A Black History Moment Brought to You by Living Single

A few days ago, while on Facebook I came across a post that was very interesting, and made a whole lot of sense. A woman named Kiesha Preston, who is an actress, blogger, public speaker and lived experience consultant from Virginia (she wears many hats…like me!!), shared that the clothing used to style Fran Drescher’s character, Fran Fine, for the TV show, “The Nanny” were actually borrowed from the closet of Kim Fields’ character, Regine Hunter, on “Living Single.”

https://www.facebook.com/KieshaNPreston

Now, I’m a huge fan of both Living Single and The Nanny, and as a lover of both TV shows, as well as their fashion pieces, even I was blown away by this information. I have always looked at Living Single as the blueprint of everything on TV, and although I watched “Friends,” my favorite will always be Living Single.

I hope you enjoyed this Black History moment as much as I did!!

Until Next Time!!

Black Art and Black Artists

Hello Everyone,

I watch black documentaries all the time, and because it’s Black History Month, a lot of black movies and documentaries are being shown. Two nights ago, I was watching “Black Art: In the Absence of Light” on HBO Max, and it discussed how there were so many black artists who had not gotten recognition for their work.

https://www.kanopy.com/product/black-art-absence-light

Many artists had not only reflected on their works, but also reflect how some of their works are still unknown. One artist, Faith Ringgold (who I had the pleasure of talking to while in graduate school) discussed her boldness with her artwork, and how she became more of a feminist because of the discrimination she faced from the American public and other well-known black artists. One thing that was said at the beginning of the documentary that is still true to this day is that Black artists have to prove they are artists AND individuals.

This documentary made me think of my career as an artist and a fashion designer/fashion illustrator, and how the discussion and works of Black artists were almost non-existent. I attended a predominately white university with an excellent art department, and I couldn’t help but notice that besides Jean-Michel Basquiat (who I don’t even consider an influential artist, but for some reason, others do), no other black artists and their works were being discussed during lectures. The only reason Basquiat was even discussed was because he worked with Andy Warhol. Luckily, I grew up reading Ebony and Jet Magazine where several articles were written about black artists and their works, as well as watching “Good Times”, where the artworks from Ernie Barnes were routinely shown. When I would bring up different black artists during lecture discussions, the professors and students would look at me as if I was speaking a foreign language. What ticked me off the most was that a lot of black students didn’t even know about black artists. It was even worse in graduate school. Although everyone knew of Andre Leon Talley, no other black artists or fashion designers were discussed. I remember when Stephen Burrows, a world-renowned fashion designer from the 60s and 70s, came to visit and critique our work, I was the only student who knew about him. When it came to my fashion illustrations, I had to change some of the features of my fashion figures and not make them brown-skinned or dark-skinned, basically “white-washing” my figures (I changed some of the features, but I did not change the skin color). Another thing I noticed was that the Caucasian figures were always on display at the school.

As for the documentary, it is a very great documentary, and it shows the works of several artists from different eras. It delves into the creative and political side of black art and black artists, and how in this present day, black artists are still fighting for recognition. As for my career, I’ve been an artist for over 21 years, a fashion designer/fashion illustrator for over 14 years, and a fashion professor for over seven years. I find myself doing a lot of research on different styles of fashion illustration, and I’ve noticed that Caucasian fashion illustrators’ works are always mainstream, except for minority fashion illustrator, Hayden Williams. I honestly feel the reason my work has not gone mainstream is that I’m quick to create black fashion figures. I’ve always felt that black women are the most beautiful and fashionable people in this world, and we are not celebrated enough. I still create original garments and fashion illustrations, and I will continue to do so. I will also continue to celebrate black women, no matter the creative element.

Until Next Time…

The Malcolm X Suit and How it Became a Part of My Black History

Hello Everyone,

So, it is February, which means it is Black History Month. Now usually, I would start with different black fashion designers who have made an impact in the fashion industry, but this year, I want to do things a little differently. So, I just finished watching “Soul of a Nation: X/onerated- The Murder of Malcolm X and 55 Years to Justice” on Hulu, and this specific memory kept coming to me.

It was summer 1992, and Spike Lee’s “Malcolm X” was in theaters. Malcolm X baseball suits were very popular during this time, and you could purchase them from anywhere.

https://webuyblack.com/malcolm-x-black-and-white-baseball-jersey.html

https://webuyblack.com/malcolm-x-color-block-baseball-jersey.html

They were seen on TV, in magazines, on the news, etc.

Jada Pinkett Smith in “A Different World”

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/14003448830748269/

Michael Jordan wearing a Malcolm X baseball hat

http://www.themonarchreview.org/mr/wp-content/uploads/IMG_7072.jpg

There was a summer event going on in my hometown at the local park (formerly Westside Park, now J.L. King Memorial Park) and there were Malcolm X baseball suits everywhere. I begged my mom to get me one of those suits, and when she did, you couldn’t tell me anything! Everything was great until the start of my fourth-grade year. I was at a new school, and there was a new principal. Now, let me give you a historical background about this school. It was one of three schools in our area that was not only founded and named after a local black educator, but it was one of the three schools that black students attended during the Jim Crow era. This information is very important because the new principal was Caucasian.

I didn’t wear my Malcolm X baseball suit on the first day of school, but I knew I was going to wear it during that week. We all went to our classrooms and were greeted by our teacher. My teacher was African-American, and her mother was my head start teacher years ago (Head Start is funded by the federal government and is available free of charge to low-income families who have 3- to 5-year-old children. https://www.theclassroom.com/differences-between-head-start-preschool-7893034.html). She started to teach, and then, a voice came on the intercom. It’s the new principal. She’s greeting everyone and going over the morning announcements. When we thought she was finished, she said, “🔊 Oh, and by the way, STUDENTS CAN NOT WEAR MALCOLM X SUITS!!” I didn’t hear anything else she said after that because I was stuck on the fact that she said loudly over the intercom that we couldn’t wear these suits. There was nothing in the handbook that stated these suits couldn’t be worn so why would she say this? My teacher kind of shrugged it off and continued teaching. When I came home from school, I didn’t think about anything the principal said. Everything was a blur. Before bed, my mom asked if I wanted to wear my Malcolm X baseball suit to school the next day, and I said yes. She ironed it, and I went to bed.

The next day, I wore my Malcolm X baseball suit to school, and everyone looked at me with this worried look on their faces. One of my friends came to me and said, “you really wore your Malcolm X suit to school?” I said yes. When I came into the classroom, my teacher smiled at me, greeted everyone, and started teaching. It was now recess time, and I’m playing outside with my friends. We walked into the building, and all of a sudden, I felt someone forcefully grab my arm. I look, and it was a teacher that I’d never seen before. She was Caucasian and her hair looked like the Jan Brady wig.

https://michaelstvtray.com/2013/05/24/jan-brady-wig/

(please watch the clip. It’s hilarious)

I gave her a look like

She asked me for my name, and I asked for hers so I can report her for forcefully grabbing my arm. She wouldn’t tell me her name, but I have an excellent photographic memory, so I knew how to describe her. She asked for my name again; I tell her, then asked for hers again. Not only did she not tell me her name, but she asked, “Didn’t the principal tell you not to wear Malcolm X suits? I told her that the principal didn’t buy any of my clothing, and it did not state in the handbook that these suits are not supposed to be worn. She then let my arm go, and there was a red mark on my arm. By the time I came into my classroom, my classmates had told my teacher what happened. My teacher questioned me, then asked for the other teacher’s name, and because she never told me, I had to describe her. When I started describing her horrible hair hat, she knew immediately who I was talking about. When I came home, I told my mom what happened, and she was furious. When I told her the principal told us this, she then asked “What does she have against Malcolm X for her not to want any children to wear these suits?!” She then said, “Don’t worry because you will be able to wear that suit.”

The next day, after lunch, the principal gets on the intercom and says, “🔊Students. I want to tell you all that I was wrong for telling you all that you cannot wear Malcolm X suits. I shouldn’t have said that, and I want to apologize to you all. Also, I want to tell you all that you can wear Malcolm X suits.” My teacher and I looked at each other, and she smiled at me. When I came home and told my mom what happened, she said “I know because I had a talk with her about how wrong she was for not allowing you all to wear those suits.” What I did not know until later that day was that my mom went to the school, and schooled the principal on who Malcolm X was, why he was important in Black History, and why she was wrong for saying these suits couldn’t be worn in school. She and the principal had a heated debate, and she found out the reason the principal didn’t want the suits worn at the school was because he was…………….mean to white people! My mom asked if she remembered how mean white people were to everyone else around the time he was alive, and she had nothing to say. So, because of my mom, we were able to wear Malcolm X suits to school again.

Although it has been a long time since I’ve worn a Malcolm X suit, I still have that memory of my mom as the reason that we could wear Malcolm X suits to school when I was in the fourth grade. So, in honor of Black History Month, not only do I want to continue to celebrate and discuss black designers and how black people influenced fashion, but I also want to celebrate my mom and the Malcolm X suit for being a part of my personal black history moment.

Until Next Time…….