George
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the scornful response to Kanye West's recent pronouncements on architecture is part of the "long history of making fun of black people" in America, according to an African-American design student organisation.
"There's a long history in the United States of making fun of black people that actually make it," said Héctor Tarrido-Picart, co-president of the African American Student Union (AASU) at Harvard Graduate School of Design.
He told Dezeen: "We read it as him being mocked for being an ambitious black man."
Tarrido-Picart made the comments after his organisation spent two hours discussing the lack of black representation in architecture with rap star West, who visited Harvard Graduate School of Design last week and gave an impromptu speech to students. "I really do believe that the world can be saved through design," said West in the address.
The speech was the latest in a series of pronouncements on architecture and design by West, who has long been interested in the subjects but has recently started to engage with leading creatives, commissioning graphic artist Peter Saville to design a logo for him and hiring architects Office for Metropolitan Architecture to design a temporary cinema.
West also spoke of his passion for design in a recent interview with The New York Times in June and during an interview with BBC Radio 1 in September, in which he spoke of "going to the Louvre, going to furniture exhibits and understanding that, trying to open up and do interviews with this, learning more about architecture".
However West also expressed frustration at the opposition he has faced: "Taking one thousand meetings, attempting to get backing to do clothing and different things like that. Like, getting no headway whatsoever."
Tarrido-Picart believes the ridicule and resistance is due to the "remnants of the racist society that we have grown up in," which prevent African-Americans crossing over into "higher realms of culture" such as art, design and architecture.
He pointed to figures from the American Institute of Architects showing that only one percent of registered US architects are African-American, despite making up over 12 percent of the total population.
"Why [does] racism still exist in an era where Obama is president and cultural figures like Jay Z and Kanye West create culture," asked Tarrido-Picart. "But when it comes to trying to expand their creativity to other fields, [they] run into walls that could not be better described than remnants of the racist society that we have grown up in?"
West visited Harvard Graduate School of Design while in Boston for a concert, following an invitation from the AASU, who invited the star to meet them following West's BBC Radio 1 interview.
"I have reached the glass ceiling - as a creative person, as a celebrity," West said in the interview, adding: "When I say that it means I want to do product. I am a product person. Not just clothing but water bottle design, architecture, everything that you could think about. And I've been at it for 10 years, and I look around and I say, 'Hey wait a second - there's no one around here in this space that looks like me'."
Kanye West at Harvard Instagram photo by dashamikic
Kanye West at Harvard Graduate School of Design (photo by dashamikic). Main inmage by joseramonsierra
Tarrido-Picart said: "We were struck first by the depth of knowledge that Kanye West actually had on architecture and second, because of the real question that he raised, which is [that] when you're a very clearly a very talented and creative person and you choose to expand that creativity to new fields, you run into a wall. And that wall isn't a wall that's revolving around your creativity but a wall that's revolving around the colour of your skin."He added: "That resonated a lot with us and we decided to send out a personal letter to Kanye West in which we expressed the same concerns and reverberated and resonated with what he was saying in that interview."
"He agreed with us in terms of us in identifying with the fact that he was a very creative person and wanted to start creativity in the realm of design and architecture, and he thought that the fact that the colour of our skin plays a very limiting factor," said Tarrido-Picart. "It's not just about under-representation but also an active question that racism is very much alive in the United States."
"He questioned us about what culture is and trying to surpass that by going into higher realms of culture, so art, design, architecture," he continued. "He sees that as the natural next step."
The AASU has signed a non-disclosure agreement with West so cannot reveal the precise nature of their discussions with the star, but it is understood that they agreed to work together to raise awareness of, and tackle, the under-representation of minorities in American architecture.
"We're going to try and maintain an active discussion with Kanye," Tarrido-Picart said. "He expressed a deep interest in this being something that is not just short term, but actually long term in terms of actually shaping the future of landscape of what design and culture is going to be, not only in the United States but around the world."
He added: "What we hope to do is to raise the question that Kanye has [raised in a] very serious manner in our industry."
Below is a statement issued by the AASU following its meeting with West:
Why the African American Student Union met with Kanye West at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design
This past summer, members of the Harvard University Graduate School of Design’s African American Student Union (AASU) were stirred by a series of interviews with Kanye West referencing his growing interest in design.
Mr. West’s very public frustration with the limits experienced by Black designers and artists energized and excited the group, prompting a series of internal conversations. Framing these discussions was the fact that only 1% of licensed architects in the United States identifies as being African-American. We discussed how this severe under-representation of African Americans in producing the built environment which have a range of effects upon our collective lives.
Subsequent to these discussions, the AASU decided to reach out to Mr. West.
We were tremendously excited that Mr. West, well-aware of these challenges, desired to meet us as well. This Sunday, he met with the AASU privately to discuss how we might pursue meaningful change together. Mr. West is an artist at the center of this generation’s cultural production and shares in our group’s optimism that transdisciplinary design practice can - as he stated Sunday - impact the world in positive ways. One of these ways is by encouraging the development and legitimacy of African American designers in their professional and academic practices. We are fortunate that the GSD has provided us with a platform in which this dialogue can occur.
We look forward to continuing this conversation with Mr. West, and through these efforts, we aim to catalyse a more inclusive design culture.
Sincerely,
The Harvard University Graduate School of Design - African American Student Union
- albums0
as in Whore-Hey?
- ZOOP0
- ZOOP0
- ZOOP0
- Frosty_spl0
They don't take him seriously because he is a fucking clown, not because of his race. I'm sure that's why he left Nike, because they wouldn't give him his own Jordan sized product line and Adidas will.
- boobs0
"I have reached the glass ceiling - as a creative person, as a celebrity," West said in the interview, adding: "When I say that it means I want to do product. I am a product person. Not just clothing but water bottle design, architecture, everything that you could think about. And I've been at it for 10 years, and I look around and I say, 'Hey wait a second - there's no one around here in this space that looks like me'."
What about P Diddy? He's been selling clothes for ages. So has Russell Simmons. And, you know, he has a lot of money. He could build himself a house and get into architecture like that--which is how Richard Meier and Philip Johnson got started. Near as I can tell, they don't let any architects start off making a huge office building.
You gotta fact-check these bitches.
- chossy0
I think this image and this image alone can help him work out why he isn't getting any traction in the design industry.
- GeorgesIV0
* paging son
- sureshot0
very racist.
- Continuity0
"But when it comes to trying to expand their creativity to other fields, [they] run into walls that could not be better described than remnants of the racist society that we have grown up in?"
That is such complete bollocks, I'm sorry. The moment he sits down, launches Photoshop, Illustrator or AutoCAD, designs something and puts it out there, then I'll take him seriously. Until then, it's him talking out his arse, as usual.
As boobs pointed out, other black Americans have branched out of their own creative fields, and into others. Case in point: all these rappers who've gone on to also have acting careers.
If West is serious about design, I'm sure Spike Lee's design agency will be more than happy to give him some film poster spec work to do.
- GeorgesIV0
Ivan Fernando: I want to thank you for agreeing to this interview. It’s a pleasure to be able to talk to an esteemed academic of your calibre and impressive credentials.
Prof. Ignatiev: Thank you. I am happy to talk with you today.
Ivan Fernando: I understand that a few people objected to your advice to your white male students on your last day of teaching. Why do you think that is?
Prof. Ignatiev: I chalk it all up to white supremacist attitudes. The goal of destroying the white race is simply so desirable, it boggles the mind trying to understand how anyone could possibly object to it. Those who object to my advice, knowingly or perhaps unknowingly, are themselves white supremacists. They wish to go on oppressing and exploiting other races and maintaining their own privileged positions of power. That is the conscious and sometimes subconscious motivation of all of my critics. That is why they object to destroying the cancer of humanity known as the white race. That ugly disease, which dares to call itself a people and a culture.
Ivan Fernando: All whites, or just white males should commit suicide?
Prof. Ignatiev: Obviously, all whites need to be destroyed, but why not start with white males? They are behind most of history’s greatest atrocities. Besides, some of the brothers like to bang white women. Eventually white women can breed out, but my feeling is that if you are a white male, you should kill yourself now. If you are a thoughtful person, with a social consciousness who considers himself white, you will consider suicide. It’s the right thing to do. Let me read you an e-mail that I received today from a xenophobic white-supremacist.
“I’m not a racist, in fact I am an avowed anti-racist, I just think calling for all white males to kill themselves is extreme. When you say that every white person is bad or advocate violence against them, it sounds almost as though you are becoming a kind of racist yourself. You say it is good for everyone to be proud of their culture. Blacks, Mexicans and everyone else. Why should whites be the only exception? For the sake of argument, supposing whites have wronged many other races historically. Should we punish people today for their ancestor’s sins? Today minorities have affirmative action and generous social welfare programs to protect them. Can we really say that most whites are racist now or that the government is? Should Blacks who descend from Blacks who owned or sold slaves feel guilty and be punished for ancestral wrongs?”
Ivan Fernando: Wow. (laughter)
Prof. Ignatiev: I know, mind boggling. What an absurd and irrational line of reasoning. They just throw logic out the window entirely. It’s impossible to dialogue with these people. Notice the blind and irrational hatred behind every word! No one has committed violence, genocide and dispossession on the level of white males. The whole purpose of white male culture is to perpetuate their privileged status and continue their oppression of non-whites. Whites don’t have a culture like other races in which traditions and customs are preserved as an expression of a common identity. White culture is an entirely economic and social culture which is about shutting out other people deemed “non-white” as a means of preventing their social and economic advancement! In other words all of ‘white culture’ so-called, stems from hatred of the other, unlike other ethnicities which do have cultures. White people are a disease, they are parasites! They don’t deserve to live!
Ivan Fernando: Yes, Absolutely, could you give us some examples though for our readers, regarding the racist nature of white culture.
Prof. Ignatiev: Columbus Day, whites literally celebrate the genocide of non-whites, delighting in it. Thanksgiving Day. Whites honour the Pilgrims who gave Native Americans blankets deliberately infected with small pox to kill their babies. Yeah, it is about being thankful, thankful that whites butchered most Native Americans so they could steal their land and establish a racist society based on white male privilege! Christmas is also racist. Should I go on?
Ivan Fernando: Please do.
Prof. Ignatiev: The idea of celebrating the birth of a middle eastern Semite, yet portraying him as a Nordic white person in visual art is not only racist, but obscene and Anti-Semitic! Of course there is Santa Claus as well. Who is he? A bearded old white man! He lives at the North Pole, it doesn’t get whiter than that! Who works for Santa? Of course elves, diminutive, perhaps slightly brown people, with pointed ears who have been enslaved by a privileged white male. Christmas and white culture disgust me. I hate this time of year so much. I hate going outside and seeing Christmas trees or Christmas lights. They should be banned! A Christmas tree is just one notch above a burning cross in my opinion!
Ivan Fernando: What do you suggest that people do for the holidays. Especially, minority families who may feel pressured to celebrate Christmas, or other European racist holidays? Is there an alternative?
Prof Ignatiev: A great Black Professor in the 60′s came up with Kwanza, a way to celebrate African heritage. Hopefully a Mexican-American equivalent will soon be developed as another Christmas alternative.
Ivan Fernando: I am sorry, but we are starting to run low on time. Let me ask you, have you suffered any attacks personally, or received any threats for your advice to your students during your final class?
Prof. Ignatiev: (laughter) No. I haven’t. In fact all the responses I have received, except for a few e-mails have been positive. I feel vindicated. Perhaps we are finally coming to an awareness in this country that the cancer known as the white race must be obliterated. Especially in the form of white males. Obama is president, and I think there is an excellent chance that we will never have a white male president again. I think we are witnessing the breaking of the back of the white male power structure. We will still have residual white males that must be dealt with, but I am confident that we’ve won. Eventually, I would like to put white males in concentration camps and work them to death just like they’ve done to everyone else. When they are all dead we can throw a party and dance around their corpses!
Ivan Fernando: I certainly hope so. I hope you are right. If so it is the dawning of a new era of peace and progress. I apologize Professor, but we are out of time now. Thank you again, and it was a pleasure speaking with you.
Prof Ignatiev. The pleasure was mine. Thank you Ivan. I love Diversity Chronicle by the way, I recommended it to all my students. Keep up the good work!
Ivan Fernando: You are very kind Prof. Ignatiev. Thank you again and Good night.
Prof. Ignatiev: Good Night."
- GeorgesIV0
London (CNN) -- The girls strutting down the runway in The Savoy Hotel share many features - all are long-limbed, fine-boned and have glowing complexions. A silent army marching to the heavy music, past the front row A-listers peering out from behind their dark glasses.
But one girl is different: the only one with black skin in a battalion of white faces. Nadja is one of the few black models lucky enough to make this year's cut for London Fashion Week.
The lack of racial diversity in the fashion industry is a serious issue that needs to be tackled, according to supermodels Naomi Campbell and Iman, who this month launched a campaign to raise awareness of racism in the industry.
"The absence of people of color on the runways and photography reinforces to our young girls that they're not beautiful enough, that they're not acceptable enough," said Iman, model and wife of David Bowie, to CNN.
"The diversity that we live in, the world that we live in, is not what is shown on the runway. That to me is the concern. It's a bigger issue at large than just about runway and models."
Campbell and Iman, in a campaign spearheaded by former model agent Bethann Hardison, have written to the major fashion councils of New York, London, Milan and Paris calling for an end to racism.
The "Diversity Coalition," as the trio has named itself, identifies the fashion houses which "consistently use one or no models of color" in their runway shows - including Marc Jacobs, Victoria Beckham, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan and Rodarte. "No matter the intention," their letter says, "the result is racism."
CNN reached out to each of those companies for comment, but has received no response.
Casting the 'imperfect model' at Fashion Week
Runways getting whiter
Campbell says the situation for black models has become worse - not better - since her debut.
"When I started modeling in '86 there was Asians, blacks, whites, Indians, Chinese. It was very diverse," Campbell told CNN. "It's not like that today. It's heart-breaking to me that we're in 2013 and we're sitting here talking about this. But it has to be done and people need to know."
The numbers speak for themselves.
At New York Fashion week in February, only 6% of designs were shown on black models, according to statistics compiled by blog Jezebel. The vast majority of runway spots (82.7%) went to white models, with a growing proportion of Asian girls (9.1%).
In London, renowned model agent Carole White, who managed Campbell's career for 17 years, says designers here also tend towards white models for their shows.
"I think clients have this perception that black girls do not sell products, which goes way back to the 50's. I think it's engrained in every magazine editor. There are more products for blonde and blue-eyed girls. Everything is geared to that."
White has only 13 black models on her books, out of the 300 or so girls she manages. She says the bar is set much higher for black models and they have to be flawless to get booked, so she cannot afford to take them on.
"We're more discerning about the type of black girl we take, because we know they have to be stunningly beautiful, have an incredible body. "
"They have to be actually perfect" she says, whereas white girls, can be more quirky-looking.
Race and fashion: Still an issue?
Token diversity
Back at The Savoy Hotel, Nadja is walking for Temperley London as one of only three non-white models in the cast. She feels lucky to get work, but says it's harder for black models compared to their white peers.
"When I come to a show the hairdressers are not really ready for a black girl, for black hair. The makeup artists, they don't know how to do black skin. I can feel it sometimes - to be a black girl it's a bit tougher than for a white girl or a European girl."
Nadja says she sometimes feels like the token black girl in a show.
"I would love to be booked for shows ... because I am me - for my personality, for the person, for the model I am and not because I will be the only black girl for the show."
This tokenistic attitude towards diversity is something Campbell, Iman and Hardison are trying to tackle. But designers complain that they don't have enough good black models to choose from.
"There are not enough models coming to castings that are black," designer Alice Temperley told CNN. "That's basically not having the choice."
Lasting change
Iman also criticizes casting directors and stylists for their part in providing too few black models to designers. She says it's an attitude that has to change.
"I don't want to ever hear again a young model telling me that [casting directors] have said to her: 'We are not seeing black models this season.' To me that's offensive. To me that's a racist remark."
The Diversity Coalition hopes that by getting the conversation started and raising awareness of the lack of black models, they will force out discrimination from all corners of the industry.
Campbell says they'll keep speaking out until they see real change that lasts from season to season.
"We don't want this to be a trend. We want this to last."
In this famously fickle industry, these three women have a fight on their hands.
oh wow...his last name means he's really black right...i mean knight=night=black= FUCK GEORGES...lmao
- GeorgesIV0
I can imagine myself walking in the sunset, holding hands and smiling. Hearing the crash of the waves as a gentle breeze flows through my body and hair. Walking miles and miles, while the moon rises high into the sky. The whole world is asleep, but I am the only one living a dream. The graceful peace, settling into my heart. For once I actually feel alive. This is what it should feel like. This is how you're supposed to live. A longing sense of comfort. And as we lay on the sand staring into the night sky, the stars become brighter and multiply. Soon enough, the dark sky is brightened by each star's shine. We close our eyes, hand in hand and lie in a moment of silence when all we can hear in the background is the calm waves alining upon the shore and the light night breeze. We make a wish and lie together in a few more moments, appreciating eachother for everything we are. We then both open our eyes to the diamond-like sky, staring for a brief moment as we then both turn to eachother, lying on our sides. I am looking into your eyes and you are looking into mine. I look at every inch of your body, then interlocking my eyes into yours once again. I inhale as you take a deep breath. I then begin to speak in a soft whisper. I tell you this is everything. You are all I've wanted. You were in all my dreams. You love me the way I wanted. You care for me like no one else has. I appreciate everything you've ever done for me, everything you've spent on me, everything you've said to me and everything you've felt for me. You are the only one I want. I am in love with you. Please keep me forever. Locked away in the eternity of time. You are different. You give me ideas. Thoughts, feelings, unlived visions of places I've never been or never knew existed, walking beside you in every one. It may be simple to state how I feel about you and say I love you a thousand times, but it is all too complex to fully give you the understanding of the meaning of the immense amount of love and appreciation I have for you. I tell you you're the one. You're everything anyone could ever ask for. I am thankful to have you in my life. I love you. I then pause and look into your eyes. You don't say anything. You can see the moon reflecting onto the calm ocean. A warm chilling feeling flows throughout my body as I watch you begin to slowly close your eyes and bring your body closer to me. Your face inching towards mine. As I close my eyes, I take one deep breath, tasting the chilled ocean air. I slowly bring myself closer to you, as you put your arms around me. I can feel your body heat and your soft hands touching my body. Our lips then touch. We kiss. Passionate, gentle, everlasting. This one kiss expresses all my thoughts, feelings, emotions and every little detail of every little existing idea, dream, form of all the words and feelings that I've developed for you. That moment, it was all unveiled. We lied there for minutes, sharing this dream we both created together. As we slowly move our faces away, I lay my head upon your shoulder and your arms around my body. The night had never seemed so bright and beautiful up until this day. It's like the world turned and everything completely changed. Everything was clear and I can actually breathe and feel each beat of my heart pound against my chest, as the blood slowly flows through my body. I can feel, hear, touch, taste, see, smell and understand everything, in what now feels like what is heaven. Lifelessly floating on a cloud, feeling fully alive. The feeling of being so unrealistically content and that a perfect life and person can exist is far beyond anything I could have ever perceived. You are my savior and meaning for existance. I thank you for everything you will do and being there, always. We lie, staring into the sky feeling the air get colder as the night becomes later. It doesn't bother me though. My body is filled with a warming sense of completion. Everything I'd dreamed of having is fulfilled, finally. I close my eyes and daydream once again of having and sharing this same exact moment with you. Soon enough the stars slowly fade away as the sky becomes lighter and the light of the sun pierces through the sky, slowly rising as time repeats itself once again. But this time is new. The feeling of being reborn into a life that you feel you've lived every single day. It feels so right. Life is beautiful with you. I appreciate things much more thoroughly. I love you. I always will.
- ZOOP0
