Author Archives: Alan Ilagan

One of the most fascinating spaces that human beings can occupy is the place where art, science, and design meet. Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya, our Dazzler of the Day, exemplifies the power that this magical crux can produce. Her recent artwork for the ‘I Still Believe In Our City’ campaign highlights the mounting racism raging against Asian Americans, while working to heal those wounds with hope and beauty. 

Ms. Phingbodhipakkiya comes from both the scientific and artistic worlds, where a promising passion for ballet was derailed by a skiing accident. After that point she turned to studying neuroscience and researching Alzheimer’s before returning to the artistic world through design and education. The connections between science and art have long flourished beneath the surface – a connection that both scientists and artists intrinsically seem to understand, but that is often lost on the viewer or general public. Phingbodhipakkiya puts this connection front and center in much of her work, simultaneously challenging and celebrating all the ways in which they are intertwined.

Even more powerful is when this sort of work collides with society, as seen thrillingly through her ‘I Still Believe In Our City’ project, which has taken New York by colorful storm in this stunning subway series designed to illuminate the rising anti-Asian racism in the age of COVID-19 and rampant disinformation.

Her work is instantly impactful, vibrant with strong, saturated blocks of color, and features a gloriously diverse array of people – a celebration of the women and people of color Phingbodhipakkiya has sought to highlight in her various fields, particularly in the STEM world. Such representation is vital in telling the many stories of contributions and advancements made by the heretofore-unheralded. Making those who have traditionally been invisible into a visible and potent life-force takes the sort of powerful alchemy that Phingbodhipakkiya explores with striking results.

Visit her website here for a more comprehensive collection of her many accomplishments.

There are only a few times when cultural milestones and artistic talent merge into one magnificent moment of synergistic beauty and power. This image by Glen Hanson is one such magical burst of the kind of kismet that is all too rare, and all the more exquisite for it. Inspired by the recent inauguration of President Biden, it features the powerful women that played as much a part (maybe more?) in his victory as he did.

Artist Glen Hanson is no stranger to powerful images, striking combinations of color and cunning detail, while capturing the essence of the subject and somehow imbuing it with a new grace and potency that conveys the original while adding an extra level of fabulousness. Hanson’s artwork has long impressed me, and just about everyone else. He takes caricature to a whole new art form, managing to convey exactly who he is depicting and somehow revealing a little more truth to who they are, perhaps more than even the subject realizes. That takes an understanding of beauty, the talent to cull those features that are most telling, and the delicate art of judicious editing that eliminates distractions, distilling an image to its most primal and evocative elements.

Glen Hanson is also our very first Dazzler of the Day – the magnificent sort of creature who takes the place of our former Hunk of the Day feature, opening up this space for something that transcends the label of ‘hunk’ into something more expansive that allows for every single one of us to dazzle. And what an impressive cherry-popping endeavor Hanson has undertaken, but in the words of Reading Rainbow, you don’t have to take my word for it. Here’s part of his impressive bio from his own website:

From the runways of Milan, to Animated TV shows, magazine racks, toy stores, book shelves and even the fragrance isle of your local drug store, Glen Hanson’s witty, stylish and sexy imagery is everywhere!

Over the course of his multifaceted career, Glen has predominantly divided his time between the two worlds of illustration and animation. 

His illustrations have appeared in a variety of publications around the world including BRITISH VOGUE and GQ, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, NEWSWEEK, THE WALL ST. JOURNAL, MAXIM, VARIETY and D.C. COMICS and on book covers for RANDOM HOUSE, KENSINGTON, HARLEQUIN, and most recently, the popular “GODDESS GIRLS” series for SIMON & SCHUSTER. 

His roster of advertising clients includes TIMEX, GRAND MARNIER, McDonald’s, and SUNSILK shampoo. His development illustrations for MATTEL’S “MONSTER HIGH” dolls set the tone for the brand on packaging, design and the animated spin off. He has created poster images for the Off-Broadway hit musical “ALTAR BOYZ”, Seth Rudetsky’s “SETH’S BIG FAT BROADWAY SHOW” and the play “MISS ABIGAIL’S GUIDE TO DATING, MATING and MARRIAGE”, on CD covers for House Music Label PURPLE MUSIC and BLINK 182’s “THE MARK, TOM and TRAVIS SHOW” for which Glen was awarded a certificate of excellence from the AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF GRAPHIC ARTS.

Throughout North America, Glen’s images adorn gift set boxes and print ads for BOD men’s and women’s fragrance products. They have also appeared on the runways of Milan on a series of t-shirts as part of the spring and fall ’05 collections of European men’s wear designer, ANDREW MACKENZIE. Ads designed by Glen for those collections were featured in both L’UOMO VOGUE and FLAUNT magazines. REV JEANS Italy as well hired him to create a line of sexy t-shirt images and NYC based designer KARA ROSS has used his fashion illustrations to promote her line of high end accessories.

In Animation, Glen started out by designing characters for TV’s BABAR, BEETLEJUICE and DARIA cartoon shows. In 2000 he was nominated for an ANNIE AWARD for his art direction and design on MTV’s internationally syndicated SPY GROOVE series. He has since developed shows for NICKELODEON, FILM ROMAN, STUDIO B, and DISNEY. He co-wrote, designed and storyboarded a series of animated promo spots for SOAP NET entitled “CRESCENT HOLLOW” and in 2009 he combined all his talents to direct, design and storyboard the animated music video “GHOST TOWN” for UNIVERSAL MUSIC recording artists SHINY TOY GUNS. 

Whatever the medium, Glen brings his unique talent, passion and enthusiasm to everything he creates… writing comics and TV shows, conceptualizing visual merchandise and campaigns for entertainment or corporate clients, or just capturing the likenesses of the famous and the fabulous with his signature style.

{Find more of Hanson’s brilliance at this website: http://www.glenhanson.com/index.php}