Getting Things Wrong
I design for myself. Always have. So much of the advice for starting a business starts with identifying an ideal customer (to the exclusion of other potential customers) and finding out what they want, and then making that. As a creative, that never really made sense to me. I believe that if you make the thing that is true to yourself, the thing you feel inspired to make, it will appeal to some people, and not to others. I am not interested in intentionally excluding anyone. Nor do I plan to try and figure out what one hypothetical imaginary person wants and make that. I think that’s bound to fail. So I make what I want to make, and hopefully it will appeal to someone.
That said, I’ve been anxious about starting something for a while now as I’ve seen so many businesses get things wrong, harm people without meaning to, not know what to do next, etc. When you are a part of a culture that has caused so much harm for so long, and not always yourself been aware of it, it can seem easier to just hide in a hole. It certainly would be easier to be silent, and say nothing at all, rather than risk saying the wrong thing. Tempting, but not really living, not really benefiting anyone other than yourself.
So how do I, as a white artist center others in my work? How do I avoid cultural appropriation when I sometimes am not sure what European culture really is that isn’t stolen from someone else? I know that I will get things wrong. Instead of making it my primary goal (although it is certainly a goal) to never do anything wrong or make any mistakes, My primary goal, as a person and as a business, is to listen, and be adaptable — to take responsibility for wrong and learn to change. I am working to include every body from the start, and to have diverse representation in the bodies we clothe. I am wrestling with the heritage of cultural appropriation that is bound up in the history of European fashion design. Still, if you see anything here in this space or on our social media that is problematic, I want to hear it, and I want to make it right. The only way any of us can do better is by listening. Moving forward, and listening. Thank you for your patience with me. I hope that we are building a more beautiful world together.