C. Shardae Jobson

If she had taken into account every suggestion to change or subdue her unique look, Michelle "Marley" Oblitey knows for a fact she wouldn't have the style she does today.

Makeup artist Naezrah Desir is a big believer in taking chances. This past spring, she inspired hundreds of thousands on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook when she bet on herself and posted two uber-colorful, undereye eye shadow looks on her socials. One was a burst of pastel blue, while the other was a remix of a rainbow. Both went viral, prompting many to re-create the looks.

Published in the Volume 43, Issue 4, July / August 2022 issue of Art New England.

Shaira Frías recalls the jubilance she felt when she would go to the drugstore and see herself represented so proudly and accurately by a few specific brands on the shelves, years before she became the co-founder of indie beauty brand Luna Magic.

In the print magazine of Art New England, under Reviews, page 51: Deana Lawson at The Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston

If you’re not already an ardent beauty lover you may not realize it, but fragrance is having a moment, with 2021’s first quarter marked by a 45% increase in sales. As it happens, so are Black consumers who, according to a September 2021 Forbes report, “represent $151 million [spent on women’s fragrances, out] of a $679 million industry.”

You don't watch "Murder, Mystery, and Makeup" for the looks that Bailey Sarian creates. That's not to say they're not fierce, because they are. Whether it's a silver, glittery cut crease or expertly winged eye shadow, her viewers do love to see her go from no makeup to full glam in every episode of the series.

Last year, Mattel released a beautiful $50 Barbie doll in a bespoke suit covered with his recognizable figures and skulls. His iconic artwork was also on Herschel backpacks, months before the release of a $795 “Empire” bag from Coach. And more affordable ways to wear his art can be found at superstores, where you can get a dinosaur tee for $20. Then there’s Yusaku Maezawa, who in 2017 paid $1...

“Knowing Storage Space was going to happen and be presented in locations not designed for artwork display gives artists and communities our power back and a chance to do intriguing work.”

When most of us think of the word “storage,” we likely imagine some kind of designated area for the items we cherish or at least need from time to time. But for Rudolf Lingens, artist and founder of the secretive Imaginary Collective, there are much more prominent demarcation lines at play.

The inspiration behind Julia Lattimer’s Allston Living Room Read is storied and personal.

Located in the outskirts of Dedham—an Arcadian river, pizza shop, and 7-Eleven are its neighbors—is Rob Walsh’s record store, Cheap Thrills Music. Home to a massive collection of tunes that includes everything from 1970s rock and soul, to iconic movie soundtracks of the 1980s, to ’50s and ’60s lounge and garage jam. Their specialty: used analog vinyl.

Saturday’s Black Calling music festival sent a message to Brookline: the revolution will be televised, humanized, and also next door.

V V Brown’s sophomore album, Lollipops & Politics is still a whole two months away from hitting US shelves, but the UK vocalist is hard at work promoting the record, whose first single, "Children," was released last September. According to Brown, who has performed on Letterman, Ellen, and who, at 5’11," has modeled professionally, says Politics is a stylistic leap from her debut record, Traveling Like the Light.

Patrick Stump rose to fame as the soulful lead singer of the successful punk rock band Fall Out Boy. But while on an “indefinite hiatus” from the band (rumors of their breakup have been unsubstantiated), Stump went ahead and recorded a solo album called Soul Punk. Apparently, he took the solo part literally, since Stump wrote, performed, and produced it all by himself.

There were still a few more hours to go until the May 31 Black Lives Matter march, but over in Brookline Village, Nick Packard, 34, was already demonstrating.