Lamar is a muse for the ages, a lens through which we can explore the love within both our hearts and others'.
Check out the video and photos below.
office connected with a couple of the One Future faces to find out how they take action, approach adversity, and hold onto hope as we head into the holiday season in today’s tough times.
Quannah Chasinghorse Potts, 17
How are you staying close and connected during quarantine?
I am staying close and connected through social media, phone calls and FaceTime with family and friends.
What does family mean to you?
Family is everything. My family has taught me so much and has always encouraged me to be myself. My family taught me the most important values, such as staying humble and to never forget who I am and where I come from.
What are you doing to stay active in your community?
Staying active in my community during the pandemic has been difficult. I have been participating in a lot of online presentations, Zoom meetings, IG live interviews, etc. I also make sure to pay attention to what's going on in our community, both locally and also within Indian country.
How do you stay positive during these tumultuous, dark times?
I pray and call unto my ancestors for guidance, I reach out to family and friends. Being creative helps, so I’ve been doing some art and playing music.
What was being in the One Future #CkOne campaign like?
I had such a positive experience. CK did an amazing job on the campaign. They hired a local Alaska Native photographer, and we had so much fun during the shoot. I appreciate that CK made sure they represented me with honesty. It was amazing to see people from all walks of life being represented in this campaign.
What have you learned about yourself and others over the last year?
I feel like I have learned about a lot this year. I had to learn to be patient and more self-aware. It seems like 2020 has really brought out people's true colors both good and bad.
Who are you grateful for this holiday season?
I am most grateful for my family and my closest friends whom I also call family.
What are you looking forward to in the new year?
I am looking forward to positive change and greater equity. I hope there will be an end to the pandemic in the next year, so we can see more family and traveling for work and exciting opportunities.
How are you staying close and connected during quarantine?
I’ve been engaging a lot with my local Sunrise Movement, a collective of young people who stand for our local community. At the moment, group chats and zoom meetings have been my main way of staying connected.
What does family mean to you?
Family are those who call you at random to check up on you. My little sister seems to do that the most. Even after we end our call, she’ll call me ten minutes later and keep me hostage.
What are you doing to stay active in your community?
I’ve been offering my filming services at local events such as a CARavan, a gathering of cars with painted on or taped picket signs. Right now, teachers and families are attempting to get city councils attention about local issues but to no avail. Being there to document the movement is important. Although the revolution won’t be televised, it will be documented!
How do you stay positive during these tumultuous, dark times?
My partner, Brittany, and I hold hands and sing along to our favorite songs. I know that sounds cheesy but we really do be jamming together. I’m very lucky to have someone like her. She’s always got my back.
What was being in the one future #ckone campaign like?
A huge blessing! An artist from my community brought it my attention. I owe them everything. Felt like a collaborative photoshoot like the ones we tend to have here anyway. It felt like home, familiar. It was dope.
What have you learned about yourself and others over the last year?
That change is constant. As a Dreamer, I know that’s the truth. I couldn’t sleep earlier in the year when the administration was trying to rid of DACA. In 2019, the threat of it going away was constant too. Heck, on my birthday, it almost went away forever. It’s tiring not knowing for certain. To put it into perspective, without DACA, I wouldn’t be able to work with Calvin Klein and my story wouldn’t have been heard. The Trump administration wants our stories to be lost and forgotten. That just ain’t right.
Who are you grateful for this holiday season?
I adore Christmas! At least the season! It’s cool everyone collectively tries to be kind to one another. Gifts are always cool, too. I wish random gift guiding was normalized. Side note, I decorated my apartment. It straight up looks like Narnia!
What are you looking forward to in the new year?
I feel it in my bones that it’s time that I direct my first feature film! It’ll be a Mexican-Gothic horror film with the infamous Lotería cards at the center, shot here in El Paso, Texas! It’s time to get this story out there! There are a lot of filmmakers here in Texas! In fact, it was very wavy to see my billboard up at the same time as some other local filmmakers, as they had their billboards up a few miles away from mine. It’s definitely the universe telling me something! I always knew I’d do this kind of work, you know? I know things. Calvin Klein gave me a life time supply of confidence!
Toni Bravo, 20
How are you staying close and connected during quarantine?
Quarantine has truly pushed me creatively in many ways, like finding new ways to connect safely with my loved ones during a time of social distancing. Zoom has been an amazing source, but also letters! Sending thoughtful mail is lovely way to show your appreciation and also supporting the post office at the same time!
What does family mean to you?
Whether connected by blood or choice, family means love and never-ending support.
What are you doing to stay active in your community?
In the summer, I actively attended a number of protests that completely changed me in the best way possible. With the current lockdowns in place, I have been staying indoors for the safety of my community and myself. However, I use the voice I have online to share important resources and information regarding those within my community in order to spread awareness, love, and understanding.
How do you stay positive during these tumultuous, dark times?
I stay positive by thinking of the future that those in my generation and myself strive to create. My generation is full of revolutionary creatives who have created waves, especially this year. That makes me hopeful beyond measure.
What was being in the one future #ckone campaign like?
It was a dream. Being featured in the #ckone campaign was something that still feels like a dream to me. I never would have thought in 2020, something of this magnitude would fall into my lap. It truly was an experience I will never forget and I am forever grateful for being able to share my story.
What have you learned about yourself and others over the last year?
I have learned the importance of empathy and community. This year has taught me that not everyone has an understanding of either. And this year has also expanded on what those two aspects mean for me as well. This pandemic truly calms for a great deal of empathy and care for the community around you.
Who are you grateful for this holiday season?
I am beyond grateful for my incredibly supportive family who inspire me to grow every single day. Having such positivity and love in your corner, truly goes a long way.
What are you looking forward to in the New Year?
I am looking forward to HUGS! I am hopeful that of the end of next year, we will have this thing under control (fingers crossed) enough to hug people again.
According to In the Park founder Carlos Castellanos, “We grew up watching Mexican telenovelas geared towards young adults, like Soñadoras and many others—they exposed a really dramatic idea of youth at that time that feels so nostalgic now. But the thing is these telenovelas were extremely eurocentric in their casting of entirely white actors. So I think for us now doing this story is a way to change the narrative and imagine this with our models; to imagine a different past.”
Stylist Ricardo Arenas crafts extravagant rococo looks that never lose their casually chic center. Campy pop art jewelry and makeup blend a chaotic tapestry of aesthetics that can only be described as y2k punk meets electric warehouse grunge. Arenas' work reflects a creative osmosis of life in the city. “I find inspiration in the common things: people, cars, architecture, markets. I'm out on the streets a lot and I try to keep my eyes very open, people always surprise me with their ideas on how to wear different garments.”
Pulling from early 2000s celebrity culture, Arenas found inspiration in reimagining the looks of icons like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears with the moxie of Mexico City’s youth.
The models of ITP smize at the camera with a, “I will burn holes in you,” ferocity that only comes with authentic lived experience. They’re the type of people that look like they’d either be dominating the runway or chain smoking cigarettes in a dingy park. It’s beauty with sharp edges carved into it.
When it comes to scouting models, photographer Macías says, “I am used to facing all kinds of people, different heights, complexions, skin tones, all that fascinates me, it is a matter of chemistry.”
Ultimately, it is this chemistry that emboldens the editorial with its alchemic balance of corrosive realism and fantastical possibilities, drawn from a wide scope of media influences. The different creative processes of the ITP team create a colorful tapestry celebrating the diversity and queerness of Mexico’s capital.
Arenas attributes the city as the foremost site of his inspiration. “What I love about Mexico City is the contrast between the new with the old, you can see our history in every building or corner. Literally here I have felt discovering colors and combinations that I haven’t seen in any other place. Also I enjoy the fact that the city colors are always changing depending on the seasons, the fruits, the flowers, the foods that are sold on the streets."
The genius of ITP is in their potential to disrupt the status quo of western fashion circles. If you hadn't heard about the team before this, you might want to jot their name down. You'll most definitely be hearing about the agency in the coming months. “With the modeling agency, we are working on new talent," Castellanos says. "Development is always exciting and we can't wait to introduce more and more talented people. We are now looking for talents not only for fashion, but also actors, singers and dancers who can have a wide range for entertainment and creative projects."
Check out the rest of the editorial below.
How do you explain where you're from? Without anyone seeing it through pictures, could you describe in words where and how you grew up?
I'm from Gallaratese, a neighborhood on the outskirts of Milan. Historically speaking, it is a neighborhood built in the 60s to give space to people who moved from the south to escape poverty. This immigration increased the construction of these new Milanese neighborhoods. Today the Gallaratese area is the place and home of another type of immigration: in the end of the 1980s, a flow of people from non-EU states, mainly Middle Eastern, decided to try to find luck in Northern Italy. My family was one of them.
Do you know the film La Haine (1991) by Kassovitz with Vincent Cassel? Growing up in Gallarate's area was very similar to the one in the film... the suburbs of European cities are very similar to each other. Growing up in this context, without a father at home, the other part of my adolescence was quite troubled. Poverty in the neighborhood didn't always help you make the right decisions or hang out with the right people. And this often caused problems of all kinds, from seeing a lot of friends go to juvie or even losing friends to death. On the other hand it was a positive experience growing up in this place. All my friends had different origins but, some more, some less, we had the same stories. We were all there at the same time together, and this is what I carry most in my heart.
You say, "Real people live here, people that move entire cities.” What is it about where you’re from that produces such real people, and what is ‘real’ to you?
People who live here are not as facilitated as those in the center, their backgrounds push them to work hard every day to survive and make it to the end of the month, to fight racist prejudices and to preserve a better future for future generations. People here don't decide what to do in life, but they find themselves in this situation where they accept the humblest jobs, anything, to take something home at the end of the day. Often, people who live in the center want to appear perfect in the eyes of others, they don't accept humble jobs... for them the only real job is the one who brings a lot of money. My community is not like that, we don't care about appearance, we are who we are, and we don't care about where you come from or what is your job. For me this is the meaning of, "Real people that move entire cities."
Where are some of your favorite spots? What is an anecdote that gives us an example of what day-to-day looks like for you?
The metro station, the market, the park... are some of my favorite places. Those are meeting points where life in the neighborhood begins. My typical day starts from these places, where me and friends meet... and from there we decide what to do. To be honest, I don't have a typical day, it depends on who I'm gonna meet. I have a lot of friends that are working in the art field: some do graffiti street art, others music, and I usually work with them.
I totally get that, similar to my days in NY! So what do you do to give back to the community you’re from? Do you think you’ll ever live anywhere else? If so, where?
I wouldn't live anywhere else. I would like to create a meeting place for young people... something like a club that is currently lacking in the neighborhood. A place where someone can get support for family problems, growth problems; a place where there are people who can direct you towards something good.
What is your favorite thing about the community you’re immersed in? What would you recommend to people if they came to visit?
I will always be grateful for my community and the various ethnic groups in the neighborhood that integrate with each other. We've learned to embrace cultural differences since childhood. There are so many places in Gallaratese I'd recommend. For starters, the Parco delle Cave is a great meeting point of people old and young. I would definitely tell them to visit the ethnic shops at the foot of the high-rise buildings, where there are people from older generations who have stories of the place before it was fully built, and their migrations stories. Plus the food is excellent. The Gallaratese area is subject to urban redevelopment, many architects have built important works here: from the Monte Amiata residential complex by Aldo Rossi in the mid-1950s, which many students and enthusiasts come to visit, to the Bonola shopping center at the San Siro stadium.
