Naeemah LaFond Sees Black Women As Her Encyclopedia

Photo: Isaiah Colon

Naeemah LaFond isn’t just a hairstylist; she sees texture as her canvas. She’s the stylist behind cloudlike Afros on the runway at Christopher John Rogers, the artist behind Tracee Ellis Ross’s playful Bantu knots on a former Cut cover and a host of other editorial covers and global campaigns, including Cécred campaigns. LaFond is a champion for diversity in the beauty industry. Being on set and behind the scenes for years, the Brooklyn-born stylist’s work has always been fueled by the beauty of texture, from cornrows to Afros to tousled curls to ankle-length braids.

Last month, she held an event that was the first of its kind: Texture on Set, a day of hair education in New York City featuring top industry hair experts and professionals to empower and equip hairstylists with the knowledge they need to better serve their clients with curly and coily hair. For decades, Black models have suffered at the hands of unprepared stylists who lack the knowledge and training to care for their hair properly, resulting in excessively heat-damaged hair or just bad styling. Some Black models have even opted to come to set with their hair already done because they’re fearful of what the outcome might be. LaFond has a vision for a more inclusive industry. It’s been changing, but changing slowly. Her entire career has been a love letter to natural texture. She finds joy in the beauty of curls and coils. Her inspiration started when she was a little girl in Brooklyn, seeing glam women in her everyday life, like Black women at the Fashion Fair Bloomingdale’s counter where her mom worked. LaFond would use her $10 allowance every two weeks to buy makeup and hair accessories from the Hello Kitty store; little did she know she was preparing for a career.

Christopher John Rogers FW 2020 runway show.
Photo: WWD/Penske Media via Getty Images

When she thinks about the muses that inspired her career, she finds they’ve always been all around her. “Black women have always been my encyclopedia of sorts,” LaFond says.

Is there someone who has served as a muse for your work? Who are they, and how have they inspired you or pushed you to think differently? 

I have a few muses. It’s often the women who I can be my most creative self with. Not all clients or people in your chair will trust you and allow you to take the reins and let your mind wander while you sculpt their hair into whatever comes to your heart. Those who do are the muses. I’ve had that in Whitney Peak; I’ve worked with her from the very beginning of her career, since her first photo shoot for a magazine, and she has always given my creativity space to breathe. Another person who comes to mind is fashion model Danielle Mareka. We found each other at Christopher John Rogers, where she was one of the models for the show, and I was just so in awe at how unapologetically she wore the big hairstyles I created for her. Not everyone can rock a horizontal ‘fro and eat the girls up. Daneille has it. I’m able to imagine and think beyond the limits of hair to create work that makes a statement and evokes a feeling.

Is there a type of person in your life who typically proves inspirational? Why?

I’m a first-generation Haitian American. My mother is my inspiration for sure. Growing up in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, we didn’t have much, but my mom not only made a way out of no way, but she did it with grace and kindness. She taught me how to hustle, how to push through, and how to always help others. Now I get to show her how to rest.

I love how you work with texture; even looking at your Texture on Set event, you’re forever being a champion for Black women and our hair. Who’s your ultimate texture muse?

It’s the girl walking down the dirt road in Haiti, where I would visit my dad, whose hair was braided, twisted up so imperfectly perfect that it was able to hold up a basket of plantain chips. It’s the Black women at the Fashion Fair counter in Bloomingdale’s, where my mom used to work in the accessories department, whose roller sets were coiffed so beautifully that it would literally take my breath away as a young girl. I pull from everyday real-life visuals. I always think, How would this hair idea work on texture? I grew up around confident Black women who trained me to see beauty in myself and in all Black women by the way they saw beauty in themselves.

What’s the last photo in your camera roll that proved creatively inspirational? 

It’s a photo of me onstage at Texture on Set. It seems surreal that I was able to execute this event in the way that I did. The process and journey was really challenging at times, and I had days where I wondered if it would all be worth it. That dream felt far out of reach for so long, but when I saw that photo of myself up on that stage, it was proof that it actually happened. I did that. It wasn’t a dream.

Naeemah LaFond at Texture on Set.
Photo: Michael Woodard

Is there a visual artist whose work you find particularly inspirational? Or a museum or gallery you turn to for inspiration? 

My brother, Lionel Carre: I’m inspired by him because he has always been an artist simply to create and not because he was in search of a career. He’s a true genuine example of letting the work lead. That, to me, is where real artistry is born.

Is there a place where you feel most inspired creatively?

I feel like my most fulfilled and calm self when I’m on a sandy beach with my legs in calm, clear blue water. It reminds me so much of summers in Haiti. That little piece of nostalgia feels like home when I close my eyes, even if I’m nowhere near Haiti.

What’s the most surprising or unlikely person/place/artist/image/object that has proved inspirational for your work?

The wind — she’s that girl for me. Sometimes I like to let her be the hairstylist. The way nature moves is so beautiful and so random to me. I like to think that’s what my aesthetic looks like to people: alive, unexpected, and imperfect, like a light, cool gust of wind on a hot day.

Photo: Michael Woodard

Photo: Michael Woodard