We had the good fortune of connecting with Maxine Wint and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maxine, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Deciding I wanted to go to art school was a very big risk. I feel like in the black community STEM is highly pushed on kids that we forget that there are other paths in life. I couldn’t attend a traditional university because I knew how creative I was and I didn’t want to let my talents end up as a hopeless dream I never got to fulfill, plus I wanted to actually be interested in going to class everyday. A lot of parents don’t take art as a serious career so they don’t encourage or invest in their kids talents but taking the risk to attend my art school has rewarded me in so many ways I couldn’t think of and i’m so glad I didn’t go the traditional route my parents expected of me or I wouldn’t be were I am today.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Since the last interview I did with Voyage i’ve actually expanded on my craft and i’m now in school for fashion design. Ever since I was a child high fashion has always been an interest of mine and when I got the opportunity to join the fashion program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, I knew that this was going to be a completely new and inspiring path for me. It hasn’t been easy though, since i’ve joined the program (it’s now my second year) and i’m starting to see just how labor intensive and demolishing fashion can be. I just finished a project focused on sustainability and it was great to be able to stray away from these harmful fast fashion methods that are destroying the earth everyday. I hope to continue these efforts of sustainability within my design practice and to keep exploring the culture of blackness throughout the world.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
In Chicago we have a lot of scenic places to visit. My university is actually connected to one of the world largest and historical art museums, I always recommend people visit the Art Institute of Chicago if they want to learn more about art history and get to see some of the greatest works of art humans have made throughout time. The museum of contemporary art is also another great museum to visit, they highlight a lot of contemporary artist such as Nick Cave, an alumni of the art institute and an amazing Chicago sculpter / fashion designer. Since the art community is so big in Chicago theres always lots of events to go to, on top of that we have some of the best restaurants in the world!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My sister has been one of the biggest support systems in my life and my creative journey. She’s a creative director of the brand Minty Merchh. When I was younger I would always look up to her because people thought she was so cool and the best dressed and I felt like I needed to follow in her footsteps, thats why I got so interested in fashion. We both keep each other motivated and inspired to keep working hard and trying to achieve our goals.

 

Website: website currently in progress

Instagram: Beneatheskylines

Other: Photography Page (IG) – @killmadmax Fashion design page (IG) – @madmaxarchives

Image Credits
Models: @zizamoz_ @saige.vizcarra Photographer: @Mattdicksonphotography Makeup: @beneatheskylines Designer: @Beneatheskylines

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