Shaun is We Might Be On Fire. ‘Don’t Feed the Alligators‘ – his pop-up benefitting Healthy Gulf – is today (Thursday, 11/4) at Hotel Peter and Paul from 5-9pm. He will be selling cotton throw blankets, tees, and other things.
A conversation with Shaun
So I think something I am initially curious to dig into, if you don’t mind, is the ‘We Might Be On Fire’ moniker — to me it presents almost a tongue-in-cheek nihilist vibe? Which is funny for a guy designing graphics for blankets. But I love it! And we spoke some about how you just latch on to these phrases and use them for projects. I can definitely identify with that and wonder about the magic of words when paired with the “right” other words…maybe you can speak to that some?
Haha yeah I love little phrases and the way you can manipulate them to the point where they are almost unrecognizable from the original meaning. We Might Be On Fire actually started from a zine I was making a few years back and was a typo. For some reason “we might be alright” auto-corrected to “we might be on fire”– no joke. And I thought that was hilarious, so I kept it.
It’s totally tongue-in-cheek. It kind of has a bit of a we are doomed attitude to it, but then on the other side of the coin it’s we also might not be doomed.
It’s a similar thing with ‘Don’t Feed the Alligators’ — it was just a phrase I liked and it evokes so much imagery already, but when paired with different images it kind of just takes on its own vibe. People always tell me my names are too long but it is what it is, lol.
I love when typos say the most! Maybe you can just be the guy with the longest names, that can be like your thing. Idk.
Anyway, you’re doing this pop-up Thursday with the blankets you designed these swampy graphics for. What kind of blankets are they? A friend reminded me that we got these types of blankets for our high school graduation classes I think? They’re so classic.
Yes, exactly. They are cotton throws made in North Carolina – and to me they totally feel like an “elevated” version of something you’d get at a national park gift shop or something. I love gifts and souvenirs and all things kitsch.
The graphics are all inspired by something related to Louisiana’s natural world. Some of them feature animals, there’s a landscape, and a wavy pattern that to me is reminiscent of the light reflecting on swamp waters.
Ha, I love this idea of elevated kitsch. I have all sorts of small trinkets on my studio desk that serve as inspiration for whatever, and I love the idea of having something like that that’s even more tangible and interactive like a blanket. It’s like the ultimate comfort piece.
You’re originally from London but have told me how much New Orleans feels like home, and I’m always inclined to wonder what makes that so for a person — is it the natural world that inspired these works, or just an amalgamation of things? I’m sure it’s a bunch of things.
The natural world definitely inspires me and my work more than anything (with kitschy souvenirs probably being second, lol), and I think it is what pulled me to New Orleans and Louisiana in general. Everything is just so alive here. Even in the city it’s impossible to stop the natural world from poking through. A stark contrast from anywhere else I’ve lived – especially London.
The swamp cannot be stopped! It is true.
What’s your design process like? Do you draw? Bootleg? Digitally illustrate? I’m sure this is some combination too. Nothing we hold dear is just one thing, it’s all multifaceted and built upon itself.
My design process is like you said – a little bit of everything. Almost all of it is drawn by myself, though. I will bootleg or photoshop things for t-shirts occasionally because I love that knock-off or vintage vibe. I basically just take pictures or save pictures I find online all the time, and then just search through them for whatever I’m feeling and find inspiration from there. It just so happens that almost all of them are of nature – or tiles and wallpapers. For most of the patterns, I just wing it.
Friendship survey. Hit me with:
① Your favorite Louisiana food.
② Your peaceful place.
③ The last song you listened to.
① Firecracker shrimp po-boy from Parasol’s, or just oysters on the half shell.
② Sitting by the river.
③ Boredom, by Tyler the Creator is on right now.
See the rest of the blankets (there are 10 total) at ‘Don’t Feed the Alligators‘ – Shaun’s pop-up benefitting Healthy Gulf – tonight (Thursday, 11/4) at Hotel Peter and Paul from 5-9 PM.
True miscellanea
💻 On the Internet, We’re Always Famous
“Being known by strangers, and, even more dangerously, seeking their approval, is an existential trap. And right now, the condition of contemporary life is to shepherd entire generations into this spiritual quicksand.”
🔥 The Burnout Generation Wants Some Answers
“And yet, in the depths of disillusionment and burnout, there can also sometimes be a strange sense of freedom in recognizing that work might never provide the purpose and emotional sustenance you once believed it would. And that's okay. You'll survive. Collectively, we will simply need to come up with a new way of thinking about work. It turns out, work — like any relationship — isn't the be-all, end-all we’d thought it could be.”
💭 Easy Answers (The more we can Google, the less we know)
“How much do I mistakenly think I know, because it’s been presented to me in a form I’ve come identify with knowledge?”
“Friendship happens on the way to something else.”
JAMES CLEAR