Words and Interview-Art Jefferson
Photo-Jose J. Martinez
There is a new awareness regarding the cultural richness and legacy of African descendants throughout the Caribbean sparked by a local Brooklyn company called Burden Clothing. Honoring the great contributions of Afro-Caribbean peoples alike, Burden t-shirts contains various prints ranging from popular Haitian cuisines to Trinidadian legend Might Sparrow.
AJ-What motivated you to start Burden Clothing and what’s the mission of the company?
Omar-The motivation was our lives really. Both Dom and I had grown up in Caribbean households and were very aware of the culture and were very proud of that as well. Growing up in NYC, which is full of Caribbean-Americans, from every island, fostered that love as well. We started the brand as a way to give others an idea of Caribbean culture was all about, outside of what was readily available at the time. That said, our mission is to spread the culture and to also further it through fashion. We’ve started off making tees but we plan to expand into cut and sew and accessories in the future.
AJ-One thing that you have managed to do is bring awareness to more than one island in the West Indies. How important is raising that level of awareness?
Dom-Shedding awareness on all of the West Indies is one of the concepts central to Burden. It would be an unfair if we just focused on a few islands, it wouldn’t show the full spectrum of Caribbean culture and that’s what we are trying to do.
Omar-That was definitely something that we were aware of. Growing up in NYC and being Caribbean, there’s always been a sense of togetherness despite the differences in origin. For example, the biggest event involving the Caribbean community annually is the Labor Day Parade on Eastern Parkway, which involves everyone from every country. So when Dom and I decided to create our brand, we weren’t just trying to rep for Jamaicans or Guyanese or Haitians, we wanted to rep for everyone, as well as we could. We’ll continue to try to do so as long as we’re around.
AJ-You have some of the most interesting graphic designs for your t-shirts. Who are the artists that contributes to the design aspect of the tees?
Omar-Most of the designs are put together by Dom or Myself. The only exception really is our Basquiat tee, which was a collaboration with Jason McKoy of ShadowPlastic
Dom-Most of the artwork comes from myself and Omar. We brainstorm, throw ideas together and then produce what we come up with.
Read the rest of interview in ColoRising Magazine issue 1.
