Ray Mitch has traversed North and South American, African, Western and Eastern European, and Asian countries and their local communities, feeling at home in each one. 3 limited-edition, exclusive designs of his Here-After 2050 collection are now available in limited sizes and quantities. "What makes the Ray Mitch brand especially nice for buyers and collectors of fashion and jewelry objects is the exclusive, limited nature of each of my designs. For example, only 132,000 units of each of my designs within each collection are available for market," he foretells. His first presentation, the first of many movements of his budding oeuvre of 2 hand-made, black, ready-to-wear, streetstyle luxury graphic, over-sized tees in 100% cotton with a high crew-neck collar and 1 of his exclusively trademarked, designed the12-Moon ring are now available at our Etsy store. While he doesn't see or care to consider his collection as an attempt to convey some kind of socio-political or cultural commentary on the world, his designs and their fabrication are made to pull us closer to that gravitational pull of our true selves in intellectual and affective ways.
TC. How did you come up with the idea of “Made In Mars” to typically communicate where a particular garment or product is harvested, sourced, or assembled?
RM. A dream became reality. It’s like seeing something in a dream but you’ve never seen it in the physical here on Earth. When you see it in your dream, you’re not sure if it’s reality or not. “Did it really happen or not?” You try to convince yourself that it’s only a dream that has no real bearing on what’s going on here on Earth in your life especially. “Is this something that really exists in nature,” you try to convince yourself.
It is something I saw in a dream. I saw myself on a Mars, and everything was different. Everyone moved around so happy and peaceful. It was a sign. The difference between the creatures I saw there and those I could quickly identify here on Earth had more to do with that feeling you get when you experience great joy and happiness. You know, when you go around certain people and you feel that right vibe and connection. “How would you feel in an environment like?” I kept telling myself, as I began to think about my “falling” back-down to Earth. As much as people say you need to surround yourself with good people, imagine being in a state of happiness all the time. That's Mars, where dreams are made. I didn’t experience sadness or pain there. It was more like I was the alien, the outside, learning and adapting to new things and experiences. I felt like something was wrong because “Where can you find such incredible joy here on Earth?”
TC. For your first collection, why did you name it 'Here-After 2050'?
RM. I was in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand smoking a joint outside in the kitchen area. Since I can remember, I have always been a child at heart who's lived in a “make-believe” world, letting my imagination run free. Well, on this particular summer's day after taking a few puffs of the weed, I was thinking, "How far could I imagine arriving at some special, historical time of my life?” You know, I think many of us think that way, feeling a sense that we haven’t yet arrived at some magical destination where we believe all the stars come together to make us feel better about ourselves, particularly when we feel like we have lived someone else’s dreams rather than our own. While standing there in that kitchen with an unevenly tiled, peeling floor, I remember turning to my right, staring down at the bag of cement labeled with a series of numbers that included -2050-. That was it! That was the sign I needed to really start thinking about what a Ray Mitch collection from the year 2050 CE would look like, and its contribution and influence on Earth and other planets.
TC. What do you hope to accomplish when people wear or encounter your brand? How do you want them to feel?
RM. I want them to be happy and to understand the story of Ray Mitch. It’s a journey to understand yourself, to be patient and to believe in your first thought—to trust your gut! It’s going to Mars and the wolves that we meet there welcome us rather than cause us fear, based on our own cravings and desires. As I saw in a dream, we all have a pair of Alpha male and female wolves that surprisingly must protect us against ourselves, that we discover and get in touch with our true selves rather than their being there to protect us from outside forces. "A paradox! Isn't it?" They're the ones that introduced me to the Lurler flower that you see on the front of the 'Be Happy' tee. That flower has been there since the planet was created; that’s the only flower that’s been there…With this collection, my first presentation, I wanted to bring the Lurler flower to Earth, so that people can be happy and understand the journey of what it takes for them to get here.
TC. So who’s the Ray Mitch client?
RM. The ones who actually struggle with or don’t have patience or don’t believe! Those who look up to someone else or others to feel good about themselves--even those who struggle with seeing people here on Earth equally. Ray Mitch is for everybody willing to be happy by stepping out of their comfort zones to discover more of themselves. Ray Mitch is all about becoming and getting in touch with your higher self. To be 'Made In Mars' is actually about the person, not just the garment or clothes, or piece of material you may have the luxury to buy. Actually being re-made, being re-discovered and re-imagined in dope ways is for the Ray Mitch Wolf Pack, those who want to go on this journey with me. It took my going to Hong Kong and losing myself, in order to find myself. I felt truly lost. I met a friend way back…started going with him to work. I was getting money but I was not myself. I wasn’t happy. I was adapting to what he was doing, not what I wanted. That’s when Ray Mitch was created. I began to see myself and listen to my inner voice rather than what was going on around me. To do this requires being in touch with “the slow life.” That’s a life of patience and reflection that isn’t a step away from living a productive life and getting things done, but a way of seeing the importance of keeping yourself a part of your own creative and imaginative path. I call this the “I” principle. Others call it enlightenment.
TC. Do you see children in your collection?
RM. I see my designs on kids, animals, interiors, jewelry, you name it! To be armored in Ray Mitch, ready to face the world...ready to face yourself each day when you might not want to get out of bed to live your dream takes dedication and hard work, especially when you have so many other things pulling on you. Ray Mitch is not just a brand for the things we wear or choose to wrap ourselves in; it's a lifestyle of happiness that I bring to Earth because I see what living on Mars and being surrounded by Lurler flowers can do for us down here. Happiness for the #RayMitchWolfPack is understanding and being yourself, and having patience along the way. To never give up on yourself and to know that the Lurler flower is there to show you the way is Ray Mitch. 'Be Happy'.
