V of BlackQueeMagic is this week’s “Femme Voices” feature interview. V’s story resonated with me on so many levels, from personal to professional. This self-made jewelry designer explains how she went from a job that was wearing her down to discovering her creative talents and turning them into a fulfilling career where she is able to help others. V also speaks about the period of reconciliation that she had to go through in order to embrace her Jamaican heritage yet still hold on strong to her self-worth and identity. These challenges are very relatable to those of us who struggle to find a balance between purpose and passion while navigating through the conventions of our culture. But despite these difficulties, V managed to overcome and flourish in her Black Queer Magic.
Learn more about V’s journey below the break!
Please introduce yourself. What is your name? Where are you located? What are your pronouns and how do you identify?
My name is Vanessa but I prefer V. My pronouns are she/they and I identify as a Jamaican, queer, gender non-conforming femme. I’m located on the lower east side of Manhattan in New York City.
Tell us a little bit about what you do as an artist and an entrepreneur and anything else that you do.
I’m a self-taught jewelry designer who specializes in lapidary, wire wrapping, electroforming, metal stamping, and metal-smithing. My work is largely influenced by healing within the Black LGBTQ community.
In addition to designing jewelry, I also create space for these populations to come together and create their own pieces in a safe space. My Chill N’ Design workshops are similar to art therapy group sessions because people are able to share intimate parts of themselves in a small group while creating and exchanging ideas.
My dedication to the healing and celebrating of Black LGBTQ bodies has inspired me to pursue graduate coursework in clinical social work to further study therapeutic interventions and ways to continue to foster healing within marginalized communities.
How long have you been designing jewelry? How/why did you start?
I’ve been designing for the last three years and time has flown! I originally started after quitting a violent job and taking a year off from working to heal. During my time off I started a Go Fund Me to explore my passion path – a list of various things I was creatively interested in but didn’t have the resources to explore them.
I found that Black people, Black Women, and particularly Black queer Women and Black queer folks aren’t afforded the same flexibility to get to know themselves so I wanted to maximize the time off to learn something that would feed my soul.
Thankfully, people donated to my cause and I was able to purchase my first set of jewelry materials and began creating. By sitting with wire and crystals, I started designing and I quickly realized that creating was helping me to heal the parts of me that weren’t previously celebrated.
It empowered me to adorn my body, cherish my work and labor, value myself, and live life unapologetically. I started creating for my own mental health and quickly realized that I could merge my love of creativity and the arts with my love for Black folks; thus, BlackQueerMagic was born.
Does what you do make you feel like a part of a bigger community? If so, what is your biggest/most important contribution to this community, even if it is a work in progress?
I’m a Black Queer Femme person living my truth and unapologetically exploring my creativity while allowing the universe to guide me. I think that by sharing my artistic process, progress, vulnerability, and personal growth I’ve reminded people of their own magic while reminding myself as well.
The pieces that I create celebrate Black queer love, affirm Black queer lives, and push back on gender norms or expectations. My commitment to my artistic practice has afforded me the ability to connect with various communities that comprise the complexities of my identity and I’m reminded that I’m not alone.
The Glam Femme seeks to explore the multi-dimensionality of queer women and folks of color. In what ways would you consider yourself multi-dimensional, if at all?
I consider myself to be of the African diaspora with Jamaican roots, an immigrant, former foster youth, queer, gender non-conforming, spiritual, a jewelry designer, and an emerging clinician. I literally cannot fit into any boxes and I live my life freely without conforming.
On your Instagram, you said, “Being queer and Jamaican is like being in a constant state of contradictions.” Being Jamaican-American, I can relate to that but have had difficulty reconciling with it myself. However, it seems like you have found ways to confront it head-on. Can you describe this journey?
Growing up as a Black Queer Jamaican kid was hard AF. I witnessed and experienced some fucked up behaviors and thought patterns that helped me decide early on that I wanted to work with and for people that had similar experiences as me.
In college, I studied the intersectionality of Black LGBTQ lives from a transnational perspective. This research helped me to heal from my own experiences and further understand the challenges that Black LGBTQ people across the world experience. In a Puerto Rican history class, I learned that I had to choose the most integral parts of my culture and leave the rest.
I grew a greater appreciation for the land, food, musical instruments and language that comprise Jamaican culture but left behind the painful homophobic and gender restrictive aspects that I grew up around. It’s been a barrier to building a relationship with my family because there’s no guarantee of who I’ll bring home or if I’ll ever be a proper Jamaican wife or mother.
What is your favorite or most effective self-care method?
My favorite self-care method is turning off my computer and phone to zone out from the day by taking a nap, doing yoga, or watching King of the Hill. School is incredibly challenging so practicing self-care and intentionally spending time alone is important to me. It’s very hard for me to feel inspired, productive, or creative when I feel stressed so I have to be careful of protecting my energy.
What are you most proud of about yourself and what you have accomplished?
I’m very proud of myself for surviving on my own for the last 5 years after aging out from foster care. It’s taken a lot of sacrifices, chances, and trust to finally get to a place of stability with my life, art form, and education. I’ve survived and it’s the best feeling in the world to live to tell about it while following my passions.
Do you have any upcoming projects or goals?
Yes! I’m working on a fine jewelry line called Millicent New York dedicated to my grandmother. She has been an artist, entrepreneur, and hustler her whole life. Her determination to overcome her obstacles and follow her passions have inspired me to continue on my passion path.
How can we see your work/contact you/etc.?
Instagram @blackqueermagic/@millicentnewyork/@chillndesign
www.Blackqueermagic.bigcartel.com
