Virtualgoodsdealer Creators began its first run in October. In November, we continued to release new products by different creators. This post is a lookback on our experiences, as the organizers of Virtualgoodsdealer, and a feature on all the participants who released products with us last month.
Last month we featured work from LIVING SHADOW™, adrimarieknits, GentleMoonBell [Gently Made Plush], Luz Muerta, and Moe Noza. Here we are sharing some more about each creator and their inspiration and goals.
LIVING SHADOW™ is an avant streetwear brand based in Milwaukee, WI. It was created by Lucas Alamo and KC Harrison. The brand produces a variety of work from apparel to custom multimedia work.
We were drawn to the thoughtfulness in the design of their reusable face masks from both an aesthetic and a functional perspective.
Q: If you could have an infinite budget for one creative project, what would you make?
KC and Lucas: EEG tool that interprets audio & visual signals to import directly from your brain into a digital workspace.
Q: Something that’s inspiring you right now?
KC and Lucas: Underground catacomb RAVES !!!!!!!!
adrimarieknits is a knitwear brand created by Adrianna Spence. Adrianna is an architecture student based out of Atlanta, GA who loves to create in her free time.
Adrianna’s designs feature sunflower motifs and bright colors. Each piece is handmade and one of a kind. We especially appreciate the convertible design of the mini bag. Its straps can be tied together, creating one long strap, and worn over the shoulder or around the waist. The straps can also be threaded through holes at the bottom of the bag, transforming the mini bag into a backpack.
Q: If you could have an infinite budget for one creative project, what would you make?
Adrianna: I would probably knit custom sweaters for every cat in the world
Q: Favorite video game?
Adrianna: Animal Crossing New Horizons
GentleMoonBell [Gently Made Plush] is created by Melva Harris, who is based in Queens, NY.
I’m a jack of all trades! I love being a sewist creating cute and cuddly creatures, but I also a multi-streamer who streams what ever my favorite thing is at the time where it be gaming or a cute diy. -Melva Harris
Q: Something that’s inspiring you right now? Melva: Gaming! Since quarantine I had to finds way to be with a community without actually physically being there and gaming filled that void. Which as inspired me to just relax and be myself.
If you are interested in checking out her gaming stream, you can find her on twitch.
Q: How do you feel about online shopping?
Melva: All I do is online shop now, lol. So I love it.
Luz Muerta is the project of duo Jon Arbelaiz and Luna Fariña. They are based in Madrid, Spain.
Luz Muerta is a project of self-reflection, a project that challenges its own format.
Q: Something that’s inspiring you right now?
Luna and Jon: After the quarantine we started to appreciate our neighborhood more, and all the activity and energy of each person in it. We enjoy observing the daily stuff and the beauty in the small acts of life. Each worker doing his/her job, the beautiful and romantic appearance, and old tacky designs of the small businesses. The old Spanish mom and pop uniform stores are still alive in some corners, and they are very inspiring to us, with their simple and innocent, and even sometimes “aggressive”, designs.
Q: If you could have an infinite budget for one creative project, what would you make?
Luna and Jon: We would create a space in our neighborhood, for example. An open space, welcoming people of any age, to participate and experiment with art. To give accessibility to people who for one never had the possibility or lacked the visibility of art in their lives. And for those whom may have always wanted to experiment with art but never had the economic access to pursue art. A space with camera, paints, fabrics, all types of creative process to simply serve as a source of entertainment and/or inspiration.
Moe Noza is a soft sculpture artist originally from Southern California, but relocated to Portland, Oregon. Each of their soft sculptures are unique and handmade from upcycled materials. We were drawn to the organic color pallettes and special forms of their pieces.
Moe Noza is allured by aiding in intimacy and creating spaces of healing comfort.
That’s all our creators for November! See our first rewind post to see the creators we featured in October. You can still shop pieces from all our creator drops on virtualgoodsdealer.com until December 18th. Virtualgoodsdealer is organized and run by Cindie Xin and @ada.wrong. Here’s some reflections on the entire experience of our first run of Virtualgoodsdealer creators:
I want to give special thank you to all our creators during this first run for their flexibility and responsiveness. I also want to thank our larger Virtualgoodsdealer community for supporting our efforts. We hope you all enjoy your new items. The trust we received from our creators and customers is not a small thing; I’m seriously amazed. After a much needed break, Cindie and I will reflect on this first run and rework it for future drops. We hope you all will continue to support us and also participate in our future calls for submissions. -@ada.wrong
This has been a crazy year with lots of ups and downs, but I can confidently say that Virtualgoodsdealer was a consistent “up” and source of energy and life. It was an amazing opportunity to be able to work with so many talented artists and creators. I loved the natural progression of the themes and items included in each drop. Although we did try to pair complementary pieces together, there was a lot of organic spontaneity that really brought life to this project. Thank you so much to all our creators, customers, and the larger Virtualgoodsdealer community. We are looking forward to building upon our brand and platforms, and improving the ways we can work with and support independent creators of all mediums. Stay tuned! -cindie xin