Live from the Future: Hebru Brantley

July 19, 2022

The specific brand of all-out creative energy seeping out of Hebru Brantley is difficult to put into one box, so I'm not even going to try. It's not like I have to, anyway — take one look at his new Adidas capsule (or, better yet, wear a pair on your feet), and you'll get an adequate sense of what I mean. These days, though, Brantley isn't super far removed from the full-throttle ethos surfaced by his kicks. As it turns out, he's just as unfittable into one box as the looks he's serving your soles with: on top of the Adidas collection, he's got a debut monograph release to look forward to, and an upcoming art exhibition here in New York City. Below, Brantley links with office to talk fashion, creativity, and the road ahead.

Text by Samuel Hyland
Photos courtesy of Adidas Originals

You have a ton of creative energy. What made you want to channel it into sneakers?

Sneakers are a passion of mine - I have always loved sneakers. I grew up in the Jordan era in Chicago, to me that was the birthplace of the hypebeast movement and of sneaker and basketball culture. Anytime I can enter that space and add a bit of creativity to the conversation, it is something that I look forward to.

You're known for taking an afrofuturist approach to art. Is that a knack you always had, or something that grew as you did more creative work?

It’s a knack I’ve always had, but the only thing that grew is a better understanding of what Afrofuturism is and how that defines my work.

You're gearing up for your first monograph release — how does that feel?

It feels amazing and like it was a long time coming. I’ve always been a fan of books, coffee table art, and different literature, so to be able to have my own feels great. It will also allow people to get a deeper look into my creative process over the years, and access to works that they’re unfamiliar with, so it’s really exciting.

Can you tell me about your upcoming exhibition? How are you preparing for the show, and what do you want consumers to get out of it?

The exhibition in New York [in September 2022] is very unique to me in the way that it doesn’t lean on familiar imagery. I’m exploring a very new space, but a very familiar conversation when it comes to my work. The show is an exploration into the conversation around what survival means and the perception of the black body. So, again, I’m straying away from my conventional aesthetics which is exciting on one hand because it feels new, but a bit frightening on the other hand, also because it’s so new. I never have a preconceived idea of what I want people to take away from my work. That is a very personal conversation between the work and the consumer.

What do you want people to feel when they put on a shoe from your new collection?

That they’re fresh, you know? That joy of rocking a new pair of sneakers, that feeling of putting together an outfit - t-shirt, pair of pants, and a fresh pair of sneakers. First day of school vibes - one of the great small joys of life is cracking a new box open of a pair of kicks!

What's next for you?

More shows, more art, more creative, more more more. Stay tuned.

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