Yolanda Hoskey Talks Representation & Changing the Narrative
In an Interview with Grown, The ‘pretty and ghetto’ photographer discuses the importance of remaining unapologetic and how to remain grounded in your creation in the midst of absolute chaos that is the year 2020.
Photography by Yolanda Hoskey via Instagram
Yolanda Hoskey’s photography is an unapologetic ode to melanin. In this storytelling climate calling for change, she fights the system by creating flawless images of black art that she adorns as ‘a little creativity mixed with a little ghetto’. An East New York native, she uses her inbred New York swag to shake the room, challenging traditional social norms and putting use to the phrase “young, gifted, and black”.
A graduate of the City College of New york, Yolanda holds a BA in Theater. She now spends her post graduate years hosting her podcast (@becasueimtipsy), styling, and of course, creating beautiful images, proof that artistic development is anything but linear. We caught up with the self proclaimed ‘pretty and ghetto’ photographer to discuss the importance of remaining unapologetic, and how to remain grounded in your creation in the midst of absolute chaos that is the year 2020.
She wears her authenticity on her sleeves. What you see is what you get. A reminder to us all to live as unapologetically as possible.
Read our interview below
*This interview has been edited for length and clarity
What sparked your interest in photography?
What drew me in was the lack of representation. Black people are not one-dimensional or monolithic, yet most times we are portrayed that way. We come in all different types of shades, sizes, socio-economic backgrounds…..there’s so many different types of black identity. I want to show people the way I see black people. Which is unapologetic. Beautiful. So that sparked my interest in photography.
Black people are dope and I want to show people that we are amazing and dynamic. Representation truly does matter. Growing up. I thought I had to be one type of black so once I got older I was just like “well if I’m not seeing me represented in these spaces, then I’m going to go out and create that type of representation”. I grew up in East New York in the projects. People that I grew with used to always “other” me, but from a very young age I decided that I wasn’t going to let their perspective of me define me.
You amplify black voices by creating images of art that depict classic beauty and regalness. Where does this concept stems from?
I don’t typically go for people who are traditionally beautiful or what society would deem as beautiful. I go for people who have a very unique beauty about them, and beauty is a completely subjective topic. In trying to amplify black voices, black women, black men, you need to show variety. It is not a one-stop shop or a one-size-fit-all kind of deal when it comes to black people. I find people beautiful on different levels and spectrums. There’s something about a person that makes them beautiful, and I’m not talking about their face. So when shooting, I keep that in mind. And when I show my models the photos, they’re like *gasp* “I can’t believe that’s me!”. And I’m like, “It is!!”.
We’re often so fearful of judgment that we don’t operate in our natural spirits, so when shooting I’m trying to get that out of them. Their organic spirit. Their beauty. I’m just really adamant about the fact that black people are not monolithic and I want to show that range and variety. And then pushing the bounds, because I know that they can do it. That’s what I try to achieve, at least in my photos.
Read the full interview with Grown right here. And make sure to keep up with Yolanda here and here.