Arthur Jafa’s friends, inspirations and collaborators by Mario Sorrenti

This story originally appeared in i-D’s The Darker Issue, no. 365, Winter 2021. Order your copy here.

Emily wearing a black dress with her partner also wearing black and their baby sitting on her lap naked. — All clothing models own.

Emily Bates

Emily Bates has worked with gallerist Gavin Brown throughout her career, and by extension Arthur Jafa too. Gavin Brown’s Enterprise defined all that was great about the New York gallery scene during its existence, before sadly shuttering last year. But Emily moved with Gavin to join forces with Barbara Gladstone, cementing a new force in the NYC art scene.

Elleza wearing a black long jumper with a lettered necklace — Elleza wears jumper THE ROW. Trousers VETEMENTS. Jewellery models own.

Elleza Kelley

Elleza Kelley is a Postdoctoral Associate at Yale University in the departments of English and African American Studies. She is also co founder of the Black Student Alliance at Columbia University’s graduate of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. Her work can be found in The New Inquiry, Cabinet Magazine, and elsewhere.

Billie stands with her hands in her jean pockets. She wears a scorpio tee with a long sleeve top underneath and Chanel and crucifix necklaces. — Billie wears all clothing and jewellery models own.

Billie Alexopoulos

Grad student in philosophy.

Gavin wearing all black and Hope wearing a grey blouse, a crucifix necklace and strips of fabric on her arm, stand with their daughter in a white dress. — Gavin, Hope and Feroline wear all clothing and jewellery models own.

Gavin Brown, Hope Atherton and Feroline Brown

Hope Atherton is an artist. Gavin Brown is an art dealer. Feroline Brown is their daughter. They live in New York.

Claire wears a denim jacket and trousers with a white t-shirt. — Claire wears jacket and jeans LEVIS. 88 Paul wears shirt CHARVET. Top TOTME. Jewellery models own.

Claire Read

Documentary filmmaker

A side facing portrait of Mànsa. He wears a t-shirt with a two skulls print, a chain crucifix and snake necklace, a head tie and a baseball hat. — Mnsa wears all clothing and jewellery models own. Hat and durag stylists studio.

Mànsa Morales (BLUPRNT)

Close up portrait of Barbara's face. — Barbara wears all clothing models own.

Barbara Gladstone

Forty years into her career, Barbara Gladstone remains a cornerstone of the art world in New York and also internationally. She recently combined forces with fellow art dealer Gavin Brown, who joined Gladstone Gallery as a partner. With Gavin came a handful of artists including Arthur Jafa, Joan Jonas, Alex Katz, and Mark Leckey.

Portrait of Marielle wearing a zipped up leather jacket. — Marielle wears jacket SCHOTT NYC. T-shirt CALVIN KLEIN. Earring models own.

Marielle Ingram

Marielle Ingram is a writer and filmmaker currently based in Brooklyn, New York. She graduated from the University of Chicago in 2019 majoring in Philosophy. Marielle’s work begins by interrogating the power of digital imagery. Not just in their visual presence, or its means of production, but – perhaps more importantly – how they are circulated. Following the murder of George Floyd, her work re-focused on encountering white supremacist state violence, producing the 2020 essay, Contracirculation: On Rewriting the Terms of Engagement with Images of Black suffering, and the short film Document 0 in 2021. Folding in a keen critical analysis of labour, capitalism and globalisation, while always attuned to the violence that these systems exert upon marginalised people, Ingram’s voice is integral, urgent and necessary.

Tina wears all black while sitting on a stool — Tina wears jumper and belt BOTTEGA VENETA. Skirt THE ROW. Jewellery models own.

Tina Campt

How do we witness Blackness? Tina Campt is challenging how we perceive and relate to the politics of race. Her theories of the gaze, image and representation are profoundly influential in society, both for her meditations on the politics of race and colonialism, and the interrelationship between image, agency and representation. Professor of Humanities and Modern Culture and Media at Brown University, Campt puts forward the idea of ‘the politics of refusal’. This refusal relates to how the African diaspora is archived, remembered and seen by society in photography. What Campt is doing is radical: she is contributing an urgent meditation on not just how we look, but how we relate to images of Blackness in everyday life.

Anna wears a printed top and shorts as she sits on a stool — Anna wears all clothing and jewellery models own.

Anna Pollack

Anna Pollack was born in Queens, New York and now based in Brooklyn. A filmmaker, Pollack has written and directed several shorts, including the travelogue, Jamaica Tapes, which is a reflection on her first visit to Jamaica – her mother’s home country – at the age of 21. She made a book for Dizzy Magazine to accompany the film, one full of photographs, film stills, and other ephemera. She also made the narrative short Briarpatch, which was her graduate thesis of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Pollack also works in commercial and fashion spaces, and has created work for Stella McCartney.

Makayla wears a black cropped vest with baggy trousers and a baggy blazer — Makayla wears all clothing and jewellery models own

Makayla Bailey

Makayla Bailey is a writer and curator. She is currently the joint curatorial fellow at the Studio Museum in Garlem and MoMA. At the Studio Museum, she organised Hearts In Isolation, the museum’s first ever digital exhibition, which was produced by high school students. She also worked on Harlem Postcards, for the 2020 winter season of the Studio Museum. Bailey has also worked as the primary researcher for this longing vessel, the 2019-2020 artist-in-residence culminating exhibit at MoMA PS1. Her work explores environment and Black excess.

Portrait of Kandis wearing a grey vest top and a necklace. — Kandis wears all clothing and jewellery models own.

Kandis Williams

Kandis Williams is set to open David Zwirner’s new space in New York, 52 Walker. Her works spans collage, performance, video, assemblage, and installation. Williams’ work interrogates issues of race, nationalism, authority, and eroticism.

Credits

Portraits of Emily Bates, Elleza Kelley, Tina Campt and Kandis Williams

Photography Mario Sorrenti
Fashion Alastair McKimm
Hair Bob Recine
Make-up Aaron de Mey at Art Partner using Makeup Forever
Nail technician Honey at Exposure NY using Smith & Cult
Photography assistance Kotaro Kawashima and Javier Villegas
Digital technician Chad Meyer
Fashion assistance Madison Matusich, Casey Conrad and Jermaine Daley
Hair assistance Kazuhide Katahira
Make-up assistance Tayler Treadwell
Production Katie Fash, Layla Néméjanski and Steve Sutton
Production assistance William Cipos
Casting director Samuel Ellis Scheinman for DMCASTING

Portraits of Billie Alexopoulos, Claire Reed, Barbara Gladstone, Marielle Ingram and Anna Pollack

Photography Mario Sorrenti
Fashion Alastair McKimm
Hair Akki Shirakawa at Art Partner using Oribe
Make-up Kanako Takase at Streeters using Addiction Beauty
Nail technician Honey at Exposure NY using Smith & Cult
Photography assistance Kotaro Kawashima and Brett Ross
Digital technician Chad Meyer
Fashion assistance Madison Matusich, Milton Dixon III and Casey Conrad
Hair assistance Rei Kawauchi
Make-up assistance Kuma
Production Katie Fash and Layla Néméjanski
Production assistance William Cipos
Casting director Samuel Ellis Scheinman for DMCASTING

Portraits of Gavin Brown and Makayla Bailey

Photography Mario Sorrenti
Fashion Alastair McKimm
Hair Bob Recine
Make-up Kanako Takase at Streeters using Addiction Beauty
Nail technician Honey at Exposure NY using Smith & Cult
Photography assistance Kotaro Kawashima and Javier Villegas
Digital technician Chad Meyer
Fashion assistance Milton Dixon III and Casey Conrad
Tailor Martin Keehn
Hair assistance Kazuhide Katahira
Make-up assistance Kuma
Production Katie Fash, Layla Néméjanski and Steve Sutton
Production assistance William Cipos
Casting director Samuel Ellis Scheinman for DMCASTING