Hi everyone 🖤Thank you for signing up to Leo's Folders and welcome to 2023!

Being this my first newsletter, I have a few things to say before we get into some cool stuff to check out.

I'm not a proFirst, as you all might know, I want to make clear that I am no expert in any field. This newsletter isn't meant to tell you what you should or shouldn't do. There are so many things I don't know and I'm still learning. This newsletter is meant to be a way for me to share with you cool things that I personally find interesting and inspiring, and to share personal considerations and lessons about creativity that could spark some thoughts in you too.

Newsletter StructureSecond, as I've never done this before, I'm still figuring out the best ways to write and share things, so you might see changes throughout the future. For now here's how I thought of structuring it: I will start each newsletters with occasional considerations on creativity and work depending on what I'm going through or discovering. Then I will share links to inspirations and suggestions with short comments about it. I know you all work in different creative fields so I will divide them into categories making it easier to check out what most interests you. Throughout the newsletter I will also highlight keywords.

Special ThanksLastly, I would like to shout out Geo Owen (@geodesigns1). I started Leo's Folders because I was very inspired by his own newsletter, so I thank him for opening up this new opportunity I hadn't considered before. I will link him later in this newsletter.

With that said, let's take a look at some creative suggestions!

I only discovered Sean Leon a few months ago when he released "Burn Everything" featuring Ye. He instantly caught my attention and even if I'm not a fan of his early work, I think his latest singles and album "Herd Immunity 1.0" are a must-listen.

Apparently this album is part of a major shift in sounds, visuals and communication so I'm excited to see what he's gonna share this year. By the way, that song on DONDA 2 "Sci-Fi" should be officially released on his next album.

Geo Owen - London, England

As mentioned earlier, Geo Owen is the designer and creative director who inspired me to create Leo's Folders. I've only started following his work recently, but he instantly became a reference point for what I do. There are different things you can check out from him:

For those interested in fashion, his ready-to-wear brand GEO focuses on creating high quality products with as little environmental impact as possible. Personally, I love his denim products, and how he works around with a material that has been extensively used in the industry in order to create something new.

For graphic designers and creators I recommend checking out GFX Database, a platform he created offering digital design assets like textures, fonts, mockups and more. The best thing about it compared to other platforms, is that all of the products are hand-crafted for the modern creatives, meaning that it is much easier for me to find something that suits my style.

Lastly, I'll leave a link to his Twitter. I find his communication there interesting, sharing behind the scenes of his creative process, as well as personal creative thoughts.

Oh and make sure to subscribe to his newsletter as well!

Primal Substance - Heliot Emil SS23 PFW

Heliot Emil is one of my favourite brands at the moment, even if I unfortunately don't own any piece by them. What I love about their art direction is the consistent use of contrasting black and white, industrial feel and extremely digitally disrupted and consumed treatment of images, opposed to the highly polished visuals by other fashion brands. Not to mention the highly sophisticated garments they implement in their designs.

If you're interested, here's the link to their creative director Julius Juul and art director, Fabio Caldera.

A$AP Ferg - Green Juice

A true masterpiece of blending cinema and animation using 3D and VFX. The whole video feels like a trip into another dimension that looks like Grand Theft Auto and Matrix together.

Monster

Executive produced by John Legend and featuring appearances by John David Washington, A$AP Rocky and Jeffrey Wright, this movie is a fresh and contemporary take on issues like involvement of teens in gang activities, mass incarceration and racism, through the story of Steve, a 17-year-old student passionate about film and photography who risks spending the rest of his life in prison.

The Face - 013

This Issue of The Face is a true homage to gothic and dark culture, filled with eerie images and typography and rich of raw and strange editorials. All of this tied together with my new favourite color, neon green. The cover photoshoot features Jenna Ortega, star of the Netflix show "Wednesday" directed by Tim Burton. If interested, you can purchase it on The Face website or if you're in Italy check the Reading Room.

Matthew Encina

Matthew Encina is a true master of productivity, planning and organisation. He recently started a series of YouTube videos in which he renovates his office and home studio. If you're looking to upgrade your workspace I suggest you take a look at his videos for inspiration on furniture solutions and helpful desk accessories.

Twitter

Tired of Instagram?

In case you haven't noticed, Twitter has made a great comeback recently and I myself use it daily. I decided to include it here because I believe it's a great social network for creatives and is worth getting into.

It's an amazing source of information, much more than Instagram, and it offers lots of opportunities to discover new people in your industry (of course by following the right users). Moreover, the communities I see on Twitter are very lively and engaging, which could be a new opportunity to talk to people and make new friends.

I also use it as a "personal archive of thoughts", which means sometimes people don't even understand my tweets lol. But I'm still starting out with it, so I'm curious to see where it'll take me this year. You can follow me here if you're interested in reading what goes on in my mind.

More Than My Title

Ever been through a professional identity crisis?

I recently came across this project by Sarabeth Berk focused on helping hybrid professionals to discover, articulate, and brand their unique value.

What are hybrid professionals?"A hybrid professional has multiple professional identities and works at the intersection of them" - Sarabeth

If you feel anything like this, here's a link to a series of free handouts that you can download and work on to help you clarify your professional identity.

Utility Hoodie

Lastly, for the ones who missed it, I invite you to check out this video I made back in October for the launch of the Utility Hoodie, a collab project between my small brand Spissy and The Groove store.

That's it for this month, I hope you found something to inspire your creative journey!

I would love to hear your feedback on this first newsletter, and feel free to share Leo's Folders with other friends and creatives!

See u in February

Leo ✌🏼