LA’s hottest up-and-comers across art, style, and beyond.
Los Angeles is often dismissed as all surface, no substance. But behind the city’s glossy reputation is a deep well of ambition and limitless raw talent. Here, we meet the trendsetters who are turning their dreams into reality.
BRICK HOWZE, DJ AND PRODUCER
Surfing is an overwhelmingly white sport, a fact that DJ and music producer Justin “Brick” Howze knows all too well. Despite being an LA native, Brick didn’t start surfing until Covid. After being called a racial slur while surfing the Manhattan Beach Pier in 2021, Howze started the second iteration of Ebony Beach Club in Los Angeles. The first? A Santa Monica beach club formed by Silas White in 1957 whose headquarters was seized by local government prior to opening.
EBC’s mission is simple: to create community in and around the water for Southern California (and beyond). What started as 40-person beach hangs, with Howze playing music out of the back of his El Camino, turned into so much more.
“We threw our first party in October 2021 at Dockweiler Beach in Playa del Rey. Soon after, we had over 2,000 people coming to Dockweiler, taking surf lessons and having a blast. They got so big the Department of Beaches & Harbors threatened us with a $50,000 fine.”
Not one to let bureaucracy get in the way of a good time, Howze made EBC legit, organizing surf retreats in Costa Rica and parties on the Santa Monica pier, while always finding a moment to hop on the mic and remind people of White’s original vision. For Juneteenth, EBC went even bigger, renting out the Palms Springs Surf Club, throwing a celebration of surf, beach culture, and community at a wave pool in the middle of the desert. “We’ve always been about taking risks. Everyone wanted a free event at the beach, so we had to innovate and come up with an alternative. Sometimes, you have to show people different ways of experiencing what they want.”
Two days after the Palm Springs event, Howze traveled to Paris for the surf-inspired Louis Vuitton menswear show. After EBC partnered with Pharrell’s non-profit in his hometown of Virginia Beach to give surf lessons, the LV creative director tapped Howze to direct a video highlighting his latest collection. “They loved EBC’s mission and wanted to highlight our group of friends living and surfing in LA. I got to bring in so many people I love to work on this with me. They just wanted us to tell our story, so we did.”
AIDAN CULLEN, PHOTOGRAPHER AND DIRECTOR
Photographer to the stars, creative director for singer-songwriter Malcolm Todd, and co-founder of Nova, a community that connects brands with talent, Aidan Cullen’s most impressive trait may just be his versatility. While most would be frazzled in the face of such magnanimous work, Cullen’s unique brand of calm and cool cuts straight through the noise. “I started out hustling, I used to shoot and edit 100 photos for 100 bucks.” After shooting album covers for some of pop and hip-hop’s biggest names, he and friend Alex Gruszynski started Nova, which began as a private Instagram account posting jobs in creative industries and is now an app for freelancers and those hiring them. “The app went live a little over two years ago. This week, we hit $100 million in jobs connected to creatives. I see us as a culture company with tech products. A lot of the reasons it works is because I’ve been working in the creative industry for 10 years. We try to support the community, but we also are the community. Whether it’s a book, a movie, a magazine cover, or building a company, I still just love making things.”
With a calendar that looks like a Pollock painting, Aidan doesn’t see himself slowing down anytime soon. “My perspective has always been that I should work harder than anyone. I have three full-time jobs. If you want to be special, you have to outwork everyone.” In addition to continuing to grow Nova, which also has its own studio space for hire, Cullen says that “Malcolm now has 38 million monthly listeners, just put out an album and is going on tour. And I’m working on a feature film with my dad that’s been in the works for a while. There’s a lot going on, but I’d love to shoot that in the next couple years.”
TAYLOR COMDEN, LANDSCAPE DESIGNER
When it comes to plants, California’s natural bounty goes well beyond orange poppies and palm trees, as landscape designer Taylor Comden, founder of Sandy Hill Studio, knows all too well. With a client list ranging from chef David Chang to the late artist John Baldessari, Comden’s skill at transforming backyards into lush escapes begs the question: how did he get so damn good at this? “Honestly, it’s an homage to my grandma, Sandy Hill. She was a green thumb, and although she always lived in an apartment it was constantly filled with these perfect, green plants. From my first memories with her as a child she filtered that love down to me.”
Loving nature is one thing, but synthesizing that into a highly particular design language is another. “In college I was flirting with the idea of architecture until I wound up in a soil science class and it all clicked for me. As opposed to painstaking drafts and measurements, I get to go on a hike, take photos of nature doing its thing and try to replicate all of that in a client’s backyard.”
And as for working in California, Comden says, “Almost anything can grow here, so our palette for creativity is immense. California has such a treasure trove of native plants that we always try to incorporate in our projects. Celebrating that raw beauty as opposed to something that’s overly manicured is the goal.”
Catching Comden on the backend of a surf trip to Indonesia before he moves to Ojai to continue his practice, we asked him what’s next. “I’d love to get to a place in my business where I can design a garden in Europe or Indonesia.”
ELI SHEPPARD, CREATIVE DIRECTOR
If you live in Los Angeles, chances are you know at least one ‘creative director’. While many cosplay the trendy job title, Eli Sheppard exemplifies what it takes to make it stick. “I got hooked on Tumblr when I was 13. I’d make gifs of myself looking pastel grunge, or post selfies. I always say going to ‘Tumblr University’ launched my career.”
After learning how to cultivate an aesthetic via his online presence, Sheppard followed a boyfriend to LA, then struck up a friendship with pop star Kim Petras. “I was running my own curated Instagram accounts and making party flyers while working at a restaurant. Kim could tell I wanted to do something more creative, so she ended up asking me to do the cover of her single, Coconuts. That was my first music industry moment, and it was a dream come true.”
Talent can only take you so far, especially in LA. While Sheppard was bursting with ideas, it was his unique understanding of the music industry that helped him land the role as Petras’s full time creative director. “The aesthetic has always been a part of the music for me. It’s hard for me to buy into an artist without understanding their image.”
With multiple album roll outs, live tours, and music videos under his belt, it’s safe to say Sheppard has cashed in on his Tumblr degree. “My job isn’t so much to give Kim options as it is to help her define what she should lean into. She has so many ideas, so it’s more about refining. We just got done with a live show in New York that was so fun, and I’d love to focus more on that in the future.”
And as for those who poke fun at the creative director tagline, “I love the jokes. It seems like a fake job, but it’s real to me.”
DANNY DOORECK, CERAMICS ARTIST
Sommelier to ceramicist may seem like a strange career pipeline, but for Danny Dooreck, that’s exactly how it played out. “I needed an outlet from the restaurant world. I was studying for a bunch of intense wine exams and working a lot, and I just wanted to get my hands dirty and have fun. Somehow that slowly grew into a business.”
After moving to LA from Toronto in 2019, Dooreck worked out of his garage in Echo Park, selling pieces to anyone who wanted them. “I had my first sale on Instagram. After that I built my website for direct orders and worked on the wholesale business to get the brand out there, which is cool because some of those shops still have that early work to this day.” Dooreck’s intellect and wit allowed him to transition from successful sommelier to successful small business owner, and he’s now the owner of Danny D’s Mud Shop. He and his team of six hand-make every piece in their 750 square foot studio in the back of the retail space.
Danny’s shop is more akin to an antiques store than a ceramics studio. The custom sconces shine light on wood shelving that’s lined with hand-painted figures, art books, and knick-knacks, all of which influence the final product. “A big throughline in our work is vintage Americana and tattoo references. We use that to draw inspiration for our illustrations, which find their homes on our ceramics. Our work is really easy to spot, which has helped us find a footing.”
While the Mud Shop is busy creating custom lighting, plates, and mugs for major brands and retailers, it’s the local community that pushes their creative boundaries. “One of our clients is re-modeling their kitchen in Silver Lake and asked us to help, so I’ve spent the last two days hand-throwing door knobs, which isn’t something we normally do. But when the need is there, we’ll put our knuckles in the clay.”
MARQUISE MILLER, STYLIST
From flea markets to A-list stylist, Marquise Miller’s journey is a romantic ascension worth talking about. “I’m a baddie from LA, born and raised, but I didn’t just arrive here. I grew up with a single mom and it was tough. When I was a kid, I would get lost in magazine dreams. My mom would bring home Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, and I’d spend hours going through them. Then I busted my ass for years. So many bounced checks, heartbreaks, homelessness, and restaurant jobs, all until I started selling vintage on Sundays at the Melrose Trading Post.”
Miller’s curatorial talents and conversational brilliance led to him making the types of connections that stick. “Vintage was the best thing that could have happened for me. It brought me into so many conversations, and then those same people brought me into the world I’m in now. The community I built from the flea market gave me some of my biggest breaks.”
After years at the market, Miller and styling partner Aaron Christman have built an A-list roster of talent including Khalid, Joey Badass, Leon Thomas, and more. “I’ve always wanted to be who I am right now. I’m living my dream.” When asked what he brings to the table, Miller responds: “Deliciousness. Actors want to be perfect and want to photograph well. Musicians want to have edge. Athletes fall perfectly in between. I approach each client with that in mind.”
Still selling vintage out of his appointment-only shop in West Hollywood, Millersroom, we asked him about what he’s loving and hating at the moment. “Hating rhinestone garments, foam slides, ankle socks, and V-necks. Loving a classic white shirt and thong sandals.”
ALEX ORDONEZ, FASHION DESIGNER
If LA’s work culture has a reputation for being laid-back, fashion designer Alex Ordonez didn’t get the memo. Walking into his Wish Me Luck store on Sunset Boulevard after a full day of meetings, Ordonez is still going a million miles an hour, greeting customers and taking calls while simultaneously walking us through his Nike sportswear collaboration. “My parents immigrated from Colombia and Puerto Rico, and I grew up low income in Hartford, Connecticut. Social media was my introduction to fashion and I never looked back. I made some graphic tees in high school that went viral, made a little bit of money and moved to New York the day after I graduated.”
Devilishly handsome, Ordonez signed with a modeling agency in New York, which took him far and wide to flash his mug across a smorgasbord of top brand campaigns. “They flew me to London. I never thought I’d leave the country,” he says. Ordonez moved to LA in 2018, where he doubled down on his love for fashion by starting Wish Me Luck. “We bought a bunch of products right before the pandemic. Then the city shut down and there was nowhere to go, so everyone would wind up at our house. I started selling hats to everyone who came to hang out and they started trending. Rihanna wore one and, all of a sudden, we were getting an office space and building out full collections.” Ordonez describes having a store in LA as a learning experience. “Every day I read the room, see what people like, what they don’t like, and where to put my attention. Even when I shouldn’t be, I’m here trying to learn and dive into this community.”
While Ordonez has lofty goals for Wish Me Luck, he doesn’t forget to celebrate the wins along the way. “I got to collaborate with Walmart, which has such a big impact on the Hispanic community in Hartford. When we launched, we went back to my local Walmart and my parents got to see my face on the hangtag and listen to me tell my story to 700 Hispanic kids from my hometown.”
TANNER CLARK, TATTOO ARTIST
Tanner Clark’s journey into the world of tattoos began even before his conception. “When my mom and dad met, they got matching tattoos of each other’s names on the Venice Beach boardwalk. My mom got a tribal tramp stamp of my dad’s name.”
And just like that, a star was born. Clark may very well be the internet’s most viral tattoo artist, but his love for his work blossomed out of a love for simply getting tattooed. “I got a giant red smiley face on my ribs and posted a video of the process on TikTok. It blew up and that started bringing a lot of online attention.”
Toying with multiple worlds from multiple angles, Clark describes himself as “so online.” His tattoos encapsulate both his own art as well as of-the-moment designs centered around memes and pop cultural happenings, like huge Fortnite logos or “emotional swaggage” across someone’s back. “I feel like I’m a tattoo journalist. I want to work with things that are happening in the world and on the internet. You have to be quick to them if you want to be relevant. It’s transgressive tattooing. My work is meant to invoke a reaction, whether it’s positive or negative.”
Tanner is the co-owner of Tatu Pharmacy, having opened the studio with his cohort Zack Beitel. Inside, the air is filled with the droning buzz of tattoo guns, while the walls are covered with obscure posters, graffiti, and paintings. Clark may be running out of space for new work on his own body, but he’ll happily tattoo yours. “I want to go crazier, bigger. I have ‘World War Three’ on someone’s chest coming up. I’m going to keep pushing boundaries and keep pushing my art.”
WEST ADLER, ARTIST AND SURFER
Venice Beach has always been a breeding ground for subcultures and imagery. And despite its rising rents, gentrification, and endless yoga and pilates studios, it’s still possible to find effortlessly cool Californians marching to the beats of their own drums. Take mixed-media artist West Adler. “You can go anywhere in the world and you won’t see stuff like you see in Venice. It’s a very strange place, a very charged place – and that’s true of LA generally. Everyone here has changed so much, and people don’t realize that constant churn and erasure of what once was is what Los Angeles really is,” he says.
After stints at Venice High and Santa Monica College, Adler enrolled in Otis College of Art and Design. “Art school was a moment of expansion. The availability of incredible materials and facilities gave me room to hone in on what I wanted to do conceptually. My work is about discovery and the strange relationships that happen in that process – plus forgotten histories, particularly those of Los Angeles.”
One of LA’s preeminent surfers, Adler’s impeccable style in the water has translated to both the quality and substance of his work. “There’s an interesting crossover between LA’s history, surf culture and the Adamson family in Malibu,” he says, offering a short history of the famed beach town and the family that once owned much of the land there. “They actually built the pier to export their dairy products in the 1950s and, around the same time, beach and surf culture started exploding. I’ve recently been conducting some illegal archaeology at Surfrider Beach, going at night and excavating tumbled concrete that’s eroded from the wall of the former Adamson House [which is now a museum], then casting them in different materials like surf wax. In tandem, I’ve been making sculptures of native shells out of polyurethane, which is used to make surfboards.” As Adler dives deeper into LA’s rich coastal history, his choice of material is constantly underpinned by his affinity for the ocean.
CEDRIC MITCHELL, ARTIST AND DESIGNER
There are legions of people who can paint, draw, or snap a decent photo, but few can achieve magnificence via molten glass. Enter Cedric Mitchell. While the Hawthorne-based multi-disciplinary artist and designer refuses to be boxed in (as evidenced by his lengthy partnership and consulting resumé with brands like Lego), he has put his unique stamp on the sweltering world of glassblowing.
“I discovered glass blowing through music. I was a local hip hop artist in Tulsa, Oklahoma, while attending college. I took glassblowing as an elective and was immediately attracted to the difficulty of utilizing the material to formulate something beautiful. You can’t just walk into a glass studio and pick it up. It takes years of practice and slowing down to reach mastery.”
After moving to LA in 2015 to hone his craft under the tutelage of famed glassblower Joe Cariati, Mitchell’s signature style emerged in full force out of his studio. “[My style of glassblowing] modern funk is derived from postmodern design. I use the foundation of those elements mixed with Nickelodeon-style colors and bright, joyful geometry to create everything from sculpture to lighting to furniture. Each piece is like a graffiti tag, they all have their own characteristics.”
Mitchell’s effortless cool makes sense once you watch him shape molten glass at 2,000 degrees into perfectly balanced decorative masterpieces. “Glass is humbling. My brother is a boxing trainer, and there’s a lot of similarity between boxing and glass. You always have to be thinking a few steps ahead, and when things go left you have to be ready to reshape and reform.”
Taken from 10 MEN Magazine USA Issue 2 – HERITAGE, LEGACY, FUTURE – out October 4! Order your copy here.
Photographer RYAN YOUNG
Talent BRICK HOWZE, AIDEN CULLEN, TAYLOR COMDEN, ELI SHEPARD, DANIEL
DOORECK, MARQUISE MILLER, ALEX ORDONEZ, CEDRIC MITCHELL, TANNER CLARK, and WEST ADLER
Text ZACK RAFFIN
Production ALMA DE GANAY
