Art + Design for The Vegan Praxis of Black Lives Matter

About a year after consciously transitioning into a vegan lifestyle I read the book  "Sistah Vegan: Food, Identity, Health, and Society: Black Female Vegans Speak"- a thoughtful collection of essays that bring to light the connection between human rights and animal rights. It was exactly what I needed to read. It offers stories of different women's journeys into veganism in a way that helped me to understand and articulate my own journey. The fact that there are so many different voices in this book freed it from any tone of judgement or "one size fits all" thought; so found it to be  a great social justice piece in general. I keep it on my shelf to reference and reread as needed. It also helped me commit to reading Majorie Spiegel's "The Dreaded Comparison: Human and Animal Slavery", a powerful book (with a fantastic foreword by Alice Walker) that I will also always have a copy of nearby. After reading the book, I started following the Sistah Vegan Blog. I would read it from Fiji, and make connections between what was happening in the states in comparison to what we were experiencing there. I was excited to read that Dr. A. Breeze Harper, the editor of "Sistah Vegan", was organizing an online conference- The Vegan Praxis of Black Lives Matter that is happening this month. After connecting with Breeze I was thrilled to be able to do the artwork for the event.

I did the sketch and watercolor images for conference, and Jack​ did the design magic. It was a fun challenge to find an image that represents the connection between the issues while honoring each one; and the challenge made me even more excited for the perspectives that will be offered during the conference.

Online registration is up for this Interactive Web Conference. Join to ask and learn how veganism and #blacklivesmatter intersect, as well as why race and whiteness matter within veganism and beyond. Like the book, this conference is taking a holistic approach to anti-oppression work, acknowledging that these politics cannot be single issue.

Visit the Sistah Vegan Conference website for the conference schedule and online registration!

Fiji Pop Up Shop in Suva

Last night, we participated in the first Fiji Pop Up Shop in Suva at Distill. It was our first live paint in Fiji. The "pop up shop" concept is a shopping experience that pops up in different locations where new or pre-loved items of clothing, accessories and art are sold. It came together nicely. Our sister in law worked out the concept and details, and Jack designed the flyers for the event.

Last night's event featured designer label clothing by  two time award winning local designer, Andrew Powell, and new as well as pre-loved pieces handpicked by Andrew.  Our prints and handmade earrings were available for purchase. 

During the event , we collaborated on a live art piece. We had a great time bringing this new happening to Fiji.

Special thanks to Loren Eastgate, Andrew Powell, Jodi Chang and all of our friends and family that came out and supported the event! If you are based in Suva, stay tuned as there will be more Pop Up Shops in the future. Our earrings and prints along with some preloved jewelry are available for purchase at Distill near Flagstaff for the next few weeks.

Brochure Designs for Paradise in Fiji

We have just completed our contracts with Paradise Taveuni, and we are spending the next couple of months with family on Fiji's main island of Viti Levu. Jack has completed a plethora of projects for the resort, and we're excited to see the printed materials and products. Here are some samples of brochures Jack has designed for the resort. They will be used for promotions within Fiji, Australia, the U.S., New Zealand, and other locations.

Diwali Kids' Mural

October 23rd marked Diwali (or Deepavali)- the Hindu Festival of lights. Diwali is a lunar holiday, celebrated on the darkest new moon night on the calendar. Celebrations here included firecrackers and lots of sweets.

Diwali is a public holiday so the local schools had the day off. Jack and I did not have the day off, but were able to celebrate through work. We had 16 kids join in painting one of the containers at the resort.

We had previously started painting another container at the resort and got a feel for how it would work.

We showed the kids a few basic organic designs in the classroom, and we showed them how to use leaves as stencils, We also gave a quick lesson in color theory. We didn't have the best paints for the job, but we did have gloves and a very cooperative team of children so it was a relatively mess-free project.

We mixed colors and cleaned brushes while they went to work. We gave the kids free range of the composition and color choices. The painting was limited to the areas the kids could reach, but they did a great job of filling those areas with bright designs!

Fiji Day

October 10^th marks Fiji Day in the Fiji Islands. This is the anniversary of two events. The first was October 10, 1874 when Fiji became a colony of England. Within a few years, the English sent indentured laborers from India to plant sugarcane in the islands. The second is October 10, 1970 when Fiji became politically independent of England.

That was the first day that Fiji’s flag as we know it today flew. The flag is blue, in reference to it’s location in the ocean with a Union flag in the top left corner, referencing the colonial history. The flag also features the coat of arms with two Fijian warriors on either side of the shield. Within the shield there is a lion holding a cocoa pod, sugarcane, a coconut palm, bananas, and a dove. Below the shield are the words, “Rerevaka na Kalou ka Doka na Tul" which means "Fear God and honor the Queen.”

Wouldn’t it be great to have a flag that portrayed Fiji’s diverse history and landscape beyond the relatively short history of British colonialism? We could say the same of most countries I’m sure. For Fiji day, my students designed new Fiji flags including their own symbols for love, respect, natural beauty, Fijian music, and community.

Latest Designs

Jack's been busy in Paradise, working on new designs. He's been creating maps, brochures, technical drawings, and ads for web and print. Here's a glimpse of his latest work:

Grammy Recognition!

In 2011, not long after we met, Jack was working on a design project for Pacific Mambo Orchestra (PMO), a 19-Piece Latin Big Band from San Francisco. A few months prior, a friend invited Jack to see PMO perform in San Francisco. He took his sketchbook and pencil, and did a sketch of the band, representing all 19 members and the lively energy of their music.  They loved it and stayed in touch.

When they were working on their self-produced album, PMO contacted Jack for a logo and used his sketch and designs for their album artwork. 

Last year, we were super excited to hear PMO was nominated for a Grammy. Their album was featured on the homepage of iTunes, and we enjoyed seeing both PMO's music and Jack's artwork spread. They won the Grammy for Best Tropical Latin Album!

In Friday's mail, Jack received a certificate of recognition for being a part of the Grammy Award-winning album. PMO has already contacted Jack for future artwork, so there will be more to come!

New adventures

Bula family and friends! We're excited to announce that we will temporarily be moving to the island of Taveuni in Fiji!

We will both be working and living at Paradise Taveuni, a resort on the Southern side of Taveuni. Taveuni is the third largest island in Fiji, known as the Garden Island for its flora. Jack will be working as a web developer, and Alise will be teaching the resort owners' children. We could not have dreamed up a more fitting opportunity!

In our free time, we plan to explore vegan food options and growing and composting in Taveuni. We plan to create art, inspired by our experiences. We also plan to do a good bit of exploring, swimming and diving. And of course, we will take heaps of photos and journal along the way so that we can keep this updated.

We'll be taking a break from our Etsy shop but our art and jewelry will still be available in a few locations. Contact us for more details!

With new opportunities come uncertainty, and we’ve been consistently working to embrace the changes and transform our fears into loving situations. We’re blessed to have such a strong support system of family and friends. Alise’s parents are caring for our pup Zoey in California and Jack’s parents are looking out for us in Fiji.

We fly out in July. Until then, we are living and working in the East Bay, getting Zoey settled in with Alise's parents. Stay tuned for updates!

Love, light, and lolomas!