Ideas Taking Root

About this campaign

All shirts are 100% pre-shrunk cotton.
Proceeds from sales and donations will be matched through our Fall Appeal!

Ziye is one of two winners from our first ever Living Room Conversations Art Contest! The theme for the contest was our slogan, respect.relate.connect. Here's how Ziye described her design:

How is the concept of respecting, relating, and connecting through conversation reflected in your design?

My design reflects how I see conversations. It starts with a seedling, an idea offered by someone, held with their hand outstretched. Then it takes root, a metaphor taken literally in my drawing. It trickles into the fingertips of the people around the idea, and eventually grows to cover every inch of the listener’s flesh. This is what my design reflects: ideas taking root.

What does respect, relate, connect mean to you? How does it connect with your personal life?

Growing up, I never connected well with my stepfather. He was older, American, and had different expectations for his kids. I was only five then, a recent Chinese immigrant and held a completely different standard for myself. Because of our differences, it was hard to respect him, harder to relate, and almost impossible to connect on any deeper level. Still, he is my stepdad, and though we don’t see eye to eye, he has taught me that each person is different.