June 27, 2013

New T-shirt Design : Te Bastardes

Te Bastardes on Cotton Bureau • AD Aesthetic

Hey there friends! I'm super excited today to let you know that we have a brand new t-shirt design available for the next two weeks (so don't dawdle!) over at Cotton Bureau. CB is an company that specializes in making awesome shirts by awesome designers. You can read more about them here, but basically designers can submit original work to be made into t-shirts, and if enough people like/buy the design, Cotton Bureau will produce the shirts. Cool, right?

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I'm particularly proud of this design, because it's a definite favorite of my works (which is saying a lot), and I can't wait to wear it on a t-shirt. To make it even better, these shirts will be printed with metallic gold ink on super soft tri-blend fabric! Yippee! [caption id="attachment_4114" align="aligncenter" width="1552"]

Click image to shop![/caption] If you're unfamiliar with the phrase, it reads 'Nolite te bastardes carborundorum.' and it is a famous quote from Margaret Atwood's classic 1984 book, The Handmaid's Tale, that means 'Don't let the bastards grind you down.' I first read The Handmaid's Tale several years ago, but due to the recent resurgence in popularity of the story and the Hulu series based on it, I decided to read it again. I have to say, it is probably more relevant now than ever, given the political climate of our time. I actually listened to it this time on audio book, with a special afterward from Atwood herself, (listen to that version here) and the story and message was so powerful and terrifying that I was immediately inspired to create an emblem of resistance, and so this design was born. I can say, without a doubt, that this was one of those creative pieces that was lying in wait, ready for me to give it a physical form. The design features quite a bit of symbolism from the book, a few of particular note: the overall web-like trapped existence; the constant surveillance under the eyes; the breaking of the story into night and day; the spotlight that allows nothing to go unseen; the rampant misogyny, subjugation, and villianization of women with roots dating back to the witch trials, and perhaps most importantly, the ability of humanity, and flowers, to adapt and survive despite the conditions they find themselves in. Te Bastardes • AD Aesthetic

Can you tell how passionate I am about this design? It's available to order in (handmaid) red, (wives) blue, and (wings) white. And did I mention that it also comes in kids' sizes!? Because you know it's never too early to teach the littles not to let the bastards grind you down.

I hope you love the design as much as I do, and I hope you'll hop over and grab a t-shirt of your own. Remember, friends: Nolite te bastardes carborundorum!!