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ExploreSpecial Sunday, we have Joshua Moore from Yellow Wood Tribe in da house! He’s ready to share with us the story of his clothing brand, Yellow Wood Tribe in a mini-interview. Check it out!
When did you come up with the idea of starting the Yellow Wood Tribe clothing brand?
I wanted to sell T-Shirts in college, but I didn’t actually come up with the idea to sell them as part of a complete brand until January 2013.
What was the inspiration behind Yellow Wood Tribe?
Yellow Wood Tribe was born out of a need to express my creativity, become independent, and realize my dreams. In all of the jobs I’ve had I’ve seen ways to improve upon the services we offered and been restricted from using my full range of abilities. I wanted to tell stories, comment on a harsh reality, but also to encourage and motivate. Hence the “Make Statements. Tell Stories. Live Well.” mantra that you see across all our social media. Yellow Wood Tribe is all about discovering and then realizing the potential inside you. To think, plan, and then to go out and actually do something.
It seems to us that YWT is more than a clothing line … what would you say YWT represents?
It’s a symbol for those who refuse to take an easy way out, who choose to undergo the struggle for a greater reward at the end.
Kissing Flowers is your newest design, can you describe the creative process behind designing that shirt?
I worked on it 4 years ago when I took a drawing course. When I started drawing it for the first time, I wanted to fuse two objects together: a display of an idea (love) in the couple kissing and an alternate representation of that idea in that of the flowers. I fully intended on making it something “sweet and romantic” at first. When I finished the lines I thought it might be cool to use text as a form of shading. That’s when I started to get cynical with the messaging.
When I decided to start a company that designs t-shirts, this was the first illustration I started on. I’ve been working with a mouse, no digital tablet whatsoever. It was a big learning process because the drawing is very detailed. What should I leave, correct, pen, or delete? How do I alter this properly with all the petals? Should I keep the stippling? The original drawing doesn’t show the full flower, which worked for the drawing but not for a tshirt. It took a month or so because I was actually working full time. I absolutely made sure to keep it in black and white. I really wanted to emphasize how something so beautiful and seemingly clear cut (Love, Romance, etc.) could be complex and downright filthy when you take a closer look. I designed this one to be part of a series of black and white only T-Shirts.
What does the future hold for YWT Clothing? What should your followers expect to see in the future?
In the immediate future we hope to release some new designs in late October/early November, including hoodies and sweaters. We have a collection coming out called iAMBear and other designs like “the Mother” that are both visually impressive and tell a story. We really just want to grow and improve upon the design and quality of our clothing. We want to continue to provide original designs, telling stories and making statements that are relevant, connect with our audience, and ultimately become a great brand.
