Conversations with Daniel Bortz

Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Bortz.

Hi Daniel, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today. 
I’m a visual artist who makes drawings, paintings, screen prints, and almost any kind of 2-dimensional image making. I run a clothing brand called Time Change Generator. 

I’ve been drawing and painting since I was very young. I’ve always been interested in making large paintings on walls and traveling, but I also studied textile design and pattern screen printing. Ever since I touched this medium, I wanted to spend my life pursuing it. 

I grew up in Cleveland but have moved around quite a bit before moving back here in 2017 to start my project/ creative studio, Time Change Generator. We are a screen printing studio that specializes in large-scale textiles. I design most of the patterns, but we also collaborate with another artist. 

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No, it has absolutely not been a smooth road, nor is it for almost any creative entity haha; if it has been, I’d imagine you’re not challenging yourself very much. I look forward to the challenge. Every painting, Drawing, design, print, clothing item, is a challenge. At the root level, I still approach everything like a painter, a blank canvas where you make a series of decisions to inform the next, a constant challenge. 

The struggles along the way are the ebbs and flows of creative fluidity/ inspiration, trying to run a business as an artist, and learning how to employ others isn’t easy but I’m figuring it out. 

I’m excited to collaborate with other artists and to grow as a business. I hope to be working on projects with larger institutions like museums, galleries, interior/furniture designers who need upholstery, producing textiles for other clothing brands, etc. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I obsessively make drawings and paintings; I turn these images and motifs into screen prints on fabric. I enjoy the act of world-building, Applying my motifs to as many mediums and surfaces as possible. 

In my studio, “Time Change Generator,” we design and screen print yardage by hand primarily, and this is a super unique process. There aren’t many studios nationally that print in the process that we are exploring. Everything about what we do is unique, which is what makes it difficult, we are an anomaly as a print studio, clothing brand, for hired-entity/ business. Most techniques and equipment we use are custom-engineered and built. Another special thing is that we produce most of our clothing items locally and or in-house. Mostly everything happens within a mile of our studio, this is an extremely rare thing for a clothing brand. 

We try to source as much salvaged/ dead stock fabrics as possible, the ethics of where our material comes from is important to us. Also, clothing production creates a lot of textiles waste, but we try to save all of our scrap fabric to turn into different projects. We collage together to make throw pillows, patchwork clothing items, larger pieces can be used to make things like Bags, hats, fanny packs. We waste nothing! 

Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
My favorite childhood memories mostly revolve around music, saving enough quarters and pennies to go buy a CD and ride around on my skateboard listening to it on my Walkman. Or just drawing in my room, listening to music learning to love myself. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.timechangegenerator.com
• Instagram: @jbecauze
• Other: @timechangegenerator

Image Credits
Chris and Dan
Kory Gasser
Ben Friend
Michaela
TCG Studio
Toby Griffiths