I met Sami at the show and I got to know a little bit about her, her art and her roots. Needless to say, she’s passionate about what she does and it shows. I love meeting like-minded individuals and it reminds me of the saying “Behind every successful woman is a tribe of successful women who have her back.” Well my circle just got a little bigger and like her jacket, royalty comes easy when it’s all love.

Words from Sami See herself about “Genealogy”, the jacket shown above:
This jacket explores how culture is a tool for resistance to corporate America’s endless efforts to hijack our minds, bodies, and wallets. In 1994, Space Jam came out, one of my favorite, iconic movies that merged the worlds of basketball stardom, with animation, and hip hop. If you forgot the plot, I’ll remind you that a major part of the story was that aliens from another galaxy called Nerdlucks, traveled to Loony Tune Land on a colonial mission to capture Bugs Bunny and his crew with the ill intentions to make them profitable slaves in their intergalactic theme park. Well, in order to enslave them, they had to play a game of basketball, and win. The Nerdlucks greedily jacked the super talent of NBA stars so they could turn into Monstars and beat the Loony Tunes in the game. Spoiler alert: Michael Jordan teams up with Bugs and Lola Bunny (the only girl on the Toon Squad, and the one with the most skills- hence her being the main character of this jacket) and they squash the Monstars and Michael Jordan saves the day (plus quits baseball and lives to sell more shoes).

As big kid now, I can hear echoes of an all too familiar story of colonialism fueled by a ruthless capitalist agenda. Corporate motives to enslave people and their ideas for profits is something that this jacket stitches together. The design juxtaposes the brightness and pure creative talent and potential that I see, daily, in my community of women, artists, and healers, that I’ve dubbed “Eternal Queens”, along side a lone nerdluck chasing our greatness.

It may seem like a heady concept for a jacket that’s main characters are smiling bunnies in crop tops, but sometimes, depth comes in funny packages. Study the symbols and see that there is intention in every stitch and brushstroke in this custom jacket made by BaeArea artist Sami See. You can find more of her work at www.SAMiSEE.com

Co-Owner/Designer/Cultivator of MaryJane Clothing. 1970’s baby, Cali grown lady. Belle on the beach, bunny in the snow. Fast lane, fast cars. Been there, done that. Got the bounce to the ounce, spittin Strictly Business lyrics. I beez the sweetest of the cream, the brightest of the beam, the best in the West, hella irie honey...one love and stay blessed. So if you don’t know...now you know!