Rubric Initiative is set to diversify the fashion industry
An army of industry insiders including AnOther Magazine’s Nell Kalonji, British Vogue’s Olivia Singer, menswear critic Alexander Fury and stylist Ibrahim Kamara are behind a brand new mentorship program offering expert advice to BAME youth.
Launching today is Rubric Initiative: a platform promoting change within the fashion industry by supporting young people of colour, between the ages of 14 – 25, in the formative stages of their careers.
Over the past few months, an army of industry insiders such as stylists Nell Kalonji and Ibrahim Kamara, photographers Bolade Banjo, Hanna Moon and Amber Pinkerton, editors Olivia Singer, Emma Hope Allwood and Alexander Fury and designers Martine Rose and Virgil Abloh, have been establishing the online organisation with a mission to support a new generation of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic tastemakers as they break the often challenging barriers into the fashion industry.
From next year, Rubric Initiative will offer educational resources such as YouTube video panels headed up by industry experts addressing representation and access, and one-to-one online chats offering guidance on the practical side of the industry. Mentorship services will also be available through visual portfolio reviews, writing workshops and outreach programmes in schools and community groups.
The initiative works in tandem with Mentoring Matters – a newly established mentoring scheme similarly addressing the lack of diversity and opportunities open to young BAME people across the British creative industries. Alongside Rubric, mentors will be committing to 12 sessions over six months, participating in the creation of workshops, offering paid internships at their retrospective companies and taking part in school visits with the future goal of a more diverse workforce.
With a mission to change “Fashion’s Future”, Rubric Initiative stresses the importance of different perspectives, informed by different experiences, in order to enhance the creative conversation throughout a historically white-washed industry. It’s time for change and Rubric Initiative is starting 2021 the right way.
To find out more about Rubric Initiative, visit rubric-initiative.com, and give them a follow on @rubricinititive
