June 20. 2009 by Keegan Hall.

I have been insanely business over the past few months and I haven’t had a chance to update this blog.  I appreciate everyone who regularly checks back to see what I’m up to (there are actually quite a few of you, which is what got me motivated to start writing again).  I wanted to share a few random thoughts:

A while ago a posted my book review of Richard McKenzie’s “Why Popcorn Costs So Much at the Movies.”  Someone mentioned to me that Amazon.com got wind of my review and posted excerpts from it on their website.  Really?! My book review?!  Sure enough, it’s true!   COOL!   If someone is looking to buy this book on Amazon.com then they’ll get a chance to read my review.  Well, at least a few lines from my review….

Over the past month I’ve been getting really into designing cut and sewn shirts for men.  I’ve met with several people who are “in the fashion industry” and I’ve received a lot of great feedback on my designs.  It’s always great to hear when other people appreciate your creative vision.  It definitely adds fuel to the fire and energizes me to continue on.  I am currently in the process of having samples of my designs produced.  My only worry is that my designs might be too intricate (and costly) to produce.  In my opinion, there are so many shirts out there that consist of a simple design screen printed onto a shirt.  I want to navigate as far away from this norm as possible.  My shirts offer texture and multi-layered designs that incorporate screen printing and highly detailed embroidery.  To me, the finished shirts are more like piece of artwork.  They really are different than anything that’s out there currently.  I hope to connect with a quality manufacturer soon so I can begin producing the shirts on a larger scale.  So exciting!

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March 2. 2009 by Keegan Hall.

A well-known passion of mine is art.  I have had an obsession with artistic expression for as long as I can remember.  Over the past eight years or so I have gotten increasingly more interested in fashion as expression of art.  In 2005 I launched a shirt line for men.  I was very involved with building this branding while it was in its infancy (it still is) yet other priorities of life slowing consumed my time that was one devoted to shirt line. As as result, the brand progression was placed on hold.

Fast forward five years.  While working on a marketing project in my MBA class as the University of  Washington my drive to recreate this brand emerged.  To explore what is “in” for men’s fashion I emailed Pete Nordstrom of the incredibly successful and fashion-forward department store Nordstrom.  Pete was gracious enough to give me 30 minutes of his time as I picked his brain about the fashion industry and specifically the “Nordstrom way” of selecting which brands to carry.  He offered me invaluable information that I plan to utilize as I more forward with my brand.

Over the past few weeks I have been putting in many late nights designing a plethora of shirts.  Ultimately I plan to take my “top 5″ designs to proceed with into production.  I am very excited regarding the potential of the brand and the designs… I just hope other people find them as great as I do… 

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January 12. 2009 by Keegan Hall.

This past weekend my wife and I took our baby girl to see the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA. If you have not been to the museum then you are certainly missing out on a great opportunity to view fantastic artwork. The building’s architecture alone is enough to warrant a visit. The cone-like shape (above) is the museum’s signature structure and houses the main attraction of the museum: a glass blowing studio in where you can watch some of the trade’s finest artists create their masterpieces.

Although the museum is not particularly large, the array of magnificent work more than makes up for the lack of space. The museum even has a few piece from the “glass master” Dale Chihuly which are truly remarkable. I high recommend a trip over to Tacoma’s Glass Museum; well worth the price of admission.

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February 1. 2008 by Keegan Hall.

Art has alway been a major part of my life. Above are three pieces of my own art (you’ll have to excuse the glare on the pictures- I was too lazy to take the art out of their frames). The first is a pencil drawing I did of my wife for her birthday. The second is a self-portrait created using charcoal. The third is- you guessed it- Disney’s Sleeping Beauty that I made with colored pencils. Even as a small child I can remember drawing nearly every day. When I was in 6th grade I won an art contest to design our school yearbook (I drew a growling husky- our mascot). I’m not sure where I derived my passion for art. Neither of my parent have an ounce of artistic ability (they were both incredible athletes) although they have always been extremely supportive. I suppose they should get their share of credit for allowing me to develop my talent.

When I was in high school I began to take are more seriously although my true passion didn’t fully blossom until I began taking art classes at the University of Washington. All of a sudden I was surrounded by other artists who take their craft very seriously- maybe some too seriously. I have never been overly complex when it came to creating my art. I would draw a picture and, for the most part, what you see is what you get- there was no hidden, deeper meaning. I was completely astonished when I would hear my fellow art students speak about their work. If you’ve ever taken a college art class you know what I’m talking about. I think people just make things up as they talk. I mean really- if you could have heard some of my “peers” describe their artwork you would want to instantly commit them to a mental house. I guess that makes you “good artist”.

In the end, it’s all about the art. Although I have not been creating artwork as often as I would like- when I do it’s extremely relaxing. The feeling of “escaping reality” and being lost in your own creativity is very refreshing and invigorating. Not only do I get to administer my own form of self-solace but, in the end, I have a finished piece of artwork that I can be proud of. I think this is where my passion for art is fostered. And it is this same reason that I will continue to create art for a long as I live.

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