Am I like, officially a *known* artist now?
Take THAT imposter syndrome.
How do you even get “discovered” anyway?
What even is a “well known” anything anymore with the age of the internet? Is it follower count? Is it awards? I don’t even know - but that’s a fun little philosophical drop for you.
Back in Mid-July I received an email that took me a little by surprise - a staff member from my local district, and the IL House of Representatives Congresswoman’s office had sent me an email. They were looking for artists - in district specifically - to design campaign related merch.
To be completely honest - I 1000% percent thought this email was a scam at first - haha. Everything I have been taught about online scams & phishing emails echoed from this email, especially because it came from their the like local finance director. In reality it’s probably a small team and she wears many hats to get the jobs done here in Chicago. I don’t know exactly how they found me, but I would guess Everywhere is Queer probably helped.
After checking to make sure that I one, actually do live her in district because that would have been awkward otherwise and two, I also looked at her campaign website - because OBVIOUSLY if her values & platform didn’t match my own then absolutely not.
I was pleasantly surprised and TBH kind of shocked when I saw her platform of issues is basically a reading of my website categories - so yeah, I wrote back and said I was interested.
“In Congress, she fights for housing justice, healthcare for all, public education, safe public spaces, community-centered economic development, and for the rights and safety of women and the LGBTQ community.” - Delia Ramirez ‘What She’s Fighting For’
After waiting months - it’s finally launched!
… and it launched in December *technically*… So I’m a *little* late “announcing” this but it’s fine WE’RE ALL FINE and like was anyone really going to RUSH to buy this during the holidays? Probably not, haha - so HERE WE GO!
Also like, I know Delia is the focus in that post… but I mean, the real star here is the PUPPER right - LIKE WHO IS THAT?! The bestest fren and A++ model - that’s who. We need more dog content from her TBH.
For this project, myself and one other person, Cristian Roldan a Chicago-based artist/muralist, each submitted a design. It was cool seeing the direction that we both went - obviously very different as Cristian uses a lot of bold, larger scale graphics which makes sense given the context of public art/murals. The scale for stickers & stationery, which is what I typically design for, is MUCH different, lol.
Anywayyy - you can only shop the items on the: Delia Merch Store Here
*Note - I have already been paid for this project. So purchasing anything does not benefit me in any way *but* if sales is an indicator if her team working with me again in the future… plus it’s a freaking cool design.
About the Design:
The design is made up of 4 flowers:
Chrysanthemum -
City of Chicago Official FlowerRose -
US National FlowerBlue Violet -
Illinois State FlowerMonja Blanca (White Nun Orchid) -
Guatemalan National Flower
Her parents are Guatemalan immigrants
Flowers, like the place you live currently or where you've come from or where your families roots have been, can say a lot about a person. They are bright and vibrant. They tell a story all on their own - and that was the inspiration behind my design.
Delia is also young and vibrant. And I wanted to make something that's also fun and feminine - in a field that's dominated historically by older white men.
Because if she is going to have merch, Delia should have something that not only stays true to her campaign message and all the boring branding stuff. But also something that reflects her, and who she is as a young women in congress.
Hey does she look familiar?
You may be thinking that Delia looks familiar, and that’s because she’s been on FIRE lately on social media. Posting some excellent videos, both of curated filmed content and of interviews/in sessions. She’s an easy follow to keep tabs on what’s going on in the House of Representatives, even if you don’t live in the Illinois District she represents.
I’m 1000% for anyone in congress or otherwise calling out Trump or Elon or really anyone at the moment who is doing shitty things. Not to mention she’s also been pushing content on what to do if ICE shows up, and is one of the few people in politics that actually seems to give a shit about queer people.
ANNOUNCMENT:
Thanks for reading and keep an eye out for a refresh and *rebrand* coming to my Substack! Same great content, new logo, new name - really it’s just getting the identity it should have had all along and not just getting thrown on top of my other stuff.
