SERIES OF TWO

This work is a hug, it’s an “I see you, I hear you,” it’s permission. Working on this piece, learning the history, both broke my heart several times while the process of creating it put me together again. In the 1900s relaxers were introduced in North America that contained harmful ingredients such as formaldehyde, ammonia, and lye. How has black hair styling been shaped throughout history? Does hair speak and if so, what does it say, what does it mean? From religion, status, spirituality, wealth and power, then: suppression, discrimination, and shame to: appropriation, borrowing and assimilation; it’s just hair, but it’s so much more.