Solange Knowles graced the new digital cover of Harper’s Bazaar, where the singer penned essays reflecting on her hometown of Houston, Texas, her life, and 2020 as a whole.
“I heard a voice saying you deserve joy. Applause from my loved ones and heroes wasn’t gonna do,” she wrote in the first piece. “Some days were a real pain in the ass. Some were the most beautiful days of my life.”
She continues, “Some days I am on top of mountains. Some days I am weary. Some days I smile and laugh in ways I didn’t know I could. Sometimes I grieve all of the loss, looking for pillars or anchors to hold on to. Some days I see so much promise in my future despite the chaos around me because I woke up a Black woman with this spirit in my heart. If I move, I am not running. If I move, it is by choice. I feel good knowing that I surrendered and found answers in my stillness.”
Solange styled herself for all of the images in the article. She wants readers to consider the impact of 2020 and the part that designers and artists have played.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about the importance of honoring, uplifting, and preserving Black collections. Like a collection of every Telfar Bag ever made, stored and left untouched,” she writes.
“In 30 years, what will they say about 2020? About us? What will me granddaughters feel about them? What does it mean to be a designer right now? In a world that’s barely making it, where the spirit of survival is all around us. When the ritual of dressing up can literally shift how we see ourselves in the moment, and express beauty which in return makes us project more beauty into the world.”
She adds, “When we are living on survival, why would we reach for that beauty? When we live in such an uncertain world, how do we reach for that beauty? How do designers stay inspired to create during the chaos of that uncertainty? What will they reach for and how will they express it?”
Click here to read the interview in full.
