We recently connected with Atiya Brown and have shared our conversation below.
Atiya, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
The most meaningful project I’ve had the pleasure of creating is the Divine Androgyne Showcase & Fashion Show (DAS). Ultimately I want to connect with others who also embrace their androgynous energy, those who pride themselves in embodying their divine feminine and their divine masculine energy. I hadn’t seen a space where creatives including myself could fully express this energy through spirituality, fashion and community. The Divine Androgyne Showcase + Fashion Show is intended to be that safe space, with plans to continue this work as far and beyond as we can. I am honored to share that it is an ongoing project, which I originally started as a series of video features and photoshoots, now having grown into a regularly produced show. We’ve done two shows in Baltimore, Maryland and co-produced a festival experience in Dallas, Texas.The Divine Androgyne Showcase & Fashion Show is soul meaningful to me because it’s connected to my spiritual journey. I have leaned more into The Divine and what it means to honor self and GOD; DAS allows me the opportunity to share that with others. It’s absolutely beautiful to see the joy on the faces of our designers, models, artists, and guests as we come together and put on a divine fashion show. We intentionally select production staff, models, designers, and performance artists to shine light on androgynous energy. Participants are interviewed and provided the opportunity to share their own thoughts, feelings, and experience about their relationship with and expression of their feminine and masculine energy. Their responses are shared with the audience and some models are chosen for highlight features posted on our social media. Not only are the creatives we work with allowed to thrive in an affirming environment, but also models gain experience and receive professional grade comp cards and access to photos and videos to use throughout their modeling career. Designers have access to experienced professionals and production staff to equip them with the tools to manage a roster of models from pre-production through post. They also receive access to photos and videos from the show to use for their future endeavors. We partner with a black queer woman-owned production company to provide all involved with a thorough, comprehensive professional experience. We hire local performance artists and DJs to help curate the vibe of the space and enjoy introducing our “home” culture to other places. The energy of Baltimore culture, fashion, art and music is unique and it is an honor to bring that energy to spaces outside of the city lines. The hope is to curate shows and experiences all over the world.
Atiya, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
For me, it all started with photography and my love for capturing the essence of people. As I Am Photography was my first venture out in the community professionally; curating photoshoots to highlight androgyne and working with my queer peers from Baltimore to Atlanta. In 2011, I created As I Am Creations, an umbrella to house my photography, fashion, and community work. From photography, I was inspired to then create 1 of 1 wearable art pieces/clothes. I love painting, so using fabric paint as a medium to design clothes came naturally. I began with utilizing unique, original hand-painted symbols and images, which then grew into adding words and mantras. Painting these words helped me transmute my own feelings, and my continued use made me realize their impact on others. I love knowing that my pieces are walking affirmations, reminding the wearer and anyone who sees them of their divinity. My fashion design philosophy is to provide unique looks in the form of divine protection. My love for uplifting the collective led me to expand my reach and begin curating events and safe spaces specifically for the black queer community. The Divine Androgyne Showcase, a culmination of these works, is an evolutionary expression of my commitment, as it allows me to share myself through photography and fashion while simultaneously highlighting beautiful androgynous beings. Our shoots and fashion shows provide a platform for safe expression.
Ultimately I feel my purpose within the community is uplifting the minds of the collective through wearable art and curating events for the queer creative community that embrace the artist and creative on a divine scale. Our goal is to encourage others to honor their expression of masculine and feminine energies. Our events allow black queer designers and creatives to utilize their skills in photography, videography. modeling and fashion design. Our intention is that these opportunities inspire the collective to continue to pursue their creative endeavors, knowing there are safe affirming spaces to express themselves.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
A lesson I had to unlearn was staying in my comfort zone, playing it safe. Artistic expression can be daunting and opening myself up to others with such personal works was not always something I am comfortable with, even now. There is a definite vulnerability required in being an artist, additionally my daily living as a black queer woman who expresses herself in clothing that is considered “masculine”, there was a process in finding comfort in not only my work being exposed, but also in the exposure of my just being myself. The path of the artist is bordered by generations of people who think creative expression is not a worthwhile or lucrative “career” path; the life of a black queer woman is bordered by those who feel how I love, who I love and how I choose to dress is unacceptable and inappropriate. I have found peace in myself and a firm confidence in knowing, GOD, The Divine, placed me here just as perfect as the rest of creation. My unwavering faith fuels my commitment to keep the borders of naysayers from stopping, stalling, or disrupting my walk, as I choose to step out, head held high in my work and being everyday. Stepping outside of my comfort zone has brought a lot of beauty into my life. I learned that sometimes you need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. I transmute a lot of my uncomfortable feelings through what I get to create. Heartbreaks and discomfort have inspired some really beautiful collections.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
The goal is to uplift the minds of the collective through wearable art and curating intentional creative wellness gatherings for the queer community. I want to inspire and encourage others to embrace their artistic expression and creativity on a divine scale, honoring their expression of masculine and feminine energies. My mission is to be a generator within my community, a source of vital energy that powers creations and actions towards a life of uninhibited, unapologetic expression.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://form.jotform.com/242843280788164
- Instagram: @asiamcreations
- Linkedin: https://linktr.ee/asiamcreations?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=defcfd76-1682-40a8-bf44-26fb8fa88412
