{"id":6890,"date":"2023-02-26T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-26T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shinola.com\/our-stories\/?p=6890"},"modified":"2023-05-02T13:39:37","modified_gmt":"2023-05-02T13:39:37","slug":"detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/","title":{"rendered":"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
A celebrated Nigerian American filmmaker partners with Shinola
to amplify Detroit\u2019s Black voices. Sharing stories of love,
perseverance, and craftsmanship, Emmanuel Afolabi focuses
the lens on four artists in \u201cThe Portrait Series.\u201d<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Becoming a storyteller was always in the cards for Emmanuel Afolabi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Born into a family of creatives\u2014his mother a fashion designer, brother a music producer, and sister a writer\u2014Afolabi learned how to tell stories through art from a young age. It was only a matter of finding the medium that spoke the most to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His journey began in Lagos, Nigeria, then led him to New York City to study film. It was in this fast-paced city that cultivates creativity where his love for filmmaking bloomed. He found his voice by first looking inward, then widening his aperture to include those around him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s through the art of film that Afolabi creates representation and accomplishes his goals\u2014and representation is a powerful amplifier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s important because representation matters. I imagine a younger version of me watching the stories that I tell. I think it creates a sense of identity and a sense of confidence to see people who look like me doing and making incredible things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Detroit-Based Filmmaker, Emmanuel Afolabi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI want to amplify Black voices\n by telling stories about communities\n and the people.\u201d<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
THE PORTRAIT SERIES<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pursuit of his passion eventually led him to Detroit, the city he now calls home. Its rich history, spirited culture, and genuine people sparked new ideas and opportunities to hone his craft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI noticed that the stories of Detroit aren\u2019t always being told,\u201d he recalls. Today, Afolabi reaches a wider audience for these important tales by partnering with brands looking to utilize this his storytelling on their platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\"\"
Bre\u2019Ann White. Shot by Emmanuel Afolabi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
One of his latest projects\u2014 \u201cThe Portrait Series\u201d\u2014drills deep into Motown\u2019s roots by profiling the city\u2019s diverse artist community. Afolabi focuses his lens on four of the city\u2019s Black makers to tell their stories of love, perseverance, and craftsmanship. Once he was ready to share it with the world, all he wanted next was the right partner to help him uplift their voices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause Shinola has such strong connection to the city, I felt that working together to tell the stories of Detroit artists who are making beautiful things here was a natural fit.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
The series showcases the unparalleled prowess of photographer Bre\u2019ann White; artist and muralist Sydney James; artist and visionary storyteller Olayami Dabls; and artist and designer Tony Whlgn. In his unique way, Afolabi brings the significant work they\u2019ve done around the city to light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think that all four artists can speak to Detroit better than most because they speak with a strong voice from an authentic perspective,\u201d he points out. \u201cThey were all born here or have lived here for a very long time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
Olayami Dabls. Shot by Emmanuel Afolabi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
DETROIT IS HOME<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is not inconsequential that \u201cThe Portrait Project\u201d was created during the coldest months of a Midwest winter. Afolabi captures his artists continuing their craft during a season when most of us want to hibernate under a blanket or bolt for the beach. \u201cIt just shows how deep the people of Detroit\u2019s work ethic runs,\u201d he said with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Tony Whlgn. Shot by Emmanuel Afolabi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
However, one of the biggest takeaways from this project was the discovery of what Detroit means to him. Being a transplant, the way the city welcomed him with open arms shaped his narrative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\"\"
Sydney James. Shot by Emmanuel Afolabi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\u201cThere is so much love that emanates through all the people here. My empathy for this city draws me to tell these stories because these people are my people too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most of all, he wants the world to know that Detroit is full of love and is home for anyone who wants to call it home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Get familiar with more of Emmanuel\u2019s stories at emmanuelafolabi.com and view \u201cThe Portrait Series\u201d on YouTube.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A celebrated Nigerian American filmmaker partners with Shinolato amplify Detroit\u2019s Black voices. Sharing stories of love,perseverance, and craftsmanship, Emmanuel Afolabi focusesthe lens on four artists in \u201cThe Portrait Series.\u201d Becoming a storyteller was always in the cards for Emmanuel Afolabi. Born into a family of creatives\u2014his mother a fashion designer, brother a music producer, and […]<\/p>\n
Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":72,"featured_media":6902,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[117],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nDetroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi - Our Stories<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi - Our Stories\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A celebrated Nigerian American filmmaker partners with Shinolato amplify Detroit\u2019s Black voices. Sharing stories of love,perseverance, and craftsmanship, Emmanuel Afolabi focusesthe lens on four artists in \u201cThe Portrait Series.\u201d Becoming a storyteller was always in the cards for Emmanuel Afolabi. Born into a family of creatives\u2014his mother a fashion designer, brother a music producer, and [...]Read More...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Our Stories\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-02-26T07:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-05-02T13:39:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"543\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Danielle Zito\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/\",\"name\":\"Our Stories\",\"description\":\"A journal by Shinola dedicated to THE joy of craft\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0\",\"width\":960,\"height\":543},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/\",\"name\":\"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi - Our Stories\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2023-02-26T07:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-05-02T13:39:37+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#\/schema\/person\/8255b5793814808d16b42b9b66c787ca\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#\/schema\/person\/8255b5793814808d16b42b9b66c787ca\",\"name\":\"Danielle Zito\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/52931b992dca48a5d70ec4a9b31ec9af?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/52931b992dca48a5d70ec4a9b31ec9af?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Danielle Zito\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/author\/dzito\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi - Our Stories","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi - Our Stories","og_description":"A celebrated Nigerian American filmmaker partners with Shinolato amplify Detroit\u2019s Black voices. Sharing stories of love,perseverance, and craftsmanship, Emmanuel Afolabi focusesthe lens on four artists in \u201cThe Portrait Series.\u201d Becoming a storyteller was always in the cards for Emmanuel Afolabi. Born into a family of creatives\u2014his mother a fashion designer, brother a music producer, and [...]Read More...","og_url":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/","og_site_name":"Our Stories","article_published_time":"2023-02-26T07:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-05-02T13:39:37+00:00","og_image":[{"width":960,"height":543,"url":"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0","path":"\/var\/www\/html\/shinola-wordpress\/app\/web\/app\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png","size":"full","id":6902,"alt":"","pixels":521280,"type":"image\/png"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Danielle Zito","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#website","url":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/","name":"Our Stories","description":"A journal by Shinola dedicated to THE joy of craft","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0","contentUrl":"https:\/\/shinola-wordpress.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/Group-175.png?auto=format&ixlib=php-3.3.0","width":960,"height":543},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/","name":"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi - Our Stories","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2023-02-26T07:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-05-02T13:39:37+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#\/schema\/person\/8255b5793814808d16b42b9b66c787ca"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/detroit-tales-behind-the-lens-with-emmanuel-afolabi\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Detroit Tales: Behind the Lens with Emmanuel Afolabi"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#\/schema\/person\/8255b5793814808d16b42b9b66c787ca","name":"Danielle Zito","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/52931b992dca48a5d70ec4a9b31ec9af?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/52931b992dca48a5d70ec4a9b31ec9af?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Danielle Zito"},"url":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/author\/dzito\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6890"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/72"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6890"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6890\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6907,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6890\/revisions\/6907"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6902"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}