We asked some of the most talented folks in the community to talk to us about projects they’ve worked on that they still think about, projects that really meant something. Have you had such an experience? Are you looking for inspiration for your next project? Check out the stories below, they are exciting, entertaining, and most importantly – inspiring.

Fernanda Lastra

During the middle of the pandemic, when the world was coping with the challenges of lockdowns and remote work, I found myself immersed in the process of writing my dissertation. As someone with a deep passion for promoting Argentinian music, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to delve into the topic for my dissertation. Read more>>

Mary Masterson

Five years ago, I lost a granddaughter. My then-daughter-in-law was using Meth during her pregnancy. My granddaughter was born at 25 weeks, 15 weeks early, and just a week from being able to live outside of the womb. I held her little hand while she was in ICU the day she died. She was my first grandchild and I was heartbroken and honestly, floored that I didn’t realize what was going on during her pregnancy. My son barely survived it. Read more>>

Zachary Vaughn

Since around 2019 I had the idea to write and release an album entitled “Welcome to My World”. And over these 5 years I’ve put it down and picked it up again for various reasons. Whether I felt too exposed with the nature of the subject of the. concept, or as a small independent artist that it would be a waste of time to even work on it. I never truly felt at peace when I would put it down and move on though. Read more>>

Kimberly Chapman

My exhibition, Eighty-Six Reasons for Asylum Admission, is by far the most meaningful project I’ve been involved in. Learning about what women endured behind locked doors is mind blowing. Reading firsthand accounts of their experiences is both heart wrenching and incomprehensible. When mental asylums were being build across America there was so much hope and belief that mental illness could be cured. Read more>>

Kris Rhymes

As of now, I’m finishing out an Art Series called “Whatcanyacallit” which is part of my ChocKolate-Man Collection where I use chocolate syrup as my medium. Read more>>

Ira Mallory

In 2018 I wrote a spec script for a movie title The Hebrew Queen centered around the biblical character Queen Esther. The inspiration to tell this story has its origins in my Jewish Practice. Each year, during the holiday of Purim, Jews all over the globe celebrate the story of Esther as an heroic ancient Jewish monarch. 2018 was the same year my daughter was born and knowing she would be raised Jewish and celebrate Purim yearly, I desired to create a version of the story she could connect to and of which she could be proud. Read more>>

City Boy Reeko

Most meaningful, product of Wabash because it was during a time where I was finding myself in my early 20’s transitioning from military to civilian and surviving in California Read more>>

Alexa Luckey

Presently, I’m in the beginning stages of creating an album. Over the last several years, my life has radically evolved and transformed in the most beautiful of ways. I am excited to share that story in a cohesive sonic project. Due to the specific changes internally, with relationships, and my connection with the world at large; I believe this album will be one of my most meaningful works yet. Read more>>

Rainbow Mosho

Acquiring the discipline to learn from others takes time and the results are magnificent. A project requires a team and I cherish the experience to move from self-doubt to accomplishment. Read more>>

Kayla Henley

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on is a combination of developmental and copy edits for Dr. Isabella Sarto-Jackson’s “The Making and Breaking of Minds” (Vernon Press 2022). This has been one of my most daunting projects to date. The developmental edits required an academic grasp of neuroscience written at a Phd-level with the intention of being attainable to the everyday reader. Read more>>

Amy Wang

As a creative, a few of my meaningful projects involves creating design solutions and visual designs for museum installations. One of my favorite projects is for National Geographic AR, where I got to art direct and design 3D visual designs for users to learn about Archaeopteryx through an interactive National Geographic AR experience. The playful and educational AR experience can be used freely to look around using an iPad to display the 3D AR animations. Read more>>

Ashleigh Argyle

While I am an artist who specializes in portrait work and graphic design, my heart and soul lie in writing. For me, writing is the closest thing to magic that we will ever experience and I do not take that role lightly. Authors can create realms previously unseen, craft characters that readers will carry with them through their entire lives, and reflect even the most subconscious beliefs, fears, and dreams that reside in all of us no matter where we come from. Read more>>

Devon Gates

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve done recently is putting together a collective of musicians who identify as non-male in the Boston jazz/creative music scene. Modeled a little bit after the Mutual Mentorship for Musicians fellowship (run by Jen Shyu and Sara Serpa) that I participated in a few years ago, I helped pair folks into duo commissions, and we met regularly throughout this past summer to chat and build community around music and gender, its challenges and how to build better support systems. Read more>>

Leslie Goldman

The most meaningful projects I create are commissions. I take my clients through an extensive process, starting by discussing things that bring them joy. I ask them about their favorite colors, music, experiences, etc. Together, we go on a beautiful journey to create a custom work of art designed to connect my clients to a moment, a place, a person, or a thing that stirs their soul. Read more>>

Norm Rosenfield

During Covid, my family started a band project. We recorded an album’s worth of original songs over the course of 2021/2022. At the same time, we created marketing tools, released singles, and explored digital promotion. Read more>>

Haze Kim

It was 2022, I got the booking email from the job I submitted myself as a dancer. The brand was Good Light which is a skin care brand founded by David Yee who’s also known as an author. I got to work for their campaign. David was on the set and he shared his story growing up not feeling included, seeing the lack of inclusivity and diversity in the beauty world and how he pursued to launch his brand with his vision on inclusivity. Read more>>

Christina Cison

I think my husband, Johnny, and I came into this knowing that it would be a hard project, but worthwhile because of how meaningful it is. We aren’t just restoring a home, we are stewards for this entire property and the buildings on it. What it has meant to the community, and for the families that came before us. Occasionally we will find items in walls, or they work their way out of the dirt. And it is a reminder of how long the history is here. Read more>>

Greg Kozatek

My queer satire magazine The InQueery is the most meaningful project I’ve worked on. This project allows artists and writers across the queer experience to collaborate with each other and hopefully feel part of a larger creative community. I’ve found that sometimes creative work can be isolating, especially as an illustrator or writer, and getting the chance to connect with and build on other creative people’s ideas has lessened that feeling. Read more>>

Grace Harvey

I have had the honor and privilege to work with early childhood children. I am currently a Pre-K OSR Teacher. I noticed in the classroom that a lot of our challenges come from children being able to manage their own behavior and their own feelings. I feel that today this is a struggle across the board from Pre-K all the way to high school. Our children struggle with peer pressure, anger, and just navigating through their own feelings and how to handle what they appropriately. Read more>>

Ashely Biski

I play one of the lead characters in “The Nutty Boy” on Netflix, named “Juliet”. And she is this super fun, spunky, little girl with wild curly hair and brown skin. It was my first project as a voice actor where I got to voice a character that looks like me. A character where younger Ashely would be able to see herself on screen. Besides being in a show that is incredibly cute, fun, and diverse, it means so much more to voice a character where little brown babies can turn on a cartoon and say “Wow! She looks like me!”. Read more>>

Moka

I’m so exited to announce some new collaborations and events I’ve been working on! To start off with fashion, I got to collaborate with a two new clothing brands I really love named Kolly and Chnge. Now I have two discount codes my followers can use to get cool clothes and cute lingerie. I’m still brand partners with Parade Underwear and Zig-Zag World rolling papers as well, which has been so much fun getting to try out products from brands I’ve loved before we were in collaboration. Read more>>

Yuxin LI

After I finished my MFA degree, I worked at a VFX company for about two years and participated in many film and TV projects. However, the most meaningful project was not what I did at the company. I did this not for money. This project is a short film about my uncle’s noodle restaurant, which he had been running for many years. The TV in his restaurant always played random food videos from the internet, so I decided to create a video for his restaurant. Four years ago, when I was staying at my uncle’s place in Chicago, I often dined at his restaurant and I liked the food so much. Read more>>

Michelle Ovalles

After booking my first three jobs as a real couple with David Rio, I needed validation for myself. All of 2022 I had SOOO MANY callbacks but no booking, and I needed to book my first solo project, I needed to know that I was a good enough actor on my own. In Dec of that year I received an audition for Nordstrom Rack, it was for their 2023 summer/fall campaigns. I was oh so excited for this one, I LOVE FASHION and the role i was auditioning for was a fashion forward person, so I did what I do, and I PUT IT ON! Read more>>

Toney Cosey

My Documentary im about to put on ttubi and other platforms very soon. ‘The Life Behind The Scenes Of A Videograper. This Documentary is about all the work I put in since 2018, being a Videograper. It shows what Videograpers go through and how important we are to the entrainment business. And this is so meaningful because no one has never anything like this before. And God told me to do it Read more>>

Vladimir Kusijanović

Over the past year and a half, I’ve been working alongside my friends Karan Pandav and Rafael Awada (and many more) on Raf’s debut album ‘Vino…’. So far, it’s been the biggest project I’ve ever been a part of and it’s also the type of project I have always wanted to be a part of. Read more>>