FELTON >> Much like the colorful flora that emerges from a charred landscape following wildfires, people also emerge to help out communities in need.

That was the case for Lili Arnold, a Felton printmaker who transferred her designs over to T-shirts to raise money for those impacted by the series of fires that devastated Southern California in January. The shirts are available through the fundraising platform Bonfire, and the proceeds go toward the California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Recovery Fund.

“When the wildfires in LA started, it was feeling overwhelming being up here and not really knowing what to do to make a difference,” she said. “Raising a family, I don’t have endless funds to be able to donate my own money all the time to causes.”

Arnold’s initial idea was to create a piece of artwork that people could download, print and use for a fundraiser. That idea evolved into doing a T-shirt fundraiser through Bonfire.

“Bonfire organizes, facilitates and fulfills T-shirts mostly for fundraisers, but they also have the capability to print items for businesses to purchase,” she said. “This was the perfect way to raise some funds for the wildfire victims while also not taking on that huge task of printing things and packing orders.”

Arnold grew up in a very artsy family where she learned from her mother to carve blocks for holiday cards.

“When we were kids, we could carve a linoleum block and print as a fun family activity,” she said.

Arnold studied printmaking at UC Santa Cruz, specifically processes like intaglio and lithography, which deepened her love for the process. However, she did not pursue the medium right away, instead opting to become a full-time graphic designer. After a few years though, she started getting the urge to create with her hands.

“I spent so much time at a computer, I felt like I needed to change things up,” she said.

Using a roller donated from her mother and other supplies purchased from Lenz Arts in Santa Cruz, she began making prints initially as a weekend hobby.

“I realized that I loved the process so much, and I had forgotten how much I loved it, so I just kept doing it,” she said.

After a friend convinced Arnold to exhibit at Stripe during a First Friday Santa Cruz event, the hobby eventually evolved into a side hustle, and then she transitioned to freelance graphic design so she could devote more time to printmaking which she now does full time.

Arnold specializes in botanical block printing which utilizes natural elements such as flowers and leaves. She likes how unexpected the results are.

“You don’t know exactly what it’s gonna look like until the print off the block for the first time,” she said. “That moment where you see that piece, the first print, and hopefully I’m happy with it, but that moment is really satisfying just to think about everything that went into that moment.”

When hearing about the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles and other surrounding wildfires in Southern California, it gave Arnold a sense of déjà vu. She had been living in her house in Felton for two years when the CZU Lightning Complex fires broke out in 2020 and had to evacuate for 10 days, staying in her ex’s mother’s house in LA during that time.

“We didn’t know if our house was gonna still be there when we got back because a lot of the information, it was hard to know what neighborhoods burned and we could see the progression of the fire getting closer and closer,” she said.

Fortunately, Arnold’s house survived, but she “tried to be there for friends and neighbors who had lost their homes.” The experience gave her a greater sense of empathy toward those impacted by wildfires.

Arnold created her first piece for the project Jan. 10 — three days after the LA wildfires broke out — and began the T-shirt fundraiser in February. The botanical block printing process, she said, typically starts with an idea.

“I have a long list of ideas,” she said. “If I see a plant out in the wild or in a book, I’ll make a note of it and go through my inspiration lists to see what’s popping out to me, and then I’ll just choose something.”

Arnold then starts drawing compositions to determine how to arrange flowers on a page and how she wants leaves and other elements to interact. After settling on a print design concept, she translates it onto a block which she then carves.

“If there’s any different-colored pieces I’m gonna be working with, I cut those out almost like a puzzle so that I can ink them all separately in their different colors, and then I put them back together and then I make the print,” she said. “That’s called jigsaw printing. It’s a way to create multiple colors with just one pass through the printing press or one furnishing.”

It is a process that Arnold loves and constantly learns from.

“It’s kind of like a slow burn from idea to the final print,” she said.

Arnold’s T-shirt design consists of an array of California wildflowers with a sun hanging high in the background, and can be purchased in a variety of sizes and colors in both T-shirts and sweatshirts. She had a goal of selling 50 shirts, but as of Thursday, she has sold more than 1,100 shirts and raised more than $14,000 for the California Community Foundation.

Arnold was very pleased with the response.

“During a hard time, (people) are looking for something to remind them of something joyful,” she said.

Flowers, Arnold said, have particular importance because even amid the harshest winters, they come back every year to bring color and joy into people’s lives.

“It may be symbolic for some people,” she said. “Life keeps going, the seasons keep on and life comes back even after a hard time.”

The fundraiser does not have an end date, and Arnold hopes people will purchase a print and recognize how a little donation goes a long way.

“When you get a lot of different people contributing a little bit, it can make a difference,” she said. “Something like this where, you’re just buying a T-shirt for $30, that might not seem like very much, but when we get a whole community together and everybody gets excited about an idea, then it ends up making a much bigger impact.”

The fundraiser can be accessed at Bonfire.com/california-wildfire-relief-3.