E5. Freehand Profit - Finding Passion by Creating a Mask a Day

Ever Forward Club’s Ashanti Branch is joined by mask maker and artist, Freehand Profit, also known as Gary Lockwood. Gary began making masks ten years ago, starting a movement on his blog called “Mask 365”, in which he created one mask every day for a year. Now with over 161,000 Instagram followers, he has become known for reimagining and taking apart sneakers, transforming them into one of a kind masks. (1:39) Ashanti's introduction. (5:30) Gary introduces how he started making masks, struggling to find his place in the art world, and how sneakers and the surrounding sneaker culture are symbols for the “front of the mask”. (11:44) Gary and Ashanti share the front of their masks and find common ground in their hard-working nature. (18:48) Before exploring the back of their masks, Gary analyzes why he has a tendency to delay doing the necessary internal work to maintain his own health - something Ashanti deals with as well. (21:20) Then Ashanti connects Gary’s battle with depression to his own fear of failure, and with his sadness about his father’s death. (24:15) Gary’s thoughts on self-doubt lead into a discussion about the double-edged sword of seeking recognition, setting and reaching goals, and how ultimately extrinsic reinforcement will never be enough. (29:41) Ashanti talks about the mental health of his brother, who battles paranoid schizophrenia, before both men share their battle with body image issues. (34:36) This leads into thoughts about “the story we tell ourselves”, and how we are biased towards the outside voices that are also confirming whatever messages of self-doubt repeat in our heads. (37:22) After taking a breath, Ashanti and Gary talk about how sneaker culture can cause people to do self-destructive things; and then Ashanti shares how he fell victim to the “what are those” gag in school. (40:49) Finally, Gary gives insight into his artistic vision and process behind his art, and Ashanti shares the details of his work with youth. --- Check out Freehand’s Website: Freehandprofit.com Instagram/Twitter: @FreehandProfit Patreon: patreon.com/freehandprofit --- Create your own mask anonymously at www.100kmasks.com If you are interested in being on the Face to Face podcast, email us at [email protected] Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/branch-speaks/message Connect with Ashanti Branch: Instagram:    https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ashantibranch Twitter:   https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks LinkedIn:    www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch