GRIOTS REPUBLIC - AN URBAN BLACK TRAVEL MAG - OCTOBER 2016

clothes by literally changing them. Whether
it’s silk screening, tie dyeing, bleaching
or even painting directly onto something,
you changed it forever. I love denim. I did
some research. I work heavily with denim
and interestingly enough the Indigo Plantations
were considered the death row for
slaves beyond cotton and textiles. If you
worked with indigo, your life expectancy
was drastically reduced because the vat
that makes the indigo was so putrid that
it would kill you. Runaway slaves were sentenced
to work there as punishment and
certain death. Denim has a long history
rooted in cotton and slavery. I looked
at using bleach as a way to purify it and
purge the ghost from it and cleanse the
history. People wear denim every day and
it’s a huge part of their wardrobe and do
not know its history. It’s not just clothes.
For me, it’s a canvas.
GR: WHAT’S NEXT FOR JERRY GANT?
Jerry Gant: Maya Angelou said, “If you
don’t define yourself, someone else will
damn sure do it for you.” I’m going to let
my works define who I am as a person. My
works and the messages I infuse in them.
Yeah, that’s the way I’m going to play it.