08 Dec Local Art Students Showcase their Work at MTP
The Die Hard Art Collective is a creative collective that frequently comes to Melrose Trading Post. Los Angeles based artists Allesa Willis and Derek Prado use their art to inspire spirituality and explore the human mind. “My art is meant to elevate the viewer’s vibration, to push people into challenging themselves to think outside of the boxes we’ve been programmed into,” Willis says. “The goal is to propel others into a world of would be and could be that pushes the envelope to burst the imagination into millions of pieces of manifestations that will help heal the planet and its inhabitants”.
Allesa Willis is a Black multimedia artist whose art centers African spirituality and chakras, arguing that all bodies of life coexist on this planet. “My art pieces manifest those messages shared between the Andinkra symbols and the chakra system system. I manifest the messages born within me as a means to challenge and remind others of what is.” She practices sustainability by using a wide variety of materials such as glitter, crystals, paints, oils, woods, textiles, metals, and other recycled items.
Pieces by Allesa Willis
Derek Prado is a Mexcian-Salvadoran artist that critiques the relationship between people and the environment through performance and sculpture. He shines light on the “traditional practices of the Resolana and Rasquache.” He makes his art in the medium of public installations, performances, and socially engaged projects. See Derek’s work at derekpradostudios.com.
The Die Hard Collective uses creativity to make people rethink their relationships to nature and their environment. Their different and unique approaches help people tap in to their spirituality and give their art a greater meaning. The Die Hard Collective is just one of many community-based initiatives we support at Melrose Trading Post. Stop by their booth on December 20 to give back to artists and support local businesses.
Photos from the November Die Hard Collective Pop-Up at MTP
The Melrose Trading Post will continue to be open for the rest of December under new capacity and safety guidelines from the Los Angeles Public Health Department. Stay safe!