Can you share one of your most profound personal experiences that have significantly shaped your artwork?
That will be a collaboration with an incredible queer activist in Amsterdam, Naomie Pieter, founder of BlackPride.nl. I was tired of imagery that represented the black queer community during pride celebrations. So I called Naomie, and asked if they will like to work with me on this portrait project I had in mind, we both had the same thought and started to work on it.
For a few months, I got to meet the most incredible group of queer people and create portraits that represented them, their love, their intimacy, and their joy instead of our trauma.
I felt so fulfilled and joyful with that project, you have no idea!
How does your identity as a queer Afro-Latino come to life in your creations?
It comes as a form of liberation, healing, self-awareness, and the need to express myself through visual fantasy instead of words… A world where I can visually articulate my emotions without judgment or label, because that is the main source of my work, self-exploration of the experiences that make us who we are today.
How do you use visual symbolism and allegories to explore themes of identity and heritage in your work?
I am very fascinated by dream language and its symbolisms, where usually, the message isn’t exactly what you are seeing or experiencing, but the combinations of the “artifacts” you interact with and emotions. For example, dreaming of water in different cultures can symbolize emotions, and the meaning will depend on the state of the water and so on.
So just like in dreams, certain elements in my work can have different meanings depending on its story, and other times it is an element, word, or sounds that trigger an idea.
What, in your view, is the power of storytelling, and how do you harness it in your creations?
The power of storytelling to me is about connection and expression. Despite someone not having the same exact experience, they can connect and get inspired by your story/art.
My work, in many ways, is a recreation of my story, memories, and experiences.
Your work is exhibited in several locations in the Netherlands and around the world. Do you have any memorable reactions from viewers that you can share?
I think that will be when I got my first solo exhibition in 2020 about the time we thought we were getting out of the pandemic. A local channel was filming a documentary about my loctician, Jahel Tan, and her work educating about the care and maintenance of natural afro hair and locs.
In this exhibition I got to meet, and photograph customers of Jahel, and make them into characters in my fantasy realms. Realms that, at the time, we didn’t get to see ourselves in. And being part of that, and seeing their faces as I introduce the work made me very happy.
As a curator, what are some of the challenges and rewards you’ve encountered in the Web3 Digital Art Space?
The reward for me has been able to connect with an astonishing group of talented artists and highlight their brilliance, showing them how beautiful their work looks out of the digital realms. And the challenge, apart from working with creatives, was to try to get the attention of some of these big NFT publications. Publications that at the time, sometimes were more focused on how much money or following an artist has than how much good they might be bringing into the space, and the community they so much love to speak of. But I guess that’s business…
Can you talk about your transition from traditional photography to 3D sculpting and digital fashion design in the Web3 space?
I think that it just flowed naturally. Within photography, I wanted to create more of a composite surrealism/fantasy, sometimes making costumes for it, but it always came with limitations due to subjects, locations, weather, etc.
So when I went into 3D, I felt so liberated, I could do anything I wanted. Knowing photography can be very handy in the 3D space, and is something I am still learning from constantly. And now exploring digital fashion it just feels full circle.
What role does technology like VR sculpting, AR, and AI play in your creative process, and how do you think it has revolutionized the art world?
VR to me feels like playing with clay, it is liberating to be able to create or design within a visual studio where there are no bounds. Perfect for testing ideas. AR is just an incredible tool to visualize those ideas in the irl space and how they might look. And AI for me is a powerful vision board. A tool I can use to create patterns I didn’t even dream of, patterns that I can use to add that extra layer to my designs.
You’ve been working with cutting-edge technologies to create unique garment designs. Could you describe your process in crafting these pieces?
It all starts with a drawing, then I jump into a Moodboard and research (had to learn to use mood boards, very useful for my ADHD creative impulses). My mood boards help me to visualize what I want to experience, the environment, and the textures. When all that is decided, I then go into my 3D tools and start creating which can vary depending on what I want to make.
How did you feel when you were selected to join The SYKY Collective? What does it mean for your artistic journey and what opportunities do you see arising from this platform?
I felt very humble, excited, and hopeful. I love creating costumes and garments, but I never considered myself a “fashion designer”, a good friend and supporter of mine in the web3, Clare Maguire, was actually the one who saw it and inspired me to tap into it. So I applied for it, honestly thinking “I won’t get it” but they believed in my vision and ideas of what fashion means to me and what I want to bring. So the opportunities that come will come from it, we will get to see them through this year-long incubation and I can’t wait to share more.
Can you tell us about your vision for the future of fashion and how you aim to disrupt the industry through technological and creative innovation?
The future of fashion to me is full of storytelling, with digital fashion so many more creatives can now just express their vision and story without limitations. Stories that enrich and inspire us in one way or another. And the way we disrupt the current norms is by creating, expressing, and being true to our vision using all these incredible tools at our disposal to enhance our story.
What can we look forward to seeing next from you in the evolving landscape of contemporary art and digital fashion design?
We have so much coming, new stories, new characters, new designs… however, one of the many lessons I have learned on this web3 space is not to over-promise but to over-delivering. So stay tuned, many updates coming up next.
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