Official blog of The Great Discontent.
@greatdiscontent
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Louise Fili is a force to be reckoned with; a trailblazer who has relentlessly pursued her interests to create a stunning, uncompromising body of work over the course of the last several decades. Interviewing someone as widely recognized and celebrated as Louise Fili is such an incredible, yet daunting, honor. Graciously, Louise extended an invitation to meet at her studio, where we conversed about her all-time favorite things: type, food, and Italy. We also talked about her path spanning from childhood years to present-day, which revealed her as a woman who is not only prolific in her art, but also rich with wisdom. Thank you, Louise, for inspiring me—and all of us—with your passion for what you do!
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Prepare to enter the fantastical world of Oliver Jeffers, where, if you can imagine it, you can make it happen! Born and raised in Northern Ireland, Oliver knew from a young age that he wanted to be an artist, but what he didn’t know was how an accidental discovery of picture books would change the course of his life forever. Read on for the full story of Oliver’s journey from Ireland to New York City, where he now lives and works, the unforgettable characters he’s met, and the lessons he’s learned along the way.
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Alright, ya’ll, get ready! You don’t want to miss this week’s interview with the amazing Texas-based designer, Trent Walton. We had the pleasure of meeting Trent at last year’s Brooklyn Beta, so this was a fun opportunity to pick up where we left off and learn more about his path. While he loved drawing from a young age, he didn’t know he loved design until he discovered the Internet. In college, Trent studied a completely different subject, but after working a few day jobs, he took a risk to start Paravel with his longtime compadres, Dave and Reagan. Read on about Trent’s adventures in design, his life among the rolling hills of Texas, why he values being self-taught, and of course, his recommendation for the best burger in Austin.
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Most of you likely know Jeremy for his photography work, but his legacy is sure to reveal a creativity that isn’t bound by any one discipline. Jeremy is a visionary with many, many ideas for the future, most of them unrelated to photography. Of course, it’s no surprise that he would try new things. That’s part of evolving as an artist, which Jeremy has already done; he first wanted to be a painter, then studied graphic design and had his own company before transitioning into photography. And now, he’s venturing into the role of entrepreneur by launching his first iPhone app. Perhaps the theme of his story, which can be applied to our own journeys, is that the path is always unfolding to reveal new adventures and if we embrace them and take a few risks, then who knows? We just might find the thing that’s been waiting for us all along.
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TGD Meets Charity: water, Meet Josh Long
For those of you who have followed along, our friend Josh Long recently raised $1k for our TGD charity: water campaign by donating money from sales of his latest book, Jenius.
And here it is, folks!
THANK YOU, Josh! We can’t express how much this means to us. We are SO grateful for your generosity!!!!
P.S. Josh will continue to donate money from book sales until the end of our campaign on May 11th. Join in and buy Jenius or donate directly to our campaign.
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There’s something whimsical, charming, and unique about Olimpia’s illustration work that we just love. With artists for parents, Olimpia seemed destined to make a living doing something creative, but that didn’t necessarily make for an easy path. In a family of artists, Olimpia had to carve out her own identity and find her outlet for self-expression, which led her into illustration. But that’s not all; Olimpia has a multitude of interests and we can’t wait to see what direction they lead her in in the future. Here’s to exploring, creating, and ultimately, finding a path that is truly yours. Thanks, Olimpia!
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Meet our amazing friend, Josh. He’s a designer, editor, author, podcast cohost, entrepreneur—and longtime supporter of TGD!
Josh has written a new book called Jenius, which is available to purchase and download immediately! Jenius is about how creative entrepreneurs are designing better businesses and it features a collection of essays that will give readers insight into branding, marketing, and building a business in an authentic way.
But there’s more—for the next two days, when you buy Jenius for $9, Josh will donate everything to our TGD charity: water Campaign, which we launched along with our interview of Scott + Vik Harrison.
Thank you, Josh! We can’t wait to sit down and read Jenius!
UPDATE: We hit our $1k goal! Thanks to Josh for donating money from book sales and all of you who bought Jenius. Also, Josh will continue to donate $ from sales until our charity: water campaign ends, so you can still help when you buy his book!
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This guy is super talented, smart, and really funny! Ever candid and open, Adam talked about his early experiences with the family camcorder, attending film school at NYU, his first years in the advertising world, and why he gave up the hope of becoming a director. After finding himself at home within the tech community, a video he made for his own product accidentally landed him back in the director’s seat. There, he has continued to innovate and reimagine how to tell stories around brands and products, without all the bullshit. Adam’s story is a valuable reminder to all of us that it’s never too late to take a risk and change the course of our lives. Thanks for inspiring us, Adam!
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We’ve followed Bobby’s blog for a long time and have downloaded our fair share of wallpapers from The Fox Is Black’s Desktop Wallpaper Project, which is why we were excited to finally have a chance to talk with the man behind it all. It wasn’t a surprise to learn that Bobby works really hard—he runs TFIB and has a full-time job at Disney!—but we loved that even though he’s super busy, he has a really positive attitude about life, challenges included. It was fun learning about his early years, hearing what he’s up to now, and getting a glimpse into his future plans. Best of luck, Bobby, and thanks for sharing your story with all of us!
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Have you ever met someone who is so excited about what they do that it’s contagious? Okay, now imagine two people who are so passionate about their work that they live and breathe it—that’s Scott and Vik, the dynamic couple behind charity: water. We met Scott and Vik at the charity: water space in Lower Manhattan, where they engaged us with stories about their lives leading up to charity: water, which is when their paths converged into one. From humble beginnings, they sacrificed, risked, and never gave up. Because of their determination and willingness to dream big, charity: water has grown to change the way people think about nonprofits and has brought clean, safe drinking water to people all over the world.
Make no mistake—this interview will encourage you, inspire you, challenge you, and then, it will call you to action. There are millions of people who need clean water and we can help. We’ve started a TGD charity: water campaign and will be raising $5,000 for clean water. Donate to the campaign and join us in changing lives with water!
