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Inspiration board 48

Been almost a year since I shared one of these because times are challenging but here are some things giving me light. Top to bottom, left to right.

  1. Book: Armaveni is a graphic novel about Armenian genocide, history, etc by Nadine Takvorian
  2. Music: This jazz drummer rocks w/ a solid hip hop foundation. Listen to Makaya McCraven
  3. Book: This graphic novel tackles Chicago student resistance to book bans-Wake Now in The Fire
  4. Culture: This is a plaque from a well known Lowrider club in LA called “the Individuals”
  5. Distribution: A hip hop record store turned distributor. I wish there was a book distributor 4 kid lit like Fat Beats
  6. Podcast: Shawn from the R&B group Boys 2 Men has a dope podcast called On That Note
  7. Journalism: Newish but packing a punch abt unions, labor, economy, politics, etc is More Perfect Union
  8. Film: This is a great documentary about independent hip hop venues and scenes in 90s LA called Where We’re From
  9. Film: This is an older documentary about an attempted coup in Venezuela of then president Hugo Chavez
  10. Art: This artist has been consistently putting out radical and progressive work, check out Courtney Ahn
  11. Music: She has dropped her first LP in a decade, take a listen to this LP by Phill’s own Jill Scott
  12. Social Media: This Dad & educator is consistently sharing great info/views Fernando Deveras
  13. Music: This song had med dancing and singing along by Donaeo feat Omar, Lemar, & The House Gospel Choir
  14. Event: I attended this Bay Area event last year and really appreciated it. San Jose Day
  15. Music: This Nigerian UK singer songwriter is fantastic. listen to Ego Ella May
  16. Community: I have been inspired by more Black folks getting into the Tiny House world

Did you miss the previous inspiration board? Here it is, plus a few more

Whatโ€™s this? This inspiration board is one of the ways I stay inspired and sane through all of lifeโ€™s trials, and tribulations, work, etc. Iโ€™ve been making inspiration boards full of films, books, music, events, people, artists, movements, and more for over a decade. Do you have an inspiration board? Please share in the comments. Who am I? My name is Rob Liu-Trujillo and Iโ€™m an artist working in kid lit, public art, and other disciplines. Go to my website, or follow me on IG or YouTube. You can also cop my first art book here.

July 16, 2026
in Creative Resources, General
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Stuff I’ve Been Listening to 28- Cuts from Brazil

Ed Motta (Rio, Brazil) – 1978 2013

I can’t recall how I came across Ed Motta, but he is my favorite Soul singer from the country of Brazil! check out his work, he plays, sings, and writes.

What is this? This series is called โ€œStuff Iโ€™ve been listening toโ€ and this is my place to share music that I listen to while I work, process, decompress, and live life. Some of it is new, some old. But Iโ€™m always listening. I share in the hopes that you will find something that inspires you. Please share with a fellow music lover. My name is Rob and Iโ€™m an artist and author from the Bay Area.

Bebel Gilberto (Rio, Brazil) – Ceu Distante Remix by DJ Spinna 2005

I was introduced to Bebel (daughter of Joao and Miucha) through my sons mom and later found this remix by one of my fav Brooklyn producers, DJ Spinna.

Djavan (Maceio, Brazil) – Nereci 1978

Love this song and cannot remember how I came across it but I thought the brother looked super fly ion his sandals, little did I know he is a legend.

Kevin O Chris (Rio, Brazil)- Tu Tรก Na Gaiola 2018

I think I heard about Brazilian Funk through an article from Afro Punk about their multiple day parties and found this banger through that search. It slaps. The slang is thick tho if you don’t speak Brazilian Portuguese.

Marcos Valle (Rio, Brazil) – No Tem Nada Nao 1973

Found this through Madlib! He had a mix from Brazil and had so many great cuts on there, but this is the one that stuck out the most and I’ve played this song 100s of times. Marcos Valle is still collaborating w/ folks!

Zelia Barbosa ( Brazil) – Funeral do Lavrador 1968

This is a record my sons mother gave me almost 25 years ago. I immediately fell in love with this song though there are several with heart wrenching themes. Highly recommend it!

Matchola feat 2ZDINIZZ (Sao Paulo) – Pensando en mim 2026

Just came across this dude whos style page says “Boom Bap Melodic”. Interesting! I’m feeling it.

Lo Borges ( Belo Horizonte, Brazil) – Calibre 1972

I came across this track through producer musician Flwr Chyld. Love it!

Gal Costa (Salvador Bahia, Brazil) – Pontos de Luz 1970s

Came to this gem through the incredible Kaytranada who sampled it for “Lite Spots”.

Toquinho feat Jorge Ben (Sฤo Paolo, Brazil) – Carolina Carol Bela 1970

Just heard this the other day on a video from IG with some young futbol players.

Jorge Ben (Rio, Brazil) – Oba La Vem Ela 1970

Man, this song. I was introduced to Jorge Ben through my sons mom. She was a huge fan and so I started to listen, internalize a few of the songs and this is one of my favorites.

For Brazilians, I know this is a bunch of old stuff sprinkled with a few current records. But, these are songs I love. There are some other artists I’ve listened to like Emicida, Anitta, Nego do Borel, and DJ Renan De Penha

DIG THE MUSIC? THEREโ€™S MORE! 

  • Stuff Iโ€™ve been listening to 25: MORE SOUL
  • Stuff Iโ€™ve been listening to 19: UK ARTISTS
  • Stuff Iโ€™ve been listening to 23: MORE JAZZ
  • Stuff Iโ€™ve been listening to 21: RAPS
  • Stuff Iโ€™ve been listening to 18: HOUSE
July 3, 2026
in Creative Resources, General
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School Visit – UC Davis w/ Booki Vivat

Ok, recently I was invited to speak at UC Davis by the homie Dr. Katlin Marisol Sweeney. The talk was awesome and was a joint collab with me and author/illustrator Booki Vivat! BIG shout out to my good friend NJ Mvondo of Multiculturalism Rocks who linked me with photographer, artist, and farmer Jorge Antonio Espinosa who took the majority of the photos of us in the classroom.

You can Jorge Antonio Espinosa who took most of the photos you see here

I took the Amtrak train from Oakland to Davis and I highly recommend taking the train if you’re a creative. With all the traffic and having only one car in our family it was so much more relaxing. I drew, thought, and got myself ready for the journey up there.

These are some of the things and people I saw while going up to Davis and during the workshop. Wanna see more sketchbook?

These are a few photos of us getting set up. Katlin had a huge class room and already had tons of materials ready to go for the students who not only listened by did some storytelling too.

Booki Vivat is a Thai American artist and writer from Southern California who works in the publishing industry. Her most recent books are The Frazzled Series and Meet Me On Mercer Street. You can read her bio here. Book is one of the nicest creators I know and I have very much enjoyed getting to know her a little bit and seeing her GO! She’s funny, suuuuper talented, and a veteran of the creative life. Her presentation about her journey, her books, and storytelling were incredible and inspired me to step up my game!

Dr Katlin Marisol Sweeney-Romero is a bad ass professor, author, event organizer, and scholar from Cali who spent time in the midwest where I met her and is now a professor in Cinema and Digital Media at UC Davis. You can see some of the events she’s helped to organize such as the Sol Con (Columbus, OH) or the Latinx Comics & Arts Festival (Modesto, CA), the publications she’s edited or written for, and what she teaches! Learn about her work.

Here are some photos of Booki talking about her journey and then giving the students some exercises to work on storytelling craft.

So, I have a history as an arts teacher. I taught art for a decade across the Bay and NYC. I have been visiting schools and libraries for 14 years now and its only been in the last 3 years or so that I have been invited to speak to college students and I am really enjoying it. In fact I’m working on how to improve it.

In my talk I talked about my journey, career, and then we got into a bit of picture book structure. I try to be very honest, no BS about what its like to be a working artist, about my politics, etc. But, I think I spoke more than I thought I would because my workshop part was too quick. I didn’t give them enough time to draw and write. But over all the students were so cool, so supportive, attentive, engaged, and ready with questions and skills. So much skills! Matter of fact…….

Much credit goes to Katlin for curating an environment where students felt held and supported because I really enjoyed their spirit, questions, and effort, They were in it with us.

After it was done we tried our best to linger and answer some questions but again I think I took too long so we didnt get enough of that. But I think I mentioned the students could reach out anytime for questions about career, jobs, and life plans!

I also brought physical media with me so folks could take some home. I enjoy doing that and I hope they dig it.

Here are some shots from around town. That’s it folks, what a beautiful trip!

Dig this? Check out some other college visits I’ve done recently. Want me to come speak to your students? Holler!

July 2, 2026
in General, School or Library Visit
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Children’s Portrait 81 – Maceo

Hey, this is my most recent children’s portrait of a young boy named Maceo! I have had the pleasure of painting his oldest sister Niara in 2014 and his middle sibling Aissa in 2020. A whole family of kids and I couldn’t be more grateful and honored to paint children like these. Shout to their momma Emilia for entrusting me with this.

As always, here’s a bit of the painting process which is all done by hand. I take a photo, trace it, then transfer it to a wood panel and paint it step by step. I start with the light colors on the face and gradually build up the darker tones and then the garment the child is wearing or what I imagine them to be wearing.

What is this? This is a series of hand painted, hand crafted wooden panel acrylic portraits of children and or families. I began painting these for local friends in 2012 as a way to announce my new career in kids books. And this has grown to include friends of friends, families, and folks I dont even know. If you’d like me to paint your child please commission me by purchasing a portrait here.

Here are some past childrenโ€™s portraits:

June 25, 2026
in Art, General
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West Coast Craft Fair-I’m at Booth 308

I was a vendor at West Coast Craft Fair back in 2024 and I’ll be bringing the same love and energy this year with a few new stickers, prints, etc. I’ll have several kids books too. If you’ve never been to the event, it is a large craft fair where the makers are the stars. You have jewelry makers, potters, fashion designers, artists, houseware designers, cooks, foodies, and so many other types of makers. More info on the event here.

Here’s a quick video to show you the vibe at this event. I was at this exact event so I remember the rush of people and the wide array of folks there selling their work.

I will be at booth #308 so if you’re coming come say hi! If you have a friend who is vending there, an organizer, or friend going please tell them about me:)

Dig this? Check out some photos from past events!

June 5, 2026
in Events, General
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Short story 38 – Song’s Summer Packing List

Song was so excited for the summer trip! Last year they got to go to “Slide land” and this year it would be “Castle Ville” which had a huge hotel with a pool and water slide, and the amusement park. Oh they couldn’t wait to get on all the rides! But this trip was special because they’d get to try out their new suitcase. Here was a list of all the things Mama said they could bring. A Stuffy, tooth brush, favorite books, their ipad, a sketchbook, headphones, their sleep mask, and of course the new suitcase!!!

About this short story: I’m getting ready to go on a trip with my family and couldn’t help but think of how excited my youngest is to have their very own suitcase. The kid in this image is a bit older, maybe 9 but inspired by my child.

What is this? This is a short story. They are a way for me to sharpen my skills, to play, and to stretch out by trying new ideas for stories. In 2010 they started off as a way to practice the format of picture books but Iโ€™m interested in other formats now too. My name is Robert Liu-Trujillo and my most recent book is Fresh Juice/ Jugo Fresco published by Lee & Low Books.

Check out some of my past short stories worth checking out:

Dig this? Check out my first self published Art Book- 130 pages of sketches, paintings, characters, and more HERE

May 31, 2026
in General, Ilustration
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Library Visit – Columbus, OH

What up fam, I just got back from Columbus Ohio, a city I visited for the first time in 2019 for the SOL Con at Ohio State organized by Dr Frederick Luis Aldama and Dr Kaitlin Marisol-Sweeney and a school visit to Weinland Park Elementary.

This time I was brought out by librarian and author Elisa Stone Leahy (picture in the middle) and I read alongside local author and teacher Dia Mixon who has some great bicultural and bilingual picture books here. In 2025 I started reaching out to libraries outside of the Bay more proactively and Elisa is one of a handful that invited me to come read!

It was great to share the space w/ the amazing librarians there and Dia who has a beautiful story “One Whole Me”.

I went up first after the librarians and had a really great reading with lots of ideas, participation, call and response, etc. The majority of these photos were taken by Elisa (thank you Elisa).

Big shout out to Keithia and the other librarians and teachers for their support that day.

BIG shout out to Cover to Cover Bookstore in Columbus for supporting us by having tons of books there for students to take home and read. If you check out their Instagram there’s a short reel of the reading up.

Here are a few shots I took of Dia Mixon while she was reading her book.

If you dig this, check out some of these other schools and libraries I’ve read at:

Here are some of the lovely books I saw on display at this library. Full of diversity, beauty, color, and life! I love seeing books about Queer families, Black folks, AAPI, Native, Latinx etc communities too. This is the link to the reading and if you check out the site, they’ve got over 23 branches!

Some shots from around the city!

I went to the Wexner Center for the Arts to see my friend Dionne Custer Edwards who works in public programs there and is doing great work to uplift artists and to engage young people with art. And I went straight to the bookstore to see my great books and some friends’ work from the Bay and beyond. Then I walked the museum with her and was so inspired by the work of Hew Locke, who’s work as a British Guyanese artists’ work comments on imperialism, cross cultural expression, and it was fucking amazing.

Now, I know -the whole shit w/ the Epstein files and the news about the founder among many of the wealthy elite. And that is its own sick but revealing study of how pedophilic capitalists harm children and the way the wield power over law, governments, corporations, policy, etc to control the working class. More importantly its a reminder to us to act by putting our words, energy, funds, and resources behind people and places working to flip the script. That’s community based organizations, cooperatives, unions, collectives, media outlets, radical candidates , etc. I’m thinking of all of us who do not come from wealth trying to survive which is a huge number and I’m calling in those who have money or access to resources with politics that differ from the 1%. Put your $ where your values are.

That’s it fam, back to the Bay!

May 8, 2026
in General, School or Library Visit
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Library Visit – Philadelphia

Peace y’all, I just came back from a cool trip to Philadelphia to read the at the main branch of the public library. This is my first trip to the city and it was great to see it and connect with some old friends. Get ready, there A LOT of photos in this post!

I flew out on the red eye which I will not be doing again cuz I didn’t get much sleep. Once I landed I started hearing Black Thought lyrics in my head though because of street names and things like….

“South East Pennsylvania Transit Authority is what I’m probably on, if I ain’t rippin the land throughout ya section” -Black Thought of The Roots

One of the things I loved about the city is the beauty and abundance of murals. I thought the Bay had a lot of walls but Philly is truly the mural capital. I didn’t get to meet up with her but Michelle Angela Ortiz is one of my favorite muralists out there. Another thing I love about the city is the styles of Graffiti which are distinct and historic. They often write tall and skinny tags!

On my way inside the library I met Lynne Haase, a Philadelphian librarian who answered the call when I set out to visit schools and libraries last year for the first time outside of the Bay. Me and my folks headed into the library (its amazing by the way), and headed down to the kids section where we saw lots of letters and drawings from children. Then we went into a theater where the children would listen to me speak.

First it was one classroom, then 2, then 3 whole classrooms full of children from a local school came on in to listen to me read. They had such great energy and questions!

The room was full, I introduced myself and I got down to business asking them questions and trying my best to engage them so they would not just be listening, but talking back and participating. That means questions, call and response, and good interruptions. I read my book Fresh Juice to the kids!

I wish I could show you photos with the faces of the children unblocked but I was not able to get permission slips for each child. But, they were there and thats the important part.

As I usually do, I brought some of the artwork from the book with me because its like a doorway to understanding how stories get made. Its a process and I try to drive that home with kids, not just about my story but about how the video games, cartoons, films, or other forms of media they consume are created.

Ok , the reading was awesome and if you’d like to see more visits I’ve made to schools or libraries I invite you to check out some of these:

After that I walked around the library to check out the art books and music books.

The library is underrated yall. You can check out tools, seeds, films, records, CDs, musical instruments, and so any different types of BOOKS!

I love walking around libraries. Especially kids sections because each librarian, city, and region is different. I love seeing Bay Area creators work up in other cities too. Here are some fotos I took walking around and some of the librarians checking out my prints. If you would like to see my prints, you can see them here.

A few fotos from around the city from the downtown area, West, South, etc. My good friends who I stayed with took me to a place called Saad’s Halal Restaurant in West Philly that had some of the best Falafel and bean pie I’ve ever eaten:) My friend also took me on a hike around Cobb’s Creek park. I saw Osage ave, infamous for the bombing of the MOVE family, and I saw the famous Hakim’s Bookstore. One of the oldest Black owned bookstores in the country.

Next, I took a trip to Germantown to see my friend Sarah and Uncle Bobbie’s coffee and bookstore!

Uncle Bobbie’s was a beautiful store w/ lots of light and a strong curation. After that I went for a nice hike in a local park w/ my friend Sarah Kolker who is from Philly but lived in NYC and the Bay, where we met!

Lastly, I went to check out The Philadelphia Museum of Art; one of many museums! I also went to meet w/ my friend Dr. Li Sumpter before heading back to the Bay!

Dig this? Check out my trip to Detroit to read out there:)

April 6, 2026
in General, School or Library Visit
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