Meet Mabel Parker | Artist + Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mabel Parker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mabel, what do you think makes you most happy? Why?
Seeing and making beautiful things makes me happy. I love being in love, I love my friends. I think a major source of happiness for me is my work, because it’s all driven by my own personal experiences and narratives. I believe that the best art is made from a deep place of self. I love to write. I love to sit outside when it’s windy and sit inside with the fan on when it’s hot. A lot of things make me happy but they’re hard to put into words, and a lot of things make me really sad, too. I guess what I’ve learned in my early twenties so far is that everything in life is just for a little while, for better or for worse, it doesn’t really matter.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I began making clothing when I was about fifteen or sixteen, hand painting on t-shirts to gift to friends and family. Eventually, I fell in love with the accessibility of art tees. Hang it on the wall or wear it on your body, it didn’t matter, each shirt doubles as a utilitarian, purposeful object and also an original work of art.
I’ve never thought of my work as “high-brow”… I love beautiful things. I love things that are gauche and gaudy.
I don’t consider myself a business owner. When someone asks what I do, I usually say “textile art, and sometimes babysitting on the side.”
A lot of my work comes from a place of neuroticism and compulsivity. I’m a perfectionist, but not in the ways that count for anything… my work is all heavily text-based and follows themes of memories, vignettes, and personal narratives.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
santee alley & DTLA flower district… delmy’s pupusas at hollywood farmer’s market…picnic at Malibu Creek… cartoon character popsicles at echo park lake… wine at my apartment … 🙂

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My parents. My friends. My boyfriend, my cat. Book stores that let you read a little bit of the books before buying them. $5 racks at thrift stores. Dyeing clothing with beet juice. “The Sabbath” by Abraham Joshua Heschel. Disposable cameras.

Website: https://www.mabelparker.pet

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mab___mab___mab

Image Credits
shirt model in last photo is fritzie woodard