Anyone who has seen a master hairstylist on the job knows that working with hair can be a true art. It’s not just creative hairstyles on models parading down a catwalk at a fashion show that capture an audience’s attention, award-worthy red carpet styles or close-ups in photo shoots. Hair as art is all around us every day, and amika is taking that to the next level during New York Art Fair Week by presenting “Crowns in Bloom: Celebrating Hair in Contemporary Art.” Produced by Alejandro Jassan and curated by Auttrianna Ward, the exhibition explores hair as a powerful expression of identity, beauty, culture and self-expression, bringing together an intergenerational group of contemporary artists working across a range of mediums—painting, sculpture, photography, installation and film—with hair at the heart of every piece, whether it’s the medium itself or the muse.
Participating in New York Art Fair Week “felt like such a natural extension of what amika has always believed: that hair is a form of creativity and self-expression,” says Chelsea Riggs, CEO and founding member of amika. “We’re a Brooklyn-born, salon-raised brand, and we’ve always been surrounded by incredibly creative people. Art has also been part of how amika has shown up in the world from the very beginning, from the prints we put on our tools back in 2007 to the literal artwork featured on our haircare bottles today. New York is also home for us, so being part of a week that celebrates creativity in so many different forms felt like a really exciting way to bring the world of amika into a new space.”
Held in the art gallery neighborhood of Chelsea in Manhattan, the exhibit opens to the public today and runs through October 9. At first glance, the show seems like any other in a Chelsea gallery, with a range of pieces that vary wildly in scope and size. But two things set it apart: The art isn’t for sale, and every piece explores hair in its own way, whether it is a sculpture made from hair, photographs of people in salons or multimedia pieces, to name a few.
