When the chance for me to be involved in an exhibition about Black British culture came up a few years ago, I jumped at it. I’d spent much of my career involved in fashion — the first article I’d written was in the third issue of i-D magazine when I was 17, and my first job was as a fashion PR working for the legendary Lynne Franks. But more importantly, over the years I’d seen and experienced first-hand just how difficult it was for black creatives to establish themselves in the fashion industry — the barriers, the pitfalls and, yes, the prejudices.
I’d seen incredibly talented designers go unrecognised, ignored by media, stores and institutions. I’d seen students studying fashion design told either their work was too black or not black enough. For example, during my days as a music and fashion PR I remember pitching a black soul singer for the cover of a mainstream-style publication — one that I’d worked with over many years — only to be told by the editor that they didn’t feel he was right “because people prefer to see artists who look like them on the cover”.
