PROJECT 001 // ABOUT THE INTELS
black america must be seen at the scale of what we created
A people whose imagination changed the world deserves mythology. Our ancestors deserve reverence. And our future deserves as much imagination as we’ve devoted to surviving the present.
I’m building The Intels from that conviction.
PROJECT 001 // ABOUT THE INTELS
black america must be seen at the scale of what we created
A people whose imagination changed the world deserves mythology. Our ancestors deserve reverence. And our future deserves as much imagination as we’ve devoted to surviving the present.
I’m building The Intels from that conviction.
01 // BELONGING
Growing up, I loved anime, comics, musicals and art. I was a tall, bigger kid who didn’t play sports. They didn’t know what to do with that. Other than tell me I wasn't "Black enough." But those interests helped shape the imagination I bring to Black American culture.
What began as a question about my own belonging became a much bigger pursuit: how much of Black culture had I not been taught to see? I wanted to get closer. To explore our folklore, our spiritual traditions and ingenuity. To develop a love and appreciation of my own, and create from there.
01 // BELONGING
Growing up, I loved anime, comics, musicals and art. I was a tall, bigger kid who didn’t play sports. They didn’t know what to do with that. Other than tell me I wasn't "Black enough." But those interests helped shape the imagination I bring to Black American culture.
What began as a question about my own belonging became a much bigger pursuit: how much of Black culture had I not been taught to see? I wanted to get closer. To explore our folklore, our spiritual traditions and ingenuity. To develop a love and appreciation of my own, and create from there.
02 // A NATION WITHIN A NATION
Black America is a nation within a nation. We have our own histories, traditions, beliefs, and ways of being. We helped make America the great cultural force the world recognizes.
02 // A NATION WITHIN A NATION
Black America is a nation within a nation. We have our own histories, traditions, beliefs, and ways of being. We helped make America the great cultural force the world recognizes.
people still say black americans have no culture.
people still say black americans have no culture.
Yet, there’s enough of it to build multiple worlds. And I intend to do just that.
Yet, there’s enough of it to build multiple worlds. And I intend to do just that.
03 // VISION AND RESPONSIBILITY
The Intels brings my love for Us into everything I imagine we can become. I want us to encounter our will, genius, faith, and persistence on a scale that makes us stop and look again. To feel wonder at ourselves. To see a future worthy of everything our ancestors began.
This is my interpretation. My imagination. My vision. I won’t capture every part of Black America or speak for all of us. However, I will approach what I create with reverence, pursue it with conviction, and let it be as extraordinary as I can imagine.
03 // VISION AND RESPONSIBILITY
The Intels brings my love for Us into everything I imagine we can become. I want us to encounter our will, genius, faith, and persistence on a scale that makes us stop and look again. To feel wonder at ourselves. To see a future worthy of everything our ancestors began.
This is my interpretation. My imagination. My vision. I won’t capture every part of Black America or speak for all of us. However, I will approach what I create with reverence, pursue it with conviction, and let it be as extraordinary as I can imagine.
I asked my ancestors for their stories. THE INTELS IS THEIR ANSWER. ASE.
Grae Williams
Creator of The Intels
I asked my ancestors for their stories. I intend to give them somewhere to live.
Grae Williams
Creator of The Intels