Hellobee

Both Charlie and Olive love to draw, and for a long time Charlie has self-identified as an artist. We really want to encourage this passion since they seem to have an innate interest. But neither Mr. Bee nor I are particularly artistic, so we asked our friend Patrick Miller (1/2 of the duo behind the artistic collaboration FAILE) for advice on how to encourage the kids. He then invited us to visit his studio in Brooklyn, and we jumped at the opportunity. It was a fascinating day seeing the actual art making process, the evolution of their exhibitions and mediums, and the inner workings of a full-time artist studio.

FAILE currently has an incredible exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum through October 4th, and I highly recommend that you check it out if you’re in the area; our kids absolutely loved it because it features an interactive arcade!

image via FAILE

image via FAILE

The FAILE Savage/Sacred Young Minds exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum features the BÄST Deluxx Fluxx Arcade pictured below with foosball, pinball machines and custom arcade games inspired by classic arcade games of our youth.

image via FAILE

image via FAILE

Some of the arcade games featured brass knuckle joysticks, but people got a little too excited and broke them off the first day of the exhibit.

This is their studio!

Charlie immediately wanted to see their paints.

We brought some blank t-shirts so the kids could screenprint one of FAILE’s prints on them.

Charlie made a wolf print for himself and a girl with a skateboard print for Olive, then helped wash off the screens.

Olive fell asleep on the way to the studio, slept on the floor the entire time, and didn’t wake up until after we left!

A piece commissioned by the New York City Ballet comprised of individually painted wooden blocks.

a  mixed media piece combining individually painted wooden blocks, fabric, vintage t-shirts, etc.

Wishing on You — An Asian prayer wheel installation featured in Times Square last month

close-up of part of the Times Square installation back in the studio

setting up individual blocks to screenprint

the work in progress from the screenprint

These wooden prayer wheels were used as part of a public art installation, but people kept stealing them.

The two Patricks behind FAILE are real life best friends that met on the first day of high school and have been creating art together since 1999. They both studied graphic design in college because their art always had a graphic sensibility, and so that they would have something to fall back on… just in case. In their early years before becoming full-time artists, they were able to work as graphic designers to support themselves. Now they show in galleries, do custom commissions, and sell prints.

Not only did Charlie leave the studio feeling inspired, but Mr. Bee and I did too! And who knows? Charlie or Olive may grow up to be artists! Though we also encourage them to be scholarly, design really seems to have permeated most aspects of our lives now and it’s more important than ever. Even if they don’t end up as artists, we want to encourage their passion and creativity as much as we can.

Has your LO expressed interest in a specific career path?