loader from loading.io

Denali Jöel on fashion as an art praxis rooted in Afro-Indigenous philosophies, interrogating the emphasis placed on the *industry* & reminding us of the possibility of creating new ecosystems

Conscious Chatter

Release Date: 11/07/2023

Personal stylist Jennine Jacob on welcoming the multiplicity of personal style while interrogating the language we use around fashion and why that matters show art Personal stylist Jennine Jacob on welcoming the multiplicity of personal style while interrogating the language we use around fashion and why that matters

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 329, Kestrel welcomes Jennine Jacob, a personal stylist and Instagram phenom, to the show. You may know from viral videos that explore the many layers of nuance connected to the power of finding your own style. “Anytime I see people quote unquote dressing for their body type, those outfits that look good, they can all be explained through style principles. The rule of thirds, contrast, proportion, texture, color theory. So why do we have to attach a value to a person's body shape when that's not even necessary? I really want to call into question why we use certain language...

info_outline
Environmental scientist and microplastics researcher Dana Zhaxylykova on the links between fast fashion, toxicity and microplastics show art Environmental scientist and microplastics researcher Dana Zhaxylykova on the links between fast fashion, toxicity and microplastics

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 328, Kestrel welcomes Dana Zhaxylykova, an environmental scientist & microplastics researcher, to the show. Originally from Kazakhstan, is currently based in Germany — through her Instagram platform, she shares practical and actionable tips about microplastics through a scientific lens. “As a scientist, I want to assure you that every little action in avoiding plastic, it can have an impact. And as scientists and as a scientific community, we expect people, not only the governments and corporations (they have a huge responsibility, of course), but we as people, we also can...

info_outline
Sanchali Pal of Commons Commons on why they developed their own sustainable brand ratings, one way to combat fast fashion this month, & the importance of connecting data with storytelling to shift behavior show art Sanchali Pal of Commons Commons on why they developed their own sustainable brand ratings, one way to combat fast fashion this month, & the importance of connecting data with storytelling to shift behavior

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 327, Kestrel welcomes Sanchali Pal, founder and CEO of Commons, an app that rewards you for living and spending sustainably. On app, you can get rewarded for shopping sustainable brands and for taking climate actions like thrifting, taking public transportation or eating plant-based. “When people think about the actions they can take that are sustainable, the most obvious ones are things like flying less or recycling or eating more plant-based. People don't always think about their clothing habits, but I think that's really changing with the conversation around fast fashion. I...

info_outline
Anna Bario of Bario Neal on why jewelry is integral to pushing fashion to be more sustainable, why small businesses have power to instigate change & how Anna Bario of Bario Neal on why jewelry is integral to pushing fashion to be more sustainable, why small businesses have power to instigate change & how "investment" in jewelry can reflect economic trends

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 326, Kestrel welcomes Anna Bario, the cofounder of Bario Neal, to the show. creates stunning jewelry while being committed to respecting human rights and environmental sustainability. Anna cofounded the brand alongside Page Neal, in 2008, with an interest in bringing sustainability into the discourse surrounding creativity, fine jewelry and craft. An exceptional designer and also a specialist in responsible gold and gemstone sourcing, Anna’s work in sustainable initiatives and social impacts defines the framework for Bario Neal’s ethical jewelry roadmap. “I think [for]...

info_outline
How do you define *investment piece*, what makes you feel comfortable spending more on certain items & why is this integral to the sustainable fashion conversation? show art How do you define *investment piece*, what makes you feel comfortable spending more on certain items & why is this integral to the sustainable fashion conversation?

Conscious Chatter

In Episode 325, Kestrel welcomes Emily Fenves, the founder of lander line - a platform she created in September 2021 - after feeling burnt out with her own consumption habits. As a regular shopper, found herself spending an exhaustive amount of time browsing, buying, returning, and purging. She embarked on a journey to learn more about the “why” behind her overconsumption, and decided to help others do the same. “I think a lot of people assume that investment pieces mean luxury. For me, specifically, I always think about – can I pass this down to my daughter? Investment pieces can be...

info_outline
Motherhood, entrepreneurship & sustainability: navigating impossible expectations while caring for yourself and others, and building things that center care show art Motherhood, entrepreneurship & sustainability: navigating impossible expectations while caring for yourself and others, and building things that center care

Conscious Chatter

Episode 324, Kestrel welcomes Camille Forde, a mother and entrepreneur working at the intersection of business, sustainability, and community-centered solutions, to the show. With over a decade of experience, has led corporate responsibility efforts at top professional services firms, earned an MBA from UC Berkeley with a focus on sustainable business, and spearheaded seller and brand partnerships at one of the largest fashion resale platforms. As a mother of two, Camille is deeply committed to building a more equitable and sustainable future that prioritizes community care. “Vulnerability,...

info_outline
Kestrel on vulnerability, personal health, podcast evolutions & a question to sustainable fashion folks: are you OK? show art Kestrel on vulnerability, personal health, podcast evolutions & a question to sustainable fashion folks: are you OK?

Conscious Chatter

Episode 323 features Kestrel (just me!) in the first-ever solo episode of the show. With a primary focus on vulnerability, Kestrel shares some of the rollercoasters she has faced personally over the last year (from health to finances), why she and Nat are parting ways when it comes to regularly hosting the show, the true costs of producing a podcast, as well as a question on whether performative vulnerability is what we are seeing too often from the industry. “To all of you interested in sustainable fashion or those of you who work in the industry - I want to ask you a question: are you...

info_outline
Nelson ZêPequéno of Black Men With Gardens and Cayetano Talavera of Hecho By Caye on why fashion needs to listen to nature’s lessons on slowing down, tuning in, practicing patience & cultivating creativity to better center sustainability show art Nelson ZêPequéno of Black Men With Gardens and Cayetano Talavera of Hecho By Caye on why fashion needs to listen to nature’s lessons on slowing down, tuning in, practicing patience & cultivating creativity to better center sustainability

Conscious Chatter

Episode 322 features Nelson ZêPequéno, a Ghanaian-American Artist and the founder of Black Men With Gardens and Sustain Creative, alongside Cayetano Talavera, a fiber artist, zero waste fashion designer, and the creative force behind HECHO BY CAYE. Through ‘Black Men With Gardens’, a digital and print publication, Nelson spotlights the connection Black and Brown communities cultivate with nature through agriculture and the arts. He further exploring cultural identity and environmental stewardship through his Los Angeles-based studio 'Sustain Creative', his current body of works offer a...

info_outline
Teju Adisa-Farrar of Black Fiber & Textile Network and Author Layla K. Feghali on geography and what our relationship to place can teach us about *sustainability* show art Teju Adisa-Farrar of Black Fiber & Textile Network and Author Layla K. Feghali on geography and what our relationship to place can teach us about *sustainability*

Conscious Chatter

Episode 321 features Teju Adisa-Farrar, the founder and co-creator of the Black Fiber & Textile Network and the creator/host of the Black Material Geographies podcast, alongside Layla K. Feghali, the founder of River Rose Remembrance, a Plantcestral & Ancestral Re-Membrance practitioner, cultural worker, author & story re-collector (archivist). Teju is currently the Director of Outreach & Programs for the Fibers Fund, and co-creates with members of BFTN. Layla’s book, The Land In Our Bones, showcases an exploration of the herbs & land-based medicines of Lebanon &...

info_outline
Wafa Ghnaim of Tatreez and Tea & Dr. Tanveer Ahmed of Central Saint Martins on preserving culture, decolonial frameworks, and how intersectional reform can be a pathway toward sustainable fashion futures show art Wafa Ghnaim of Tatreez and Tea & Dr. Tanveer Ahmed of Central Saint Martins on preserving culture, decolonial frameworks, and how intersectional reform can be a pathway toward sustainable fashion futures

Conscious Chatter

Episode 320 features Wafa Ghnaim, a Senior Research Fellow at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Curator for the Museum of the Palestinian People and Founder of The Tatreez Institute, alongside Dr. Tanveer Ahmed, a Senior Lecturer in Fashion and Race at Central Saint Martins and also Course Development Lead for MA Fashion and Anthropology at London College of Fashion. “Inherently, just by being Palestinian and by teaching about Palestinian life and history, and including oral history in my work as a foundational aspect of my research, I am threatening these kinds of structures, in and of...

info_outline
 
More Episodes

In episode 312, Kestrel welcomes Denali Jöel, a non-binary Multidisciplinary Artist, Designer, Educator and Fashion Griot, to the show. Born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica, Denali has been an asylee living in the US since 2014, recently obtaining their U.S. citizenship this year. Their art praxis intersects design, performance, media and community engagement with particular focus on queer identities and Afro-diasporan histories, futures, collective healing, and radical imagination. 

“It comes back to us as an individual but also as a collective to recognize that we need to shift our own relationship to fashion and with fashion as a tool for the ways in which that we show up, the ways in which we disrupt our own oppression. I think we place so much emphasis on calling out and asking industry to do better and I’m just like — the industry is actually operating the way it’s supposed to, like it was built. Again, when you think about whose imagination we are living in, that is the imagination. And so, when we force folks to shift, are we just bullying them into performing a version of change or is it possible that we could create new ecosystems within our own selves — and using the resources available to us — but creating that shift and slowly moving away from industry and start thinking more about ecosystems.” -Denali

This is THE FINAL EPISODE of Season 6. Launched in February of 2022, this season has taken us on a journey – and here we are, arriving at the 52nd episode of this era of Conscious Chatter.

Over the last two years on the show, we have questioned so much of how the fashion industry operates, and really dove into unique ways that individuals, companies and initiatives are working to basically unlearn *the way fashion has been done* and relearn new ways of reimagining its future. 

This final episode of the season feels really important to me – as it’s the last show that will be oriented in this way. As Nat and I have teased a bit here and there, we have a fresh approach to Conscious Chatter coming to you with Season 7. :)

But with this immense feeling of wanting to culminate Season 6 in an extra meaningful and circular way, I sat and questioned for quite some time who could provide that sort of grounding presence. When I thought of this week’s guest, I felt instantly at ease and an all-encompassing feeling of warmth and hope surrounded me. They were the person that could help us close out this season. It may sound a bit airy fairy, but this episode feels like a massive hug to me – I hope you feel it too.

In today’s world, we hear the word INTENTIONAL thrown around a lot. It’s one of those words that has taken hold in recent years and become a go-to. While we see its use on a consistent basis, I’m not entirely sure whether we’re seeing its meaning carried out in practice.

What is the definition of INTENTIONAL?

According to Dictionary.com, it is defined as: done with intention or on purpose.

In order to do something with intention, there is almost undoubtedly a need to slow down and become more present and tuned into that process. As we know, slowing down is not really something the systems around us are advocating for. 

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t folks out there truly taking the meaning of intentionality to heart and very thoughtfully putting it into practice. 

I say it in our chat, but I’ll say it again – this week’s guest takes intentionality to the extreme, in the most beautiful way. They also consistently resist the systems around us by working to reimagine their own approaches and value indicators outside of the vacuum as much as possible.

For example, they approach fashion and costume design as an art praxis that is rooted in intentionality, sustainability and social equity, and that is guided by three Afro-Indigenous philosophies. 

Instead of commodifying it, they have and continue to use fashion as a tool to slowly further discover themself. But what I love about how they communicate is they are not only talking about themself as an individual, but also being a Black Queer person, they are telling stories as a part of a larger community of intersections, brimming with collective histories, present circumstances and collective futures.

Quotes & links from the conversation:

  • “The more I matured, the more I realized that external validation was very fickle and fleeting. And so, it came now to — when I look in the mirror, do the clothes that I wear, does my appearance uplift and reverence the divine feminine and the divine masculine that lives within me?” -Denali (25:07)

  • “Because of me and my own intersections, the work that I do is constantly in conversation with who I am and my positionality in society — the areas within which I feel marginalized and also the areas within which I feel liberated. And so, I want to ensure that I’m making space for that and holding the past, the present, and the future within me. And so, being a griot is essentially that — it’s acting as an archive, as a vanguard of sorts, you know protecting and advancing the stories of who I am as an individual but also as a collective body — centering and amplifying the Black femme, shifting the balance to us recognizing that Queer folks, especially those at the intersection of being Black and Queer are diviners historically — reclaiming all of that. And so, being a griot was important to me because like you said, I’m a storyteller and I think it hit me when I realized the vicissitudes I’ve had to survive in my life are to kind of give me and provide me with all of these stories — these stories that again, through the Ubuntu principle are not just for me, but they’re for the collective, they’re for everyone.” -Denali (31:52)

  • “Parable Of The Sower”, book by Octavia E. Butler that Denali references connected to their upcoming project in collaboration with The New Children’s Museum in San Diego, CA

  • “I think we talk a lot about diversity, equity and inclusion, but we don’t talk about belonging. And belonging invites us to think holistically about the space — tactile — what does it feel like? What does it smell like? What does it taste like even when we enter the space, and is it familiar to those of us who have always felt as though we’ve existed outside of these spaces?” -Denali (44:53)
  • “Songs Of The Gullah” — a fashion film by Denali

  • Denali’s Website

  • Follow Studio Asa >

  • Follow Denali on Instagram >