I'm embarking on a new dimension of my Inkscape portraits. A few weeks ago I was inspired by this exhibit at the @posterhouse featuring the beautiful work of Alphonse Mucha. I loved the way his posters centered women and made them look beautiful and powerful against ornate backdrops and graceful #typography. His work inspired me to revisit old #Ebony magazines and from the 70s and to study the ads for #haircare and products geared towards women. The hair care ads stood out to me the mostly because it talked about hair relaxers and how they were supposed to transform a woman's life. I thought it would be interesting to address that notion in a time when Black women are not solely relying on straightened hairstyles to express and celebrate themselves. We continue to experiment with shape, color and textures and I wanted to extend that conversation through the #BelleNoir series that I've been developing.

This is the first image in this new project. The slogan was taken from an ad for Curl Out Relaxer. It's somewhat ironic that the messaging was to suggest that putting harsh chemicals in Black hair was a form of liberation. In response, I decided to use my own model and have her hair take the form of a black and gold #Inkscape defying gravity in the same way that natural, unrelaxed Black hair does.