Natalya Mills, Art Exhibitor, Designer, Fashion Icon.

Natalya Mills- Caribbean Cultural Dress Specialist, Exhibits Designer, Freelance Art Director and Fashionista shares her success and journey with Icons

Exhibit done by Ms.Mills

Icons- How did this vision started?

Natalya-Growing up in Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies, I watched my grandmother create men suits for politicians; I played around in the Pan Yard in St. James while my Uncle practiced his music. My grandfather was a talented artist and Pan Man/Musician. This made it made my life-long love for art inevitable. After leaving Trinidad in my teens to move to New York I took my early influences with me.

Icons-How would you define art and what does it means to you?

Natalya-Art can’t be defining by one individual work, because art means different things to everyone.  Art is in the eye of the beholder, what art is to me might not be the same for you. I use Exhibition Designer, Art Directing and Visual Design to create what art is to me. I designed spaces for Henri Bendel, Brooks Brothers, Aaron Basha, Saks and a few museums in NYC.  Fashion has also been another art form for me and has also been a major part of my life especially because of my grandmother being a Tailor/ Seamstress.

Exhibit done by Ms.Mills

Icons- How did this passion begin?

Natalya-I always wanted to go to FIT and I never even had another school of choice. I went for fashion design but I didn’t enjoying sewing and the attitudes of the individuals that I came across in that Industry and I felt fashion was missing. I still needed to be in the Arts so I decided to try Visuals and while enrolled in the program at FIT I started to work at some of the high-end stores in the city. I did that for a few years and had a blast. I met a lot of great people that are still friends and colleagues today.  However I didn’t want to stay in the retail. I always had a love for history so I figured the best way to do both visuals and deal with history was to design exhibits for museums. At this point was enrolled in Museum studies at FIT as well.  I worked at the Museum of FIT with Director Dr. Valerie Steele, expertise on everything fashion. She is amazing at what she does, and she open doors for me. While working with her I started having the mental conversation about what was fashion of the Caribbean. When I graduated from FIT I stared to work as an intern at the Brooklyn Historical Society in the Exhibits Dept and after four months I was there full time Co-curating my first exhibit on Vietnam Veterans in Brooklyn. I also worked on an exhibit called Mother Goose in an Airship. I also worked on the 125^th Anniversary Brooklyn Bridge exhibit. After a few years I started working at the Brooklyn Children Museum where I am in charge of the Traveling Exhibits Department and Special Events Department. Although working there is great, it is not my passion. I’m still doing freelance design work to stay relevant and a part of the Art and Design industry.

Icons-What was the reason behind you obtaining your Master’s degree in Costume Studies: Visual Arts Management from NYU?

Natalya-I wanted to further my career and do what I had been longing to do but put on hold for years- Fashion. I know I didn’t want to fashion design but I wanted to learn about the fundamentals about fashion so I enrolled in NYU to study fashion history. This is a small niche and isn’t very popular, but ideally this was my focus at the moment. Work with Dr. Steele, she rally planted the seeds and made me seriously think about what and how fashion affected the Caribbean and what we wore. Being involved in Carnival as a child that was the first ideas that popped into my head. Carnival in my mind was the “ Couture of the Caribbean”. It followed the same guidelines, handmade, worn in special occasions yet its still a garment because its worn. I took a lot of tradition European Fashion History courses in addition to many Africana studies courses to create a marriage of the two disciplines to understand what was taking place in Trinidad dress and other Islands of the Caribbean. I made sure I always wrote about all things Carnival whenever I could, the Pierrot Grenade, Sailor Mas and of course Minshall.  I started doing interviews of mas makers in Trinidad and decided that I would write a book about the wire benders of Trinidad that actually make these amazing costumes that we see every year (not bikini and beads).  It will feature some of Trinidad’s national treasures is mas’ such as Senior Gomez, Albert Bailey, Stephen Derreck etc. I expect it to be complete by late 2013/14. I wrote and article that featured and interview with wire bender Albert Bailey, and I got published in 2011 in Fashion Projects and online fashion journal. My thesis was about Peter Minshall who is pioneer in mas’ and street theater. His work to me was couture that also featured designer Meiling who is also a big designer from Trinidad.

Trinidad and Tobago Carnival 2012

Icons- How did you meet K2K?

Natalya-I was tired of playing bikini and beads, and I was introduced to Kathy and Karen Norman, who were doing exactly what I was looking for. These women are fabulous and have a passion for art. They won art awards in Trinidad as children and teens and were designing new and innovative mas’. I am a big fan of Alexander McQueen and his death was still fresh on the minds of fashion lovers and their costume designers reminded me of his work. I was eager to be a part of this experience, we met and it was history from that point.  Playing with K2K has been an amazing experience. This past carnival I was featured in essence magazine online, this was awesome, and it took me away from the ‘bikini and beads’ experience. 

Icon-What are some of the celebrity events you have work for?

Natalya-Well as an Art Freelance Director, I’ve work with Atlantic records, working on videos that featured artist such as Maino, Swizz Beats, Jim Jones, etc. The video world is an entirely different world but it was fun experiences.

Ms. Mills in Jamaica, for fashion week 2012

Icon-You recently went to Jamaica, what was the experience like?

Natalya-My trip to Jamaica was amazing; I was a part of the Caribbean Fashion Week in Kingston working on the Production Team. I worked with the models and designer. It was great to see that many of the mainstream models were Caribbean. Many of the models are featured in Vogue, WWD and Elle. I truly hard a wonderful time, Jamaica felt very much like Trinidad. I also was in the presence of Carolyn Cooper; she’s such a fabulous woman. After reading her theories in grad school it was nice to meeting her in person. I really enjoy that experience.

More exhibits done by Ms.Mills

Icon-What projects are you working on currently?

Natalya-Well after my trip to Jamaica my professor Dr.Deborah Willis, she is an amazing photographer, artist and told me I needed to contact the Bridge to Design program. I was given the opportunity to work with the first African American Curator at the Metropolitan Museum Dr. Lowery Stokes-Sims. It is so amazing working with her. She’s such a great mentor. I am currently working with her on an exhibit called Against the Grain, which is an exhibit that is based in contemporary art made out of wood. It will be opening shortly at the Museum of Art and Design.  We are also working on a project for 2014 called Global Latin America; Basically I am doing preliminary research and artist profiles for the project. I’m going Trinidad next month for the K2K band launch as well and I’m going back for independent day to portray the costume. 

Icon-Your known as a fashion icon, how do you feel about that?

Natalya-Wow! First I’m honored to be call that, but I don’t feel I am, I love fashion,I love clothes I just express myself. I am all about signature style. I don’t think I am an icon yet but it would be nice to be one someday. I see a few women I admire they style and appreciate it, they have their signature look, its effortless, and it works

Icon-What are your Social plans from now until next year?

Natalya-Well I plan on traveling a lot, I’m actually going Barcelona and Spain for my birthday, and then I will be heading over to London Fashion Week. For next year… I haven’t gotten that far, but of course there’s Carnival 2013, and finishing up my book that I started. There are a few projects that I am working on right now… But I will keep those under wraps for now.

 For more information about Natayla Mills work email her at nIcmdesign@gmail.com