Today we’d like to introduce you to Compton Quashie.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I am a Chicago based artists, designer and performer. I grew up in the Southside neighborhood of Hyde Park getting my start as an artist at a young age. Pretty much everyone in my family is an artist of some kind so I was always encouraged to explore my varying creative interests from a young age. I attended the Gallery37 youth arts programs throughout high school and attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) for undergrad receiving my BFA in 2015.
Please tell us about your art.
As a Chicago based artist and fashion designer I’m passionate about exploration, research, and the ways in which my identity as a Queer Non-Binary PoC drives creation. By focusing on cultural histories, gender, popular & material culture, sci-fi narratives, queer clubbing spaces & the rapidly evolving world of street fashion, I transport my audience to imagined futures & impossible worlds. Through the vehicles of fashion and performance the futuristic narratives and garments I create come to life through movement, time, and space.
The ultimate goal of my work is to create the future we all want to live in, a future where everyone is included and provided for. I believe that fashion and all forms of design can lead us in that direction. Design is something that’s shaped by and creates the human experience, everyone exists within it and is influenced by it whether they feel that or not. Good design ideally just makes everything easier and improves quality of life for everyone.
Choosing a creative or artistic path comes with many financial challenges. Any advice for those struggling to focus on their artwork due to financial concerns?
Practice keeping track of your material costs and how much time it takes you to make something. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your community for support and don’t be afraid to collaborate. Some of the biggest and most exciting projects I’ve done have been with groups of peers who pooled their resources in order to create something amazing.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
If you’re also based in Chicago I’ll be selling my fashion designs at Wakandacon August 3-5th (https://wakandacon2018.com), a Black arts and comics convention happening for the first time this year! If you’re located elsewhere you can contact me and view my work on my website of through Instagram.
Contact Info:
- Website: comptonq.com
- Instagram: @compton.q
Image Credit:
@sonnybunni @colectivomultipolar @iamkiam
@pumathurman91
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