you are doing great by Matthew Hoffman
8"x9.5" ($30)
Hey you. You’re doing great.
Feels real good to be reminded, doesn’t it? A gentle down-in-the-dumps antidote we could all use. Our new Artist-Made edition, you are doing great, is the doctor’s recommended dose of elegant encouragement à la affirmation artist Matthew Hoffman.
A champion of radical positivity, the Chicago-based artist and designer is the brains behind numerous large-scale public installations, exhibited all over and featured in some of the most prominent news outlets, but he and his small team also create smaller art objects for personal collections, perfect for encountering and interacting with as one goes about their daily life. This 8” x 9.5” limited-edition laser-cut birch wood piece is precisely that, and at just $30 it’s life-affirming art that’s affordable for many budgets. Hang it next to your mirror or above your desk, rest it bedside or lean it against your surface of choice—catching your eye as you pass by, you are doing great will inject some much-needed motivation into your everyday.
you are doing great by Matthew Hoffman
Our founder, Jen Bekman, has long been harboring some of Hoffman’s laser-cut goodies in her home and office, and has been itching to collaborate with him for eons. But we've all followed Hoffman for years for another reason: his popular you are beautiful project. What started as a small batch of 100 stickers and an intimate endeavor to spread some positive self-love has become a huge, international phenomenon. The message has resonated with people all around the world. The stickers have been photographed and ‘grammed everywhere from Amsterdam to Mongolia. The project even got picked up by the mighty O—Oprah Winfrey—who featured it on OWN.
Hoffman’s tiny sticker has now been shared over three million times, creating an echo of positivity as it’s posted. This global enthusiasm exceeded the artist's expectations. In an excellent example of brilliant art having bearing far beyond its maker, you are beautiful has very much taken on a life of its own.
Hoffman seized the moment and has done amazing things with the collective energy created by his you are beautiful campaign. Not only is he an amazing artist, but he figured out a way to scale spreading such a profoundly welcome and wanted message—like making uber-affordable stickers that could be collected en masse and circulated far and wide. It’s no small feat to build a savvy, sustainable outfit, with positivity at its core. Ain’t it a thrill to see someone doing well by doing good?
you are doing great by Matthew Hoffman
you are doing great is rooted in the same minimal magic of a simple, strikingly-rendered message. Working with Hoffman to nail down a concept for this carving was an inspiring pleasure in and of itself, and made us realize how utterly uplifting it is to pop some positive affirmations into your daily vocab—visual or verbal. But we’re especially over the moon about the phrase Hoffman landed on for his debut edition. For one, you are doing great has a kinship with his you are beautiful project we love so much, in that it’s an uncomplicated, explicitly encouraging message that begins by directly addressing the viewer with the unequivocal “you are”. In lowercase cursive it makes its case with unintimidating conviction.
But beyond that, you are doing great is the mantra you might be missing. These are comforting, confidence-building words, a reminder that considering and celebrating your accomplishments, big or small, is way more constructive and sustaining than dwelling on doubts and disappointments. You are doing great, even if you’re not doing everything. The message is a personally poignant one for Jen, who turns to it to give herself an upbeat boost, and uses it frequently when talking to the many people she admires for doing hard things well. She even touched on a similar idea recently on Clever Podcast. (Give that a listen here.)
you are doing great by Matthew Hoffman
Hoffman’s goal with you are doing great (and many of his other creations) is to propagate positivity. “I wish positivity was everywhere,” he told us. “I don’t think there could ever be a point of over-saturation...hopeful messages need to be repeated over and over again, especially in the current climate.” This populist approach and inspiriting attitude feels a lot like Art for Everyone, everywhere (and that’s something we can definitely get behind). In the same way the artist’s you are beautiful project had an exponential ripple effect, you are doing great doesn’t end with one person’s positive vibes. When we feel good, we’re more inclined to pay that feeling forward, to pass it on. And that’s how one handsome, potent, pared-down message of positivity can create a wide radius of wonderful reverberations.
With art for everyone,
Jen + Team 20x200
