Stillness
2021-03-02
I've just gotten through reading Ryan Holidays book "Stillness is the key". Finally. I've been really bad att taking the time to read lately. Anyhow I find this book, or at least the meaning of the book, more important than ever.
If you have a lot to do. Even if it's by choice or by chance. Take the time to find stillness. To meditate. To chill the fuck out. Do something you absolutely love. Play some video games, read a book, WRITE a book. I don't know. Just do it (Like NIKE?). Cause if you don't you will crash. I've been on the verge of doing just that sometimes but I've also taught myself to rest. It's not easy. I wanna go 10000% all the time but I also know that if I do that. I'll probably die. And I really don't want that.
So please, chill!
Art
2021-03-02
For me making art has never just been about MAKING art. For me it hasn't really become what it is until someone else looks at it and gives it new life. I can have ideas about what something is and it gets turned around when I speak to someone else about it. Making art has taught me so much, but mainly that it's something with it's own life that changes constantly and lives in between things. Maybe that's it. It reminds me of me.
NFTs and the future of art
2021-02-25
Just two days ago I started making NFT's out of my digital artwork. For you who don't know what NFT's are I'll try to explain it very simple. It's a way of minting digital work that's secured by blockchain, almost in the same way as crypto currency. Please get into it yourself, cause I believe this could be the future of art. What we have to be real careful about is that someone else than the artist capitalizes on their work. It's therefore very very important that the artist that's interested in this is quick to make NFT's out of their street art.
Why? Because if this becomes as big as I think it will be it will revolutionize the way we sell and collect digital art.
It's still growing, which means we're still learning from mistakes. But I'm fine being a part of that. It makes it more exhilarating to be a part of. Anyhow.. I won't get to much in to the NFTs.
Why I'm writing this is because I want to have it in a form of journal. Cause I think I might have and idea how to bridge street art and NFT in a way I don't think it's been done.
A lot of the times street art dissapear in time, especially if it's an illegal form of street art, someone cleans it up, throws it away or whatever. What my idea consists of is a way of immortalizing work by making NFT's out of the art. Either by taking photos, minting it and therefore making the work live forever. It can be traded, sold in crypto currency. It forces intitutions to recognize small outside street artists as any famous established artist.
Linking my rarible site if you are interested in buying any of my early work:
Rarible Anton Grabowska
Words
2021-02-18
My words must be written. They will have time to talk about sadness, joy and hate.
But they must be written.
They are vigilant. They long for the freedom they deserve.
They must be written.
They will always find their way out. My words speak of the world, worlds. Worth.
They must be written.
ViraVira
2021-02-13
I've met people that make me want to do more, be more. And in a society like this, where it sometimes feels like you should do everything by yourself and for yourself, it's easy to forget other amazing creators beside you.
It's fine. Forget them for a moment. But do not forget them. They are everything.
It's possible to push on by yourself. But you need someone that you can call and who just takes you down to earth again and helps you become a bit more rational and at the same time, more visionary. If you don't you will crash. And we don't need more people to crash.
With that said. Keep telling people that mean a lot that they mean a lot. We need more of that.
Shit
2021-02-10
It's incredible how far away shit can feel and sometimes the exact same thing feels so close that you could touch it.
That's been my dreams. Most of the time they feel so far away it's fucking insane. It's feels impossible and not worth any of my time. Usually that's when I let people get under my skin. You know the kind of people that just like shitting on you because they feel like shit. That's natural of course. To want to shit on people when you don't feel good. And I think that's fine to do. And I let them. The only thing I can practice is not let their sadness become my own. And be as good to them as I possible can.
I hope in the future this brand, this community.. can become a place of giving love to the people shitting on other people. Cause they don't need more shit, they need love.
Writing
2021-02-09
I've written different texts througout my life. Texts for my paintings. Songs. Poems. Sometimes it comes to me, just like an idea for a shirt, or a painting. And sometimes it's something I have to force myself into doing. Like today. It feels like shit, like a burden, like a job I don't want to go to. But that feeling of not wanting to do it also makes it the most important thing to do. More important than writing the texts that feel amazing.
I don't think this is exclusive to writing though. I have to do this with everything. If I learn to the things that feel shitty for the moment, that'll probably reward me in time.
But who knows? Maybe I'll read this in twenty years and go:
"What the fuck man? You were an idiot."
I guess we'll see.
The road to streetwear
2021-02-05
When I was in my teens I worked at a store selling longboards. My job was mainly to assemble the boards that customers bought. The warehouse was located in the basement of a central mall in Linköping and you could get lost just wandering around down there. But it was also a kind of safe haven where you could just be chill and don't really care about anything. We used to ride down in the hallways, shouting and laughing. It was total freedom. The owner of this company was a hilarious guy who had this amazing aura to be around and he would always give you free shit as soon as you met him. I also remember one of my colleagues, he was this chill dude who was always in a good mood, seemed like nothing could get him down. He was cool to us younger kids and just a fantastic guy to be around. Sadly a day when he was gonna cruise a hill he had been cruising for so many years he crashed and died. He was 21 years old. I remember the news so vividly and they stick with me to this day.
Nowadays I don't ride my longboard anymore. I disassembled it after the crash and after that I got scared as fuck. But I think I'll pick it up again.
But I love this culture. I love the people I've met through it and in the future my brand can become so big that I'll be able to hire some kids to just have fun selling and repping. And I hope I can get a underground warehouse underneath a mall where they can ride there boards and have a blast.
Inside my mind
2021-02-04
I was thinking a blog could be a nice thing to add to the website. Cause sometimes my thinking seems endless and one way to get it to stop is to write. And why not share that with all of you.
Well, where to start? I have no clue. Today I feel empty. When I do I have a hard time being creative. I feel.. Lazy.
I think I'll start with writing about something else than me. Cause this brand wouldn't be anything without the people behind it. Exactly like I want it to be. I want antongrabowska to be more than just one person. And it is. I think. I have my best friend to give me brutal reviews of my new designs. And they really are. A call could go something like this.. "Your new designs? I feel kinda.. MEH". Don't get me wrong, I want this, it's a great way to be reminded that everyone won't love what I do, even though I love it. A hard but true reality.
I also have a fucking rock for a wife. That inspires me to keep going forward with my crazy ideas, like starting a streetwear brand for example. For you who don't know the brand is named after her. Grabowska is not usually a surname for a man but for a woman, in Poland. That makes this feel better. All this becomes a homage for her.
I also have people that just bought this idea from the start. By buying my products but also by repping this brand in their own artistic work. Anton, Joshua, Zoe, Delia. Thank you.
And also I have to name the amazing skaters that has joined the crew and that hopefully will be joining. Emil, Oliwer (Jens? I have no fucking clue what your real name is) and Loviza. And thank you the second Emil for filming and taking photos to get this brand on the road.
I have no idea how this post became a shoutout. Well, it became this and that's fine.