Month: November 2019

Drag Queens: Faces of High Fashion

Typically, when we think of fashion icons some of the types of people that come to mind are supermodels, pop stars, actors, and even reality television stars. Today, many fashion designers are finding a new type of muse: drag queens. With the popularity of the Emmy winning television show, “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” and the rising attendance of pride festivals all over the country, drag has never had a platform quite as large as it does today. Many famous drag performers have risen to the top of the fashion industry, modeling on catwalks, being the face of ad campaigns, and posing for high fashion magazines. Some of the most notable queens making waves in the industry today are Miss Fame, Violet Chachki, and Aquaria. 

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Chakshyn: Leave your Gender Norms at the Door

Gender norms are tough. We are raised and taught as children that certain clothing items are fair game, while others are off-limits for no reason other than being “too girly” or “too boyish.” The restrictive confines of gender are piled upon us from a young age in both subliminal and direct messaging that causes a justifiable amount of confusion for individuals in our society. But what if we didn’t have to choose? That’s why Ukranian fashion designers Dima Chayun and Anton Yakshyn launched their brand Chakshyn in 2015, a clothing line inspired by the glaring but often overlooked shared aspects of masculine and feminine clothing. 

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Lauren Jackson Harris: The Art Pusher

The word “no,” never phased her, and a closed-door never stopped her. She’s as sedulous as they come, and even though Lauren Jackson Harris has taken many hits, somehow she has managed to find her footing in an art world filled with “heavy weights.” Shadow-boxing her way through, embracing both traditional and non-traditional routes, in an effort to mold a rewarding career focusing on her love for the arts and giving back to the community.

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James Hautman: Put His Stamp on the Nation

In the acclaimed black comedy thriller Fargo (Coen, 1996), the ending scene tracks police officer “Marge Gunderson,” as she crawls into bed with her husband “Norm.” As they watch TV, Norm shares that his artwork won an appearance on the 3-cent stamp, but he remarks, “Hautman’s blue-winged teal got the 29-cent.” In that instance, Norm joined the scores of people who have lost art competitions to a Hautman Brother, three brothers from Minnesota who’ve garnered national recognition for their scenic artwork. 

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Tamron Hall: Comeback Game Strong

For ten years, former NBC news correspondent and MSNBC news anchor Tamron Hall co-hosted the third-hour segment of the Today show. At 9 a.m. sharp every morning the Texas-born TV personality brought warmth to the screen with her effervescent and charismatic personality. A fan favorite, everyone wondered about what seemed to be Tamron’s abrupt departure from the show, and her replacement with journalist Megyn Kelly. As the saying goes “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” However, top decision-makers at the network had deemed Tamron not quite what they believed their Middle American target audience wanted to see more of, so they “demoted” her.

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DJ Mustard: The Sound of L.A.

Hip-hop creators all around the globe have a keen sense of originality and unique beats that make people want to dance, sing, or chant along with raps. California, especially in LA, has a reputation for breeding some of the hottest, legendary, producers of the time such as Ice T  and Kurpt. However, as time progresses, there is always a need for a new type of legendary sound. One producer in particular, though,  has managed to successfully pioneer an entirely new sound of LA.

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