Introduction

As a black person with uniformly brilliant black hair personality, I was stunned by my everyday experiences of having natural and indifferently tangled curls. The Afro-textured hairs have diverse characters in comparison to those with non-black hairs. By description black curls have never ever been altered by chemical straighteners or anything applied to it. Though treatments like these are controversial in the African communities, everyone’s hair journey is different and their own. Black hairs differs and some black people have naturally straight hair as well but the hair characters is the same. In terms of natural black hair, it usually ranges from wavy to kinky-coils, with a wide range of variation between the two.

 

Concept

With that motivation as an individual, there were several intentions to further discuss and embrace the naturalness of African locks. One of the best aspects of natural hair is being able to enjoy a huge variety of styles such as dreadlocks, twists, braids and cornrows, Afro, and Bantu knots. As an exercise of expression, there has always been the task of waking up to a head of hair that has endless possibilities. There are the options of braids, twists, straightening, adding colorful scarves, and jewelry embellishments to mention the few styling alternatives. Many African have hair that is lightweight and huge, making it perfect for sculpting and molding into unique shapes and styles.

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The second aspect is the bond it create as a fashion statement in the black community. Adult black women continue bonding by helping to style one another’s hair or sharing secrets of the perfect braiding techniques. Separated from the chaotic outside world, in these attentive moments, black women give their attention and affection through combs and cornrows. Even for black men, barbershop visits are as much of a place for company as getting the perfect cut, showing how unifying hair has been throughout black history. The third aspect being tradition. Black hair has already been a catalyst for passing down cultural information, inspiring creation, and cementing identities. It carries more than traditions from all ethnic groups. Cultural identities with strong customs attached to hair demonstrate different roles played by such communities.

The fourth aspect is that black hair styling represents freedom and value. During slavery, they were made to feel less than human. When slavery was abolished, black curls styles were fully and freely embraced and presentation has kept its significance within African culture. The last aspect is that, Afros are statement of pride. The versatility of black hair is so great that it has even been used as symbols of political and religious affiliation... Members of the Rastafarian religion are known for growing and embracing their hair into dreadlocks, although today most African with locks are not Rastafarian.

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Historically, there is no black Identity without black hair, and there is no black hair without history, creating the role of black identity through hairs. Black hairs were used as a ‘justification’ for the enslavement of Africans between the 16th to the 19th centuries. So many of the stereotypes and ideas that we believe about black people were engineered during the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.

My overall concept is to embrace the character of natural black hairs within the African communities by overlooking all its racial and unfair stereotypes of using chemicals or choosing to be plain natural. Without the aid of chemical treatments, it’s usually called the beginning of natural hair journey. Black people have been on a collective hair journey since being introduced to chemical treatments. There is no wrong hair style. For a lot of people, hair is one of the most important factors of their identity. And when it comes to black hair, things are often complicated. From weaves and wigs, to afros, to cornrows and braids - black hair style can be an obstacle to understand and embracing.

 

Methodology

On my visual and theoretical methodology, I have considered the technology and alternative forms. Relief Printmaking is more traditional. I will be engaging less with technological effects. Apart from photos and photocopying as reference of my theme, I will be exploring more on assemblage installation with different and unusual surfaces such as expired Zimbabwean currency and fabric. My main visual communication will be social media posts and websites. The exploring of mixed media and alternative conventions is more interesting than the final work. It gives one the drive of a process to understand what works and what doesn’t. I will dwell more in mixing the surfaces with different types of black ink forms, pigments such as ashes/charcoal, and dyes because they can be easily outsourced.

 

Researched artist

One female artist who drives my inspiration is Latoya Hobbs, by redefining and informing others of their black identity. She engages the black hair Identity by using more of female models by intersecting race, beauty, fashion of African descent. She tackles the ongoing dialog about the Black Female Body in hopes to produce a more balanced perception of Black beauty that dismantles normal stereotypes.  The act of cutting away from my matrix (the surface of the wood or linoleum block) to shape an image is synonymous with the way one has to cut away negative ideologies imposed on them by others to expose or embrace their true selves.  In this same sense, Black women have had to cut away the negative stereotypes imposed on them by external forces to express their true identity. In the above artwork, the artist discovers the intersection of race, beauty and black identity among women of African descent.

                

Conclusion

I have considered to explore charcoal and printmaking inks. All of them are traditional mediums and they are predominantly darker in colour which I find so fascinating and making a very bold statement when using them. The mediums relate to the social challenges we face as people of colour on our daily lives. I will be creating some printmaking and mixed medium drawings displayed as installation.

 

Bibliography:

• Michael Akuupa 2015 ‘Kavango Cultural Identity in Postcolonial Namibia (p-111-136)

• https://bakerartist.org/portfolios/latoya-hobbs

• Toyin Falola: 2003 ‘The Power of African Cultures’ (p-368)

• Patrick T.H.M. Janssen:2019 ‘Cultural identity’.