Designer Taofeek Abijako on His New Exhibit Exploring Black Vulnerability HEAD TOPICS

Designer Taofeek Abijako on His New Exhibit Exploring Black Vulnerability

10/21/2022 12:23:00 PM

In Moonlight We Turn Blue is on view in New York City this weekend

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Vogue Runway

Designer Taofeek Abijako's new exhibit 'In Moonlight We Turn Blue,' is on view in New York City this weekend. In Moonlight We Turn Blue is on view in New York City this weekend .When New York Fashion Week rolled around in September, Head of State designer Taofeek Abijako wasn’t feeling ready to stage a whole new fashion show. “I needed time to breathe, and for audiences to processmy last collection[Homecoming],” says Abijako, who launched his brand fresh out of high school in 2016. But that’s not to say the Nigerian-born, Brooklyn-based designer wasn’t feeling inspired: Instead, he began work on a special new art exhibition, which will be on view this weekend in New York City. “I’ve always wanted to do an exhibition,” Abijako says. “I love the idea of showing one collection a year, and then showing exhibitions set around a specific narrative.” Read more:
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Liz Truss has been outlasted by a lettuce in a British tabloid live stream contest. CNN's Anna Stewart reports. Read more >> New Book Explores Perspectives of Black Voters Disillusioned With Democratic PartyBlack Americans have historically been the most reliable voting block for the Democratic Party for decades. But in her book, “Black Skinhead: Reflections on Blackness and Our Political Future,” Chicago native and Harvard research director Brandi Collins-Dexter says the picture is much more nuanced. The Top Bridal Trends for Fall 2023 Include Y2K References and Full Editorial LooksBridal designers are pushing themselves out of time-honored boundaries to introduce new and surprising elements. SELF November Book Club: How One Athlete’s Fury Went ViralRead an exclusive excerpt from AlisonMDesir's new book, “Running While Black.” Camille A. Brown’s Latest Dance Challenge? 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October 19, 2022 10:13 pm Black Americans have historically been the most reliable voting block for the Democratic Party for decades.Well, thank you to the of 2022, because the super-sized nuptials — and overwhelming excitement to celebrate with much-missed family and friends — have opened up a wealth of opportunity for fashion in the Fall 2023 bridal collections, which were unveiled in New York last week.@selfmagazine on Instagram so you can tune in for a live Q&A with author Alison Désir on Wednesday, November 16 at 11 am ET. When New York Fashion Week rolled around in September, Head of State designer Taofeek Abijako wasn’t feeling ready to stage a whole new fashion show. “I needed time to breathe, and for audiences to process my last collection [Homecoming],” says Abijako, who launched his brand fresh out of high school in 2016. Thanks to our sponsors: Through interviews with voters across the country, she explores the perspectives of Black voters who are disillusioned with the Democratic Party — and why she says all political parties need to pay attention. But that’s not to say the Nigerian-born, Brooklyn-based designer wasn’t feeling inspired: Instead, he began work on a special new art exhibition, which will be on view this weekend in New York City. Ahead, click through galleries showcasing the top 11 wedding fashion trends of the season. “I’ve always wanted to do an exhibition,” Abijako says.” For eight years, the Obamas had painted a striking picture of the Black American Dream— an idyllic representation of Black success combined with political and cultural power. “I love the idea of showing one collection a year, and then showing exhibitions set around a specific narrative. The only thing that mattered to me was my son—his health, his safety, his future. ” In collaboration with Paul Hill—the founder of Strada, a Gen Z-centered art gallery and online marketplace—Head of State will present “In Moonlight We Turn Blue,” running from October 21st through the 23rd. The Obamas’ message was that the American Dream is for all of us; we just need the audacity, grit, and intellect to reach for it. The showcase explores Black vulnerability; Hill and Abijako were inspired by a quote from one of their favorite films, Moonlight , “In moonlight, Black boys look blue.” Abijako says, “If you look at the meaning of what that means, it means that in private spaces, after dark, there’s a level of freedom for Black boys—being able to be vulnerable without any prejudice or any judgment. New doors were open for Black people, and anyone who had been implicitly and explicitly told that they could not make it to the White House because they didn’t look the part. We wanted to spotlight artists who explore vulnerability not only in their work, but in the spaces they exist in.” Photo: Courtesy of Head of State The exhibit, curated by Hill, features Abijako’s designs from his recent Homecoming collection, as well as the Met Gala looks that he designed for Evan Mock and Danai Gurira this year. That you get what you earn. He’d reached out a few months prior to invite me to sit on a panel at the Olympic Marathon Trials, an invitation that told me he knew who I was, and on some level understood the importance of having a Black woman on a panel about women’s running. “I’m also showing a brand new suiting look that’s going to be a part of my next collection,” says Abijako. “I wanted to show that, yes, I started with making T-shirts, hoodies, and sweatpants—but we can do couture shit, too. That the public and private systems that shape our everyday lives aren’t broken.” In addition to his own pieces, the exhibit will also display works—ranging from textiles to sculptures—by artists such as Ambrose Rhapsody Murray, Armani Howard and Malaika Temba, and Joshua Adokuru. Hill wanted to showcase an assortment of Black artists from different regions—as far apart as Nigeria and the southern U. Here’s where they start to lose me a bit.S. I asked the publication to bring attention to Ahmaud’s death with the hashtag #IRunWithMaud, and to publish an article about the unique and justified fears Black runners, Indigenous runners, and other runners of color have; how our safety is compromised by white supremacy and the lack of justice we receive from the legal system. —all of whom explore themes of identity. The success she had achieved by working within the system was still out of reach for a lot of Black Americans. “We were thinking about geographical identity and Blackness, and what that means as an artist,” says Paul. “We chose artworks that have a blue component to them, but that also work well with Taofeek’s designs. But, in reality, everything was not fine, and nothing showed this quite as starkly as the election of Donald Trump as Barack Obama’s successor.” Taofeek Abijako Photo: Courtesy of Head of State On October 22, there will be a special panel discussion between Abijako, Hill, and moderator Antoine Gregory where they hope to inspire young Black people to pursue their artistic visions and to create without boundaries. “One of the most important things I want to carry across the panel is for young kids—especially young Black kids—to know that we belong in these spaces,” says Abijako. How had this happened? Who had voted for Trump? How had such a seemingly seismic shift occurred overnight? But for those who had been paying attention, there had been warning signs that the Obamas’ version of the American Dream wasn’t working for everyone. Former elite runner and national champion Lauren Fleshman had reposted my post and tagged other running and outdoor publications—Women’s Running, LetsRun. “There’s so much pressure, especially in this digital age, for artists to craft perfection; but we want to write the rules of whatever industry we’re in.” Abijako even has future plans to disrupt the retail space soon, too: He says he’s working on launching NeuSette with cofounder Dugan Zier, a new retail platform dedicated to supporting up-and-coming brands. For many, President Obama’s vision had been more illusion than reality all along. “We want to explore what a retail space could possibly look like in a new age,” says Abijako. “I want it to be a gallery. They haunted my dreams, telling a different tale about Black politics and Black America, one that countered white America’s long-held assumption that Black voters will always vote Democrat—and even that the Democratic Party is the best bet for Black Americans. Yes, we'll be selling clothes, but it’ll also be a safe space for our favorite artists to show. Why had it taken my post to get the larger running community fired up about the murder of a Black man? Where had they been? Don’t these same people read the New York Times? Two days later, runners across the country took to the streets to run 2. We’re not trying to follow tradition—we’re trying to push boundaries. In Kanye’s own journey, I found the perfect allegory to tell the story of how the once unshakable Black Democratic voting bloc has become increasingly fractured.” Most Popular .