Body Painting: April 2009

This past Friday, April 17 2009, PLuSH Embassy attended the oh so anticipated Guys and Dolls event thrown by one of the cities most recognized faces Will Nguyen a.k.a Photo Will. Will also collaborated with one of T.Os plushest design teams Brazen Hussy. The event was BOM and the house was packed!!!

There was an amazing DJ lineup which included DJ Wristpect, DJ Lissa Monet, DJ Tilt, and Sir Lacelot, all had the crowd hypnotized with a original blend of old school, new school, reggae, hip hop, rap, R&B, soul, funk and so much more.

Unfortunately this time around, I wasn't able to catch the surprise Brazen Hussy Doll Box live photo shoot that went down inside the venue as myself and what seemed like half the city were outside urgently waiting to get in. But from the photos on Will's blog http://www.lostinthewillderness.com/blog/ it was refreshingly unique.

Guys and Dolls was the spot to be at last friday FOR SURE sure and everyone knew it. Will knows how to throw a party and his hospitality was evident constantly circling the party making sure everyone was enjoying themselves. Thank you Will for allowing PLuSH Embassy to be a part of your great night, we will be patiently waiting for the next one.

Myself and my hot girls Mel and Fiolla

Myself and Mr. Will ..oh so fly ..but u could have smiled a lil geezzee ;)

Earlier that week PLuSH Embassy had a Q&A with Photo Will. So for any of you plushinistas who may not know who Will is and what he is about, take some time and get to know him.

PE- For those who dont know, Will Nguyen aka Photo Will, why dont you tell us a lil about urself

Will- Simply put, Im a guy with a camera. Im not that tall. I have chubby cheeks, Im semi funny. Some people may know me as a youth leader at the Remix Project, but most probably know me from the nite life scene and my event photography. I was born and raised in and around Toronto. I have never been on a plane or have lived outside of the GTA for more than 3 days, Toronto is all I know.

PE- When did you know that you wanted to be a photographer?

Will-I never knew I wanted to be a photographer. As a kid, I loved watching movies and loved the way characters and the story lines were able to inspire me and help me see things differently and change me. I told myself that regardless of what I become, Id want to inspire people the same way movies did. I never really had a game plan on how to achieve this, but I figured, if I was going to be an inspiration and become famous, the world will want to know what my life would be like. So I took it upon myself to document my life.

At first I started off by writing journal entries, and describing my days events in vivid details, even specifying what my friends were wearing and how their hair was. Why? Because, I always thought that biographical movies were not accurate with the way the characters looked or behaved or dressed. I wanted my friends/characters to be portrayed exactly as they were. One day in grade 7, I stole a camera that belonged to a classmate, since then, I have substituted photographs for journal entries. Most of my earlier photographs don’t have any one posing or smiling, but all pictures of them in action, just living life. Photography is my way of creating the story board for the director that will direct my film when I die. But this whole photography thing is a fluke. Im still at York University studying global politics and urban geography trying to be a teacher.

PE-What made you decide to make the move from photographer to promoter?

Will- lol. I wouldn’t call myself a promoter. More of just an avid party goer that is really picky about where he parties. Imagine going out to a club 2-4 times a week, every week. You start to realize what you hate about certain parties and what you absolutely love. I also have the fortune of meeting everyone inside the club and having opportunities to converse with them. I become friends with people who are all like minded. I cant make individual time for everyone that I meet because of how frequently Im out, so to me, it’s a party where I can have a reunion of sorts with all my old and new friends, mix them all together, let them become friends with each other and just have a good time and enjoy each others company. Actually, I used to just have get togethers with all different sorts of friends at my house every few months, but because I moved so much and was affiliated with so many things, my network grew and my house couldn’t contain it. I used to rent out bars to myself and just have friends come in to party, so I guess in a way this all makes sense.

PE- What is lost in the willderness and what makes it different from all the other parties on the tdot social scene?

Will- lost in the willderness is my blog. I operate my blog like I operate my parties. With the blog, it’s a mental space for the like minded to meet up, people who share the same perspectives and interests. The parties I conduct are very much the same, except its physical space for the like minded to come out and enjoy each other. What makes it different is that Im not a promoter, this isn’t about the money. To me its about the experience and the atmosphere. Most people at my parties all know each other. The people that are invited are hand picked more or less, not because theyre ‘cool’ and ‘popular’, but because theyre important to me or simply just because I enjoy their character and company. It’s a more comfortable vibe to be in, because everyone is a familiar face.

PE-What made you decide to collaborate with Brazen Hussy for the upcoming Guys and Dolls event?

Will-Brazen Hussy are very successful women that I absolutely adore and respect, not only as a company but as individuals. Kathleen and Michelle are amazing women. The idea just arised out of conversation one day and we just rolled with it. Brazen Hussy has a more chic, upscale and successful clientele full of industry professionals and beautiful faces. I on the other hand (with the members of my team – DJ Wristpect, Sir Lancelot, Fresh and Addy), have a bit of a younger following of fresh and eager faces of the industry and scene. We thought it would be a good opportunity to mix each other’s followings to maximize our reach, but also to fill in the void between older and newer generations and allow the two sides to build relationships with each other. It only made sense to us.

PE-How do you hope the event turns out?

Will-We were so nervous about the event and the venue not filling up because this would be the first big event that we would have held and organized. Not only was http://www.lostinthewillderness.com/ and my partners names on the line, but so was Brazen Hussy. We didn’t want to let them down, so we ended up going super hard with the promotion and somehow managed to have 1200 people standing in line throughout the night when the venue capacity is only 700. The event turned out good, but it could have ran a lot smoother. But all in all, Im very proud of the work my team and I accomplished.

PE-What do you want ppl to remember about Guys and Dolls?

Will- I want people to remember the experience, the hype and the music. I want them to remember the beautiful faces, the smiles they had, the friends they met and the euphoria in their minds. This almost sounds like a rave. Lol. I wanted to bring something really different for them to remember, that this isn’t just a party to come and dance to, it really is an experience, hence why we thought (Brazen Hussy and my Team) of doing the doll box and the live photoshoot. And a non-egotistical way, I want them to remember me. I say me because Im a normal guy that somehow achieved a relative amount of success in doing something he loves. This all happened by chance. I see myself with the same qualities and flaws as the next person. Even though I am extremely far from the goals I plan to achieve, I think what little Ive done could give hope to a person who perceives themselves as regular and helps inspire them to get their dreams out. Yes, it is just a party, but its much more than that. As different as people may view me within the city, Im just like you.

PE-Where do you see urself in 5 yrs from now?

Will- In five years from now, I hope to be teaching photography at the Remix Project (http://www.theremixproject.ca/) to youth in the city and helping them capture and document their lives and the growth of city. Photography is history. But I also hope to be traveling around the world and working for magazines like National Geographic. Maybe Ill still be throwing parties. But lets hope Im not doing event photography forever. Lol. As much as I would love it, I don’t want to be 28 years old in a club taking pictures being old and reminiscing about what used to be my life. Lol. We all need to evolve and take things to the next step right?

PE-Who is someone that inspired you to be the person you are today?

Will- A lot of people have played very important roles in my life, but in terms of my career, Im going to say Gavin Sheppard (Co-founder of the Remix Project) and Bryan Espirtu (the legends league and Ideall Clothing), among many others including the rest of the Remix staff and my team members. Gavin and Bryan are two very inspiration people filled with deep thoughts, insight, experience and eloquence in speech and actions. They are two people that are not too different from me. To me, its inspirational to know that such an ordinary being can do so many extraordinary things. They both give back to their communities and help youth achieve their dreams. These two people played a very crucial part in the development of my mind, my perspectives, my understanding and my creativity.

PE-What advice can you give someone who wants to follow in ur footsteps?

Will- Be absolutely true to yourself. Do what you want to do, but do it being you. You don’t have to try to fit in, sometimes its ok to stand out. Conformity isn’t always the greatest thing. Differences is what makes us special, uniqueness is what makes us memorable, our thoughts and hearts are what makes them love us. Everything Ive done, was unintentional and unplanned for. I am just me, no shields, no armor, no disguises. Being different sometimes creates struggles that are difficult to overcome, but without struggles, comes no appreciation. Do I sound like a fortune cookie yet? lol

PE-Where can ppl go if they want to learn more about urself and lost in the willderness?

Will-www.lostinthewillderness.com

much better this time :)

Once again thank you so much Will and ppl check out Will's BLOG!!!!

~Plush Mony~

Design is an important component of our everyday lives. Product design, package design, brand and corporate identity, retail design, book and brochure design, interactive design (software, interactive information, interfaces), and design of buildings and environments represent the spheres of influence of design on our lives.

-Design Exchange

Okay, so fashion design is OBVIOUS. But what about the rest of the world? Design is a challenging concept to think of... from our laptops, to our lotion bottles, chairs, our "dream home",to the buildings we enter everyday. Why are certain cell phones, logos, cars, and even razors more enticing than others? Well, it's usually how its designed. It's a term many of us seldom appreciate. I'm more of a left brain thinker, so maybe I am speaking for myself. I could go continue on a tangent about my new found enlightment but I won't. But I will leave you with the thought, and revisit it very soon.