As quarantine has kept me holed up at home and away from some of my normal sources of inspiration, one way I’ve managed to stay inspired is by following my favorite creatives online. To see the things they’ve been sharing, working on, and getting inventive with helps reignite those creative sparks in me.
Stay Home with (multee) is a project we came up with to capture these sources of inspiration and share them with even more people, giving us an inside look at how designers and artists are working, creating and staying inspired at home.
With all the important movements and events taking place at this point in history, we also wanted to share how each of these people who are known amongst their fields have been affected by them and are responding to them, especially with the unique challenge of only being able to engage from afar.
These photos and interviews seek to highlight these things and hopefully bring greater inspiration and hope for the ways we can still come together to create and make a difference without even leaving our homes.
- Brian Chen, (multee)project Creative Director
Denisse Wolf is a contemporary artist from Mexico who recently found her way to the desert after living in San Diego and Los Angeles. Pulling inspiration from the vibrant and pigmented landscape of Mexico, Denisse is known for her bold color-blocking technique and her inspiring subject matter choices - elements that continuously draw us to her work, and bring us joy whenever we see it. Her most recent work can be found hanging in creative spaces, on public murals, and even as the prints on textiles and swimwear like fellow California brand Seaesta Surf. We visited Denisse in their new home in Palm Springs where she lives with her husband Jesus, owner of vintage furniture company Nok Nok, and their daughter, to capture how she’s staying creative and inspired this year.
1. What’s one way your life has shifted directions this year?
This year has been insane. I know I'm not the only one whose life got turned upside down. Our plans were sped up a bit! We moved to Palm Springs (from San Diego) during a pandemic and are adjusting to a new beat of life. Due to this change, which I am grateful for, I am much more present with everything that makes up my life.
2. How has your move to the desert impacted your creative process?
There's so much less noise here, it's such a small dreamy city. I'm enamored with all of its surroundings, its colors and its flow. At times my creative process is overwhelmed because of its new rhythm - and I’m re-learning to channel things in a somewhat organized way. I can say for certain there is inspiration in every corner.
3. How have you used art and/or design as a form of resistance when it comes to social justice? As a mother, how are you hoping the future will look for your daughter?
Gosh - this topic has been hard for me to handle. I feel so strongly about our current happenings and “leader,” I struggle to contain my disagreement. I've made things here and there that show a tad of what I feel, BUT nowhere near realness. I've been holding back. I hope so many things for Greta. I hope she grows up in a world with no hate, where she is valued as a woman, empowered, where she will not know or care about color/race. It's a long way to go for anything close to that, so for now I’ll teach her to be kind to all.
4. What are your favorite things to watch your daughter create?
I love watching her build, she's so careful! She's not usually focused and quiet, so it's fun to see her chill out for a second haha.
5. Do you and your husband work on any creative projects together?
Yes! We like bouncing ideas off of each other. It's fun working with him. I obviously will do the art, but sometimes I help with colors for the pieces of furniture he includes. He always picks the most beautiful pieces.
#StayHomewithmultee is a series aimed at capturing the people who have continued to inspire us as they navigate living, working, and creating from home. It highlights the sources they’re getting their creativity from as well as how they’re responding to the social justice movements at hand from the unique stay-at-home situation we’re all finding ourselves in.
All photos were safely taken by Ja Tecson at a distance while wearing a mask. Interviews were conducted via Zoom.