For my piece I illustrated a portrait of Solange from her controversial Evening Standard Magazine photoshoot where parts of her hair were photoshopped out for the cover. Although Solange is definitely one of my idols and a constant source of inspiration, this piece is more than a homage. It’s a representation of the struggles I’m all too familiar with, not only as a woman, but a woman of color.

As women I feel we are constantly bombarded with standards we are expected to adhere to, especially when it comes to standards of beauty. For WOC the Eurocentric standards forced on us are a whole other monster.

Something as seemingly simple as the hair growing out of our heads is seen as a nuisance, a distraction, unprofessional, and ugly. I went the first 20 years of my life being ashamed of my hair before I even knew what it looked like in its natural state. This is why I feel it is so important for unapologetic Black women like Solange or Lupita Nyong’o to be gracing the covers of magazines. To show that there is no shame in embracing our beauty in our own way. This piece is a testament to the resilience and power that we have as women to reject the box society tries to put us in.

Don’t ever touch my hair.