I DON’T WANT TO BE A KILLER BUT I SET OFF THE BOMB
Monday morning arrives more quickly every week. How can I make time slow down without getting bored? How can I make the most of the time I have and feel fulfilled? I should probably quit my second job – problem solved.
I feel like I’m going to war every time I clock in – a constant struggle between my morals and responsibilities, a daily crisis of conscience. Things are looking up, however; I haven’t done any actual work in 3 weeks. I wish my boss would leave me alone when she sees that I’m trying to finish my book.
I resubscribed to Spotify premium this weekend — you can find me on Krate again.
TO REMAIN TENDER IS A GIFT
In a world rife with accessibility, how does a vintage seller stand out in an oversaturated market? Browsing any day market around the Phoenix area you’ll find a lot of vendors selling the same thing. How do you curate a unique collection? Easy – be genuine and have good taste. Isaiah Romero is a photographer and the man behind Amanita Clothing, who graciously agreed to answer some questions about fatherhood, the online resale market, and what makes a vintage piece really special.
How has fatherhood informed your approach to your business?
It’s reminded me to think about the future, and to approach business with care and love.
When I think about the future now, I feel I have a responsibility to help create a better world for my son. Sustainability is a core of the vintage business, but beyond shopping second hand what can I do to further my efforts? How can I use examples of quality from the past and material waste in the present to explain intention through design? Care about these principles, brought through example, is a great start to changing the way we see the world now, and hopefully changing the world in the future.
What’s the most valuable lesson about vintage curation you’ve learned in your years in the mix?
Collect what you care about, and collect quality. When I stopped curating my selection for sales (or what I thought others would like to buy) and started doing it for myself, not only did I find my job a lot more enjoyable - but I also found community in people who cared just as deeply as I do about what I collect.
Additionally quality is timeless and in my opinion, speaks for itself. If something was made with good intent and properly designed, it shows and will usually hold up for years.
What are your thoughts on the explosion in popularity of secondhand shopping? (Depop, Grailed in particular)
I think it's great! I enjoy the access these apps like Depop and Grailed have given young people to be able to buy things used while still able to express their style or find pieces they're after. I will say, Grailed gets to me a bit because it has always felt like the same pieces I see everywhere.. except they are laid out on concrete and suddenly twice the price?
I'm all for the idea of secondhand shopping, but warn you to not get caught up in the hype that some places can try and market to you.
What makes a vintage piece really special to you?
Character. I love ripped and repaired denim, replaced sleeves, or darned sweaters - not for aesthetics, but rather to show it was loved.
When I find a pair of pants that has a good few repaired holes or patches where the butt pocket fell off, I can't help but think of a time when we couldn't waste and replace but had to mend and care for instead.
Seeing clothing that has been worn threadbare and fixed in various ways so the original owner can keep wearing makes me feel like they had to love that article of clothing - and I want to carry that love on for them when I get to wear the piece.
SURVIVAL IS NOT THEORETICAL IT IS SOMETHING YOU TAKE PART IN EVERYDAY
The rise of artificial intelligence situates us at an interesting crossroads both as a society and as a species. The proliferation of A.I. presents a number of philosophical questions about the integrity of the output it generates – how do you distinguish a poem written by a person from a poem created by prompting a system to piece together a mimicry of artistic expression?
There is a great responsibility in art, a sense that in the process of creating, the artist unburdened themself of a deafening impulse to see their vision to fruition; the absence of that human impulse is undeniably felt in the so-called art generated by these systems.
I AM FREE TO FEEL... I WANT TO BE FREE TO REASON… I ASPIRE TO A FUSION OF BODY AND SOUL
I HEAR THE BIRDS ON THE SUMMER BREEZE… I DRIVE FAST… I AM ALONE AT MIDNIGHT
I’ve held this belief for years and this sums up my feelings pretty well.
I THINK I AM BEGINNING TO UNDERSTAND WHY GRIEF FEELS LIKE SUSPENSE
On November 19th, 1971, at the F-Space gallery in Santa Ana, 25-year-old performance artist Chris Burden allowed his friend to shoot him with a .22 caliber rifle. A group of friends and fellow artists convened to photograph and film the performance, which was subsequently presented as a 16-second film and series of photographs. The bullet missed. Though the plan was for the bullet to graze Burden, it instead penetrated his left shoulder. He was rushed to the hospital, where his accompanying entourage was reluctant to disclose to doctors how he had sustained the injury.
Burden wanted to feel what only he had ever seen on American television. Violence was the nations pulsing undercurrent and getting shot, or the fear thereof, was already a part of daily life in America. Though he is often (incorrectly) remembered as “the artist who shot himself”, Burden leveraged the infamy of the performance and never addressed any of the various interpretations bestowed upon his work.
Those present at Shoot were told to take on a role of “non-intervention” regardless of the outcome of the performance. This instruction stoked additional commentary on the “bystander effect” which states that people in a crowd are less likely to deviate from the group to help someone in need.
In a world consumed by violence and despair, when will the spectator be moved to intervene? How long can we continue waging wars and desecrating the planet until mutually assured destruction is inevitable?
I’VE GOT A WAR IN MY MIND
An observation: men are going bald at an alarming rate. There is a glaringly obvious correlation between early-onset male pattern baldness and COVID. Still, even that doesn’t seem to realistically account for the number of young men in their early twenties on the Norwood scale, between 3 and 4. What else am I missing? Seed oils? Stress? Or has this always been common?
IRISH BLOOD… ENGLISH HEART
That’s it for this week – you can anticipate receiving a dispatch every Monday morning with a similar format and varying genres of content. Please subscribe, comment, and share.
If you ever want to discuss anything featured in these dispatches, please email me hello@tylerhasagun.com