A head of natural kinks, curls, coils or spirals in all its glory has to be one of the best beauty looks on the planet.
But while it’s obviously stunning to see someone’s texture on full down-do display (and great that Hollywood is at last starting to celebrate curls), that’s hardly an excuse for the lack of education (and thus options) around styling Black hair.
However, as the latest crop of Hollywood hair artists are proving, when you take the time to understand texture (or if you possess it yourself and so are already well acquainted), the options are actually endless. And like, impossibly cool.
Meet ‘hair-chitecture’, the mesmerising mane aesthetic sweeping social media and putting a spotlight on creative styles that cater to textured hair.
Crafted as a response to the industry’s inability to innovatively or appropriately style Black hair, the trend is devoted to placing power and possibility back into the court of finessing textured hair types.
Hair ‘styling’ really doesn’t do it justice, though. The looks are more like literal ‘hair art’; delicate and complex sculptures that just so happen to be built on top of someone’s head.
We’re talking the kind of sculptures that defy gravity and carve out shapes of their very own, with everything from layered topknots and ponies adorned with all kinds of accessories to braids that snake out from the head as if by magic.
One of the first stars to sample the style on a red carpet? Yara Shahidi. Hollywood hair artist Nikki Nelms (who goes by ‘Hair MacGyver’ on Instagram and counts names from Shahidi to Zoë Kravitz and Janelle Monae among her celebrity clientele) was the pro behind one of the actor’s initial ‘hair-chitecture’ looks, and is one of the very creatives driving it forward.
“I love using things that have nothing to do with hair to create new styles,” Nelms told Allure of her approach, noting that she’s incorporated everything from wire to door knockers into her hair art looks.
Another pioneer of the trend is Naeemah Lafond, the appropriately self-dubbed “Queen of Statement hair”. One of her standout sculptures? A multilayered masterpiece as seen on The Sex Lives of College Girls star Alyah Chanelle Scott.
Lafond took to an Instagram caption to state the importance of texture-related training. “When you peel back the layers, you’ll see that the issues surrounding black women and their hair in fashion/entertainment are all rooted in racism,” she explained. “We talk about change often but if we’re ever going to have a truly inclusive space, [then] inclusive hiring and texture education need to be addressed.”
She went on to lay out three vital aspects of the path forward: “Decision makers should be hiring more artists that are skilled in ALL areas. Cosmetology schools need to mandate texture education. Artists need to take the initiative to learn how to do their jobs fully.”
Amen. Hair artists like Lafond are proving the possibilities with every unforgettable style (and hence reinforcing that there are zero excuses for lack of creativity and training).
https://www.instagram.com/p/CEwiIOFn9zo/
The architectural aesthetic is only (fittingly) building traction, with Little Mix’s Leigh-Anne Pinnock the latest to show off a structural style.
Pinnock’s take (created by hair stylist Dionne Smith) showcases another approach, focusing primarily on creating statement shapes rather than building height.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CapLAsKMKUa/
Self-confessed Hollywood ‘hair poet’ Fesa Nu (another name behind some of Shahidi’s most memorable ‘hair-chitecture’ moments) is even working on a movement around the powerful aesthetic, fittingly coined ‘The Art of Hair’.
“The Art of Hair stems from my love for Africa,” Nu shared via her website. “The art, the music, the people. My love for the culture runs very deep. The Art of Hair was created to inspire, embrace, and help plant a powerful seed of love in our youth and those that need a small nudge to remember who we are, where we come from and what we stand for!”
“I was actually never into beauty growing up, it was more of a survival mechanism for me, well, learning to do hair was at least,” Nu explained. “I tapped into hair at a very young age because I lived with my father growing up.”
“My father was married to a Hispanic woman at that time and no one in the household knew how to do my hair. So, when my father did not get me to my grandmother’s so my aunts could do my hair, he tried to do it. I went to school and got teased and bullied so I made efforts to learn to do it myself.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGxiIEIAeqg/
“This piece completely celebrates the Black woman in her crowning glory. I consider myself a poet in this hair and makeup industry and only want my work to reflect poetry that resembles the love I have for culture, music, art and Black excellence!”
‘Excellence’ truly is the only way to describe it. To sum up, the ‘hair-chitecture’ movement is both incredibly warranted and wildly chic. Basically, we couldn’t be more on board.
Sophia Al-Maria quit the art world. Now she’s back for one last job
No Comment! Be the first one.