Hairstylist Shani Crowe has experimented with Black hair since she was a young child, but after years and years of braiding her own hair, she wanted to showcase Black hair in a unique way—she wanted to create braided looks with rainbow-colored hair and wire.
Now, with the help of 3Arts, a non-profit organization in Chicago that promotes local artists, Crowe’s dream has become a reality as her looks are on display at a gallery in Chicago.
Entitled “BRAIDS”, the art exhibit displays black-and-white images of black models (some are even her close friends) with intricate braided styles. “I really love the idea of making women that I know look regal, as regal as they are in real life,” she said in a recent interview with Fusion.
“[When braiding,] you are always having some sort of conversation, and something that your client might say may shed some light on a situation that you are dealing with in your life,” says the Chicago native. “You never know the impact that you have on somebody, spending that much time with them, working so close to them.”
Check out Crowe’s work at 1932 S. Halstead Street in Chicago throughout April.