Version 1

Dustin Black is the executive creative director of Preston Spire. Nationally recognized for his infectious art direction, Dustin crafts brand voices that cut through today's fractured media landscape. His career spans top-tier agencies including BBDO, Colle+McVoy, mono, and Carmichael Lynch, earning recognition from Clio, D&AD, Communication Arts, Cannes Lions, The One Show, Obie, Telly, and Effie Awards along the way. Dustin has brought his entrepreneurial spirit, (he wrote the internationally published, "The Book of SPAM" and helped start an ice cream company) to national brands like Perdue, Craftsman, Franks RedHot Sauce, Cub Cadet, 3M, MSNBC, Subaru, Jackson Hole Tourism, Purina, Hormel, Caribou Coffee, Blue Bunny Ice Cream and Tillamook Cheese. He also makes felt sculptures, one of which is on display at the Minneapolis Airport through October 2026. 

In this episode, we discuss his journey to becoming a creative director, why curiosity is neutral, how he fosters a culture of curiosity, how putting himself in uncomfortable situations helps build confidence and creativity, why having a diverse team is crucial in advertising, thinking about your brand as someone at a party, creativity in constraints, why he calls his ideas “dumb,” how building felt sculptures helps him think, and more.  

Follow Dustin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/black_dustin/ 

Check out Dustin’s website: https://www.dustinblack.com/ 

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James Morehead is Poet Laureate Emeritus of Dublin, California, host of the Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast, and has published several poetry collections, including "The Plague Doctor." “Tethered” was transformed into an award-winning animated short film, “Twilight in the Sculpture Forest” won Best Documentary at the Los Angeles Poetry Film Festival,  and “gallery” was set to music for baritone and piano. He has been published in the Ignatian, Beyond Words, Citron Review, Ekphrastic Review, Loud Coffee Press, Havik, and others. James has performed in Patagonia's Poet Laureate Celebration, NPR’s Poetically Yours, and as Guest Poet at the 20th Annual Haiku Festival.

In this episode, we discuss James’ journey into poetry, balancing a tech day job with being a poet, how he pushes himself to write even when he doesn’t feel like it, how his life experiences inspire his work, the personal experiences people bring to find meaning in his poems, how changing locations can help writers’ block, the different forms poetry can come in, what his role as Poet Laureate means, inspiring students to be multi-faceted as a tech professional and a poet, and more. 

Follow James on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/viewlesswings/

Check out James’ poetry: https://viewlesswings.com/james-morehead/ 

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Claudia Ruiz Vasquez Nooren is a Guatemalan-born conceptual designer, painter, jewelry designer, and founder of Arte Sano Design Studio. She was the conceptual designer behind the Boardwalk Hotel in Aruba, designing across, art, landscape, architecture, and interior design. 

In this episode, we talk about the work that goes into conceptual design, her creative background, why she loves Aruba, how she uses color to evoke emotions, how she balances color in her designs, how she helps out vulnerable communities through art, why art is such a great form of therapy, her new venture into jewelry design and her new restaurant El Patio, and more. 

Follow Claudia on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artesanodesignstudio/ 

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Suelyn Dankerlui is an artist from Aruba who creates beautiful abstract paintings. Her work can be found around the island of Aruba in many people’s homes and the Boardwalk Hotel. Suelyn discusses her process for abstract painting, why the northern part of Aruba is so inspiring to her, how changes in her life affects her work, how movement helps her stay creative, her twin painting project for the Boardwalk Hotel, the unique meanings behind her pieces’ names, why she loves getting lost in her creative process, where she goes when she needs inspiration, and more. 

Follow Suelyn on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/art.by.suelyn/ 

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Taki (Frank Kelly) is a private chef, forager, and artist from Aruba. Renowned for his seafood, vegetarian and vegan specialties, Chef Taki forages food and catches fresh seafood and prepares the freshest dinners with these local ingredients. He also is an artist and a storyteller on the island, and was featured by National Geographic. 

Taki shares about his adventures in foraging, how he uses creativity to come up with new dishes and drinks, unexpected flavors, his life on the island of Aruba, his painting and other artistic endeavors, and more. 

Follow Taki on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/taki_aruba/ 

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Armando Goedgedrag is a visual artist, photographer, painter, and multimedia specialist based in Aruba. He’s often inspired by nature, especially Aruba’s nature. One of his goals is to bring awareness of the beauty of nature that surrounds us. Armando was born in the Netherlands and grew up on Aruba. After graduating high school on the island, his artistic journey led him to pursue higher education in the Netherlands, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Communication and Multimedia Design and a Master's degree in Animation.

His vibrant murals and artworks adorn various public spaces across Aruba, including the Boardwalk Hotel, Natural Bridge, Aruba Marriott, Hilton and the Renaissance Marketplace in Oranjestad, as well as the southern city of San Nicolas.

Through his art, Goedgedrag aims to raise awareness about the environmental challenges facing Aruba and to inspire a deeper appreciation for its unique ecosystems. His commitment to nature is evident not only in his creations but also in his active involvement in local conservation efforts.

In this episode, we talk about how Aruba’s nature inspires him, his love for different artistic mediums such as photography, painting, and videography, growing up on Aruba, and the techniques he uses in his work. 

Follow Armando on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artmando_multimedia/ 

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Yvette Franken is a Dutch wedding and lifestyle photographer whose work blends a clean, editorial aesthetic with natural documentary moments. She prioritizes genuine connection with her clients and prepares thoroughly so her presence on the day can remain calm, unobtrusive, and focused. Her work has taken her to countries such as Morocco, Canada, France, and Aruba, where she consistently creates images that are true to each couple’s story.

In addition to her wedding and lifestyle work, Yvette maintains a long-standing partnership with Boardwalk Boutique Hotel Aruba, a collaboration that is especially close to her heart. As the hotel’s dedicated photographer, she safeguards the brand’s visual identity through her imagery, video content, and their social media presence. Working alongside the hotel’s small, all-women team, she helps share the story of Boardwalk, its heritage, and the island of Aruba, where she lived for several years.

In this episode, we discuss her background as a lawyer and how she transitioned to photography, working with the Boardwalk Hotel, her wedding photography work around the world, her creative process, how nature, hiking, and scuba diving influence her work, her favorite spots in Aruba, and more. 

Follow Yvette on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yvettefrankenphotography/ 

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Roy Szuper has been an independent filmmaker for over twenty years. His films have screened at major international film festivals throughout the world. A first generation, native New Yorker, Roy Szuper initially started working in live music production where he found the topic for his first documentary. “Concert Joe: A New York Story.” Szuper’s next short titled “Charcoal,” was based on an instance of racial profiling that happened to his own family in the days after 9/11. It screened in Cannes and Buenos Aires.Szuper’s first feature, “Gonzo Music Diaries, NYC” started as a documentary about subway musicians and morphed into the story of a music festival during the Republican National Convention in New York. Szuper’s upcoming feature, “Can’t Let It Go,” will be released in March 2025 by Indican Pictures and 7 Palms Entertainment. It features Sex in the City’s Mario Cantone and is Executive Produced by his longtime mentor, Academy Award winner James Ivory. Szuper’s work at The Metropolitan Opera was his inspiration for “Madhouse,” a farce about an urban opera company. Szuper has recently completed his first novel titled “Love Letters from the Abyss”, loosely based on his experiences balancing life as a single father and an independent filmmaker in New York. He is developing a film culled from the novel.

In this episode, we discuss his life as an independent filmmaker, writing his first novel, how screenwriting and novel writing are different, how his experience as a single dad influences his work, working at the Metropolitan Opera, other interesting life experiences he’s had and how he’s translated them into films, his writing process, what he loves about being on set, his editing process and approach, trying acting for the first time, how his experience acting affected his directing, and more. 

Follow Roy on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/royszuper/

Check out Roy’s website: https://szuperfilms.com/ 

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Jenny Leigh Hodgins is a creative empowerment coach, music educator, performer, composer, poet, author, and longtime Buddhist. For 30+ years, she has helped overwhelmed adults, creatives, and caregivers overcome creative blocks, rebuild trust in their creativity, restore energy, and empower creative flow and inspired living. She integrates burnout recovery, practical strategies, and artistic exploration to support sustainable, authentic creative living.

In this episode, we talk about creative empowerment, how to overcome burnout, her RESET program to help tap into your creativity, what creativity is and is not, balancing a helpful Inner Critic and a harmful one, how she incorporates principles from Buddhism into her work, how important boundaries are, why creativity is undervalued and what we can do about it, and more. 

Follow Jenny Leigh on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourcreativechord/ 

Check out Jenny Leigh Hodgins’ website: https://www.yourcreativechord.com/ 

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Laura Jaye Cramer is a Brand Strategist and Writer. She runs Cowboy Media & Marketing and its subsidiary, Waiting Room Publishing, which produces five magazine titles: Candlelight Magazine, Clarity Magazine, The Grand Life, Vital Years, and Gigi. Her work centers on print media for the End-of-Life and Senior Living industries. Previously, she worked as a journalist and brand strategist at several creative agencies in San Francisco and Los Angeles. She currently resides in Seattle, Washington, but hails from the great state of Colorado. 

In this episode, we discuss going from professional ballerina to a magazine publisher and writer, turning her experience of loss into her art and career, how she started her publishing company and magazines from scratch, the creative process behind creating a magazine, how an issue comes together, how she balances the content she puts out when dealing with heavy topics, how grief affects each person differently, her journey in grief, what she hopes her magazines provide to people, and how she treats and takes care of her mental health.

Follow Waiting Room Publishing on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/waitingroompublishing/ 

Follow Laura on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurajayecramer/ 

Check out Waiting Room Publishing: https://waitingroompublishing.com/

Check out Laura’s website: laurajayecramer.com

Subscribe to Version 1's substack: version1podcast.substack.com/ 

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Support the show: https://buymeacoffee.com/waverlycolville