It’s ok, I think I can hang with Fall. It’s already colder though, like, 50 degrees this morning…. that happened fast!! *sigh* But, lo, soon the Fall colors will be upon us and many fantastic festivals, as well. Take at look at the events page when you get a sec and see if there’s one near you! Some friends are helping me handle multiple fests on the same days so don’t be confused if you see more than one on a particular weekend…. we got it covered.

For NY Capital District folk, there’s something very fantastic in the works happening in Clifton Park. For those who haven’t heard, there’s a new artist coop in town called Artique. Spearheaded by two art-appreciator / entrepreneurs, Angela Ledtke and Elizabeth King, they have outfitted a nice retail space for a number of hand-picked artisans to display and sell their work in exchange for rent and a few hours a month. I’m really excited for the whole operation and happy to be included! The soft opening has already taken place (though I’m not quite moved in yet) and a ribbon-cutting ceremony is to commence next week. Just visit the aforementioned link for more info!

And so, having prepared some newness for the fest, I hath returned with the newness for the online masses – here’s what’s new!

New Tee: called “Happy Sun Power,” this new design is printed on a “Pomegranate” organic cotton American Apparel tee and portrays rays of sun entering a solar panel which becomes green power for a happy home. This was a big hit in Newport so I decided to put it up on the online store, as well. Currently, this design is only available in Toddler and Classic Girl, but there’s a Dijon colored Standard version possibly in the works, too. I must say, it’s pretty adorable on little ones.

Right, sospeaking of sizes, this leads me to topic B, in which I’m pleased to announce that a few of the designs are now available in Toddler sizes. This request has been made for quite a while, so after polling customers, I’m trying out a couple designs in kids sizes, those being: “I *Heart* Windmills,” “Late Summer,” and “Happy Sun Power” available in sizes 2, 4, and 6. For ages 6 and up, the Classic Girls tees actually run so small that they fit most kids pretty well. (I actually wear a girls large. I have the torso of a 12 year-old).

Lastly, the new poster design is something I’ve been sketching and working up since the inauguration. It’s called, “Strength in Diversity,” and portrays an abstraction of the American flag. In the stars, the design features 50 cartoon faces of folks from all different ages and background (you might recognize the guy in number 44). In the stripes I’ve drawn landscapes from 13 different regions of the country ranging from the Alaskan northern lights, to the Utah desert, to the Adirondack mountains in NY. For the paper medium, I discovered a company called Mr. French and ordered a batch of “Speckletone” paper – a thick, archival quality recycled blend of different papers with little chunks in it. It is the sweetness.  Here’s a video about the new poster:

One last note: for the aforementioned Newport Folk Fest, I also printed up a short second edition of the popular We Are Giants Now poster/music triptych that I made in 2007/2008. I used some different colors to make the design pop a bit more, and this time around the music for the posters is fully mastered.

Thanks to all the wonderful people I met in Newport for stopping by to say hey, as well as new and old friends from Solar Fest in July – you guys were really great to talk to you and thank you for your purchases!

Rock,
-Ben KN

After working for two decades in sales and marketing, Cynthia decided to follow her passion for the environment. The Energy Junction will promote wind and solar power for homeowners and businesses, push energy efficiency and environmentalism, serve as a renewable energy broker, conduct energy audits, develop energy education programs and counsel workers who want to land jobs in renewable energy fields.

Here’s that video – congrats Cynthia!

So, I may have mentioned to some folks that I purchase 100 kWh of wind power for every item sold through a new partnership with BeGreen (www.begreennow.com). This not only creates more demand for renewable energy, but that 100kWh also helps balance out the carbon footprint of shipping each order. This has the same environmental benefit as not driving 148 miles or recycling 327 aluminum cans! From Tulip Fest alone, we offset about 13,320 miles of fossil fuel transportation – nice!!!

The only downside of the fest was when I had to carry a huge table for about a mile, which made me aware of some declining musculature on my end due to a winter of perpetual computer-activity.

All in all, the first outdoor fest of 2009 was amazing. Thanks to everyone who visited and/or made a purchase! I definitely made some new pals.

Take care!
-Ben

Run, We Must is a line of art and apparel whose images celebrate nature and promote sources of renewable energy. Each tee is designed by upstate NY artist and musician, Ben Karis-Nix, and printed by himself, assistants, and his friends at Equal Vision Records. We periodically make financial contributions from sales to non-profits such as Windustry, and also bundle 100 kWh of wind energy into each sale via our new partners at BeGreenNow.com

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Thank you for your interest and enjoy the conference!