Star trek has always been a huge part of my life. It was one of the first things I bonded with my dad over. One of my earliest memories is the Challenger disaster, and I remember watching TNG when it aired and thinking that we were still going into space, no matter what. It laid the foundation for me to have hope throughout my life, and has provided thousands of hours of entertainment. I absolutely love Star Trek. More than any other visual media (music doesn’t count). There’s never been anything like it in my life, and I didn’t realize until a few years ago just how consistent it had been, and just how much it mattered.
In 2021 I had a traumatic brain injury followed by Covid. It was not a good time. I came out of it unable to look at screens for very long without getting migraines (which I had never experienced before) In an effort to keep myself busy, I dyed some shirts from a kit someone had given me. The results were horrible, but I liked doing it. I felt like I understood it, even if my technique was awful at first. That was late summer. By March of 2022 I had moved onto ice dyeing and really getting into some fun designs. It would be another year before I attempted the work.
To ice dye the way I do, means that there is no possible way to make the same shirt twice. I don’t take notes, I don’t remember what I do on a daily basis, but I leave myself open to allowing the art to be created. I may be the artist at hand, but nature is the silent partner. I’m the vessel that enables it to be created. Each piece has parts of me and my moment, as well as the intent behind it. Every day I wake up and unwrap shirts is like Christmas morning. I never quite know what I’m going to get.
I can not overstate the incredible honor it is to have people appreciate the work I am able to produce. You don’t realize how much your support means. When I finally finished the Star Trek TNG tie dye shirts that were good enough to share, I shared them with STSP. I was not prepared for the response. I had to figure out how to offer made-to-order shirts, offer international shipping, handle inventory and logistics... it was the hardest I've ever worked to make something happen. It has given me drive, purpose, and goals I never could have dreamed of setting even a few months ago. Thank you all so much for your purchases, comments, likes, and shares. You’ve enabled my journey to discovering what I was really put here to do.
More is on the way, and I hope you'll find it out of this world, and like nothing you've ever seen before.
LLAP
-Erich
Ice Cold Dyes