What do we love about Gwen Mason and Earnest Merritt? Hmmm, not only are they the creative couple who founded Dear Hancock, but they are also as obsessed with plants as we are! Gwen admits that when most couples are looking for a new home, they usually consider things like counter space in the kitchen, storage, and whether there are enough bedrooms for all the children. But not Gwen and Earnest! Their top priority was finding the perfect home for their 100+ house plants. Their latest series of paintings and cards, House Plants, was inspired by their journey of renovating, and eventually selling their home near Palm Springs, finding their Los Angeles home, and the challenge of schlepping all their house plants to the many temporary apartments in between.
Gwen and Earnest were inspired by the idea of considering houses and plants as separate, yet distinctly interrelated concepts. For them, having one without the other is impossible. Each of the House Plants prints began as original canvases, hand painted in gouache in Gwen and Earnest’s Highland Park studio in California. Each is available in large or medium sized archival prints as well as cards – basically THE best housewarming gifts ever!
Gwen and Earnest met and got married while earning their MFAs from CalArts. Their love of painting and paper goods inspired them to formed Dear Hancock in 2010. We love how they put a modern twist on nostalgic imagery.
Dear Hancock will donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of House Plant items to The People Concern, a non-profit organization that provides integrated services to individuals who are chronically homeless, dealing with severe mental or physical illness or substance addiction, victims of domestic violence, and challenged youth. Dear Hancock supports The People Concern because among their integrated services, they offer community art supplies and classes and assist the artists by selling their work online.
Want to see more from Gwen and Earnest? Check out the Dear Hancock website and follow them on Instagram.
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