Sharing the word on behalf of our friend Doug, exquisitely talented maker of baskets. Please help sp
Sharing the word on behalf of our friend Doug, exquisitely talented maker of baskets. Please help spread the word and protect his practice. hawktrainer: I began creating baskets, bags, and sculptural vessels from raw cotton rope and colored sewing thread in Early 2010 in my Brooklyn apartment. After over a year and a half of working with the technique I began selling them on my webshop in October 2011. The pieces became popular very quickly, receiving much online coverage in early 2012. The coverage continued with many features of my work in magazines and online. Over the course of 2012 I sold my works in over 30 stores in the US and several other countries around the world. All the piecesare made by myself and a few skilled artists that I employ in my studio in Brooklyn. I use high-quality materials that are manufactured in the US, and my employees, all textile artists themselves, receive a living wage for their skills and time.Today it has come to my attention that Target has introduced some baskets for their “Threshold” brand, which utilize seemingly identical materials, methods, look, and feel as my baskets - even some of the stitching details are the same. You can see the similarities in theimages below. Target will be selling these baskets for $6.99, a tiny fraction of the value of my own work.Please, help me share this image. A company like Target knocking off small, design-focused brands for the sake of ‘staying current’ and making a quick buck goes against everything that I, and everyone in my studio, stands for. Help us get our message to them! Thanks! Doug Johnstonwww.dougjohnston.net -- source link