Together we find ourselves is a representation of BLACK JOY as the full acceptance of one’s self, even in a world that was designed to narrow the spectrum of beauty that is BLACKNESS. And it is through communities that we find strength in the self and a sense of belonging. It is through these communities that we water self love and it is in self love that we find joy.

This collection was inspired in part by the writings of bell hooks. In particular the quote around self love and community which reads “When we can see ourselves as we truly are and accept ourselves, we build the necessary foundation for self-love…whether we learn how to love ourselves and others will depend on the presence of a loving environment. Self love cannot flourish in isolation.”

FIC: Together We Find Ourselves

Listen to Black Women was a one off shirt that is now part of the All Power collection. This piece was inspired by conversations had in my studio with local Black Feminist while working on a content series highlighting the diverse stories of San Diego’s Black community. That conversation,  personal observations during the past year, and the writings of bell hooks and Audre Lorde helped shape the intention behind this piece.

While Black Women and Black Trans Folks have supported Black Men and have been a force for change throughout history, Black Women and Black Trans Folks do not receive the same level of support.

FIC: Listen To Black Women

My last project at BASIC was leading the reimagining of Wilson. The iconic American sporting goods brand, came to BASIC at an inflection point. The company had been at the center of sport for over a century, making world-class hard goods like balls, bats, rackets, clubs, and gloves to give athletes an edge. While their products were well-known by athletes around the world, they were preparing to launch their first-ever apparel line, and recognized that the brand needed to stand for something bigger. Big shout out to the BASIC team: Steve, Garret, Ryan, Dallas, and Eric 

Wilson

Regeneration: Black Cinema 1898–1971 explores the rich history of Black participation in US cinema from its beginnings to just beyond the civil rights movement. Inspired by and named after an independent all-Black-cast movie from 1923, Regeneration seeks to revive lost or forgotten films, filmmakers, and performers for a contemporary audience.

Academy Awards Museum

In October of 2022, The Open Gym team joined and Nike LA came together to celebrate Filipino American History Month with an immersive culinary experience. Over the course of two weeks our two teams worked together to plan out a multi-sensory journey through the dynamic history of Filipino culture. More details coming soon.

Open Gym x Nike 

While working at BASIC, I had had the opportunity to lead the redesign of the Webbys' platform. We took 17 years’ worth of data and built a product experience that turns what used to be merely a gallery of winners into a robust research tool for industry professionals. The new product experience introduces a design system that provides clarity and discoverability across categories, and enables users to go broad as well as narrow while engaging with content. The new experience strategy meets the unique needs of varying audience types through improved functionality, and the visual language has been adapted to define a new image for the Webbys’ brand across communications.

Webbys’

“We Was There” series, which seeks to reveal Black Influence throughout history while also reclaiming the narratives through imagery and symbols. This series consisted of three unique designs. The first is a modern interpretation of the Black Madonna while also painting a picture of Black unity and family. The other two designs explore the history of African Fractal. 

FIC: We Was There

I launched Future Is Color in 2020 as a response to the social climate. Through FUTURE IS COLOR®, I examine cultural tensions from the Black lens and use garments to incite conversation around freedom, equality, and the wholeness of humanity. The ultimate goal of this body of work is to provide tools for conversation that issue in empathy and collective liberation. Through FIC, I have donated over $200k to different organizations supporting the groundwork for social change.

Future Is Color

As someone that has Filipino ancestry but did not get to connect with that side of my identity growing up I have dedicated a lot of time over the past 4 years to connecting with and understanding that side of my identity. This is a series that was released during FAHM in 2021 that explores the beauty and diversity within the Filipino American story. The shirt was a visual representation of the dialogue we have between past, present, and the future.

Strength Of Our Heritage

An education program formed by FUTURE IS COLOR in partnership with the Sandusky City Schools, the NAACP of Sandusky, and the Boys and Girls Club of Erie County. For this program we created a curriculum and space for students to learn about their own history because when you see power in your own story and the stories of those who look like you it's easier to move through the world with confidence. On top of the developed curriculum and space we gifted the students with laptops, cameras, and if needed high speed internet so they could study and explore their history at their own pace.

FIC: Elevate Our Voices

In 2018 I led the pitch that won BASIC the G-STORE account and continued as the creative director on the account while establishing the foundations of the design system. While I can’t get into all the details, I can say that the work I did with BASIC and Google was successful. Together we contributed end-to-end services, ranging from eCommerce strategy and experience design to art direction, content creation, and campaign development. I stepped away from the project in 2021 but the relationship continues and the digital ecosystem still uses the foundations set by the initial UX and product storytelling strategy.

Google Store

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to collaborate with the Ghost Pistols team on Nike’s “Runners Helping Runners Campaign”. The goal of this global rollout was to help Nike bring the joy back to running and highlight the inclusive communal aspects of running by launching the ‘Runners Helping Runners’ initiative across Asia Pacific and Latin America.

Nike: Runners Helping Runners

From late 2019 - 2021 I worked with the internal teams at Coach to re-imagine how high touch luxury could be delivered through digital experiences. On top of doing innovation and vision setting, my team worked to create a new design system for the e-commerce platform that seamlessly incorporated many of the offline nuances of the brand. Please contact for more details about this project.

Coach

White Rice is a restaurant concept founded by my partners and I (Open Gym) that serves as an exploration of childhood memories through bold Filipino dishes. While each partner within Open Gym has a particular connection with the "White Rice" concept; I have seen it as an opportunity to connect with and explore my Filipino heritage. 

White Rice

"We Dream. We Fly." is a series of garments and initiatives that seek to shape space for youth to take hold of their ability to dream. 

While the ability to dream is ubiquitous, not everyone has access, freedom, or safe space to imagine different or brighter futures. To dream about the future is to shape a world based on your own perspectives. This creates a sense of agency and power over our lives. A dream has the power to shape our present and subsequently define our futures. The “We Dream We Fly” series focus' on shaping space and conversations for youth to dream and create brighter futures.

The first installment of this series took place during All Star Weekend in Cleveland OH with the redesign of a local court within the Zelma George Rec Center. Along with the redesign of the court we did a sneaker distribution and corresponding merch drop.

FIC: We Dream. We Fly.

The gentle stones collection seeks to challenge patriarchal masculinity through the process of embracing our full range of emotions. The garments and media in this collection focus on normalizing conversation around mental health especially in communities of color and with men of color. A portion of the proceeds from this collection helped support programing for Black mental health organizations.

FIC: Gentle Stones 

My name is Erwin Hines. I enjoy creating things. I release clothing from time to time through my brand Future Is Color®. I partner with other brands to do design and strategy work. I also own a community first hospitality group named Open Gym® based in San Diego. The one constant through all my work is the focus on putting forward objects and experiences that create opportunity for conversation & empathy. Feel free to contact me for more details on any of the projects listed in this directory.   

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