The “Americana” series is the perfect occasion to release these amazing cowgirl tile

scenes. The concept for these was simple: take an icon like a cowgirl and modernize

it! Rise Up is based on the classic World War II poster, “We can do it,” which was

initially created to promote both male and female workers in the Westinghouse factory.

However, the poster later became a symbol of Women’s Rights and is now associated

with, and often called, “Rosie the Riveter.” Wanting to give the cowgirl a modern look

that represents the women of today, tattoos, a cowboy hat, and wildly-colored hair

were added. The tattoos and hair color obviously represent diversity and power, and

the ability of today’s women to choose different looks and represent themselves

however they wish. The technique used to create these designs was anything but

simple. The images were drawn using digital drafting tools, then a grid was placed over

the image with each block individually created using a Western icon, along with the

element of the design that corresponds with the tile. Each Cowgirl has 324 individual

blocks that, when combined, create a beautiful, powerful image. Each of the blocks

are mounted at varying heights to give the piece even more depth and dimension. A

favorite aspect of this series is how they seemingly change the closer you get to them:

as you draw nearer, the individual pieces and icons hidden throughout the design

become more noticeable.