Whether it is a rebel with a cause or without one, I respect those who lead instead of follow. It requires confidence, talent, skill, and some insanity to go against mass opinion but as I’m sure most creatives will agree...that is usually the only way to breathe life into our dreams. In honor of my admiration for all rebels, I have collaborated with a rebellious soul based out of Bristol, UK named Alexander Akande. Alexander, who is a talented designer with his own fashion label called Origami Bandits, and I have been acquainted for some time now and his distinctive mindset is what called for me to present The Art of Rebellion which will consist of Alexander providing his thoughts on various topics within creative culture. So enjoy this introduction and prepare for more to come from the man, the creative, and the rebel who is Alexander Akande.
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Bria: Who is Alexander Akande?
Alexander: I was
born in Cameroon (French speaking country in West/Central Africa) in April
1988. Thanks to my mother’s line of work, I’ve grown up travelling across a few
countries; Nigeria, Ghana, DR Congo, Kenya, France and the UK, where I’m
currently finishing up my Masters degree in International Management. I’d
describe myself as an athletic nerd. For one, I’m a massive bookworm and
seriously obsessed with documentaries, especially historical/cultural ones. On
the other hand, I was on the track, soccer and basketball teams in high school
and still play basketball for my University. Add the creative side to that and
it gets a little confusing. Most people are athletic, creative or academic. I
was blessed with the creative/academic sides, but I have my mother to thank for
the athletic side.
B: Explain the purpose behind
your fashion label Origami-Bandits.
A: Growing up, I always wanted to draw comics. I remember I used to buy Marvel comics and Manga and not even read them! I’d spend days studying the artist's style, the lines, placement of speech bubbles and all sorts of technical things. Then, I’d read the comic afterwards. Coming to University, you’re surrounded by thousands of people. In that sort of environment, most people change to fit in and be accepted by a group, and that’s reflected a lot in the way they dress. I got really frustrated because everyone was wearing the same clothes. I’d walk into a lecture and find half of the class dressed in Superdry, or Jack Wills (UK brands). I started designing my own T-shirts simply because I wanted to be different and not look like everyone else. You could say that’s the purpose of what I’m trying to do with Origami-Bandits. The underlying theme is rebellion, being different and doing things your way, not how society expects you to.
A: Growing up, I always wanted to draw comics. I remember I used to buy Marvel comics and Manga and not even read them! I’d spend days studying the artist's style, the lines, placement of speech bubbles and all sorts of technical things. Then, I’d read the comic afterwards. Coming to University, you’re surrounded by thousands of people. In that sort of environment, most people change to fit in and be accepted by a group, and that’s reflected a lot in the way they dress. I got really frustrated because everyone was wearing the same clothes. I’d walk into a lecture and find half of the class dressed in Superdry, or Jack Wills (UK brands). I started designing my own T-shirts simply because I wanted to be different and not look like everyone else. You could say that’s the purpose of what I’m trying to do with Origami-Bandits. The underlying theme is rebellion, being different and doing things your way, not how society expects you to.
B: What contributes to the
inspiration for your designs?
A: Cartoons.
I grew up watching an unhealthy amount of Japanese cartoons and reading lots of
manga. The one thing you notice with the Japanese is the attention to detail
with regards to the clothing on their anime or comic characters. It’s quite
remarkable when you look at it, and I always thought paid more attention to
character costumes than American or European animators did. The characters'
clothing always matches the plot, setting and theme of the anime/manga in
question. I’m also fascinated by product design and engineering, as it’s one of
the fields where designers have to design around the functionality of the
product. For
the most part, inspiration comes from everyday life; places I go, people I meet,
and things I see. I’m a self taught artist and designer so I don’t exactly go
through the same process other “trained” designers go through in having set
themes and mood boards and all that. A lot of it is organic and I tend to just
go with the flow.
B: How do you envision your role as a designer impacting creative culture?
A: I
don’t know to what extent such an impact can be made. I feel the culture is at
a crossroads right now. Older designers still run the industry and key
personalities dictate what is/isn’t good. My question is do these people
(editors, bloggers, etc.) really have the right to decide what is/isn’t great
design? Fashion has become something like a closed “members only” club, where
designers have to court the opinions of such bloggers and editors, or go to
expensive fashion schools and undertake low paying, almost abusive internships. As
someone born and raised in Africa, who’s never attended fashion/design school, I
hope to illustrate to other creatives that there are options outside of fashion
schools and internships. Design shouldn’t be limited to a chosen few, and the
public shouldn’t be limited to choosing from a limited pool, simply because
editors, bloggers and older designers won’t let “outsiders” into their design
world.
B: Is there a method to your
rebellion?
A: I try
to be different in the way I approach and execute my designs and visions. For
one, I try to avoid looking at what others are doing. I only ever know what’s
trending from seeing everyone on the street wearing it. That helps because it
means I’m not being influenced to copy and imitate others. Going
to business school was part of my whole “rebellion”. I have a lot of issues
with fashion schools, but we’ll save that for later. Having a Masters degree in
management means I don’t have to worry about making money from design. That
frees up my mind to actually be creative because I don’t have to worry about
making sales. When you’re worried about sales, you tend to follow trends in
order to make those sales. “Try
too hard to not look like anybody out there and you’ll end up looking like
everybody out there”. That’s probably the best piece of advice I’ve ever
gotten. I try not to force myself to be different. Design is an expression of
emotion, and that’s what drives my design philosophy; my likes/dislikes and
emotional responses to things. You can never go wrong if you design based on how
you feel, because there are 7 billion people on this planet and at least a
million of them will feel exactly how
you do about a design. The question is whether they can find, or afford your
designs.
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