Resist Today–Tees, Art, and Prints for Tomorrow

We've been following, and wearing, the work of David Rau and Josh Bertrand, two artists in Tampa, Florida, for many years, and have been intrigued by these guys who seem to make art, trouble, and great wallets, look effortless. We recently heard that Dave has dove in head-first to  make their company, Resist Today, succeed, and "to have full days to devote to making fine art, better products, independent web sites and collaborative projects with friends". We checked in with Dave to see how the transition was going:

"Resist Today has been a slow-growing, part-time experiment since Josh and I met in art school. It's still evolving and changing. We started the company to create a platform online for selling art products for ourselves and fellow artist friends. Now we're looking to expand our 'products' to include original art (paintings, drawings, screen and wood-cut prints, etc.) as well as provide more transparency about our art processes, techniques and ideas.

"The feedback and connections we've made with people who like our work is really the best part about running a company like this. It's direct, honest and far reaching — at least 25% of our customers are outside the US. The web makes this possible — and it's what keeps me engaged. Right now the web site is our main business, but we hope to expand some by making partnerships with other independent and like-minded stores.

"My independence is possible by having multiple irons in the fire. I still do contract web design with small businesses and various friends & partners; that's my main stream of income right now. Making a living solely from my art is the goal, but I'm not there yet.

"Going independent wasn't a choice really, it's something I've felt compelled to try for many years. I'm passionate about controlling my own content and executing my vision. Working for someone else means dealing with their limitations all of the time. And working for a large organization provides an illusion of stability, but really self-reliance is stability. The decision was about timing; I found a few steady freelance web projects and decided to go for it. I'm fortunate to have a very supportive and involved girlfriend and friends who encourage me every day.

"Resist Today is still very much in the early stages, but I'm really excited about being an exponent on the growth of the business, our fans and our work."

Check out this beautiful video of David and Josh screenprinting one-of-a-kind wallets.