Trusted By 500+ Other Overthinkers With Their Walls
★★★★★ 4.9 With Verified Collectors
Michael de la Guerra is an artist and a former freelance writer who--under the name Michael Lopez--has been featured as a case study in the Harvard Business Review, published in The Huffington Post, banned from writing for Buzzfeed (long story), and featured as an expert in Fast Company, The Wall Street Journal, and more. He’s ghostwritten for NFL players and bank CEOs alike but remains at the mercy of NDAs signed during a decade-long copywriting career working with sought-after digital marketing agencies on high-converting campaigns for some of the largest names in business. He works in academia now and spends his creative energy on visual art and poetry.
At 2:47 AM, I Got a Text FROM SOMEONE That Said, "You Only Loved Me When I'd Vanish." AND SHE WAS RIGHT.
I Turned That Gut Punch Into Art. Now I'm Giving It Away Free to Anyone Else Who's Ever Been Emotionally Compromised at 2 AM.
You Know Better. You Still Sent The Text Anyway.
You're emotionally intelligent and self-aware.
You've done "the work."
You can spot love-bombing from three dating apps away.
You know your attachment style better than your social security number.
Years of therapy have given you all the tools.
So why did you look at their Instagram profile at 3 AM before sending that risky text (which was rather embarrassing now in hindsight)?
Because knowing better and feeling better are different currencies.
And most wall art only accepts the fake kind—the "Live Laugh Love" kind that pretends your complexity doesn't exist.
Before I Tell You Why a Harvard Business Review Case Study IS GIVING AWAY MUSEUM-QUALITY ART PRINTS...
(Yes, There’s A Catch, But It’s Not What You Think)
(And, yes, that's me. Also featured in Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, and banned from Buzzfeed for reasons we don't need to discuss.)
Here's what happened:
After a decade of writing for billionaires and Fortune 500 companies, I had what we'll politely call "a very serious mental health episode."
I quit. Chose art over another agency. Started creating pieces that tell the truth about emotional complexity.
That 2:47 AM text became "Contemporary Love Poem." The centerpiece of a collection that doesn't pretend we're all healing in straight lines.
Now I'm giving them away because I want to find my people.
Those who understand that self-awareness doesn't mean having your shit together. It means being honest about the mess.
Art For People Who Know How To Read the Room (And the Subtext)
You've scrolled through 47 pages of wall art. Nothing speaks to that specific knot in your chest when you see their name pop up.
Everything falls into the same exhausting categories:
• Generic motivation that feels like gaslighting ("You've got this!" when you clearly don't)
• Mass-produced Target prints that everyone from your barista to your therapist owns
• Beautiful but empty abstracts that match the couch but not your actual life
• Instagram wisdom that sounds profound for exactly 3 seconds
Even the "unique" pieces lack the voice you're searching for—something that actually understands what it's like to be brilliantly self-aware and still completely fuck up.
What if your art actually spoke your language?
A Collection THAT Knows Your Attachment Style
These aren't prints that smile politely and pretend you have your life together.
They know:
Why you screenshot texts for their "poetic potential"
That healing isn't linear (Tuesday: breakthrough! Wednesday: texting your ex)
The difference between actual self-awareness and performed vulnerability
Why you can appreciate therapy AND eye-roll at therapy culture
That complexity is human, not broken
Each piece maps an emotional territory you've visited but couldn't name:
2:47 thoughts that won't let you sleep
Ghosts you love more than actual people
Patterns you see but can't stop repeating
Beauty in what's broken beyond repair
Permission to be messy without apology
"No matter how self-aware or emotionally intelligent we fancy ourselves to be, we will still make mistakes. And yes, those mistakes can get messy."
REMEMBER THAT "CATCH" I MENTIONED? WELL, HERE'S Why I'M Giving $45 Prints AWAY for Free
To reach more emotionally intelligent humans - I want to find my people: those who get that self-awareness doesn't mean having it all figured out.
My art deserves better than storage - These prints were made to be seen, not sitting in my studio collecting dust.
I remember being broke and wanting real art - Good art shouldn't only be for people with disposable income.
The more art I can give away, the more people I can reach - Simply put, this is a way for me to get my name out there without doing anything sleazy; free art for you, warm fuzzies for me—a true win-win.
***THE REALITY: I'm giving these away as long as I can afford to. When the shipping costs exceed what I've budgeted for this project, the offer ends. No fake urgency—just honest math.
"I want my art with people who understand that emotional intelligence doesn't mean having your shit together. It means being honest about the mess."
EXPERT REPRODUCTION on Gorgeous Pro-Grade Fujicolor Archive Paper
Each print is produced on Fujicolor Crystal Archive paper: museum-grade stock rated for over 100 years before any fading.
These are individually numbered prints with official SKUs, not mass-produced posters.
PLUS: IMMEDIATE ACCESS TO $275+ WORTH OF ADDITIONAL BONUSES
Because waiting 7-14 days for mail when you're having a moment is torture.
While your physical print ships, you'll get instant access to my complete digital collection:
The Dark Floral Poetry Collection ($75 value) - A complete art print set designed to be displayed as a stunning mini-collection, featuring vintage-inspired botanical designs, modeled after Victorian-era oil paintings, accompanied by all original prose.
70+ Print-At-Home Designs ($200 value) - Previous collections, unreleased pieces, and art I never released publicly, formatted for you to print, frame, and hang on your wall right away.
Never-Released Poetry PDFs - The poems that didn't make it onto these prints because they revealed too much. Now yours to screenshot and send to friends who get it.
Total value: $275+ of immediate emotional validation. Delivered to your inbox before you can even second-guess this decision.
The Investment Perspective: A 30-Day Love-It-Or-Your-Money-Back Guarantee
Thanks to the explosive growth of my website over the last two years, these limited prints represent both emotional and potential financial value.
But here's what matters more:
I'm so confident this print will resonate with you that if it doesn't, I'll refund your shipping and you keep the print anyway.
People always think that's insane. My business advisor definitely thinks it's insane.
But here's why I do it:
If you tell the truth in an honest and beautiful way, the universal human experience will shine through. And I believe these pieces tell the truth about emotional complexity in a way that will resonate with you.
You keep the print (gift it, burn it, whatever helps)
No explanation needed
No hard feelings
No awkward unsubscribe guilt
In two years of making this offer, no one has EVER taken me up on the refund.
Actually, once people hold the film lab-printed Fujicolor art print in their hands, and feel the weight of the museum-grade paper, see how the minimalist design gives the words room to breathe...
Most end up ordering a second print.
(Apparently, my emotional damage creates complementary pairs.)
"This isn't about tricking you with a guarantee. It's about being so sure we share the same emotional frequency that I'll bet $12 plus the cost of materials that this art will speak to you. And if I'm wrong? You get free art. Consider it my apology for misreading the room."
TO SUMMARIZE: HERE'S EVERYTHING YOU'LL GET WHEN YOU CHECKOUT
ONE MUSEUM-QUALITY 8X10 PRINT ($45 VALUE)
Your choice from the collection
Individually numbered & certified
Fujicolor Crystal Archive paper (100+ year lifespan)
Six Poetry-Infused Art Prints That Map The Messy Territory of Modern Emotional Life
"Michael de la Guerra's six-print collection turns the hardest emotional lessons into minimalist Sobering Reminders of the Beauty Within Uncomfortable Human Truths"
The Origin Story
This collection started with a 2:47 AM text: "You only loved me when I'd vanish."
The person who sent it was right.
That painful realization became "Contemporary Love Poem"—the first piece in a collection for people who refuse to pretend healing happens in straight lines.
What This Collection Is Really About
✓ Turning your worst moments into something beautiful (even if it takes a while)
✓ Admitting that self-awareness doesn't prevent bad decisions (it just makes you conscious while making them)
✓ Finding beauty in emotional complexity instead of trying to fix it
✓ Creating visual reminders that your mess is human, not broken
Why It Matters
Mental wellness shouldn't be about blocking out suffering. Some of our most transformative moments come from hopelessness and grief.
These aren't Instagram wisdom quotes that disappear in the scroll. They're brutally honest meditations on the lessons that actually shaped you—designed to anchor your emotional intelligence through whatever comes next.
"This world can be cruel and barbaric. Constant positivity is unrealistic. These pieces honor that truth."
CHOOSE YOUR NEW PRINT FROM THE SIX OPTIONS BELOW
"Contemporary Love Poem"
When empathy meets heartbreak
Born from that 2:47 AM text, this piece explores loving someone more in their absence than their presence. For those who've ever loved a ghost more than the person.
"The ocean collects the thoughts I've tried so hard to cast away / They return with the evening tide / More beautiful in their decay." The collection's moment of acceptance.
A manifesto for doing whatever you want while trying not to hurt people. "Write a book. Fall in love. Get hurt, or hurt someone else—not on purpose though." For those tired of sanitized self-improvement.
Created during one of de la Guerra's darkest periods. "It seems as if I was trying to discern which words hold more weight: empty words spoken by people we become attached to, or truth spoken through the filter of our own biases."
A meditation on the desire for silence, featuring what de la Guerra calls "a sordid idea of bliss being a brain drenched in black paint." Born from discovering how difficult achieving a perfect single brushstroke actually is.
"I was annoyed by people who use their newfound identities within modern attachment theory to feign self-awareness while avoiding critical self-work," de la Guerra explains. For everyone who's ever eye-rolled at therapy-speak used as an excuse.
These are stunning. Always impressed by your artistic endeavors, and your commitment to quality and how it almost becomes a characteristic of the art. Bravo, Michael.
Seanette AKA @the.little.b.haus
Fellow Poet
Incredible. I love how you incorporated your poetic talent into a larger format. It's really great. I love each piece you sent me, and I even bought a few more for my sister.
Jamie Caroccio
Copywriter, Writing Teacher, and Fellow Poet
These are F***ING gorgeous. I wasn't expecting this at all. I am blown away.
Casey M.
Fellow Poet and Author of 4 Poetry Collections
Michael, these are so beautiful, thank you. I mean, I "knew" you cared about quality but these prints are beautiful.
Alicia I.
Writer in Long Beach
Want to Read the Poems Featured on the Prints? Click the drop down for each one on the list below
CONTEMPORARY LOVE POEM
About someone who never came back
You've been that person before
So you dont feel as bad
Just embarassed at how it's upset you--knowing full well
Date a pornstar. Or two. Or three (not four, though, that fourth one may kill you, trust me; plus, by that point you should know better). Write a book. Fall in love. Get hurt, or hurt someone else—not on purpose though. Reconnect with your middle school teacher and sleep with them. Or don’t, actually. I did (I wrote about it in the aforementioned book), and I regret it.
Make sure to appreciate your friends. Especially those that help you navigate ethical quandaries, such as whether or not sleeping with a teacher from childhood is okay. Because I’m really not sure if it is, but I question myself more than most. Am I crazy? Am I wrong? Am I bad? I ask these questions a lot. This is why I love my friends: because they remind me I am not crazy or bad when life happens. Or, they tell me if I am the crazy one, or if I am being bad.
Perhaps I’m making too big a deal out of the whole affair. Who knows? People are weird. We’re all just a bunch of neurotic messes with unresolved issues in our lives. Maybe my former teacher was looking for an escape. We all need to do that from time to time. So go to Disneyland, bb, or buy that plane ticket, or play that video game. And if you write about your sexual encounters with former teachers, change the details so you don’t get sued. Also, read books. Eat cheesecake (vegan/keto/paleo/whatever). Be a slut.* Do whatever you want. Just try not to hurt people, and take care of yourself.
* “Be A Slut” was the original name of this piece, but as a title on a poster design like this, it just wasn’t hitting right.
Everyone's an expert; on why they love the way they do. Condemning the Anxious and/or Avoidant; like confetti at their own review. All they need is “the book”; a place for their behaviours to call home. Inside predetermined patterns; they recite pop-psyche phrases as their own.
Yes, there's truth in understanding; how childhood shapes our ways. But parroting platitudes as a crutch; doesn't make the trauma fade. We're all just trying to sort ourselves; into boxes neat and clean. As if humans could be catalogued; like posts in a Pinterest stream.
Call me a fearful-preoccupied-avoidant; or whatever helps you sleep. But knowing what to call your walls; doesn't help you learn to leap. So, hold your attachment style close; else the mind’s nuance be exposed. And beyond what any label can connote; are worlds more than Bowlby even knows.
I'm giving these away as long as I can afford to. When the shipping costs exceed what I've budgeted for this project, the offer ends. If you're seeing this page, we're still good—but I can't promise for how long.
Michael, who are you? I'm forever in awe of you and what you create. You're like this amazing visual artist and poet. I got stuff in the mail today and I was like, what? My boy. He's so talented. I'm so excited. They're beautiful. I honestly want to get them framed and put up on the wall right away. They're so beautiful. Hauntingly beautiful.
Evangeline Thompson
YourLifeArchitect.com
Excellent stuff, sir. You are great at combining visuals with words, just as you are at designing them both separately. And the print quality is superb.
Sonny C.
Los Angeles
Omg, I love these floral prints so much. Thank you for the extra set. They're all so beautiful and your poetry is amazing. I'm so glad I own one of your very first art prints to ever go on sale!
Windy Z.
Los Angeles
Never surprised by the the thought you put into every detail down to the material these are printed on, but I am always surprised by the artistic ingenuity in your work. These will live with me and the fam wherever we go.
Max O.
Los Angeles
I wish my girlfriend looked at me the way she looks at the prints I bought her. Not sure how to feel, but thank you for the surprise bonuses, and regardless of my envy, your commitment to quality deserves credit.
Ben S.
Hollywood (My Neighbor in Case You're Wondering)
One Last Thing...
Remember that 2:47 AM text I mentioned?
After I responded (mistake), had a terrible phone conversation (bigger mistake), and finally blocked the number (should've done that first)...
I realized something:
We're all just trying to turn our worst moments into something beautiful.
Sometimes that's art. Sometimes it's a story we tell at parties. Sometimes it's just surviving until morning.
This collection is for anyone who's ever stared at their phone at 2 AM, knowing they shouldn't send that text, knowing they will anyway, and knowing they'll turn it into something meaningful later.
8×10 inches—fits standard frames you can find anywhere.
How long does shipping take?
7-14 business days within the US.
Do you ship internationally?
Not yet—US only for now.
Can I order multiple prints?
Before you make your sale final you’ll be shown an option to receive all the prints in the collection. Because I want to reach as many people as possible, you’re limited to one free print at a time. Meaning you can order them all separately if you want, but you can’t order print #3 five times.
What's in the digital library?
70+ high-resolution prints you can download and print immediately. Previous collections, exclusive pieces, and unreleased work.
REMEMBER: It's Already Free, But If You Don't Love It, I'll Refund Your Shipping Cost And You Can Keep The Print
And When They're Gone, They're Gone
I'm giving these away until I can't afford to anymore. Then, this offer ends.
