I'm always proud of the issues we put out with Juxtapoz, but the past few have been some of my favorite editorial issues since I got here at the end of 2006. Barnstormers and the Jose Parla cover, to the January Kehinde Wiley cover, to the new Josh Keyes February cover, they all seem electric. Good interviews, photos, artwork...

I got the chance to interview  Karl Meyer of Gentle Giant Studio and TET of  WTAPS this month, sort of part of the trifecta of highlights for me in 2009 (along with Shawn Stussy).

TET I got the chance to meet in Tokyo this past summer, on a muggy, rainy afternoon. Because we made our way all the way out to Tokyo for the meet up, TET gave us much of his afternoon for the interview and photo shoot, and I think there was the expectation that I was just going to ask about the clothing, but I was, and always have been, far more interested in TET's Philosophy Zine and Philosophy Store. I'm a paper, word guy, and so is TET.

This guy dropped his role with WTAPS back in the day to open a concept book store that nearly functioned as an art exhibit, so I really wanted to get into those stories. I think he was happy to talk about it, besides just the clothing. Don't get me wrong, I love WTAPS clothing, one of my favorite brands at the moment, but I think I have always liked it because of the story behind it. The words. It makes a difference.

The portrait that I accidently shot of TET wasn't really supposed to be for the magazine, more just for my Jux blog, and for just personal shots to have. He was actual posing for another photographer, and I just caught the right moment in front of his Black Flag store. And considering the rain was coming down pretty hard at that point, I can't believe it turned out.

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Karl Meyer was a bit of an easier travel arrangement, part of it done when in Los Angeles when I was scouting the venue for the Juxtapoz 15th Anniversary show this past September, and then we reconvened in NYC during the time we were both visiting the Robert Williams' opening  at Shafrazi. It was almost easier to interview Karl somewhere that was not his Gentle Giant Studio because you didn't have to be distracted at all the cool toys, statues, and the creative 3D factory that is Gentle Giant. When Estevan Oriol and I went to the studio initially, it was like a theme park to all the high-tech movies of the last 15 years... Fight Club, Matrizx, Star Wars prequels, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, King Kong, and I'm totally leaving some significant films out, but you get the idea... and Robert's sculptures were of course amazing.

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Just finishing up March 2010, with a sort of special cover treat, I finally got a second to really look through all the February issue notes and extras I had lying around my desk... I think I have a good post in me from my Gentle Giant visit...