Book Review: The New Black Vanguard
© Tyler Mitchell, Untitled (Hijab Couture), New York, 2019
By Claire Blaha
Equal representation in the fashion industry is a concept that many believe only pertains to the models and the celebrities whose faces are seen in magazines. Diverse individuals are now more celebrated in front of the camera, but what about behind it? Creating images for fashion publications has historically been tackled by white males, with few exceptions. The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion by Antwaun Sargent highlights the work of 15 young black photographers and explores the way in which the rules of fashion photography are being rewritten by them. This book provides a beautiful overview of changes in the fashion photography industry, through a lense of craft and of representation.
© Stephen Tayo, Lagos, Nigeria, 2019, from The New Black Vanguard (Aperture, 2019)
The book begins with an all-encompassing explanation of what the “New Black Vanguard” really is. He discusses how the focus on the physical body and it’s beauty--usually an invisible aspect of fashion photography--drives many modern black photographers in their goal to create new and intriguing images. Instead of always using models for their photographs, many of these photographers captured images of family members and people on the street and their realistic beauty. Tyler Mitchell, the first African American photographer to shoot the cover of the American Vogue, points out that if the same people are casting and creating the art then, essentially, there will never be anything new to see; the boundaries need to be pushed and the rules need to be broken.
© Nadine Ijewere, Untitled, 2018, from The New Black Vanguard (Aperture, 2019)
Sargent believes that the photographers included in the book, as well as many others, are making images that are representative of their experiences as people of color and create a different view of fashion and society. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, supermodels became prominent, and a few of them were black, but the photographs that were taken of them produced a white and Eurocentric portrayal of all women. Nadine Ijewere, a black female photographer who produced a series of studio shots titled “The Misrepresentation of Representation” in 2016, never identified with the models she saw in magazines, so instead of becoming a model herself, she became a photographer so she could control the images she creates.
©Adrienne Raquel In My Bag, New York, 2018, from The New Black Vanguard (Aperture, 2019)
In addition to Mitchell and Ijewere, Sargent highlights photographers such as Micaiah Carter, Namsa Leuba, Renell Medrano, Jamal Nxedlana, Adrienne Raquel, Dana Scruggs, and Stephen Tayo. A personal essay accompanies 10-14 of the photographers’ images. To close the book, Sargent conducts interviews with them in groups of two talking about topics ranging from intergenerational perspective to family inclusion.
© Dana Scruggs, Nyadhour Elevated, Death Valley, California, 2019, from The New Black Vanguard (Aperture, 2019)
With a history of blackface and cultural appropriation within the fashion industry, it’s important to represent the black figure through the eyes of people of color. In “The New Black Vanguard,” Sargent details this importance when discussing the art of self-representation and the power and beauty of the black figure. These photographers want to show the world their understanding of fashion and the black experience. They want to share the realistic aspect of an industry that many overlook as they are merely shopping for clothes.
Be sure to check out the exhibition starting next week.
