Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtney Skinner.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I lived in Houston for a good portion of my childhood, but moved to Japan when I was 11! I discovered a lot of my passions, including anime and fashion. I’d always been mildly interested in art and cartoons, but I think being surrounded by them really influenced me in my teen years! When I was 16, I came back to America for college. At first, I didn’t dress too out of the ordinary because I was afraid of how people would react but started to miss that form of self-expression more and more. When I finally jumped back into Japanese fashion, I noticed a distinct lack of plus size clothing and darker skinned models in the market. I started making clothes for myself in January of 2017, then friends started to show interest, and I finally decided to sell my clothes in June of that year! Now, a year and a half later, I am known as the artist behind Ota-Q Apparel and have done several fashion shows and local events in Texas!
Please tell us about your art.
So my main form of expression is clothes. I am an art student and plan to be an art teacher, but my paintings and sculptures aren’t really my main squeeze. A lot of people think I’m dressing up or doing something special, but it’s really my daily wear! I am best known for sublimation print apparel that has my digital artwork on it, but I’ve been expanding to other wearable art like pins, socks, broaches, and hats. Most of my stuff is inspired by Harajuku and anime, but as egocentric as it sounds, my original inspiration was myself? I made the clothes I wanted, predominantly clothes that actually fit my body type instead of the one-size garments I had gotten used to squeezing in. This developed into wanting to make clothes for everyone and encouraging people to wear what they like! You don’t know how often I hear “I want to wear this but…” and they bring up how there aren’t options for men, it doesn’t come in their size, or they don’t think it for people of their skin color. I understand that I can’t make those insecurities go away, but I’d like to lighten the load, make the clothing readily available, and encourage people to wear it! I made sure all of my clothing had plus size options and made pants and shirts that people could wear and present more masculine. I also wanted to put emphasis on people of color because you don’t see too many of us in the anime and j-fashion scene.
I separate my clothing into different themes or collections and release them about seasonally. Each collection has different inspirations. For instance, some of my items included a design with a black Barbie, a melanin chocolate bar, and other instances of Black representation mixed with cuter parts of pop culture. My most recent and largest collection, the Menhera Collection, is my personal take on menhera, a fashion from Japan that was made to bring attention to mental illness. It has this really cool mixture of nurse and medical themes, creepy motifs, and cutesy, pastel aesthetic. A lot of people, including myself, struggle with mental illnesses and this form of rant art can really be empowering. The word “menhera” is actually an insult for the mentally ill in Japan, like calling someone a crazy person, but it has been reclaimed and almost worn like a badge of honor. That said, Japanese menhera is a little unhealthy as it glorifies behavior like self-harm and suicide. I wanted to make a watered down version that still had the same meaning, but wasn’t as disturbing to share and see.
The main message I want people to take from my work is to enjoy their clothes and present themselves how they want. Don’t just settle for the mundane!
What do you think about conditions for artists today? Has life become easier or harder for artists in recent years? What can cities like ours do to encourage and help art and artists thrive?
As an artist, that works predominantly in digital art, I think social media is an important tool to spread your work. It takes a lot of effort to gain a major following, but you can find fans half-way across the world with it! This applies to musicians, poets, and other artists as well, but is extremely important for visual artists because of how dependent this generation is on technology and visual media. I don’t think life has become particularly easier or harder for artists, but that the environment has changed. Marketing and sales have moved online. That said. I still find importance in physical places to meet up and share our work with a local community! I love going to art shows and conventions and seeing others work! Holding more local events and sharing each other’s work online will help us strengthen our community and share our work with the public!
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
I mean, just look for the black girl wearing pink from head to toe! Really though, my social media is the best place to see my work! I have an Instagram and Facebook (@otaqapparel) and an official website, www.ota-q.store. I also go to local anime conventions like A-Kon, Oni-Con, Delta H, and Magical Girl Day where I sell my clothing in person and hold fashion shows! As a broke college student, buying from me will always be the best way to support me. That said, if you can only afford to share my artwork around, that works too!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ota-q.store
- Email: calliope@ota-q.store
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/otaqapparel/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/otaqapparel/
Image Credit:
Lighting Savage Photography
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
