By Siobhán Forshaw — 2021
This is not about meeting criteria and ticking boxes, it’s about finally creating the generous, plural and radical art world that many of us want and need.
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CLEAR ALL
From songs referencing grandma’s backyard garden to lyrics ripping government for destroying the water supply, many hip hop artists seamlessly weave climate justice into their sounds. After all, being sustainably savvy is how their grandparents and great-grandparents survived.
It’s hard to be a joyful Black creative on a good day; to pour your being into beautiful work amid ongoing injustices is already taxing. And during the current unprecedented and uncertain times, reclaiming and protecting that Black joy may feel particularly difficult.
The model, artist and photographer made history when she walked the Moschino runway in her chair this season. She’s also the first creative we’re spotlighting from the BTF100, debuting today.
A few months and many deaths ago, I woke up exhausted, again. Every morning, I felt like I was rebuilding myself from the ground up. Waking up was hard. Getting to my desk to write was hard. Taking care of my body was hard. Remembering the point of it all was hard.
“If you’re trying to get home and the bus keeps passing you up because you’re in a wheelchair, you have to scream out.”
When I walk into a room, most people see me as confident and ready to take on the world. As an engineer in the aerospace industry, that’s the persona I would like them to see. But in reality, I’m most likely experiencing a serious level of anxiety stimulated by my invisible disability.
Works of art create a picture of activism and resilience, and reenforce the strength of black culture across generations.
Kerry Washington on Beyoncé, Ta-Nehisi Coates on Kendrick Lamar, Oprah Winfrey on Toni Morrison, Issa Rae on ‘Scandal,’ and 31 other prominent black artists on the work that inspires them most.
Model Jillian Mercado is using her platform to open doors for other creatives with disabilities who may otherwise get overlooked in the fashion industry.
The 1960s and ’70s stand as an era of artistic community — of collectives: musicians and writers, artists and architects, photographers and filmmakers listening, arguing and creating with each other. Now they're rediscovering their power.