For the past couple months, Lindsay Peoples Wagner, the editor in chief of Teen Vogue, and Sandrine Charles, a public relations consultant, have been preparing to launch the Black in Fashion Council (BIFC), an organization that aims to hold the industry accountable for behavior towards Black individuals. The duo first announced the BIFC in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests following the murder of George Floyd, which caused major brands, retailers, and publications to be held accountable in unprecedented ways for their roles in upholding systemic racism.

According to its mission statement, the BIFC will represent and advance Black individuals within fashion and beauty by asking non-Black brands to examine their own roles in perpetuating systemic racism, and facilitating conversations into “sustained, long-term change” where accountability is key. To help achieve this, the BIFC enlisted the Human Rights Campaign to help establish an equality index score that will provide a benchmark around corporate policies “pertinent to the inclusivity of Black employees.”

The BIFC officially launched last week with 38 global partners from across the spectrum of fashion and beauty having signed up to participate. Each partner, including Calvin Klein, Farfetch, Glossier, and Condé Nast, has pledged to work with the BIFC for the next three years. “We envision workforces where Black people are represented and amplified at every level, holding jobs in both C-suite and junior-level positions” says the council, “and can work alongside allies to create diverse spaces that directly reflect what the world actually looks like at large.” They’re also accepting individual member applications.

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As early as Presley Oldham can remember, he was surrounded by handicraft. He admits to literally having grown up in the factory of his uncle, the design stalwart Todd, and spending his childhood making jewelry by hand with his grandmother. Though design and craftsmanship runs deep in his lineage, the aspiring actor had little intention of following suit. He had recently graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and relocated to Los Angeles to enter the entertainment industry, where he secured production assistant gigs for music videos while auditioning for larger roles.

Then the coronavirus happened, causing all of his work to evaporate. Faced with little to no options in his field, Oldham journeyed to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to quarantine with his grandparents, who reintroduced him to the familiar pastime of jewelry-making. It just so happens that Oldham had been sourcing antique freshwater pearls at flea markets in New York and Los Angeles for years, so he began hand-making pearl chokers for friends in his spare time. Their positive feedback, as well as the newfound level-headedness afforded by being immersed in the American Southwest’s natural grandeur, motivated him to launch his namesake jewelry line with a zero-waste mindset.

“The form of a pillow is so classic, yet almost comical,” says Will Cooper, chief creative officer of Ash New York. He’s describing the four components of the breezy Pillow Chair, a playful new piece that evokes the summertime mystique of the Italian Riviera. Classic, indeed: its striped upholstery, custom designed by Ash through Schumacher, resembles the towels dangling off sun loungers found in coastal Italy. Don’t mistake the chair’s poolside vibes for an outdoor piece—it’s intended to imbue interiors with the halcyon energy of days spent soaking up the sun.

With a 25-acre campus in Brooklyn, and another in Manhattan, Pratt Institute is an urban lab of craft and creativity. Pratt’s programs are consistently ranked among the best in the country, while its faculty and alumni include many of today’s most celebrated artists, designers, and scholars. More important, Pratt’s interdisciplinary curriculum promotes advanced strategies for original, insightful design thinking.

Surface Says: Where to study is one of the most important choices a young designer can make. With a rigorous approach to theory, craft, and technology, Pratt is a place where talent is truly fostered, and it shows in the work of its distinguished alumni.

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