Just landed not too long ago with the fam, right now i am stayin in my brother's apt in lower manhattan. I actually came to NY mainly for 2 reasons.1. My brother's graduation from parsons
2. There is school project that i am working on that requires me to take lots of pictures. I felt NY would be the perfect spot to carry out the assignment. So u will be seeing alot of pics this week. This project is kinda tough and i haven't decided what my subject is about. So far its between THE NIGERIAN CULTURE IN HOUSTON or STREETWEAR. I took alot of pics around houston last week, but this trip will determine where i will go with this project. So i will be hitting up some official spots in brooklyn to capture the culture. I have to make a coffe book table in 4 weeks, so its def. grind time tomorow. But first things first my..
..OFFICIAL DISCLAIMER - I am not tryin to be a photographer, i know its the in-thing to do these days, if i had it my way, i would illustrate this project from start to finish, but i gotta make an A lol, and secondly i suck at taking pics badly. Above is a perfect example. This picture i took with a $700 camera of my new common projects sneakers looks like an i pone flick. And the shoes look mad beat up too. Collins Metu, i need to holla at u. Free where the fuck u at, i need help in adjusting my ISO and shutter speed.
check the future helmut lang himselfhttp://www.wmagazine.com/w/blogs/editorsblog/2009/05/19/parsons.htm
this is only the beginning
my brother has come a long way, and so far, its lookin really good. He graduates this friday and he is already in the process of starting his own label. I have seen some of his concepts and so far so good. The above pic is one of many dresses he designed and constructed from scratch in school
another set of garments he constructed
precise tailoring and detail. Like i said, only the beginning, you should be watching out for him pretty soon. I will keep yall posted on whatever he's up to
one of his other creations being modeled
His amazing portfolio and sketchbook
great postures and ideas. He really has worked hard on getting to where he is and believe me it's working out nicely. The reason why this is really exciting is because i like seeing shit like this. When black people do things properly and it is compared to the greats and not falling under cliches. For years people have always come up to me and asked me for advice on how to be better artists, designers and how to set themselves apart. The best answer i can give to anyone is this
" If u ever do anything, broaden it to a wider audience."
For example u never hear " white" movies, but u hear " black" movies. If u are watching a tyler perry movie, u are watching a " black" movie. The problem with that is that he is limiting himself to a specific audience, and that to me will never get to u be the greatest. If i am watching a spike lee movie, i am watching a movie, not a " black" movie. Alot of these movies u watch that are considered classics that are done by white people, u never hear people say " that's a great white movie." but they say it's a great movie. There isn't anything really wrong with just sticking with your culture, but i think to achieve greatness you have to go beyond. Ok let's talk about fashion for example, and i will keep this 100. Now look at the greats in the fashion industry like helmut lang, tom ford, yves saint laurent, co co chanel. People never label them as " white" designers. People see them as legends, pace setters, fashion designers and tastemakers that changed the game. Now if u look at the African community in fashion, there really hasn't been on that level because black people tend to stick to what relates to their culture only. For example fubu, phat farm, diddy. We don't call this fashion, but we coin it as urban. Everything black people do, whether its in movies or in any creative media, we call it urban, afrocentric etc. but we never put it on a wider scale. ozwald boateng is a perfect example of someone who went outside of that box. My brother is also a future example, he is not a walking cliche, and i believe when people see his work it will be labeled as a masterpiece not " black" art. I too am a perfect example, i took a yoruba term " dobale" and named it my t-shirt line. Surely you would expect me to talk about nigeria all day with my line, but it is the opposite, and so far the feedback has been positive. I don't usually give myself credit but i call it genius if i took a yoruba term and made everyone relate to it, understand its meaning and expanded my audience. I want people to see my work and not think of my skin color, but my mind. We may not be the same skin color but we all have one mind, and with that we have the potential to be great. I know its cliche to say this but people we should not only think outside the box, but outside the skin color. That my friend will set you apart from the rest. Stay tuned for more updates. I have a perfect example i will show to you tomorrow. Brooklyn it is. Peace
" If u ever do anything, broaden it to a wider audience."
For example u never hear " white" movies, but u hear " black" movies. If u are watching a tyler perry movie, u are watching a " black" movie. The problem with that is that he is limiting himself to a specific audience, and that to me will never get to u be the greatest. If i am watching a spike lee movie, i am watching a movie, not a " black" movie. Alot of these movies u watch that are considered classics that are done by white people, u never hear people say " that's a great white movie." but they say it's a great movie. There isn't anything really wrong with just sticking with your culture, but i think to achieve greatness you have to go beyond. Ok let's talk about fashion for example, and i will keep this 100. Now look at the greats in the fashion industry like helmut lang, tom ford, yves saint laurent, co co chanel. People never label them as " white" designers. People see them as legends, pace setters, fashion designers and tastemakers that changed the game. Now if u look at the African community in fashion, there really hasn't been on that level because black people tend to stick to what relates to their culture only. For example fubu, phat farm, diddy. We don't call this fashion, but we coin it as urban. Everything black people do, whether its in movies or in any creative media, we call it urban, afrocentric etc. but we never put it on a wider scale. ozwald boateng is a perfect example of someone who went outside of that box. My brother is also a future example, he is not a walking cliche, and i believe when people see his work it will be labeled as a masterpiece not " black" art. I too am a perfect example, i took a yoruba term " dobale" and named it my t-shirt line. Surely you would expect me to talk about nigeria all day with my line, but it is the opposite, and so far the feedback has been positive. I don't usually give myself credit but i call it genius if i took a yoruba term and made everyone relate to it, understand its meaning and expanded my audience. I want people to see my work and not think of my skin color, but my mind. We may not be the same skin color but we all have one mind, and with that we have the potential to be great. I know its cliche to say this but people we should not only think outside the box, but outside the skin color. That my friend will set you apart from the rest. Stay tuned for more updates. I have a perfect example i will show to you tomorrow. Brooklyn it is. Peace
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