We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Doomed Movement a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Doomed , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on, was the painting of a massive mural in Tahoe City, CA at The Boatworks Inn. I named the mural “Floral Freestyle 1” and was installed in June 2021. This was such an eye-opening experience on so many different levels mainly because this was my first project that required so much more than just painting. I’ll paint a picture for you. I had just graduated college with a bachelor’s in drawing literally the day before I started painting this mural. Being in school for 6 years, my life was very chaotic and stressful with the pressure of school, painting, and maintaining a house all bearing down on me. I had been pushing forward with my artistic career though nonetheless, the list of commission projects were stacking up and I’d tackle them one by one, not all of them productive or fun to say the least. When this particular project was presented to me though, I knew it would be a game changer because of the scale and location, but what I did not know was the steps I had to take to make it a reality. Being the first mural in Tahoe City (located in a national forest), the property owners had to get approval of design and application from the city itself. I went through 8 juried meetings, coming up with multiple designs, and finally earned approval through my dedication and hard work.
Starting this mural the day after graduation was perfect timing, I was ready to take on any project and prove what I could do. The project flowed with no hiccups at all. I got to celebrate with the owners and staff at night after painting, share this moment with my partner and family when they came to visit, and create memories that I will never forget. On the drive back home I told myself that from here on out that I would work as hard as I could and set standards for all the projects to come.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

My name is Terrence Hammond (Doomed Movement) and I am a 26-year-old street artist, illustrator, and creator based in Reno, Nevada. My main medium of practice is spray paint that I use to paint murals, street art, stickers, and more. This, combined with analog and digital practices, I illustrate flowers, characters, graffiti letters, graphics, and surrealistic nature pieces. I started painting professionally 4 years ago and although I’ve been drawing for much longer than that, skateboarding is what led me to the path i’m on today. Skating is something I’ve been doing for 15 years now. Not only is it a mental and physical exercise for me, but the culture that it immerses you in has taught me everything you need to know about life. One of those lessons is the importance of travelling and experiencing new cultures. In 2018-2019, I got to skate and travel to Tokyo, Japan and Barcelona, Spain where I would fall in love with street art and graffiti the same way I did with skateboarding.
Fast forward 5 years later, and now I am building a career for myself painting street art and inspiring others to find a path of their own. This is what I am most proud of. When people of many talents talk to me and tell me that I inspire them, not only with my art, but through my hard work and dedication to make things happen. And that is a standard that I try to hold myself to. Always work hard, be better than you were the day before, and always love what you’re creating.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I’m currently in a state of change in my life and my creative pursuit. Back in 2018 I started a street wear brand called Ascension Clothing Co. It evolved from skateboarding, to collaborative artists, all the way to streetwear. All of these evolutions were ultimately leading me to where I currently am as an artist, which unfortunately does not include running the Ascension Clothing Collective anymore. After 5 years of business we will be doing our final launch in August 2023 and closing shop. As sad as this is for me, it is also a relief, I simply did not have the time or resources to keep Ascension alive mainly because of the traction I’ve gained as a working artist. Without changes like this, I’ve felt myself getting stuck in a comfortable place which isn’t always what’s best for us in the long term. I’m looking forward to the new opportunities that in the future that will come by making pivotal decisions like this one.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Now that I’m a professional who relies on others to give me work in order to live and pay my bills, I have a new outlook on how my artwork is valued and why it is important in the first place. I believe in doing art, for art’s sake. Art, however you want to define it, is crucial to human interaction and emotion, imagine a world without it. You can’t. This gives it it’s value, and while not everyone is going to be aware of that, I think that it should be appreciated and cared for in the same way other essential components of life are. I want the people that see my art everyday to pass by and say “I appreciate that like I appreciate my morning coffee and I’m glad it’s here”. Just by acknowledging the vision, hard work and time that artists put into their work adds value to our ecosystem as a whole.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ascensionclothingco.com/doomedmovementportfolio
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doomedmovement/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/doomedmovement
• Other: New NFT Project https://www.ascensionclothingco.com/streetpriorities

Image Credits
Hannah Stewart, Jamie Dent, Demetrice Dalton.