IN CONVERSATION WITH AHMED ABOKOR
A few months ago, we wanted to use our platform to amplify the voices of our amazing POC collaborators as well as promote, champion and celebrate them and their work. We’ve invited several of our artists who we have worked with before to talk with them about their work, and how they are doing as an artist during this movement of Black Lives Matter.
We sat down and spoke with @mister_stretch. Ahmed currently has a live campaign with us ‘WE’RE DONE WAITING FOR PROGRESS’ with 15% of the profits being donated to Black Minds Matter UK.
Q: Hi Ahmed, can you tell me a bit about yourself and your creative journey?
Hey, I’m a designer & art director who’s been working in the creative industry for about 8 years.Started initially in digital advertising but worked most of my time across experiential design and eventually found myself working on more brand and visual identity focused jobs.
Q: How are you and has this period changed your outlook on the way you work and if so how would you describe the change in your focus?
I’m doing alright, it’s of course been a very weird time for everyone and yes it has absolutely changed my outlook on the way I work. This period has forced us to think differently, it has allowed me personally to slow down which has been great. Working in our city, you can easily get caught up in that mad pace, and I’ve found that slowing down has helped my focus and allowed me to spend time on projects I’ve been wanting to do for a while. The most important thing has been having that time to stop and rethink.
Q: Where do you get your inspiration from for your creative work?Without sounding like a cliche my inspiration comes from living. Going for walks, taking in the city’s architecture and structures, people watching, having conversations with friends and colleagues, going to gallery’s and watching films. There are obviously going to be times when one will feel like they’re stuck and are having a creative block but that in itself I believe is healthy. It’s a sign that maybe it’s time to shift the perspective, time to do some reading and research, and after you take all that in, often you’ll find ideas jumping out.
'We've lost a lot of momentum since the height of the BLM movement in the summer. With this being the last week of Black History Month in the UK, I wanted to share a short film I've created with the help of the people that bought the T-shirt in the summer"
Q: BLM is a huge topic right now and one that we as a business are educating ourselves on further/making changes going forward. Is there anything specific you would like to see change, especially within the creative industry?The change for me is to understand that BLM isn’t a trend or a moment but a reality, a reality we are shouting on top of our lungs. To be heard to be seen because ultimately if our Industry is more diverse we will only benefit from richer, more authentic, and captivating storytelling that will connect us with people from all over the world.
Q: We’ve got a blog post coming in the next few weeks about some independent black businesses we want to shine some spotlight on. Are there any black creatives you feel our followers should know about?
Of course, these are a few trailblazers.
@gideon_cudjoe a curious creative who works across multiple creative disciplines.
@chidi.co awesome UX designer.
@pocintech Brilliant platform that highlights the stories of people of colour in tech.
@Spongenutiy a visual artist who creates portraits from algorithms
Q: Have you got any exciting projects coming up that we should keep our eyes peeled for? I actually do, but I’m not allowed to share anything right now :) hopefully, in a few weeks, I’ll share some good news.
Ahmed also has an active campaign with us, where you can pre-order his ‘We’re Done Waiting For Progress’ long sleeve right now. You can follow Ahmed over on Instagram @mister_stretch
