{"id":12771,"date":"2018-02-26T11:54:34","date_gmt":"2018-02-26T16:54:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/?p=12771"},"modified":"2018-02-26T12:04:10","modified_gmt":"2018-02-26T17:04:10","slug":"black-excellence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/black-excellence\/","title":{"rendered":"This Beautiful Photo Project Celebrates Black Hair and Dismantles Stereotypes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The BlackExcellence: #ALLABOUTHAIR project is about diversifying the fashion and beauty industries through art. In these industries, African Americans have to conform to “standards\u201d that aren’t always easy to achieve especially when it comes to hair. Creating a platform to showcase the next generation of creatives as well as positively representing African-American people is very important not only in the media, but in our own communities as well. In this feature, I asked ten black business owners and creatives to discuss what their hair means to them, and what stereotypes surrounding black hair they wish to dismantle.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Cambry Hicks \/\u00a0@cambryh<\/span><\/a>
\nArtist\/Creative Director<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cOne issue I have is when people think it\u2019s okay to touch your hair without asking, or comparing it to some object that actually has nothing to do with your hair at all. Our hair, skin, or culture is not to be fetishized or belittled for amusement. I created this project to showcase the different styles, textures, and versatility of black hair and I feel that it\u2019s important not only to educate ourselves and non-poc about our hair, but also to assure ourselves that our hair is beautiful in a society that doesn\u2019t always seem to believe that. I want to be able to inspire the young girl who feels she should relax her hair because she feels that\u2019s what society wants, or the young boy who is afraid to embrace his natural texture. But I also want to be able to showcase to non-poc that everyone is beautiful even in their most natural form.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

James Bambu \/ @jamesbambu<\/span><\/a>
\nSinger\/Songwriter<\/h3>\n

\"Black
\n\u201cOne stereotype that has been placed on Black hair is that we enjoy over-the-top hairstyles because we, as a people, are overzealous, overconfident, and boisterous. While this assumption on the average black personality is true for some, there are people in all races and ethnicities with the same type of personality, and then some. What we can do is continue to inform non-blacks that we love an over-the-top hairstyle because natural, black hair is the most versatile type of hair in the human race, and it is to be styled and treated in an artistic, uniquely extravagant way, because naturally (no pun), we’ve been on this wave since the beginning of time. We have so many different textures of hair over the span of the diaspora, that it’s impossible to find a hairstyle we can’t do. So, why would we ever tone it down? As a people, we create masterpieces because we can, and hair, fashion and beauty aren’t excluded.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Halle Cherry \/ @hallecherry<\/span><\/a>
\nContent Creator\/Jewelry Designer<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cIt is said that dark-skinned girls cannot grow long hair, and we are bald headed from using weaves and wigs. If we have ‘good hair’, we must be mixed with something else other than just being black. What makes me stand out is my voice. I like to use my platform to bring awareness to racism and colorism in the fashion industry.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Noah Lovechild \/ @ilovemcchiiicken<\/span><\/a>
\nModel\/Rapper<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI feel that people think if dreadlocks aren\u2019t done and twisted, it means that they\u2019re unkempt and dirty. I think that we can change this idea by showing the cleaning process that goes into taking care of locs.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Taylor Williams \/\u00a0@taydatottts<\/span><\/a>
\nStudent\/Model<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI take on different hats of trade all the time. I enjoy coding, prepping and planning shoots, modeling, and practicing photography. Learning everything I can keeps me going. People think that weave is for ‘ratchet’, low-income people when in reality weave is not cheap nor is the services that go along with it. In my honest opinion, people\u2019s opinions of us haven\u2019t changed much since the beginning of time. We just gotta keep doing us and let the opinions of the world not matter so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Jera Irwin \/\u00a0@jerairwin<\/span><\/a>
\nDesigner\/Stylist\/Model<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest stereotype I\u2019ve noticed has been that black hair is seen as unprofessional. Our hair has always been sought after by non-poc but never really appreciated on us. Everybody wants to be black without really wanting to be black. We can continue to change these incorrect stereotypes by proving them wrong as we\u2019ve always done.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Alexis Cottrell \/\u00a0@t.r.e.l.l._kreations<\/span><\/a>
\nDesigner\/Student<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI think a big misconception that has been put on the shoulders of African-American women is that if you wear a weave or a wig, you\u2019re trying to please someone else or you want to be accepted by society. Many women want to be versatile and change the color, length, or style of their hair without doing it to their own. It\u2019s also a form of expression for many black women and it also has great benefits. The only way to change this misconception is to continue being ourselves and eventually the rest of the world will follow.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Edrece Stansberry \/\u00a0@edrecestansberry<\/span><\/a>
\nPhotographer\/Content Strategist<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cGrowing up I lived in a predominantly Caucasian area. A stereotype I would always hear was that African-American people all had ‘nappy hair.’ I think this assumption can be changed by showing the versatility of our hair and to feel beautiful in our own skin and taking care of the hair we\u2019re blessed to have.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ella Wonka \/\u00a0@ellawonka<\/span><\/a>
\nMakeup Artist<\/h3>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cA misconception that I think has been placed on black hair is that it\u2019s not beautiful. I believe we can change these stereotypes by advertising black hair in the same way and just as much as non-black hair is advertised.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Crim Pharen \/\u00a0@crim.del.la<\/span><\/a>
\nModel<\/h3>\n

\"Black
\n\u201cGrowing up my grandma used to tell me to cut my hair so I would stop looking like a ‘wild man.’ This still affects me to this day. Some people think that men having long hair is ‘feminine’ or not typical to what a man should look like. Being a man isn\u2019t defined by your hair or any physical factor. I think the biggest thing is challenging and changing beliefs similar to these in the future to make sure that ignorance and self hate doesn\u2019t steep into the next generation.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Editorial Team:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Creative Director: Cambry H \/ @cambryh<\/span><\/a><\/strong>
\nMakeup: Ella Wonka \/ @ellawonka<\/span><\/strong><\/a>
\nPhotographer: Edrece Stansberry \/ @edrecestansberry<\/span><\/strong><\/a>
\nGraphic Design: Kelsey Martin \/ @ogkillakels<\/span><\/strong><\/a>
\nStylist: Brea Pipkins \/ @littlebreathatcould<\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

Join the Posture community and become an official member<\/span><\/strong><\/a>! Membership includes our special annual print edition<\/strong> ($20 value), free and\/or discounted entry to all Posture events<\/strong> in NYC (including upcoming mixers, panel discussions, and networking opportunities), special offers<\/strong> from our partners, personal updates<\/strong> from the Posture team, and more<\/strong>. Learn more here<\/span><\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The BlackExcellence: #ALLABOUTHAIR project is about diversifying the fashion and beauty industries through art. In these industries, African Americans have to conform to “standards\u201d that aren’t always easy to achieve especially when it comes to hair. Creating a platform to showcase the next generation of creatives as well as positively representing African-American people is very\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":58,"featured_media":12792,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2065],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[4345,4341,3025,4335,4347,4353,4360,2196,4336,3487,4362,4368,4366,2205,4352,4351,4331,4367,4346,4349],"class_list":["post-12771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Cambry-Hicks-Black-Excellence.jpg?fit=2000%2C1212","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6QBV8-3jZ","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/58"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12771"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12799,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12771\/revisions\/12799"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12792"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12771"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/posturemag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=12771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}