Blog post 2- Reflections on Better lives themes application on future work
As a student of Fashion media who aspires to be a communicator in one of the most influential industries in in a radically evolving society, I am aware and understand the gravity and relevance of my practice to society.
Fashion affects our everyday lives either directly or secondarily via culture, consequently, the fashion industry has a substantial impact on our society. Fashion media, as already mentioned is one of the most powerful tools and this can either be used to elevate us collectively as a society or rather elevate ignorance within our society, which is what draws me most to my chosen practice- the possibility to use my creativity and skill set to inform, educate and uplift those I can.
For my own part, I have been an agent of ignorance, I have worn Kufi caps in the past in a way that I have come to know today is inappropriate and offensive to a particular group of people and I am conscious of the fact that I am not the only person liable to misappropriation, which underpins my first takeaway from the better lives lecture on qualitative research by Lorraine Gamman. When appreciating another culture or group, in-depth research does not stop at sitting our behinds in front of a desktop but most importantly involves immersing ourselves fully by interacting with the relevant party to avoid any sort of misappropriation.
I was immensely touched and inspired by Lucy Orta’s lecture and works. In addition to making use of my platform to bring out the issues of the voiceless, works like “a mile in my shoes” and “human library” have evoked ideas for future collaborations with the aim to find ways to increase cognitive empathy. The ‘making for a change’ project is one of the most brilliant concepts I have ever come across, a large number of ex-convicts come out prison and return to the exact lifestyle that took them there in the first place because they “do not know different”, which is why I applaud the Making for a change concept. Equipping these individuals with a skill set benefits both themselves and society or the economy.
Andy Warhol used mundane things around him to portray or suggest reality in a different way which significantly influenced culture at the time. As a visual communicator how do I use my skill set and platform to shape minds and improve lives. Inclusion is an ongoing global battle across all industries and happily, we are gradually shifting from the antiquated ideals. Sadly but foreseeable whiles exclusivity exits, tokenism slowly fills in the void. Kelly Knox the model born with one arm only who recently modelled for Primark evoked her concern: “It was only when I started modelling that I felt disabled, it was like I was put in a box and labelled”.
My future role involves finalising castings, as a creative director how do I make sure individuals like Kelly Knox do not feel like labels? Virgil Abloh’s Louis Vuitton SS20 cast in my opinion is a great example of true inclusivity. He used actual creatives and artists like skateboarders, photographers and graffiti artists from different backgrounds, sexual orientation with diverse body forms which he felt their element fit into the narrative. It felt genuine and not forced out of guilt.
References
Huffingtonpost.co.uk. 2020. Huffpost Is Now A Part Of Verizon Media. [online] Available at: <https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/kelly-knox-fashion-model_n_115799> [Accessed 10 May 2020].