{"id":65211,"date":"2022-09-13T14:00:15","date_gmt":"2022-09-13T05:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fujifilmnxtc.wpenginepowered.com\/?post_type=xstories&#038;p=4206288"},"modified":"2024-05-02T00:14:46","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T15:14:46","slug":"under-the-skin","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/stories\/under-the-skin\/","title":{"rendered":"Under the Skin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div class=\"embed-responsive\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Ig4jpqYbVu4\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<h5>Delving beneath outward fa\u00e7ades, Yolanda Hoskey\u2019s photos unpack racial stereotypes with shrewdly observed insight. It\u2019s here we garner a glimpse \u2013 and marvel \u2013 at the vivid expression of her artistic roots<\/h5>\n<p>Sculpted by experience, the fragility of formative years makes for malleable minds. Emerging into an unknown, we\u2019re introduced to a world we have no agency in selecting, and no meaningful say over. Dealt an arbitrary hand, we\u2019re thrust into unfamiliar environments, adapting and adjusting to formations that may make or break us \u2013 luck indifferent to our limitations, fortune apathetic to our outcome.<\/p>\n<p>For better or worse, we\u2019re all products of this unknowable game \u2013 shaped by chance encounters, molded by our intentions and decisions\u2026 striving to make sense of how the past informs our present, and how best to negotiate the potential of our future.<\/p>\n<p>Born and raised in the Louis Heaton Pink Houses of East New York, Brooklyn, Yolanda Hoskey\u2019s beginnings were subject to such random strokes of fate. Managed by the city\u2019s public housing authority, her building was built in the fall of 1959, conceived as a means of providing affordable tenure to those adversely affected by poverty and deprivation.<\/p>\n<p>Following its construction, the neighborhood became something of a flashpoint for criminal activity. In 2000, disinvestment in social accommodation schemes exacerbated an already critical situation. There was no stemming the tide. The decision was devastating.<\/p>\n<p>As basic amenities became inaccessible, drugs and firearms circulated en masse, and opportunistic forces exploited the withdrawal to elicit ends. Residents struggled to deal with the deficiencies of a systemic problem, and for a while, \u2018The Pinks\u2019 earned a disreputable reputation as one of the Empire State\u2019s roughest boroughs.<\/p>\n<p>For those living through this period, day-to-day life was a struggle. Survival was the overriding focus, and nowhere was this more pronounced than the impressionable minds of local youth.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF1112.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF1112.jpg\" alt=\"An African American family, situated in the housing projects\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo 2022 \u00a9 Yolanda Hoskey | FUJIFILM X-H2 and XF33mmF1.4 R LM WR, 1\/100 sec at F5.6, ISO 1600<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><p>\u201cGrowing up there provided me with a first-hand account. I saw the rawness\u2026 the reality. It had a massive impact. Since leaving, I\u2019ve also got a detailed look at how the outside world perceives people like me,\u201d Yolanda observes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a black woman from this environment, I\u2019ve definitely been pre-judged. It\u2019s happened innumerable times. There are things that are just predetermined before anyone even gets to know me. I\u2019ve watched that narrative propelled forward endlessly. I\u2019ve often felt like I\u2019m valued less, because of the circumstances in which I was reared.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Owing to narrow-minded viewpoints and ill-informed cliches, Yolanda has faced her fair share of detractors, but none of these divisive voices have detracted her from creative passions. In 2017, she attained a Bachelor\u2019s degree in theatre from The City College of New York, and in the past three years, has been producing an array of beautifully realized photographs \u2013 most of which center around the importance of uniqueness, and the significance of her personal history.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen you come from these impoverished locations, you\u2019re automatically perceived as a negative force. I think it\u2019s my job to challenge those assumptions,\u201d she says. \u201cI don\u2019t photograph models\u2026 I tend to focus on those who\u2019ve come from similar places to me. They\u2019ve got this complexity and duality that\u2019s really captivating.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cContrary to how we\u2019re portrayed, I think black people are non-monolithic. There\u2019s no totality \u2013 we\u2019re all individuals. It\u2019s layered, and for this project, I felt that was worth exploring.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In her most recent venture, Yolanda sought to create something that accurately explored her roots, interrogating what it meant to identify memories of these living conditions, and the types of folk populating them.<\/p>\n<p>Taking hold of the new FUJIFILM X-H2 and a selection of prime lenses, she returned to Brooklyn with a host of friends to stage <em>Trendsetters<\/em> \u2013 a succession of dazzling images that truly encapsulate her origins.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF0994.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF0994.jpg\" alt=\"An African American man tends to his young partner's hair\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo 2022 \u00a9 Yolanda Hoskey | FUJIFILM X-H2 and XF33mmF1.4 R LM WR, 1\/80 sec at F2, ISO 400<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><p>\u201cI absolutely love X-H2. It\u2019s helped me produce some really strong work. I\u2019m constantly asked if I use film. Everyone\u2019s surprised to discover it\u2019s all digital!<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s such a cinematic sensibility about this camera. 40 megapixels of detail brought my ideas to life in amazing ways. The eye sensor reaction times are super-fast \u2013 as a portrait photographer, you want the autofocus to be unparalleled, and here, it is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The first selection of photos features an affectionate exchange between a family of three \u2013 candid snaps of a typical Louis Heaton family, engaged in various domestic activities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to bring these photos back to that household environment,\u201d Yolanda explains. \u201cBlack masculinity is a common theme throughout my work. I like to showcase black men as soft and vulnerable, to provide a counterpoint to the widespread stereotypes. They\u2019re always seen as hyper-macho, so I aim to alter that perception.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF1269-Copy.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF1269-Copy.jpg\" alt=\"An African American father playfully shaves his son\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo 2022 \u00a9 Yolanda Hoskey | FUJIFILM X-H2 and XF18mmF1.4 R LM WR, 1\/80 sec at F4, ISO 800<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><p>Referring to images of a father and son engaged in a playful shaving session, Yolanda instils her work with a sense of warmth. The father figure is attentive and demonstrative \u2013 right down to the tending of his partner\u2019s hair. Close-ups of a nearby hot comb reinforce the attention to detail, instilling these illustrations with the particulars of a lived experience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe intimate familial moments in the bathroom are straight from my past \u2013 that\u2019s what my dad used to do with my brothers. As for the haircut, we don\u2019t often see black fathers in this light\u2026 using the tools, bending to the styles. I guess it\u2019s an alternative view to what you\u2019re normally accustomed to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For the bulk of her childhood and adolescence, Yolanda was raised by her great aunt. In a sense, her pictures represent a kind of wish fulfilment, underscoring a \u2018traditional\u2019 family unit that wasn\u2019t entirely consistent in her own life. That said, compassion was a feeling she knew innately.<\/p>\n<p>Money was scarce and opportunities more so, but thanks to the efforts of her adoptive mother, Yolanda was nurtured in what she describes as a \u2018house of love\u2019. The sensation is pronounced throughout these photographs.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp_flexbox col2\">\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF1175.jpg?width=581&#038;height=363\" alt=\"A hot comb lies atop a stove\" width=\"581\" height=\"363\"  data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/li>\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF1716-Copy.jpg?width=581&#038;height=363\" alt=\"Two young African American men pose beside an urn, framed against a drab wallpaper backdrop\" width=\"581\" height=\"363\"  data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><p>\u201cMore than anything, I think people matter, and the way they have an influence on our lives. I can\u2019t help where I grew up, but there\u2019s nothing about it that I regret. It provided me with a perspective.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s sincerity in these pictures, right down to my aesthetical choices. I show affection between my subjects, expressing intimacy. That\u2019s another thing we struggle with \u2013 being emotional, without fear of judgement or ridicule. My mother and father may have been absent, but I always felt seen. More households should be like that, but I also recognize that most of this community are simply surviving.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was lucky to be brought up by a woman who had wisdom and vision beyond her years. She instilled this thinking in me: to aspire without limitations. She knew that the environment was solely circumstantial. She understood that it wasn\u2019t definitive,\u201d Yolanda reasons.<\/p>\n<p>Present in spirit, a nearby urn is far more than decorative \u2013 it houses the ashes of the woman responsible for Yolanda\u2019s outlook. Defying the direst of expectations to materialize her ambition, this first-hand perspective proved vital when it came to defining the characteristics of the area.<\/p>\n<p>Along with genuine, fly-on-the-wall snaps of a family, she merges the chic of high fashion with the dilapidated backdrop of a peeling apartment, picking apart concepts associated with \u2018black archetypes,\u2019 expressivity, and style.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF2023.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF2023.jpg\" alt=\"Two young African American women pose in emblematic attire\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo 2022 \u00a9 Yolanda Hoskey | FUJIFILM X-H2 and XF16mmF1.4 R WR, 1\/200 sec at F2.8 ISO 800<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><p>\u201cIn the context of pop culture, these poor communities are constantly demonized and left behind \u2013 but certain aspects of the styles are always sensationalized in the wider cultural sphere,\u201d she explains. \u201cI see a lot of media ridicule for how we present, but when it comes to trends, a lot of those same aspects become fashionable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHistorically speaking, our presentation has been one of the only things we\u2019ve been able to define ourselves, so it\u2019s very important that we keep that alive. We define it, as individuals. Nobody else.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Chosen with stylist Ntombi Moyo, outfits for this session highlighted an ironic counterpoint. Framing bodies amongst the scenery of a ramshackle project building, the contrast produces an intriguing effect, heightened by specific techniques.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI used six lenses in total \u2013 all primes. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/products\/lenses\/xf16mmf14-r-wr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">XF16mmF1.4 R WR<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/products\/lenses\/xf18mmf2-r\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">XF18mmF2 R<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/products\/lenses\/xf23mmf14-r\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">XF23mmF1.4 R<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/products\/lenses\/xf33mmf14-r-lm-wr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">XF33mmF1.4 R LM WR<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/products\/lenses\/xf35mmf2-r-wr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">XF35mmF2 R WR<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/products\/lenses\/xf56mmf12-r\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">XF56mmF1.2 R<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor me, there\u2019s a level of crispness you just don\u2019t get with zooms. The range is wider with primes too. I had the complete package \u2013 any effect I needed; it was available to me.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF2147.jpg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF2147.jpg\" alt=\"Four young African Americans pose in luxurious fashions, framed against a grubby wallpaper backdrop\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo 2022 \u00a9 Yolanda Hoskey | FUJIFILM X-H2 and XF16mmF1.4 R WR, 1\/200 sec at F3.2, ISO 800<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><p>\u201cI love negative space. I tend to use wider lenses and get closer. It skews bodies and faces and creates this really dramatic effect. That makes for some really interesting imagery \u2013 it gives expressions a real strong emphasis.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\nAs fashions are reclaimed and repurposed, the genuineness of these surroundings situates the style as something raw and true. Self-aware nods to plastic dolls reiterate how social pressures can put upon youngsters \u2013 influencing their sense of self-perception, and how they appear to the wider world.<\/p>\n<p>\n\u201cIt isn\u2019t just toys. As kids, we had to be deemed \u2018presentable\u2019 before we went outside. The thinking was simple: if you take care and pay attention to your appearance, maybe you won\u2019t experience as many hardships, or reinforce \u2018negative\u2019 stereotypes.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp_flexbox col2\">\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF2761.jpg?width=581&#038;height=363\" alt=\"A girl with long colored nails gestures towards the lens\" width=\"581\" height=\"363\"  data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/li>\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/DSCF2559.jpg?width=581&#038;height=363\" alt=\"A barbie doll on a bed\" width=\"581\" height=\"363\"  data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><p>\u201cThere\u2019s a level of consideration in that idea, but it\u2019s also stifling, in some way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of external forces, Yolanda\u2019s renderings are a rallying call for authentic self-expression, and what it means to distinguish one\u2019s own appearance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI paralleled the naturalistic world with high fashion, juxtaposing the two. I\u2019m all about essence. I only snap when I feel like I\u2019ve found that. That\u2019s what connects \u2013 when they can see the personality, there in the photo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hope my soul is there too.\u201d<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Delving beneath outward fa\u00e7ades, Yolanda Hoskey\u2019s photos unpack racial stereotypes with shrewdly observed insight. It\u2019s here we garner a glimpse \u2013 and marvel \u2013 at the vivid expression of her artistic roots Sculpted by experience, the fragility of formative years makes for malleable minds. Emerging into an unknown, we\u2019re introduced to a world we have [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":65212,"template":"","category":[2084,1202,1055,13040,3309,320,3162,565,7131,7670,7621,7523,8307,7768,7327],"post_tag":[],"b2b-solutions":[],"class_list":["post-65211","story","type-story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-be-inspired","category-category","category-lenses","category-prime-lenses","category-x-mount-prime","category-products","category-x-mount","category-stories","category-x-h2","category-xf16mmf1-4-r-wr","category-xf18mmf2-r","category-xf23mmf1-4-r","category-xf33mmf14-r-lm-wr","category-xf35mmf2-r-wr","category-xf56mmf12-r"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-05 05:42:23","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story\/65211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/65212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category?post=65211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_tag?post=65211"},{"taxonomy":"b2b-solutions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/pt-pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/b2b-solutions?post=65211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}