November 1, 2016 | Alfonso Gonzalez-Francois

Arrival of The Mack

There are really talented people of color in this world. A lot of us bend and twist (and sometimes break) norms regularly with our artistic voices. On many occasions, though, those voices are drowned out. Black art, across all mediums, remains highly under appreciated as we collectively seek out opportunities for representation and leadership.

 

Enter Wallace Mack, a 23-year old NYC transplant originally from South Carolina, armed with a camera and a purpose: storytelling. Cruising through his online portfolio, playinitcool.com, drizzled in original and compelling photography and text about his life via his lens, you’ll learn more about how he navigates. “Greeleyville is a small town of about 500 people nestled outside of the swamps of low country, south country…the nearest mall is a 45 min car drive away and the closest major city is an hour away,” Mack says, on where he’s from.

 

“…we’re split between people who feel they absolutely have to get out, and people who have no idea that there’s anything to get away from.”

 

“[Greeleyville] is the kind of place where you can find lots of community and love, but also lacks opportunity and growth. In that sense it becomes a trap for the youth there; we’re split between people who feel they absolutely have to get out, and people who have no idea that there’s anything to get away from.”

 

Given his decision to leave but noticeable connection to home, one can argue that he stands in the dead center of this dichotomy. So here Wallace Mack lands in chaotic New York City, a place where starving artists seek refuge from starvation. He’s set up camp in Harlem after a year of dealing with depression upon arrival.

 

Mazie Mack by Wallace MackMazie Mack by Wallace Mack

Though he’s come a long way in his battle, remnants still remain. That’s the beauty and the beast of artisans: a lot of the work produce comes from trauma and personal demons. Our finished products, be it dances, paintings, poems, or photos, are reminders of where we’ve been and where we aim to be. I read a very compelling piece on Wallace’s grandmother, Mazie Mack, whom because of his words I felt my own special connection with. A woman, having braved numerous obstacles in her 80+ years of living, beautifully personifies both strength and vulnerability – a duality black women exemplify but hardly ever receive credit for. He describes her as “covered head to toe in the regality of a Southern Black grandmother– elaborate hat, freshly pressed suit, pearls, and curls so tight, only the humidity of low country South Carolina can get them to drop.” Her influence on his life and creative direction is spilled all over that entire piece, and provides the perfect example of what it means to be a true matriarch.

 

“A man’s relationship with his barber is pretty serious…”

 

Another one of Mack’s “photo-torials” highlights the unspoken bond between black men and barbershops. I can provide my own testimony, having received my fair share of fades and caesars on this chrome dome for most of my life. Now, even with locs, I make sure to get my routine clean cut: beard, sideburns, edges cleaned up (#bars). My Afro-Dominican barber sees that my loyalty knows no bounds, leaving Flushing, Queens every 1.5 weeks to be pampered in East Flatbush, Brooklyn. Mack speaks for all men of color when he says “a man’s relationship with his barber is pretty serious”. What’s understood needs no explanation. Speaking on Denny Moe’s Superstar Barbershop in Harlem, Mack writes, “in the middle of an ever-gentrifying Harlem, barbershops are one of the few spaces you can still go to for the culture.” This is true to every barbershop in the city, and other places under the threat of gentrification (coming to an urban neighborhood near you). His photos assist in the illustration of that aforementioned serious relationship, one where you come for a quick taper, but leave caught up on current events and filled with life lessons for the day. Always worth the money, though you can never put a price on the barbershop experience.

 

Wallace Mack continues to follow the formula of camera-as-conscience, a perspective only quality photography and sometimes a great appreciator of such can interpret. Photographers are thieves; they steal from time. His work, robbing one of life’s greatest mysteries, provides us with wonderful snapshots. Mack is blazing his own red hot trail. His journey continues, and he lets us follow it, still image after still image.

 

Follow Wallace Mack on Twitter.

 

Original Blog Post Here