8 Questions

8 Questions

Jul 29, 2013

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I had the pleasure of getting to know Benjamin Escobar, better known as Benjie, while we both worked at LA-based streetwear mega-brand, The Hundreds (very briefly, for my part, and much more long-term on Benjie's part). Indeed, he was the Senior Designer there for six years. During that time, he was responsible for producing more...

8 Questions

Jul 15, 2013

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I first encountered Eddie Solis last year when his band It's Casual opened for Negative Approach at Alex's Bar. I was blown away by the two-man crew, which is a force of nature onstage, and it turns out Eddie is equally intense about his offstage projects. To his repertoire of playing heavy music and running...

8 Questions

Jul 08, 2013

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There are plenty of  independently owned and operated T-shirt, soft goods, and accessory brands out there. But who is crazy enough to start his or her own shoe company? That would be Una Kim, who helped launch Keep Company in 2006. The Los Angeles-based operation has not only survived but has gained notoriety among footwear...

8 Questions

Jul 01, 2013

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Downloading, streaming, and even BluRay--all of the latest and greatest ways to watch a movie pale in comparison to a proper film festival screening. The energy of like-minded moviegoers can't be beat and neither can meeting the filmmaker. When I was helping out at this spring's Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, I had the...

8 Questions

Jun 24, 2013

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I've known Susie Ghahremani so long that I can't remember the first time I met her. It was probably in the early 2000s at an art show at Giant Robot, where I edited the magazine and she was contributing regularly to the art gallery. Since then, the RISD-trained San Diego resident has continued her skyward...

8 Questions

Jun 17, 2013

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Jasper Wong is an accomplished Hawaii-based artist, illustrator, and curator, well known for his eye-catching work for clients including Nike, Hurley, Nooka, Ace Hotel, DC Shoes, and many more. His fine art is incredibly appealing too, and has landed him press features in publications such as Acclaim, Complex, VICE, and Juxtapoz. But above and beyond...

8 Questions

Jun 10, 2013

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Hannah Stouffer is an incredibly talented artist and illustrator, based in San Francisco (even though she's hardly ever there). I'm a huge fan of her personal artwork, and her creative output for other brands probably puts most illustrators to shame too. I was lucky enough to get to know her a couple of years back,...

8 Questions

Jun 03, 2013

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Our agency took an afternoon last year to see Jiro Dreams of Sushi, an incredible documentary about an 85-year old sushi master and his quest to perfect the art and leave a legacy. Shortly thereafter, I stumbled upon Nathan Perkel's photographic journey through Japan. Nathan was able to capture the Tsukiji Fish Market from every...

8 Questions

May 13, 2013

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I think everyone should have a magician in their rolodex, mine happens to be Maritess Zurbano. Maritess is the only Filipina-American mind-reader and sleight-of-hand expert in the world. She spent 7 years in Las Vegas studying sleight-of-hand and magic history from Gary Darwin. She's been a blackjack dealer, a professional baccarat player, and starred in...

8 Questions

May 06, 2013

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During POWWOW 2013 I joined some artistically gifted friends for dinner at The Whole Ox one evening, and I soon got to chatting with Hisham Dahud. He's a talented and knowledgeable young man with a wealth of expertise on the music industry, and studio drummer chops to boot. In Hawaii to teach drumming as part...