My guest on the podcast today is my friend Ivy. For reasons you'll soon find out, she wanted to remain anonymous on this podcast so we could share it on her social platform by the same handle.

Ivy is based in LA and primarily works with paintings. Her style is heavily influenced by street art with themes of self-love and life struggle with different emotions, which she portrays by combining portraiture words and color elements. Her goal is to create art that connects with people on a deeper level by evoking emotions and developing a sense of vulnerability.

My guest today is Sal Abbinanti. Sal Abbinanti was educated at the University of Southern California and the Art Institute of Chicago. Sal began his indie comics career in 2005 with the launch of Mercury Comics and the publication of Atomika-God is Red, and now, The Hostage. By day, he is the art rep for Alex Ross and Bill Sienkiewicz and lives on the North Side of Chicago.

Brit Parla is a Chicago-based visual artist. Her main artistic mediums include but aren't limited to, abstract fluid painting, drawing, and graphic design. Her goal is to continually create original and innovative works of art that evoke a sense of wonder and interconnections in others. Brit's artistic style influences are the science of color theory, Mother Nature, street art, abstract impressionism, and the art of the 1960s counterculture movement. Brit showcases her work at various venues and art exhibitions around Chicago.

First-time guest Jordan Criss joins Erich and Joe. This conversation started with whether a well-known public person can be separated from their work and that person's character. Next, we meander to other topics on life and how Joe found his interest in deep philosophy. Finally, we close out with some books and podcasts.