From Nostalgia to Activism: The Story Behind the Rainbow Tee

Working with independent Canadian artists is a core value at SML, so collaborating with Dani (she/her) on our new Rainbow Tee felt like a natural fit. From the beginning, we were drawn not only to the strength of her illustrations, but to the care and intention behind them. Her work blends activism with humanity in a way that feels both bold and deeply thoughtful. Our collab design reflects what we like to call aggressive kindness — loud, visible support for queer communities when visibility truly matters. Together, we incorporated nostalgic, retro-inspired touches into the final art. We sat down with Dani to pick her brain about her creative process and what continues to inspire her work.

Let’s start at the beginning — what first drew you to creating art, and what continues to inspire your work today?

As far back as I can remember, I’ve always had a love for making art. Somewhere in the tumultuous process of growing up, though, I started assigning less importance to my creative pursuits and more importance to my academic ones, and eventually just stopped. Having kids is actually what helped me tap back into my creative side and reignited my passion for drawing. A lot of what inspires me now is the desire to create a better world for my kids and help them grow into the kind of humans who will do the same. 

How would you describe your artistic style, and what influences (people, experiences, or ideas) tend to show up most often in your designs?

I have such a hard time defining my artistic style, maybe because it’s constantly evolving, but I would say that right now it’s a mixture of cute flat illustrations and stylized portraits that pack a punch of activism. Artists like Charly Clements and Lisa Congdon have definitely influenced my style, but so have writers like James Baldwin and Maya Angelou. Inspiration can be found everywhere, but my personal belief that everyone should have equal human rights is a consistent driving force behind my work. 

What made you want to collaborate with Social Made Local on the Rainbow Tee?

I had been following Social Made Local on Instagram for a while after falling in love with ALL of their designs and what they stand for, so when Tyler reached out to discuss collaborating on the Rainbow Tee, I was so incredibly flattered and excited - it was the easiest YES ever!

Can you walk us through what it was like working with Social Made Local? How did the collaboration and creative process feel from your perspective?

I found the process of working with Social Made Local so fun and fluid. I was given a lot of creative freedom to explore different designs around the core idea of kindness, and after a few initial sketches, we found a design that clicked. From there, it was just tweaking various elements of the design through some back-and-forth communication, which always felt very supportive and encouraging. 

The Rainbow Tee has a lot of intention behind it. Are there any details, symbols, or design choices that hold special meaning for you — even if they’re subtle?

I’m a child of the 90s, so I have a lot of nostalgia around cereal advertising of that era. My parents usually only bought cereals like Cheerios or Rice Crispies, but on special occasions, we’d get to pick a fun one, and my go-to was always Lucky Charms. I loved the playfulness of the packaging and the cereal, and wanted to incorporate some of the joy it brought me as a kid into this design.

What’s your relationship with social media as an artist? How does it shape the way you share your work, connect with people, or think about impact?

As an artist, I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with social media. I love that it has given me a way to connect with and learn from so many people I would never otherwise have access to. It’s also given me a platform (albeit a relatively small one) to share my work with a random collection of strangers and experience their connection with what I’ve made, which is kind of incredible. The one thing I struggle with is the feeling of pressure to create something just for the sake of feeding the algorithm, which is something I consciously have to push back on.

Your work reflects care and support for the queer community. How do those values show up in your art or in the way you approach creative projects?

It’s really important for me to be intentional with creating art that is inclusive of marginalized communities, so I try to make sure that I include colours, symbols and diverse characters in my work that reflect the queer community, especially right now when Trans rights and Trans people are under constant attack both in Canada and other countries around the world. 

It’s clear in your artwork that you use art to communicate deeper ideas. How do you see your work functioning as a tool for social justice or social change?

When I think about what I want to do with my work or where I want to go as an artist, I often come back to the quote by Nina Simone that “an artist’s duty…is to reflect the times”. I know that art has many functions and not all art is going to be politically focused, but for me, it’s a driving force in my work and a big part of why I feel compelled to create. Making digital art has the added benefit of being easy to share, so I’ve had the privilege of getting to see my work show up in protests around the world…my hope is that it’s part of social change in some small way.

Looking ahead, what kinds of projects, ideas, or conversations are you most excited to explore next — creatively or personally?

I’m currently reading The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer, which is all about the gift economy, and it’s encouraged me to think about ways that I can start building gift economies in my local community - whether that’s a little art library where people can take and leave art prints or something larger like a community art space. I’m not sure where that might lead, but it’s something I’ll be spending some time exploring this coming year.

Dani is a BC-based artist whose work blends bold illustration with meaningful social justice themes. You can follow their creative journey and activism on Instagram @danilawart. The Rainbow Tee + Crew is available at socialmadelocal.ca.