Omar López is recent transfer student currently on his senior year in the DMA program. He was born in Mexicali B.C. Mexico and raised in the Coachella Valley desert.

This is a project designed for Visual Communication 1 and mentored by Brian Roettinger. The book is titled Pocas Pero Locas and it explores the lifestyle of the chola. It has four main sections that focus on opinion, fashion/style, lifestyle, and chola influences in pop culture. It was a 10 weeklong process that consisted of gathering research, articles, images, illustrations, opinions, music and actual construction of the book.

On a late night drive home I was listening to the radio and flipping through the stations when Art Laboe’s dedication show came on. It’s a great show that plays mostly oldies and people are invited to call in and dedicate a song to someone. Girls with chola style nicknames were dedicating songs to their vatos, homegirls, and barrios. This is when the idea for the project hit me. I have always had a fascination with cholas. I have always appreciated the chola style (when done right) and when I was young was attracted to them. Of course there are things about the style that I find humorous which made the topic even more intriguing.

IO: Name five non-visual influences that have shaped your aesthetic.

OL: I think it comes down to life and life experiences. They have shaped not only who I am but also my aesthetic. Some of the things that I can think of off the top of my head are within these general categories: - Mi Familia. - Mexican food, or food in general. - My friends. I really appreciate their support, honesty and constructive criticism. I don’t like dealing with bullshit. I like it when people are real. - Music. - Skateboarding. This subculture was one of the first things that led me to design.

IO: How about visual influences?

OL: Everyfuckingthing: Faces / Places / Things / Objects / Film / Electronics / Gadgets / Furniture / Fashion on a budget / Nature / Architecture / The Desert / Live music.. to name a few....

IO: Describe your creative process in reverse.

OL: Finished project, do work (sometimes this step takes a long time), and idea.

IO: What's your favorite way to take a break from the screen life?

OL: I am a huge family and friends person. So whenever I get a chance to step away from the screen I’m usually in contact with a friend, family member or I leave for the desert. Back when I lived in the desert I spent a lot of time driving out to the Los Angeles area to catch a band, but now that I live out here I rarely ever get time to go to shows. I also love going to the movies, but that’s just going from one screen to another. I just like to get out and experience something new.

IO: Top three guilty pleasures?

Lil Wayne, overeating & smoking (trying to quit).

Habitus is a collection of wearable pieces created for individuals traveling abroad over the past summer. Participants were given a series of interview questions about their personal style and travel plans along with a disposable camera with which to document their daily routine. These responses and images along with research about the area to which they were traveling all contributed to design and construction decisions for each piece. Each participant then took their piece abroad and photograph their use of it on their trip.

The most nerve-wracking but ultimately rewarding component of this process was developing the photos each participant took while on their trip. These images provided evidence of a product I created being used in a completely foreign place, allowing me to travel the world vicariously through them.

This is Carmel's Modular Dress. It can be worn with the skirt in various positions or as separate pieces. The colors and loose fit tie in with Carmel's tendency to wear boyish clothes originating from her childhood when her grandma bought her boys clothes at the night market in Taipei. The stripes oriented in different directions mimmic the mural photographed at Carmel's work at LACE.

IO: Can you tell us about your current interests?

AR: I am getting really into furniture design, particularly the work of Enzo Mari. He is an italian designer and design theorist who is entirely self-taught and is still, at the age of 79, creating beautifully functional pieces. My favorite of his work are a series of tables and chairs which are made from very simple pieces of wood... no fancy cuts or dimensions, every element seems standard, only the composition is entirely unique. Brown Paper: I just made this lunchbox which uses the same proportions as a brown paper lunch bag and then I found that CVS sells these amazing rolls of thick brown paper for super cheap. I am also becoming obsessed with the idea of the invisible creator. Martin Margiela has never been photographed, can you imagine how much work that might be? It's nice to pretend like you're God sometimes.

IO: Do you feel that your current environment affects the direction of your work? The process, aesthetic, or do you draw any inspiration from it?

AR: I used to fight the idea of calling myself an American Designer. Actually now that it's being brought up again, I definitely still have a problem with it, seeing as I disagree with the majority of Americans and feel generally out of touch with national issues. I can, however, say that although I am not a Los Angeles native, after 3 years of living here I feel that LA has had a profound effect on my work. Downtown LA especially feels a little less nostalgic and more like a present day/working class reality compared to the Bay Area, which is a quality I value quite highly. Also, taking the bus down here takes 3 times as long as up there due to traffic and poor city planning, but I find that time extremely valuable. I don't have the tools necessary to create anything so instead I resort to conceptualizing and planning every detail of a project, which in the long run is more important.

IO: What is your process of getting ready for the school day?

AR: Outta bed.
Outta boxers.
In the shower.
Think to myself "I should clean my shower."
Into clothes.
Brush, comb, apply sunscreen (white).
Roommate makes comment on how ridiculous/monochromatic my outfit is. Change clothes.
Make breakfast (this is the part that I spend the most time on and am thoroughly unhappy the rest of the day if it gets shortened) Feed feral cat (who doesn't love me, and will never love me) Run to bus stop.
Wait 1 - 30 minutes.
Board bus.
Walk to Broad.

IO: Do you feel this department prepares you for the world after graduation?

AR: There are a lot of important life skills that aren't specifically taught in class but can be learned through DMA if you pay attention and make the building your second home. I think it's possible to do freelance work before you graduate and is extremely valuable upon graduation. It depends what field you're looking on going into.

IO: What are your plans or your desires after graduating from the UCLA D|MA department?

AR: Live in a non-English speaking country for at least 1 year. Work for great people and make no money or start my own company and make no money but making no money isn't really a concern of mine, I'm very resourceful.

IO: If you were a prehistoric animal, what would you be?

AR: WOOLY MAMMOTH, actually in high school I was obsessed with wooly mammoths for a bit and made this really awful illustration of one which I'm fairly certain I used in my portfolio when applying to DMA.

True Loves was a music video I directed with Joe Nankin for Dovecote Records earlier this year. Visually, the video is an homage to Russian and eastern-european cult sci-fi, French artist Moebius and early Metal Hurlant magazine.
Someone commented on Youtube and said that the video is really about ideal love versus true love and that's alright with me. Link to vimeo.

This is a costume I designed for the lead character played by Emanuel Boria. Sketching is a big part of my process. The ribbed texture on his suit is inspired by costumes in a Polish sci-fi film called On The Silver Globe. We ended up using surgical tubing and rubber cement to create the arms and legs - a long process of trial and error. The rest of the design of it is something of a cross between a conquistador and bomb squad armor. It was built by our wardrobe designer Lauren Bradley.