We’re super lucky to have great interns this summer! You’ve met two of them last week, now meet the “star” of Poketo’s Wallet Wonderland Animation, Reese Panganiban! Reese has been helping us behind the scenes, designing some of our brand materials. We love her clean, fun style that’s so Poketo. We’ve also been wowed by her musical skills. Say hello to Reese, folks!

Reese, could you tell us a little bit about you?
Well, I am a hardworking, hand-making, piano-teaching, accordion-playing, fashion-craving graphic designer based in Orange County

Since you have such a wonderful name, I was wondering how do you feel about Reese’s Pieces? :
I looooove them!

What are your top five sources of inspiration?
* My brothers (who inspire me through illustration, graphic design, & videography)
* Handmade design (I love seeing handmade elements being applied to graphic design)
* Saul Bass (sparked my interest in motion graphics)
* Behance network
* Traveling (There’s always something interesting out there!)

What was the last awesome-can’t-wait-to-try it idea you’ve had?
Creating my own visual system of music… I have yet to try it out!

What are you studying at Cal State University, Long Beach (CSULB)? Why did you choose CSULB?
BFA in Graphic Design. I knew a few people who went to Long Beach and heard only good things about their art department & its locals

What drew you to graphic design?
I always enjoyed art, whether it be through music, dance (although I can’t dance!), or visual art, but what drew me to graphic design is that it had a purpose. It’s a form of visual communications.

Just driving down the street, there are hundreds of places & signs that help people understand where to go or what they may be interested in, and growing up, I would wonder who made these things. It’s kind of like being a doctor, except in a design sense. I take satisfaction in changing/helping what may be a poor design choice.

Could you describe your style of graphic design?
My style of graphic design is more crafty, quirky, and often handmade

What’s your favorite subject?
Art and music have always been my favorite subjects growing up because I was always surrounded by it. I always looked up to my talented brothers.

Now that you mention music. How did you get into piano and accordion?!
My mom wanted me to do things as a kid that she never got to do, so she made me take piano lessons at the age of 5. She also made me do ballet, choir, and ice skating, but music was the only activity that stuck around.

I ended up teaching at the age of 16 at Millan Music in Carson, Ca, and have been there ever since! I have now been playing for 19 years. My piano teacher introduced me to the accordion 5 years ago and I have been part of the D&G Ensemble ever since. Playing music counter balances my design half. When I need to relax, I turn to my music

You can see Reese play with the D&G Ensemble in this video. They do a rendition of Herbie Hancock’s Watermelon Man that turns into Santana’s Smooth.

When not drawing, designing, illustrating, what would you be doing?
Either playing or teaching piano. Love it!

Why intern at Poketo?
I love Poketo’s style and purpose! All the products are functional but also designed well.

What do you think is the best lesson you’ve learned at Poketo so far?
What it takes to run a successful business. The people at Poketo all work hard, but they also have fun doing it!

Oh, and also buying resistance. I want everything, but have done quite a good job at holding back

If you were any Poketo wallet, which one would you be?
The Mel Kadel wallet, because its so quiet (because of its color palette), yet so complex because of the details & patterns within it!

Find more of Reese on Behance.

With nine Grammy awards under his belt, it’s easy to think that John Legend spends all of his time meditating on his next hit album, but as we found out while working with him to design the John Legend Poketo wallet, the soul in his music also comes from what he has experienced and the causes he believes in.

Inspired by Jeffrey Sach’s The End of Poverty, John Legend founded the Show Me Campaign, a nonprofit fighting for every child’s right to a quality education.

Legend–who already sits on the boards of Teach for America, The Education Equality Project and the Harlem Village Academies–started the Show Me Campaign to break the evil cycle of poverty. On his site, it says more than one billion people live in extreme poverty globally and living on less than a dollar a day. In the US, more than 13 million children live below the poverty line. For them, a good education is a lifeline.

“I’ve seen how education can make such a great difference if you don’t make a lot of money,” says Legend in an interview on USA Today. “Most people who grow up poor usually end up in the same place. To break the cycle, you have to get a good education. It’s an equalizer and an important tool for empowerment.”

Here’s more from John, who took the time to write this note for the Poketo blog readers:

I’ve always wanted to help people in need, but when I read a book called “The End of Poverty” by Jeffrey Sachs I was deeply moved. I read about the devastating conditions experienced by those living in extreme poverty, but I also read about the attainable possibility of ending extreme poverty within our lifetime. So when Jeff invited me to join him on a trip to Africa to see their work firsthand, I jumped at the chance. For the first time, I witnessed what it’s like to live on less than a dollar a day in real human terms and I couldn’t simply accept that as the way it had to be. I had to do something.

So I started the Show Me Campaign. It’s named after a song I wrote called “Show Me” that asks simple questions about life and death and why there is so much suffering in the world. The mission of the Show Me Campaign is to break the cycle of poverty through solutions that have been proven to improve people’s lives.

We adopted a village in Tanzania through the Millennium Village Program, and we’ve raised money to support access to clean drinking water; health clinics, medicine and bed nets for malaria; agricultural education and fertilizer for farmers; and schools, teachers and free lunches that ensure young people receive quality education. We’re helping these villagers help themselves in their struggle for humanity, dignity and prosperity.

We also do a lot of outreach to young people in the U.S., informing them about what’s going on in the world around them, and empowering them to participate in making meaningful change. And in many ways, I believe we’ve come a long way.

But, even in the United States, the most powerful country in the world, far too many people live in persistent poverty. We still live in a country where opportunities are not equal. And, unfortunately, here in America, a lot of it is perpetuated and institutionalized in our classrooms every day. That’s why the Show Me Campaign has increasingly begun to focus on education reform. We need to make sure ALL children can access a quality education because a good education is inextricably linked to our fundamental rights as citizens and is the most sustainable path out of poverty.

Your gift will help us fight for the right of every child to receive a quality education. I believe this is the civil rights issue of our time.

Thanks,
John Legend

Find out more about the Show Me Campaign on showmecampaign.org
Purchase the John Legend wallet at The John Legend Shop.

Here in (now sunny) Los Angeles, it’s easy to forget a bigger world is out there. But it is; and we’re still a part of it.

As Japan faces the tragedies of the tsunami and the nuclear crisis, even the paradise we call home is starting to feel the pinch. At first, there were fears of radiation traveling across the Pacific. Then, there were just reported shortages everywhere as Japanese manufacturing plants close down. In Hollywood? Simple things like film and tapestock are affecting the television and film world. It’s the little things we take for granted that remind us how much we all depend on each other.

Two weeks ago, we shared some great efforts by artists doing their part. This week, a short message came to our inbox from one of our cool fans, Scott Kitano, wanting to reach out.

An educator and music maker, Scott’s sharing a special album called “Heart Japan ep,” to anyone willing to donate to Japan’s cause. The album includes 3 songs sampled from Japanese vinyl and re-interpreted. Scott infused some chillwave/hiphop beats into the music; you’ll hear some of his Hawaiian DJ’ing experience seeping out of this sample.

“I have always thought that life works to a beat, to a rhythm and music has a very special part in my life. I cannot do anything without having a song shuffling in my memory,” says Scott. Perhaps that’s why he’s expressing his support through music now.

For more info, drop him a line at Esomusicart@gmail.com. Hear his music on the Hearios FB page.

The acoustics don’t get much better than the Disney Concert Hall. Los Angeles’ Local Natives were incredible last night, backed in the first half by a quartet and the last half of the show by the LA philharmonic… for the first time I’ve seen there, everyone was out of their seats and up on their feet.

I love the humble beginnings of the band, singer Taylor Rice mentioned last night that this was a dream to play at the Disney Hall, having taken a tour of the concert hall years ago with his architecture class when he was a student at UCLA, he was blown away by the hall’s sound and beauty. The band took a huge leap, moving in together in a house in Silver Lake and focused full time on the band and recording. Only two and half years later, they are playing here with tons of love and support, a show that sold out in less than an hour.

On stage, you can just tell that they were a truly genuine group of friends, having fun, making music, thankful for this experience… I love when you see bands truly stoked, feeding off their fans, loving what they are doing… it makes the music that much better.

Across the street, MOCA. In April, the MOCA, Geffen Contemporary is presenting a Street Art retrospective. That is sure to get a lot of talk.