Antoinette of Around the Way Curls attended a book release for the Afro’s – A Celebration of Natural Hair, thrown by Tamara Hood of LivelyHood (the event producer), and PR by Renae Bluitt of Crush Media/ the dope blogger of In Her Shoes Blog, and Susan Martin of MartinPR…and of course the author, Michael July.
Overall, it was a great event. I am always amazed when I come out and am surrounded by so many like-minded, beautiful, fashionable, natural, regal, brown people. I swear, if you have never gone to one of these events you are missing out. As soon as I walked in I was overjoyed.
Being in a room filled with folks celebrating beauty that is specifically a reflection you is on of the best feeling in world. Anyway, if you don’t know about Afro’s the book here’s the scoop:
This is a coffee table book my Michael July that captures the spirit and essence of the Afro today as well as paying homage to the historic significance of natural hair iconic voyagers like Angela Davis, Jimi Hendrix and others. Over the course of a five year period photographer Michael July approached a wide variety of beautiful, creative and intelligent individuals from all walks of life and asked them would they be willing to participate as subject models for a coffee table book he was putting together entitled “Afros – A Celebration Of Natural Hair”. Traveling all across the United States from New York to California he was able to capture the créme de la créme of Afros. People of virtually every shade, ethnicity, country and age group. “AFROS – A Celebration Of Natural Hair” intent is to show pictorially the power, beauty and glorious nature of the ‘Fro and also to document in words the deeper and at times whimsical “hairstory” of each of its models. The author shot the majority of these individuals at his photo studio in Brooklyn using colorful & vibrant backdrops personally tailored to each model’s own sense of style and fashion. As a result he succeeded, along with the assistance of two remarkably talented book designers, Darhil Crooks & Monica Whittick in creating a coffee table book that will have massive international appeal for many years to come.
Around the Way Curls is an online publication that infuses pop culture and issues of women’s interest with an emphasis on the beauty, originality and spirit of naturally kinky, curly hair. – See more at: http://aroundthewaycurls.com/about-us/#sthash.MeCDgjrl.dpuf
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Somewhere during the latter part of this period Michael July would buy a basic Panasonic point and shoot camera to supplement in still images what he was shooting on video. Within a year one of the top photographers in the country Terrence Jennings saw some of his photos and was so impressed with his eye for photography that he encouraged Michael to buy a DSLR camera, which he did. Soon he was documenting the same thing he was doing with video but with photos and establishing a portfolio that was quite commanding. The next year, New Years Eve 2006 to be exact as Michael explains it “I had a epiphany. At an Afro Punk party I noticed the most attractive young couple with large, perfectly rounded Afros. I wanted to shoot them so badly but was a bit hesitant because they were in such a playful zone that I was afraid I would interrupt it. Then out of nowhere they both looked at me and simultaneously asked “Aren’t you going to shoot us?” Well that was the beginning of it. I decided then and there that I would do a coffee table book on Afros. I was going to pay respect historically to those who rocked it in places like East Africa and later in America in the 60s and 70s but mainly my purpose would be to capture the ‘Afro Renaissance’ across the country that was starting to happen.” Fast forward to January 2013. Michael July through Natural Light Press is releasing the coffee table and lifestyle book, “AFROS” – ‘A Celebration of Natural Hair’.