One year later

and im 26 now jfc

Nov 20, 2024

Its been a year since my first fundraiser for Palestine. Its something I can never really forget, and is still the pinnacle of my art career. I’ve learned so much since then, and hope to one day get that feeling of doing that fundraiser again, even if I know I cant. I felt like everything I did before lead up to that moment, and the joy and unity from that moment really was special.

I joined the fundraiser ready to give everything up, and end most (if not all) relationships with artists ive met in the past few years. And instead, I was embraced. I found people wanting to help in this cause. In helping organize this I connected with so many artists and people on a level I didn’t think possible. Im still meeting people who have been in the fundraisers in real life and its such a beautiful feeling. The feeling of wanting to stand up for something, and doing so as a community.

And I feel like I’ve found my community, and i can really start taking steps forward. Even since moving here a lot of people from the art for humanity fundraiser has reconnected w me in person. Creating art with a purpose larger than art built a camaraderie I didn’t know was possible.

I’ve learned this year too - not just abt art and community building, but life:

It’s ok to say no to things, especially in bushwick (no shade lmao). Everyone wants to get shit popping but nobody wants to pop out. After living at home for a while and living in Utah, I rly wanted to go out and see the nightlife, and that I did. But a lot of nights were lowkey mid. Not only that, but what I wanted was to make friends. I was chatting and meeting ppl, but it’s been difficult to make legit connections here. NYC is so transient that I think people aren’t too into going deeper w those one night connections, even if it goes well. A lot of friendships here are timing and schedule based too, which is v fair. I keep thinking of the “loneliness epidemic” and trying to see how people meet others, and I kinda get it more now. While I’ve def been lonely before, being lonely with people is a whole other thing. I think it’s that people don’t want to or aren’t able to go deeper in connections. Both of which are fine, but I didn’t rly understand that for a while.

Some people also make friends for social climbing purposes. The art world is very network based, and artists typically need to be connected with other artists to elevate their career (it’s basically peer-to-peer approval). So there’s a lot of times when conversations end with sharing ig handles and they never get picked up again. This was definitely the moment where things clicked for me: people took pics with me and was excited to say hi but conversations/genuine connections never really happened. It’s odd seeing how social media doesn’t always show reality right in front of you. Too many ppl have ig posts when the club was popping, when in fact it was not😞. Like I was there and it still wasn't doing all that like?? Alas, I didn’t know that person but I’m still a fan of their music idk idk idk. Back to social climbing, it’s just been uncomfortable knowing that people want to get to know each other based on a potential profit or merit, and not just for the vibes. Figuring out who’s a friend for friendships sake vs social climber has been weird, and might even be me projecting, but it’s something I’m still tryna understand. I just want something real fr.

I think lastly and kinda counter to the first point, is that it’s good to go out. I’ve found a way to make art consistently with my handhelds, and I’ve done a lot in my career to make myself stand out. An art career doesnt start or end at the studio. Its the people you meet that can push your art career and creativity to entirely new limits. To be able to bring artists together to discuss and wonder about how to create in the world is a gift. And its nice being able to share art endeavors with people with similar artistic goals. These connections can take you far, but: who do you want to go there with?

Thank you to everyone in my life when I was 25, excited to show you all what 26 is about.

Cheers and hbd,

Faraz

ps big announcement early december get ready

pss i put so much salt in my pasta im actually going to pump my stomach

psss happy pluto in aquarius! Depose your local fascist!