This October, NOW Gallery invites Sludge Magazine’s founder and editor-in-chief Martyn Ewoma to host an in conversation with Art of Football’s head of brand Kelvyn Quagraine and Offside Outlet founder Ayesha Brown, alongside the critically acclaimed annual photography exhibition Human Stories.
Find Your Tribe will see the three creatives, who collaborated on Sludge Mag’s sold out jersey in celebration of the Women’s Euros in 2022, talk about how they built their creative communities and the value of having a diverse range of creative disciplines in your network. All three organisations owe a large portion of their success to their onus on collaboration.
Founded in 2017 Sludge Magazine set out to showcase creative talent and to make social discourse more accessible. Aside from the aforementioned jersey the platform has executed a number of collaborative projects ranging from panel talks at Somerset House, football tournaments in the Midlands and a party at Red Bull HQ. Collaboration is at the epicentre of why Art of Football have grown into one of the country’s favourite football fashion brands, boasting collaborations with Premier League clubs, Pepsi, PUMA and singer Self Esteem who designed a jersey shedding a light on the spike in domestic abuse when the England team lose matches. Offside Outlet’s Ayesha Brown has long put community and collaboration at the forefront of her craft, most recently showcasing her new footwear collaborations with Made Black Studios as part of her Home Sweet Home collection commemorating the 2024 men’s Euros.
“We’ve done a few events centred around supporting young creatives through the platform. Between those and my experiences lecturing, one of the most consistent things I’ve noticed is that a lot of creatives yearn for collaborators of complimentary disciplines.Lots of designers make great clothes but don’t know how to shoot a lookbook. Lots of DJs make great mixes but don’t know enough about graphic design to make promo material. A lot of people starting out have to do a bit of everything to build their brand. I believe it’s more effective to source people equally passionate about their respective discipline, so that everyone can focus on what they’re good at and grow together” says Martyn “when I think about the most impactful creative eco-systems they’re usually working consistently with the people they knew from the jump and growing together. Sagan Lockhart’s photography was synonymous with Odd Future in the way that I associate Walid Labri’s video work with Corteiz. I love the idea of someone finding the team that they’re going to shape culture with at our event so I’m counting on the attendees to make that happen”
The night will include a DJ set by Karicho, complimentary drinks from Red Bull and a speed networking portion led by CB Lamba.
