prefer Coco Puffs.

Any words you live by?
I actually do have a new mantra: Seeing the potential in something as opposed to not.

People see me in the suit and they know I’m not fooling anyone, they know I’m rock and roll through and through.” Davis Brent

What/Who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:
Beauty: My makeup philosophy is keep it simple and focus on one feature if you want to do something different.  I love freshly scrubbed and shiny skin, bush brows and a bright lip.  If you can get away with nothing, do it.  People who get it are Elizabeth Olsen and Diane Kruger.  People who were born with it are Lara Stone, Guinevere Van Seenus, Hannah Holman and Lindsey Wixson.
Culinary: I’m a vegetarian but I can never say no to my favorite dish, spaghetti vongole.  The best one I’ve ever had was in a small, family owned restaurant in San Remo on the coast of Italy.  Mexican and margaritas are another favorite.  I love Cafe Pacifico in Easty Sydney.
Film: Movies are my drug.  Movies that are set in inspiring locations and eras in time are the most resounding.  In the desert, in the deep south in America in the 20′s to 70′s.  Plus anything funny! Dirty Dancing, Super Troopers, Stand by Me, Dumb & Dumber, Some Like it Hot, Thelma and Louise, The Strangers, Breakfast at Tiffany’s Hocus Pocus, Steel Magnolias, everything by Alfred Hitchcock, I could go on for daysssss.
Literature: I read like a maniac, especially crime thrillers and nostalgic, wistful novels.  Some favorite authors are Anne Tyler, Val McDermid, J.K. Rowling, Patricia Cornwell, Arthur Conan Doyle and Mark Twain.  The Amateur marriage by Anne Tyler inspired me to start writing a novel and the most fascinating book I’ve read in a long time is The Murder Room by Michael Capuzzo.
Music: Bluegrass, roots, jazz and folk are my favorite listens.  Raw music with a voice and instruments is the best.  My favorite is Ray Lamontagene.  Skimming through my iTunes, I’d add The Avett Brothers, Brandon Flowers, Eminem, Hanson, Iron & Wine, M. Ward, Miranda Lambert, Otis Redding and Paolo Nutini.
Photography: My taste has definitely evolved since I started out and I mostly like really raw, vibrant location shots.  Most of all, a photo should be beautiful and unusual.  A favorite is my good friend She Is Frank.  I’ve learned about good photography from her.  I love photographers in the style of Cass Bird, Angelo Pennetta and Will Davidson.
Stage: I’m afraid to say I’m uncultured when it comes to stage, except for the love of comedy.  Doug Stanhope changed my life a little bit.  Sometimes you don’t know what you think about things or how to put what you think into words until you hear someone else say it in a witty, anecdotal form.  I also adore Louis CK, Ricky Gervais pre-Hollywood, Russell Brand and Jack Lemmon.
Television: If I wasn’t a makeup artist, I’d be a writer.  I appreciate brilliantly written, funny, nostalgic and real television shows.  The most inspiring show I’ve ever watched is Friday Night Lights, It’s outstanding.  I also woruldn’t be without The Golden Girls, The Simpsons, Seinfeld, Press Gang, The Office, The X-Files and Bones.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
Beauty!  I think a by-product of our day and age is that people ascribe too much meaning to just about everything but particularly to the things they create (“imagined by James Franco”).  I’m not saving lives with cosmetics but if someone looks at something I’ve done and sees a beautiful image, thats good enough for me.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
I’m a week away from launching my makeup school in Melbourne!  I’ve just finished shooting for an exciting project with She is Frank in country NSW and I’ve got a couple of main fashion editorials in Girlfriend magazine coming up.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Writing, there’s a beautiful block of land by a river in country NSW with my name on it and an epic, generational novel plus an organge orchard in the next 5 years.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
I’ve accomplished a lot in a very short amount of time so I’d say having tenacity and not giving up.  It’s hard to justify such a difficult career when you see everyone whizzing past you but put the blinkers on and keep going.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
Even if you remember one pivotal moment, it’s still everything that’s happened up until then that makes that moment significant.  Learning about critical reserach in my first sememster at university changed what I thought about most things.  Being taught to question absolutely everything and make up my own mind rather than blindly accepting what your hear or read.  I’m a completely different person today for having learned to apply that to my life.

What makes you truly happy:
No one’s truly happy all the time but it’s good when you realize that happiness is in the small stuff and you can really appreciate what’s happening around you.  Driving through the countryside.  Putting my last brush down and seeing a makeup that looks just like I wanted it too.  Feeling excited about the future.  Arriving in a new country. The small stuff!

What keeps you balanced and sane:
I’m neither, so I wouldn’t have the faintest idea.

Megan Harrison
Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist
http://www.meganharrisonmakeupartist.com/ 

websites:
http://surfambassadorhendo.blogspot.com/
http://soundcloud.com/surf_ambassador_hendo

“Life’s too short not to be Frothing all the time!”

 

Famous Quote: “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

What/who inspires you as an artist:
Art/Design: My Dad, my friends: Taylor Dunfee, Gus Thompson, Alex Herbst along with guys like Banksy, Blek Le Rat, Mr. Cartoon, and other such street artists.

Beauty: Myrt Reynolds, the ocean, waves, the beach, the mountains, and the sky.

Culinary: My family’s cooking skills, Myrt Reynolds and my mate Geoff who’s a personal chef on a legendary musician’s yacht. Some favorites include: Pizza, Sushi, and Hawaiian poké (preferably from Kahuku Suprette).

Fashion: The Ampal Creative, Crap Eyewear, MsQueza, and Pistols & Lipstick.

Film: Tim Burton, Bruce Brown, Rick Kane, Taylor Steele, Johnny Utah, Leroy “The Masochist”, Kai Neville, Larry Haines, Mike Prickett, Seeworthy Project, Fellini, Ian Emes, and Italian Neorealism.

Literature: My Mom, David Rensin, Steinbeck, R.L. Stine, Robert Frost, Hunter S. Thompson, and Stab Magazine.

Music: Any kind of Live music always inspires me as well as all my friends doing big things within the music industry (Guns In The Sun, dF, GDD, Bixel Boys, Tropicool, Viceroy, Junkyard, MazKaraté) and the heavy hitters like: Oliver, JUSTICE, The Magician, Poolside, Goldroom, Vanguard, Holy Ghost!, Cut Copy, Arcade Fire, Duck Sauce, Bag Raiders, French Films, Miami Horror, and Fred Falke. I’m also a big fan of Motown, soul, disco, 80′s, hip hop, and indie rock music.

Online: Globe.tv/Dion, FollowTheFish.tv, Hypem.com, GottaDanceDirty.com, thedfm.com, TheAmpalCreative.com, FilterGlove.net, MindTai.com, JunkyardKicks.com, Surfline.com

Photography: Helmut Newton, Carlos Nunez, Camilo Lara Jr., Taylor Dunfee, Reed Decker, Chris Heim, Greg Byers, Anthony Ghiglia, Clark Little, and Russo

Stage: Jersey Boys, Point Break Live, Aziz Ansari, Pablo Francisco, Cabaret, and Phantom of the Opera

Television: Eastbound & Down, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Boardwalk Empire, Entourage, The Layover, Idiot Abroad, and any other travel show

Surfing: Kalani Robb, Chris Ward, and Dane Reynolds

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
I’ve been creating music and making videos ever since I was a grom, but I don’t think it was until I graduated High School that I realized that I was over math and science and that creating and being creative was something I had to do. I couldn’t imagine a normal life with a 9 to 5 job stuck in a putrid cubicle, staring at the slo-mo clock, and just living for the weekends. So far my career path has taken me to some amazing places; I’ve met some really genuine and creative people, and have experienced the completion of many of my dreams. I love the work I do and I only do work I love. It’s not always easy but I wouldn’t change it for the World.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
My music is meant to communicate happiness, warmth, laughter, and a deep sense of letting yourself go and just having fun! A big part of me yearns for the vibe that the music made in the 70′s and 80′s elicited (disco and synth-driven tunes); a sense of freedom, fun, and love. Ultimately, songs that I’ve edited or put in my DJ sets are meant to encompass a modern twist on a classic era while communicating a feel-good/fun in the sun/beach party vibe!

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
Currently I’m working on a new “Re-Froth” (re-edit) of a classic disco track that is really coming together nicely and is set to be released on a compilation with a bunch of my disco friends (French Kiss Collective, Falcon Punch) and some NuDisco legends. Also, I have a new mixtape that will be released soon in collaboration with an international apparel brand that I’m really stoked about. On top of that, my summer DJ residency with the legendary “No Shirt / No Shoes” party presented by Dub Frequency is set to start on April 28th at the Standard Hotel in Downtown LA. The Epic monthly party will be continuing at the Standard rooftop and throughout California the entire summer long. I can’t even begin to express my froth/excitement for this party!

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
I’d like to pursue some kind of band that incorporates a whole blender of eclectic musical weirdness including such sounds as: indie/electro/tropical/disco/80′s/punk/surf rock/froth music. I’ve been playing guitar and songwriting all my life but haven’t ever really pursued being in a full band. I had a mini band with my best mate Daniel in High School and it was awesome creating music, recording songs, and eventually playing a few songs for our friends! It would be so epic to play in a band with music that I’m really passionate about and just completely let myself go on stage while jumping around singing, frothing, and acting like the complete freak I am. It would be one hell of a show, that’s for sure!

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
One of my greatest accomplishments within the music industry would most certainly be becoming a resident DJ for the “No Shirt / No Shoes” party series. Last summer was truly something magical that opened up so many creative doors for me. Alongside my buddies who are the 2 other resident DJs who go by: the Bixel Boys (the creators of the party series along with Dub frequency) and Tropicool, we were fortunate enough to create a Party Vibe that was something new, fun, and had a charismatic energy that just progressively grew bigger and bigger. With support and loyalty from our friends and sponsors, we eventually were DJing all over California. From San Diego, to San Francisco, all over LA and eventually even DJing at Filter Magazine’s Culture Collide Music Festival in Silverlake! I’m very thankful for that and have since gotten many great gigs and have had my song Re-Froths up on Hypem.com. I’m also incredibly proud of one particular No Shirt / No Shoes DJ set that went down on July 23rd, 2011. With perfect weather, all of my friends from high school, college, and LA in attendance/frothing, plus a handpicked DJ set chalk-filled with NuDisco and 80′s retro jams, that DJ set is still the best one I’ve ever had in my life. Energy levels and fun were through the roof and afterwards, I felt like I just won a million dollars, it was amazing! Those are all many accomplishments that I’m super stoked on. I’m still really new to the whole DJ game and I know there’s plenty of room to grow, but so far I like how things have started.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
Ultimately the way my parents raised me has had the biggest impact on who I am today. Throughout thick and thin, they’ve supported my alternative career path and have believed in me every step of the way. I’m very fortunate for a support system like that and their unconditional love.

The one thing that musically (in regards to DJing) made the biggest impact on who I am today, was watching DJ AM’s set at La Cita bar about 3 years ago. The way he successfully managed to mix all of my favorite songs without ever missing a beat, opened my eyes to a whole new realm of playing music and fully utilizing creativity. He was a true legend who not only inspired me, but a whole generation the World over as well.

What makes you truly happy:
I’m usually always happy so it doesn’t really take all that much to make me happy but I’d say that definitely: family, friends, music, surfing, and laughter make me truly happy. Sometimes the littlest things make me happy like hearing from an old friend, a good random/bizarre joke, catching a good wave, getting booked to DJ an awesome show, or even the feeling I get after a long productive day exploring various creative avenues. True happiness is everywhere!

What keeps you balanced and sane:
The ocean and surfing keep me balanced and sane along with the support I have from my family and friends. I’ve been surfing for about 17 years now and there’s just something about being in the water that never fails to set my mind and body at ease. The ocean and the act of surfing put a halt to any stress or worries that the real world may dish me. Every time after I surf, whether or not the waves are firing or complete horse crap (like El Porto), I always come out feeling rejuvenated, fresh, and alive. Some have even said that I glow for a hot minute after I’ve been hanging in Poseidon’s Playground. My friends and family keep me sane and balanced as well and without their support and belief in my dreams, I surely wouldn’t have made it this far; Myrt Reynolds keeps me sane too. A big thanks to all!
* The term “Froth” or “Frothing” is a standard word in my vocabulary derived from my good mate Nai Snagtor and the Aussies. Its meaning is similar to that of being extremely excited, stoked, or a general sense of supreme happiness. More info about my unique/bizarre vocabulary can be learned about and seen here: http://vimeo.com/6529261

I don’t think I’m eloquent enough to have my own quote yet;-)

Famous Quote: “I am no bird, and no net ensnares me” Jane Eyre (Ch.23)

Who/What inspires you as an artist:
Art/Design: I love Ryan McGinley. I’m a big photography fan. His images are so freaky and beautiful, they make me want to drive across the US, nude, in a dusty pickup.

Beauty: I think natural is best in general, but I am always inspired by something a little rebellious or wild. I love unruly, natural hair with a really crazy lip or eye color, or conversely a really sleek hair with an unexpected lip color.

Culinary: ABC Kitchen has the most amazing food. I went there recently and Martha Stewart was at our table before we were, which has nothing to do with food but still. That’s saying something. Also speciality food shops…There is something great about getting your meat from a butcher, your cheese from the local cheese shop, and fresh fish from the fish market.

Fashion: Givenchy, Rick Owens, Haider Acherman, Proenza Schouler, Electric Feathers, No. 6. I think Mary Katrantzou is a print genius. You could get lost in her clothes for hours.

Film: Wes Anderson kills it from the dry wit and the outdated but amazing costume choices. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is hilarious, sad, and visually stunning all at once.

Literature: I am obsessed with books and find any and all of them inspiring. I just went through a Franzen, Euginides phase, then I read IQ84 by Haruki Murakami. East of Eden by Joe Steinbeck is probably my favorite book. I’ve read it 3 times and its always amazing.

Music: Anthing and everything. Sam Cooke, George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass is one of my all time favorites. Anything Pearl Jam (I am mild to moderately obsessed with Eddie Vedder). Currently I am listening to St. Lucia, Azealia Banks, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Lil Wayne (always), Summer Camp, Theophilus London among others.

Online: Nowness, Cat Party, Manda Knows Best, Turnedout.tv

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
I don’t now if I ever had an ‘aha’ moment. It just seemed like it was always a natural progression into fashion. It never occurred to me to do something else. That said, it wasn’t until I moved to NYC and really got into the creative energy and collaborative spirit that I really felt I wanted to do it myself.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
That’s a tough one. I think I’m just trying to do something that I find inspiring and fulfilling and hope that people find that in it as well.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
Yes! I could tell you but then I’d have to kill you. Just kidding, I’m going to collaborate with Silver Lining Opticians on some vintage glasses for spring, which is so exciting. I’m also working with my good friend and graphic designer Sarah Dobson on a print for next season, as well as my stylist Eva Zuckerman. They did the prints last season and nailed it, in my opinion.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Photography, but legit photography. Not just instagram. I want to really understand how to use a camera and develop images.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
That my dog made it into glamour.com’s cutest pets. Seriously, she’s the bomb and I’m glad other people got to see it. Otherwise, I think my greatest accomplishment has been to weather the various storms and build something that I’m proud of. I think I’ll have some great accomplishments in the future and that, in itself, is something.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
I think I’m lucky that I’ve always had a lot of support from family and friends! I never felt I should be doing something more ‘stable’. Thank God my parents didn’t push me to do something I hated.

What makes you truly happy:
My husband, family, friends, my dog lola, traveling to somewhere beautiful, music, books, fashion, good food and conversation.

What keeps you balanced and sane:
All of the above! I have good people in my life and I’m fortunate to have the experiences I do.

Follow your heart…”volg je hart”

Famous Quote: “Fashion fades, style is eternal” Yves Saint Laurent

Who/What inspires you as an artist:
Art/Design: Egon Schielle / Basquiat

Culinary: Peruvian Food

Fashion: Brazilian fashion and original patterning, Christian Dior, Balmain, McQueen

Film: Great Expections

Literature: The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery

Music: College, Lana Del Rey, Bob Marley

Online: www.piccsy.com

Stage: Grease

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
I’ve been doing it since I was a little girl, encouraged by my mother and the other creative, passionate women in my family. It is our lifestyle.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
My own experience in life, beauty, and point of view.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
Looking forward to next season!

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Experiment in fabric serigraphy and printing. I have a collection in mind in which fabrics are printed by my closest artist friends.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
Establishing Sandra Weil Couture as a solid forward moving brand. Being one of the first few selected Latin American designers of my generation to cross borders into America.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
Living and working in Barcelona.

What makes you truly happy:
My husband and eating:-)

What keeps you balanced and sane:
My lovely family…and some yoga!

“Know the rule well so you can break them effectively!” Dalai Lama XIV

 

What/Who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:
Art/Design: The Selby is in your place.

Beauty: I find Nature to be an unending supply of beauty

Culinary: Lately I got slightly obsessed with the television show chopped. Where competitors get a box of mystery ingredients and have to make a dish. This is often what cookings like in my kitchen, what food do I have and how can I turn it into a meal.

Fashion: My style is sort of hodge podge, whatever speaks to me. I love thrift stores, the thrill of the hunt, not knowing what your looking for until you find it. You sometimes have those amazing finds, and they’re only three bucks.

Film: I grew up in the eighties’ so I have a special fondness for the films I watched as a kid. I feel it was a time when a certain amount of suspension of disbelief existed. Movies didn’t need to be flawless.

Literature: I’ve always read a lot. I’m a big fan of Kurt Vonnegut Jr. My dad gave me all his books when I was a kid. “A Short History of Nearly Everything” by Bill Bryson is another book I am always reading and re-reading.

Music: Things on my ipod lately, Beatles, Arcade Fire, Beach Boys, Bon Iver, Black Keys, Harry Belefonte.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
When I was younger the world seemed to be a very confusing and overwhelming place. Art was a way to give a voice to those feelings.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
I think ultimately I’m trying to find honesty, as a performer and in my everyday life.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
We are working on a project written by Jonathon Keevil called “The Sand Diego Twins” , which we are excited to move forward with.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
I’ve always wished I were a better painter. I enjoy painting, but its never been more than a hobby.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
I’m just at the start. Bellflower has been my biggest accomplishment. It’s been amazing. Jut the fact that we got it made, was a feat unto itself.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
I had a rare liver disease when I was 20 that eventually required a liver transplant. That experience at that age really changes your entire outlook. It was part curse part blessing and you never really see life the same way again.

What makes you truly happy:
I’m still trying to figure that out.

What keeps you balanced and sane:
I need to take care of myself. Eat well, exercise, sleep. I tend to like to be alone. I also try to get outside as much as possible.

To define is to limit. I hate when people ask what I do. I’d rather be asked how I enjoy spending my time.

What/Who inspires you as an artist:
Art/Design: Architecture especially Le Corbusier and Eileen Gray.

Beauty: Classic beauty icons like Anna Karina and Bridget Bardot. Nothing beats a strong red lip, flawless skin and confidence! I don’t actually like a lot of makeup.

Culinary: Oysters, lobster, cheese, macaroons and a nice glass of wine.

Fashion: Alexander McQueen because he was a visionary. I dreamed about working his shows since I was 18 years old. Coco Chanel because she liberated women, came from nothing and had immense strength, talent and class.

Film: Frederico Fellini, Jean Luc Godard, Michelangelo Antonioni, Jacques Tati and Pedro Almodovar

Literature: Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway, Kahil Gibran and and Pablo Neruda

Music: My very first love of music was classical, the piano in the apartment.

Online: TedTalks.com and Style.com

Photography: Sarah Moon and my best friend Greg Swales

Stage: Seeing my oldest friend Victoria Green, who is a ballerina perform anything! I got the privilage of going backstage and even being lifted into my favorite dance pose by her partner. The London Opera House is the best place to see a show it is a fantasy.

Television: This is hard because I haven’t had a TV for 6 yrs but lately I have been downloading Californication.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creatng was something you absolutely had to do:
When I put my hands on the piano and took ballet. It is probably the closest feeling of flying one can achieve.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
I hope that when people see or hear my work they lose a sense of time and can let their imaginations float for a moment. I want to allow people to be emotional.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
Yes I just got signed to an amazing agency in Toronto so it will be a big year.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Painting, music and photography

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
For me it is really about the end result is is about the experience on the job. The shoot I did in LA was epic for me. I was given creative freedom and felt like I was playing with my friends in an incredible setting. My heart was about to to explode. When I got home I realized how much fun I had. But signing with my agency in Canada was definitely another moment. I got the call sitting at the airport and had no one to share it with so I got drunk at the bar and started texting all my mentors.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
My parents for supporting and believing in me every time I decide to do something crazy. Traveling the world, school and my immense amount of friends and family who have supported all my endeavors.

What makes you truly happy:
My friends, family, traveling, art and fashion.

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Yoga, playing piano and wine.

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you into something else is the greatest accomplishment -Ralph Waldo Emerson

What/Who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:
Art/design: Hopper, Sargent, Seurat, Jacque Louis David

Fashion: Alexander McQueen, Christian Dior

Literature: Emerson, Rousseau, Austen, and children’s books

Music: Mew, Fleet Foxes, George Laswell

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
Some of my earliest memories are of making art. At the time I don’t think I really knew what an artist was; I was simply doing what was instinctive to me, something I was naturally passionate about without knowing why. I would sit for hours as a child in my room or backyard drawing, being absolutely absorbed. It was not until I was a little older that I realized art was more than just a hobby, but something I would spend the rest of my life in pursuit of discovering.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
The beauty of my work really lies in it’s atmospheric qualities. I often consider the idea of identity and what gives a person a clearer image of themselves. These thoughts transform into beautiful and quiet images that aim to invite the viewer into a conversation on the subject.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Glassblowing

What makes you truly happy:
My family is the most important part of my life. I have wonderful parents and six siblings who are fun, crazy, and my biggest supporters.

What keeps you balanced and sane:
God, without a doubt.

Not everyone is going to like you…surround yourself with people that LOVE you!

What/who inspires you as an artist:
Art/design: Gustav Klimt, Jack Vettriano, and John Waterhouse
Beauty: Kate Beckinsale

Culinary: I love Sushi Samba; it’s a mix between Brazilian, Peruvian, and Japanese Cuisine.

Fashion: Rebecca Moses, Chanel, Christian Louboutin, Christian Cota

Film: The Labyrinth, Billy Madison, What Dreams May Come, A Lot Like Love

Literature: Tuesdays with Morrie, Through the Looking Glass, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Music: Sia, Jay-Z, John Williams, Dave Matthews, The Black Keys, The Fray, Nicki Minaj, Radiohead, Missy Elliot

Online: Huffington Post, Guest of a Guest, Late Night Mistakes, Do Not Even Reply

Photography: Patrick McMullan, Andy Warhol

Stage: I loved Mary Poppins and A Behanding in Spokane with Christopher Walken
Television Shark Tank, Hell’s Kitchen, Tabitha Takes Over, The Voice, Snapped, The King of Queens, maybe a little Jersey Shore.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do: When I was 6 years old, I began to teach myself how to play piano which evolved into creating my own compositions. I knew right away it was my passion in life.

What are you trying to communicate with your music: Music is healing for me. I tried to convey emotions I felt at that specific time in my life.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet: I would love to play live at Carnegie Hall with other musicians. It’s something I have always dreamed of doing. However, not being able to read music definitely makes it hard to play with an orchestra.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry: I have been lucky enough to be able to work on some Indie Films in the past. I hope that will lead to many more opportunities.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today: I think college really became a place for me to flourish. I was fairly shy before I went away to school. It brought me out of my shell, so to speak.

What makes you truly happy: My Fiancé.

What keeps you balanced and sane: Retail therapy, a good meal, and reality television.

Websites:
brigitteviellieudavis.com/
fridakahlo.it/brigitte.html
indiegogo.com
michelledoll.com

In terms of dealing with life’s obstacles and challenges: Nothing makes you jump like hurdles.

Famous quote:
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.” –Mary Oliver (from Wild Geese)

What/who inspires you as an artist:
Art/Design: Michelle Doll, a dear friend whose work I adore, . Frida Kahlo. I wrote a play about her entitled “Frida Liberada” (Frida Set Free). I am drawn to Mexican folk art – sugar skulls, tin wall art, and those amazing altar colors – oranges, fuchsias, golds and ceruleans.

Beauty: I was 40 before I realized I had natural curls/waves, so Deva Chan is a favorite product. And I love Bobbi Brown – her philosophy about revealing beauty, as well as her products.

Culinary: Michael Pollan and Alice Waters. I’m a big supporter of the Slow Food Movement. Guilty pleasure: I’m a sucker for a Japanese steak house!

Fashion: Black Halo by Laurel Berman – she makes dresses for women with curves. “Cowboy boots, baby! You can walk in them ALL day long and look cool.” Now if I were independently wealthy, I think I would wear Lauren, lots of Ralph Lauren.

Film: Sorkin for his great dialogue; Alexander Payne and Sofia Coppola for the way they tell stories on film; I love pre-Hays code movies. 1920s and 30s, when women are portrayed as powerful, sassy, and independent. Makes you think Hays was a real db, right?

Documentary: Anything by Ken Burns.
Actors: Kate Blanchett, Shirley McClaine, Anne Bancroft, Diane Wiest, Helen Mirren, Madeline Kahn (a comic goddess), Daniel Day Lewis, and Jeff Bridges.

Literature: Haruki Murakami, Vladimir Nabokov, Dorothy Allison, Tennesse Williams, Grace Palin, Mary Oliver, Billy Collins, Pablo Neruda, Rumi, T.S. Eliot, Mark Twain, Anton Chekhov, Pearl Buck and Carson McCullers.

Music: If I’m gonna’ sing something it will be the blues (“Steamroller Blues” is a favorite). But for listening, opera or Art Tatum & Ben Webster while I cook and dine; Corinne Rae Bailey, Gladys Knight, or Patti Smith in the car; Ray LaMontagne and Eva Cassidy for Chilling, and I love to dance, so ANYTHING that makes my body want to move, from West African drumming to Earth Wind & Fire to Mary J. Blige.

Online: Etsy-Novica-Stumbleupon-pinterest-arborday.org-kiva.org –justgive.org

Photography: Robert Mapplethorpe, Shirin Tinati ( NYC-based)

Stage: My friend, playwright Rob Askins! I never miss Ariane Mnouchkine and Théâtre du Soleil when they come to town. I try not to miss Complicite, Simon McBurney’s theatre company, when they perform in the States.

Television: Current favorites on the DVR list: Homeland, The Good Wife, Blue Bloods, Law & Order, Louie, & Mad Men (not filmed in NYC, but SO good). Reality: Project Runway/. Vintage

TV: West Wing, Twilight Zone, Star Trek(s), Slings & Arrows, Prime Suspect (UK version)

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do: I can’t remember exactly how old I was (10 years old maybe) but there was a question on a literature test to give an example of a metaphor and a simile. I wrote a short poem about the night sky to illustrate both. The teacher was so impressed that she uncharacteristically had me read my exam poem in front of the class. That was it. I was a goner.

What are you trying to communicate with your art? We are spiritual beings having human experiences. The journey is about opening, unfolding, discovering, connecting to your humanity in order to become more aware, conscious, compassionate, and to ultimately realize your connection to everything alive. I want to create art that illuminates, inspires and moves audiences to evolve into more conscious, compassionate creatures. I create what I respond to: Art that is at once a mirror and a window. There is nothing like a great story well told — your journey connects to the journey of that story.

Any exciting projects on the horizon: I’ve written my first pilot, FIDELITY CLEANING, a collaboration with actor Erica Bradshaw, who starred with me in Eve Ensler’s The Good Body.
I have been commissioned to write and direct a one-woman show about Julia de Burgos, the famous Puerto Rican poet for an adult education outreach program. The project is currently being considered for an NEA grant.

I am slated to star in a film shooting this Spring in New York, Paris, and Amsterdam entitled DARK HALLS. It’s based on real life interviews with victims of an international sex trafficking ring.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
I’ve written shows for other actors, but not for myself. So writing and performing a one-woman show is something on my horizon. It terrifies me, which is a good indication that it is something I need to do.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
Receiving an MFA in Acting from Carnegie Mellon University & the Moscow Art Theatre, with honors. I lived in Moscow for 4 ½ months while we studied at the Moscow Art Theatre. It was incredible training.

I’m proud of the work I did with Anna Deavere Smith and the Institute on the Arts & Civic Dialogue. And the work I did with Eve Ensler (V-Day, The Vagina Monologues) was particularly fulfilling. We had these huge audiences of women who laughed, cried, cheered and connected – it was true community.

But the work I’m the most proud of is “Lives of the Times” – an intergenerational theatre project I founded and led with director Daniella Topol at The Actors’ Fund Home. Actors in their 20’s-30’s partnered with actors in their 80’s-90’s to perform an elaborate staged reading of 6 true stories from the New York Times. Performances were mounted at the assisted living homes in NJ and NYC. The project culminated in a performance at the United Nations, hosted by the Netherlands, in preparation for The Second World Assembly on Aging in Madrid, Spain in 2002.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today: Being from a big family, I am the youngest of seven children, creates a kind of fearlessness that is sometimes mistaken as confidence. My father was a gifted athlete and physical prowess was a real badge of honor in my family. We all got very good at just going for it, without thinking too much. You learn to just jump off the cliff with a rebel yell and hope for the best. Not jumping was never a viable option. I also have 3 older sisters who give me heads up on all kinds of things. And I love being crazy Auntie Brigitte living on the cliffs overlooking Manhattan. I think my big family is why I treasure my solitude, because no matter how alone I am, I never feel lonely.

What makes you truly happy: The Seven C’s: Consciousness (It all starts with awareness, baby), Clarity (of path/purpose), Commitment (to my path), Confidence (in my abilities, talents, skills, effectiveness, value), Consistency (holding focus, progressing, unswayed and invigorated by obstacles/challenges), Collaboration, and Community (a thoughtful group of people who value me and to whom I am of use.)

What keeps you balanced and sane: I struggle with this. Since I don’t have a lot of routine in my work, it’s important for me to create it – morning journaling, a food diary, communication with my husband, daily exercise, keeping in touch with friends and family. I have found that isolation can magnify imbalance, so when you feel out of whack, reach out, get out, connect. And nature heals me. A long hike in the Palisades with my husband and dog provides me with my biggest intake of grace.

Free to be

What/Who Inspires you:
Films: Alfred Hitchcock, Oliver Stone, Frank Capra (Meet John Doe), Quentin Tarantino, Elia Kazan (Street Car Named Desire), Martin Scorsese, Robert Aldreich (Whatever Happened to Baby Jane), Michael Curtiz (Casablanca)…and the list goes on.

Liteature: Ayn Rand (Atlas Shrugged), Jack Kerouac, Charles Burkoski, Paul Bowles, Irvine Welsh, Tom Wolfe, William S. Burroughs, Walt Whitman.

Music: William Elliot Whitmore, Gorilla Blood, Arcade Fire, Album Leaf, Lou Reed, Velvet Underground, The Black Keys, Lousi Armstrong, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, The Clash, Glenn Miller, Queens of the Stone Age, Eagle of Death Metal, Devendra Banhart.
Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
About five years ago when i found my first polaroid camera.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
I am trying to expose the world for what it is. I want to show people what they cannot see. I want to free their minds of barriers.

Any Exciting projects on the Horizon:
Right now I am working on a series of photographs that have to do with the mythology of death.

What makes you truly happy:
Living life the way I want, reading books, watching movies, listening to music, riding my bike downtown, the unknown.

What keeps you balanced and sane:
My girlfriend Rebecca keeps me balanced and photography keeps me sane.

Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, champagne in one hand, strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming “WOO-HOO! What a ride! “

What/Who inspires you as an artist:
My inspiration comes from everyday life, nature, people around me and modern art. I truly love swedish interior design and architecture, european cinema, italian food, polish countryside. As for designers I admire Acne and Balenciaga now the most.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do:
I realized it while studying law and administration back in Poland. I was not made for an office job I discovered and before I knew I was in London looking for a makeup school.

What are you trying to communicate with your art:
I communicate: beauty-detail-color!

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
Countless in my head!

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
Photography!

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
It’s all a wonderful experience!

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
My mom, she is the most supportive. She’s taught me the balance between strong and delicate.

What makes you truly happy:
Believing!

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Home!

Kate Albrecht
Designer
http://www.mrkate.com/

Genuine leadership is a responsibility onto others and not a fairground of private exceptionalism.

What/Who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:
Art/Design: Francisco Goya, Hieronymous Bosch, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio

Beauty: Femininity of the type espoused by artists as Kate Bush, that harken to the mysterious qualities of womanhood, at least the mystery which is romanticized and enjoyed by men such as myself. I love the femme fatale too of course, Helen Mirren, Vivian Leigh and Maid Marion from Disney’s Robin Hood! It is an abstract notion, but I imagine my percepetion of beauty borders on the theatrical

Culinary: Cakes, sweets, roasts, fish and chips Indian cuisine!

Fashion: I would look towards the taste of Adolphe Menjou and our ex-monarch Edward VIII rather than Gucci or Hugo Boss. I would take mine more toward the slant of theatre than hipster myself!

Film: Directors: Sergio Leone, UK Filmmaker Ken Russell, other filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, the extreme cinema of Takeshi Miike and Kiyoshi Kurosawa

Literature: Wuthering Heights, UK horror novelist James Herbert, US novelist Dean Koontz. Short stories by M. R. James, Henry James and Edgar Allan Poe. Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the realistic plays of Anthon Checkov and his bitter drama The Seagull, the terrifying Hedda Gabler by Norwegian playwritght Henrik Ibsen and the mysterious and metaphysical The Skriker by Carolyn Churchill!

Music: Kate Bush, Peter Gabriel, orchestral and classical music from film composers such as Ennio Morricone to the works of Gustav Mahler (Symphony No 5) Tchaikovsky ( Symphony 6 Pathetique) and Scriabin ( and his occult inspired operatic-duet renditions) Symphony No1 (Op. 26) VI Andante, Puccini Wagner and Witold Lutoslawski

Online: Wikipedia-Another online aspect is community from the forums to websites specializing in online collabroation, to Facebook itself. It has made it possible to work with artists around the world. Website communities such as hitrecord.org represent the vanguard of this idea

Photography: The wartime photograph of Alexander Gardner an early pioneer who changed the public face of conflict and the sensuality captured by the images of Eve Arnold.

Stage: Madame Butterfly, Le Boheme and The Magic Flute
Television: There are many period dramas over here in the UK, funded by the BBC which are stately affairs, well performed and directed – with an obvious theatrical influence. Those were influential growing up. US television as of late has had a greater influence on my conceptualisation for some genre related drama, with popular series such as Game of Thrones and Walking Dead representing a boon of fantasy/science fiction that I am currently absorbing all I can from.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do: For me it became a matter of compulsion only when I at first tried to resist it. A traditional upbringing in Scotland generally dismisses the credibility of creative pursuits from an early age. As such, I sought some creative pursuits as private indulgences while academically focussing myself toward a career. Funnily enough I found myself studying History and theology at St. Andrews university on the verge of becoming a minister. Then there beside me popped an American Student complaining to a friend about how he was going to get the production schedule right for a short film he was producing. In a matter of minutes I realized that this American chap was living the dream I’d always hoped to follow! Deep down it unearthed my creative passion and no more than a day had passed when I was at the university office planning my departure towards developing a career in the creative industries.

What are you trying to commnicate with your art:
Authentic expression of an abstract emotional experience which can range in a story between a dramatic moment such as the reuniting of old friends or a supernatural experience. Of course I also endeavour to entertain, but that objective does not override the self-imposed reality I create in a story or work, that entertaining quality must come from within. I want audience to feel genuine emotion when experiencing my art, and for them to feel a sense of plausible reality that goes beyond realistic superficial represention. It is deep, thoughful, spiritual and psychologically real to me in order that it can feel real to you.

Any exciting projects on the horizon:
We are in the midst of pre-production for an as yet untitled horror film project that will be shooting in March! We are also working to promote the debut release of Metaphorest’s first album with a set of music videos! I was the producer for this album. We are in pre-production for an enormously ambitious live action and animated feature film. In addition to that we have a wonderful short film which will be played at the berlin and cannes film festival too.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today:
Faith, that if we are open to the universe and the positive prospects of life (even when faced with its direct challenges and tragedies) that we can persevere and create for ourselves opportunities we never thought possible.

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet:
PC game development. I find the idea of interactive storytelling and participation fascinating.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry:
My greatest accomplishment thus far would be to maintain a full time career working within the creative industries, employing and commission other new artists to work on projects with us and helping to maintain and develop sustainable growth in the creative industries.

What makes you truly happy:
Being cuddled up with my partner, munching sweeties, watching films, having a drink, playing computer games and other general cosy focussed activities. In that sense I can be a bit of a hobbit and yet being out there in the midst of production – or organizing a show, and presenting a finished work provides and equal high!

What keeps you balanced and sane:
Humor!

I would like to invite people to check out my facebook or blog. If they want to keep up with my work or join in! We also invite collaborative artists to Metaphorest’s fan page to get involved in music and music video collaborations! www.metaphorestmusic.com

What/Who inspires you as an artist:
The two artists that inspire me as a makeup artist would have to be Max Factor and Dick Page. I am huge fan of old cinema, most of my inspiration comes from watching old movies. Max Factor was so ahead of his time creating signature looks for such actresses like Clara Bow, Jean Harlow, Lucille Ball and the list goes on and on.

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do?
I have always appreciated art growing up. The first time I realized I had to create something started in High School. My favorite class was art class. I just loved how the colors came together.

Any exciting projects on the horizon?
New York Fashion Week in February!

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet?
Painting

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry?
My greatest accomplishments in the industry was moving to New York City where I was able to meet and work with some of the best artists in the business. Dick Page, Pat McGrath, Gucci Westman and Francois Nars during NYFW. All artists I admire!

What one thing in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today?
I would have to say my mom. She has always supported and believed in me. Even in my rebellious stage as we all go through growing up she never let me say I CAN’T DO THIS. Her Tough love and her belief in me has made me who I am today.

What makes you truly happy?
Being able to wake up each morning and get to do what I love the most. Being able to create.

What keeps you balanced and sane?
Coming home to my husband and my little dog Dexter. The two loves of my life.

Creatively, there is no right or wrong way of doing things.  If I can evoke an emotion from my audience then I’ve done my job.

Favorite Quote: ”I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career.  I’ve lost almost 300 games.  Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game’s winning shot and missed.  I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life.  And that is why I succeed.” ~ Michael Jordan

What/Who inspires you as an artist?
Art/Design: Vermeer and Picasso
Beauty: Strong Women
Culinary: Dark bitter chocolate, Fusion foods, Middle Eastern/Italian, homemade dishes gone wrong, did I say chocolate?
Fashion: My 17 year old sister picks out my clothes for me in the morning, I should leave this answer blank.
Film: The most difficult question! Life is Beautiful, Brave Heart, Night of the Living Dead, The Count of Monte Cristo, Chicago, Kill Bill, The Godfather, Tim Burton Films, Gene Kelly Films, foreign comedies (I love seeing the cultural difference in humor) and as a child it was All Dogs Go to Heaven.
Literature: Never a big reader as a child but started reading Harry Potter in college.  It opened up my mind to a fantastical world.
Music: Billie Holiday is my girl! Dinah Washington, Ella, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, Al Green, Jason Mraz.  Phoenix is my new kick these days.
Online: Pandora radio and Withoutabox.
Photography: Everyday photography by everyday people, I like to see what other people think is important or entertaining enough to take a picture.  Accidental photography of beautiful scenes are the best gems to come across.  It’s a lot like love, sometimes the best photo opp crosses your path when you’re not even looking!
Stage: Wicked and The Nutcracker, I love that it leaves room for interpretations, so many wonderful dream sequences in that ballet!
Television: Saturday morning cartoons!

Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do?
As a child I was taking dance classes, playing the violin, making home movies about international spies or vampires using in camera cutting with the bulkiest camera and borrowing my mother’s pots and pans to use for instruments, all before the age of 10; I’d say creating was the only thing I knew how to do.

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
There are stories, fascinating stories of real people, past and present that have yet to be told.  I want to deliver these stories!  ”The Forgery” is a perfect example, a film based on a true story.  I first learned of Van Meegeren in a college chemistry class and was instantly drawn by his story,  it took me 3 years of holding in this story before I decided to film it. and I hope to come across more experiences like this to share with others.

Any exciting projects on the horizon?  I’m currently directing/editing a pilot for a Broadway show called “Dance and Romance”, produced by Face2Face Productions.  I am also editing a wrestling documentary under the direction of Philip Harder.  As for “The Forgery” I am in the process of writing a feature; there is so much more to the story that needs to be told and I’m excited to tell it!

Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet?
I’ve been dying to learn how to play the drums and just started taking lessons.  Basically anything creative I want to do I make it a point that I do it.  I think it’s very important for people to explore this, your creativity defines who you are; I haven’t completely defined myself yet, I think that’s why I continue to create.

What are your greatest accomplishments in the industry?
I’d have to say winning Best Student Film at the New Hope Film Festival, Best New Director at the SINY Film Festival, and having not given up.  I’m still in the game, and for anyone chasing a dream and still working at it, I’d say that’s an accomplishment in itself.

What is one thing in your life that has made the biggest impact on who you are today?
When I was 11 I was in a movie called “Music of the Heart” starring Meryl Streep, directed by Wes Craven.  I was one of her violin students and played on stage with her along with others at Carnegie Hall.  Being on a real feature set, taking note of all of the lights, cameras and exciting chaos (in a good way) of the crew putting everyone in place, make-up people running in and out for touch ups, and me standing there, eyes wide open, wearing the biggest smile.  I’d say that was a very pivotal moment.

What makes you truly happy?
Being surrounded and supported by my family and loved ones, as long as I have them I will always be happy.  Not everyone has a support team, and it’s something I try to recognize everyday.

What keeps you balanced and sane?
One of two things – 1. A day to myself, listening to 40′s jazz while eating some good food or watching a movie. 2. Being with the people I love, going out and dancing my heart out, honestly the best medicine.

hmmm… quotes….
Here’s me changing a quote from the Dalai Lama: “Be nice whenever possible.  It’s always possible” he uses kind, where I use nice, pretty much the same message!

Paul Kaufman
Shoe Designer
pskaufman.com

“All we wanted was to be able to try things and to make mistakes. And if it didn’t work out or if people didn’t like it it wouldn’t matter because Villeroy and Boch are already dead.”
-Villeroy & Boch [interview in the Reader's Digest]

Q&A: Alex Jacobs

What/who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:
Art/Design: Everyone and no one
Culinary: Topchef
Fashion: 80′s
Film: Rambo
Literature: Jack Vance
Music: Prince
Online: Google(images)
Photography: Images are very inspiring, photography itself I hate.
Television: The television as machine of infinite waves of nonsense imagery (commercial addiction) is a devil. Get rid of it!

Q&A: Ellemieke Schoenmaker

What/who inspires you as an artist in the following categories:

Art/Design: Guy Debord
Beauty: Tilda Swinton
Fashion: All thrift shops
Film: A Woman Under the influence
Literature: Rainer Maria Rilke
Music: Today, James Pants
Online: Too many
Photography: Francesca Woodman
Stage: Bertol Brecht
Television: No television

With every song there is a separate message. Moreover, I like to leave it to the listener to find their own meanings for each song. I enjoy the storytelling but sometimes, it works better as a mystery.

Who inspires you as an artist?
Art: Antoni Gaudi
Literature: Dr. Seuss
Music: Led Zeppelin, The Producers
Big and Little Screen: Terry Gilliam, Anthony Bourdain
Photography: Jonathon Thomas

What keeps you balanced and sane?
Playing music on a constant basis keeps me sane and excited for each day.

Any exciting projects on the horizon?
I am currently working on my 2nd album which will be released this spring in May, just in time for my summer tour.

What one thing that has happened in your life has made the biggest impact on who you are today?
Honestly, music has made the biggest impact for me. I know it sounds cheesy but it’s true. I have made many great friends through music and it has made me very happy along the way.

RAW: natural born artists is an independent arts organization, for artists, by artists.

for more information go to www.rawartists.org
photos by: Myisa Planq
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RAW’s mission is to provide independent artists of all creative genres, with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity. RAW connects artists with one another so that they might grow together. RAW Headquarters in based in Southern California but hosts RAW events in 21 cities across the U.S per month from February-October. They also showcase their artists online via RAWartists.org

Every year RAWards honor the artist of the year in their field. Before the winners are announced local communities are invited to see their work and vote for their favorite artists at the Semi-Final Nominee Showcase. On the Cusp was invited to the Nominee Showcase and had a chance to see these talented new artists in their prime.

2011 Winners are:

accessory designer: the indra
fashion designer: mariel rojo
filmmaker: iliya grgov
hairstylist: kimmi le
makeup artist: alan anderson
musician: glass battles
performing artist: electriq dance
photographer: jeff blucher
visual artist: lawren alice

One has to grow hard but without ever losing tenderness. the most radical act anyone can commit is to be happy.

Architect & now Photographer
New York

website: wandael.com
website: alexowandael.com

With a passion for art and an eye for beauty, Alexo Wandael studied photography and architecture at the University of Ferrara, Italy. After practicing both in Berlin and Los Angeles , he moved to New York where he now resides. Throughout his career Alexo has worked with publications such as: Vogue Italia, Uomo Vogue, Russian Vogue, Russian Elle, The Telegraph, The Observer and many others. His fine art photography was shown in exhibitions through Europe and the U.S. And recently his work was added to the permanent collection of the FIT museum in NY.

What inspires you: Everything

FAVORITES
Art: renaissance, caravaggio, goya, casper david friedrich, cubism, dada, basquiat, lempicka
Film: the eclipse, amadeus, the pillow book, barry lyndon, 2046
Beauty: hawaii
Fashion: mcqueen
Photography: lillian bassman, richard avedon, irving penn

Every artist has a style and what better way to express it then by giving the Muppets a new look!

For the release of the Muppet Movie, Disney collaborated with 3 talented artists, Noah, Dez Einswell and Jon Chase to design limited edition Merchandise. All three artists have managed to take classic characters and give them a new look using their unique style. For a limited time only you can purchase artwork, clothing, skate decks and vinylmation featuring some of your favorite Muppets. After speaking with Noah, Dez and Jon you can see that the Muppets had a huge impact in their life. Each artist chose their favorite character to give a makeover. This merchandise will definitely become collectables so buy fast!

Look for it at select Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort merchandise locations starting November 21.

My work involves the expression of the inner psychology; a self reflection mirrored through art. In order to express the vision and subject matter of my work, I find that it is important to extract ideas from within my own perspective and senses.

website: masakimizuno.com

My Inspiration:

My mother who was a painter, influenced me greatly during my childhood. I then immersed myself drawing illustrations independently while attending a fashion college. After graduating, I spent seven years in exploring pure art; a period of my life that had made a tremendous influence on the way I illustrate fashion today.

Techniques All my work is analogue, hand painted with acrylic, air-brush, and rollers. It is true that using digital would be a logical way to illustrate the new textiles and materials that are created every year; however I think that there is a genuine charm about analogue art that can never be replaced by digital technology.

Favorite artists: Egon Schiele,Antonio Lopez, Isao Yajima, François Berthoud, Julian Schnabel Aitor Throup
Fashion Designers: Alexander McQueen, Marc Jacobs, Maison Martin Margiel
Photographers: Hedi Slimane, Rei Kawakubo, Steven Meisel,Terry Richardson

VacationVinyl
3815 W Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026
www.vacationvinyl.com
For more information about Pete’s Band go to www.harassor.com
Photos by  Jon Gordon McKenzie www.jkenz.com

With a world that is ipod obsessed sometimes we forget music at one point was purchased at a store.  But for the true collector finding the perfect Vinyl is everything.  On The Cusp took a trip to Vacation Vinyl to check out some classic records and meet with Pete Majors the Manager/Buyer for the store.

I’ve always had a passion for music. I love all different types of music and especially listening to them on vinyl. Im very active in the L.A. music scene. Vaction hosts weekly live music in store performers. I also sing for the cult/underground metal band Harassor. 2012 marks my 14th year straight working in music retail.

Some of Pete’s favorite vinyl’s: Nick Drake/Bryter Layter, Misfits/Walk among us, Danzig/ How the God’s Kill, Nevrosis/ enemy of the sun, Leafhound/ Growers of mushroom

I am inspired by the idea of creating. I felt the need to work on pieces of jewelry that had a strong conceptual idea.  The jewelry field in commercial diamond industry was shallow and uninteresting from the conceptual point of view.  I want to express part of my life, or the life of others.

Jewelry Designer
New York, New York
website: givingtreegallery.com 

Books: Conquistadors, An Island at the center of the world, Art and Artist, Anais Nin, Garcia Marquez, Jean Baudrillard
Films: The scent of green papaya, Blade Runner, Tron (the first one), Metropolis
Music: Experimental electronic, Flamenco (Camaron de la Isla), Les Negresses Vertes, Serge Gainsbourg, Vangelis, Kitaro.
Painters and Mixed Media: De Kooning, Schiele ,Klimt, Picasso, Clemente, Matta, Bacon, Vermeer, Banksy, Khalo,Da Vinci, Chuck Close , Joseph Beuys and many more!!!
Photographers: Avedon, Moholy Nagy, Man Fray, Cartier-Bresson, Newton
Quote: Ni vous sans moi, ni moi sans vous.
Sculptors: Jaume Plensa, Moore, Picasso, Giacometti, Calder , Hirst, Louise Bourgeois

What inspires you every day?
Funny question, since I feel almost like since designing is part of my life and of what I do, so that usually ideas may come at any moment, usually while having a conversation with a friend, or sometimes in the least expected moment , you never know when it hits you!!!

Artists:Michail Vrubel, Louis Sullivan, Nokiro Ambre, Katrin Moller
Book:Cat’s Cradle
Film:Arizona Dreams
Music:Boards of Canada, Stephan Micus, Philip Glass
Quote: A Sea of Peace by Chinmoy
What made you choose this career path: Inspiration and Passion I get from art
What inspires you everyday: Love, Music, People, Philosophy

 Helmut Newton shared his creativity with the world through his photos.  We decided to pay tribute to Mr. Newton by sharing some of our favorites from the book of polaroids and adding a few of our own!

In the words of Helmut Newton…….

“I like photographing the people I love, the people I admire, the famous, and especially the infamous.   People gave us everything for free. We were allowed only so much film per picture, but there was no limit to the creativity. I like to say that they let us loose like wild dogs in the streets of Paris.”
photos by jesus flores
book available at www.taschen.com