Edition 4
pioneers
Edition 4 of the OG magazine centers around ‘Pioneers’ — individuals who are forging their own paths and shifting paradigms within the cultural spaces they inhabit. One definition of the term conjures associations with colonialism, but on the contrary, this issue considers what it means to be a true pioneer; one who begins, introduces, instigates,develops, and evolves. From musicians and visual artists, to fashion labels and technology, we connected with innovators from the digital, social and ecological vanguard who are opening doors to new frontiers. On the occasion of our first debut outside of New York City, we are pleased to share the Pioneers edition of the OG — reconsidering the way we view, experience and occupy this world.
Front cover: Derrick Adams
Back cover: Rich Tu
FEATURED
FEATURED
superblue
With their immersive, interactive installations, Superblue invites its audiences to toe the boundary between art and life. Indeed, it asks the question: Can life and art be separate from each other? The collective is a pioneer in using technology to create exhibitions that react directly to the people that encounter it, allowing us to participate in the creation of the art instead of being a passive recipient. Read the full feature "Superblue: Creating Spectacles with Substance" by Vivian Ludford and Veronika Jelenik.
finnegan
shepard
Finnegan Shepard is intent on reframing the construction of both clothing and gender with his transmasculine apparel brand Both&. In this profile by Shepard's own sibling, the trans writer, designer, and classicst talks about how his Sisyphean slog in academia has carried him into the fashion space, as a designer that considers every body (over 500, in fact) in the construction of a T-shirt. In a world determined by assumptions about "standard bodies," Both& reframes how clothing "should" be done.
jewels
dodson
Jewels Dodson pays a visit to The Last Resort Artist Retreat (TLRAR) in Baltimore, Derrick Adams' refuge for artists looking to rest in the midst of a world that demands constant production and labour from Black artists. In this space, Dodson finds a community of Black creatives immersed in the radical art of doing nothing. Adams believes that this surrender to leisure will be the foundation for a new generation whose relationship to art is determined by community and support.
daniel
buezo
Kids of Immigrants (KOI) is a fashion label founded by Daniel Buezo and Weleh Dennis. Inspired by their roots and upbringing, Buezo and Dennis created the label as an expression of their passion to create. Utilizing fashion as the medium, KOI carries a broader message about inclusivity, belonging, and community. Buezo discusses what it means to collaborate, and how KOI has become a cultural ambassador.
anna
park
For this collaboration between the OG X First Generation Burden (FGB), Rich Tu speaks to Anna Park, a Brooklyn-based artist whose enigmatic charcoal drawings have been exhibited around the world, most recently with Blum and Poe in Tokyo, Japan, and at Pace New York. They tal about how she decided to become a visual artist, what inspires her subject matter, and what it’s like to face such wide acclaim at an early age.
walshy
fire
Walshy Fire is a Jamaican-American DJ, record producer, and a member of the dancehall and reggae influence group, Major Lazer, alongside partners Diplo and Ape Drums. In this interview, Walshy Fire shares about his unique heritage and career path from working as a sales specialist at IBM, to working at a record shop in downtown Brooklyn, to becoming the MC of Major Lazer and launching his own label.
reo
REO is a digital artist, music producer, and self-described futurist who has worked with top musical talents such as Jay Z, Beyonce and Kanye. Recently, his work as a visual artist has explored the yet uncharted “metaverse” territory with his “UGLY” mask series. For FGB, REO shares about his African, Mexican and Native American heritage, his battle with cancer, the duality of his creative career in visual and musical arts, and how he is paving his own path forward.
wide
awakes
Jenna Mayer writes about the #AnotherJustice campaign that emerged in the wake of the 2020 protests against racialized violence and inequality. Inspired by a little known group in 1860 called the Wide Awakes, Another Justice is the collective work of artists and organizations taking an alternative approach to civic action by centering civic joy through art and solidarity. As part of this feature, Mayer zooms in on several of the individuals involved in Another Justice, including Hank Willis Thomas, Claudia Peña, Tony Patrick, Michele Pred, Autumn Breon, Jia Jia Fei, Michelle Woo and José Riva.
krista
kim
As conversations about NFTs, digital art, and virtual spaces continue to swirl around us, contemporary digital artist Krista Kim is at the forefront of preserving a symbiotic relationship between the physical and digital components of the metaverse,“an extension of human perception into absolute fantasy and imagination." Jenna Mayer speaks to Kim about the urgency of positioning artists as leaders as we shift to the digital realm, and the responsibility artists hold towards shaping our understanding of history.
andrew
skate shop
Two decades after Hurricane Andrew nearly decimated Miami-Dade County, Nick Katz, Adrian Douzmanian, and Pres Rodriguez have decided to plant their flag in their community with a skate shop/brand named after the crushing storm in question. Byron Hawes writes, "'Skate and Destroy' is as much an ethos as a motto, but naming their brand after one of Miami's darkest days is in no way a celebration of chaos; but meant rather as a recontextualization -- a metempsychosis -- of a word fraught with painful associations in the city." Andrew is its founders' reclamation of their city and culture.
laura
lupton
Laura Lupton is intent on addressing the environmental cost of producing and consuming art in current times, through her pioneering venture Galleries Commit. In this feature by Meredith Shepard, Lupton observes that there is no way to act for climate justice without also recognizing the other structures of oppression - racism, sexism, ecological destruction - that have led to the extractive model that the art world depends on now.
derek
fleming
Derek Fleming, developer and partner of Red Rooster Overtown, has — alongside renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson — officially launched the offshoot of New York’s lauded Harlem location. With this new location, they hope to facilitate a dining experience that works in synergy with the art of emerging African-American artists. Charles Moore writes, "With the works of Rashid Johnson, Elizabeth Catlett, Mickalene Thomas, and Theaster Gates on display throughout the space, patrons can gather, deepen their understanding of modern art, and spend some time with the African Americans who are impacting the culture today."