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When it came to curly textures and styles likelocsand braids, the market fell woefully short.
Instagram/Vegalia Jean Pierre
As a result, she decided to make her very own digital brushes.
WhenCaShawn Thompsoncreated the hashtag #BlackGirlMagic.
Suddenly, my timeline flooded with Black women of varying shades and shapes all embracing their overall individuality.
Instagram/Vegalia Jean Pierre
A space was created, one that emphasized and amplified the importance of self love.
Culturally, though, we still walk a fine line between representation and tokenism.
Actors, models, and artists of color continue toshare storiesof experiencinghair discriminationon set.
Instagram/Vegalia Jean Pierre
It takes industry pioneers like Jean-Pierre to make the decision to commit to the task in championing true diversity.
The artist spoke withAllureabout purpose, community, and her work to move the illustration and animation industry forward.
ALLURE: How did your journey as an artist begin?
Instagram/Vegalia Jean Pierre
So I pursued business because that’s what I’d been doing a lot in high school.
And then it quickly switched over to design in college.
And then after college I’m like, “I don’t want to do this.”
Instagram/Vegalia Jean Pierre
Then, during the pandemic, when everyone was slowed down, I decided to get an iPad.
It was after a 10-year hiatus from art.
And I felt this purpose in my life.
ALLURE: Making brush tools for Procreate and Photoshop started off as a test project.
Can you tell us more about that?
VJP:I’ve grown up with cartoons and anime and everything.
There are not a lot of Black characters that accurately represent us.
I drew this character [and it] took three to four hours to draw hermicro-braids.
I want other people to be able to use these.
I want other people to accurately draw us, too.
I don’t want characters to not exist just because it takes a long time.
I want other people to accurately draw us, too.
I released just a small little portion 12 brushes at the time.
It was only braids for Procreate, but it blew up massively on TikTok.
It hit millions of views and I was really shocked.
I was working a full-time job at the time and kept it all a secret.
We want it for this Photoshop.
We want it for Clip Studio.
We want it for all these other sites."
ALLURE: What’s been the most rewarding part of this whole process?
They’ll actually know how to draw it themselves too.
So it’s a learning tool as well.
So that’s been really rewarding to see all the different ways that people use it.
But I think the most exciting ways are people designing their own characters to be in their own stories.
So that’s been the most rewarding for me to see too.
ALLURE: How did you create this tool?
VJP:I did a lot of research on different black hair textures specifically.
I looked at all different types of hair because it’s not all the same.
I love going to art museums.
That’s why I love going to New York.
I go to see traditional artists and how they did things, how they went through their art journey.
And my last inspiration would have to be animation specifically.
That’s really inspiring for all the things that I want to create in the future.
My dad has 4C hair texture and I said, “Here’s the brush.
I made it for you.
And it was my first iteration.”
He said, “That’s not how my hair looks.”
I’m like, “Yeah, it is.”
He’s like, “No, that does not look right.”
I’m like, “OK then, can I see your hair closer?”
He’s like, “Sure.”
I’m like, “That’s not close enough.
Can you cut some off?”
Having a lot of reference images was great, especially with braids and how they interlock.
That’s why that series began because he [said] his hair wasn’t accurate.
And I cut a little tiny piece of his hair and it’s a little circle.
There’s a lot of intricacies in it.
It interlaces in a pattern I didn’t expect.
And having a lot of reference images was great, especially with braids and how they interlock.
It’s like triangles, interlocking together.
But I want to try all the different hairstyles, especiallybox braids.
And now, I know every single time key in of braid you’re free to have.
The brushes have really inspired me to push myself more and the different hairstyles I do.
I really like the Got2BInvincible Styling Gelfor slicked-back styles.
It doesn’t make your hair crispy.
It makes it still soft afterwards.
I hope to create more educational tools, whether it’s through digital art or from our real world.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
