“I think it’s really important to show younger people that you can make a career in art,” says textile artist Sabrina Lozada. Having held jobs in both graphic design and fashion, the 25-year-old Chicago resident now creates rugs that are meant to spark joy — and with her pieces consistently selling out online, it’s clear that she’s a tastemaker to watch.
In turn, she hopes to inspire others to follow a similarly creative path — and thanks to 1800 Tequila, she can do just that. A proven arbiter of the arts, the brand has partnered with everyone from Shantell Martin and Jean-Michel Basquiat to Keith Haring. And for years, they’ve worked alongside longtime collaborator, Chicago designer and creative director Joe Freshgoods, to provide equal opportunities to burgeoning creative talents who, like Lozada, have diverse backgrounds and skill sets, though their very own mentorship program, Featuring Us.
The aim of the project is to amplify a group of emerging artists’ work each year by offering them a platform to showcase their art, and helping them cultivate communities of likeminded emerging tastemakers. “We’re building an ecosystem of friendship and mentorship,” says Freshgoods. “The more young artists that I talk to, the more I realize they just need a superhero that looks like them. They might be one opportunity away from their whole life changing.”
For self-taught painter and sculptor Norma Ojeda, displaying work at this year’s Featuring Us showcase represented a critical step in her art career. “This opportunity allows me to envision myself in bigger spaces,” says the 25-year-old Mexican-American artist, who uses her art to promote messages of mindfulness. “It’s really just a limitless state of mind.”
The same goes for mixed-medium artist, Lo Marie. Based on the southeast side of Chicago, Marie portrays the realities of life in low-income communities through photography and collage. Now that her work has been displayed for the first time in public, thanks to Featuring Us, she’s newly hopeful for the future. Her plan? “I’m just looking forward to starting and then to keep pushing forward from there.”
If you didn’t make it to the gallery show, catch the video above for more insight into 1800 Tequila’s efforts to support emerging artists.