In this edition of our “Artist Spotlight” series we showcase Bradley Noble (CAS’20), co-founder and former creative director of Charcoal Magazine.
Tell us about yourself.
My name is Bradley Noble. I am from Atlanta, Georgia, and I am a recent graduate of BU’s Class of 2020 where I studied international relations and French. Most recently, I was the creative director for Charcoal during the 2019-20 academic school year.
What’s your Charcoal story?
I am one of the co-founders of Charcoal along with Remy Usman (CFA’19), Adia Turner (CAS’19), and Eva Vidan (CFA’19). The summer after my freshman year at BU, Remy and Adia approached me with an idea they had for a publication that would focus on student artists of color and that would seek to amplify their voices and their art. Being a black, gay artist from Atlanta, I fully understood the importance of representation in the media that we digest on a daily basis, so it was not hard for them to convince me to join the team.
The past few years that I have been involved with Charcoal have been some of the most rewarding in my life. We have been able to build a community of incredible artists while learning what it means to produce a really beautiful publication. This experience has taught me what it means to be an artist and to work with a team, but most of all it has taught me what it means to act and create with intention. I would like for people to know that Charcoal hopes to serve merely as a beginning for artists of color to have their voices heard and their work seen. The goal is for us all to continue beyond the pages of this publication and to go out into the world and produce work with intention that we take pride in.
Describe your art.
The art I generally produce is a combination of photography and videography.
Above all else, I tend to think of myself as a very visual person, so photos and videos have always drawn me in and excited me. My photos can be found sprinkled within the upcoming magazine issue, “Believe,” from some of the in-house photoshoots we did.
In addition to that, for this upcoming issue I decided to submit a piece of writing that I had done over the winter break. The piece is titled “Smile,” (excerpt below) and it is inspired by the recent death of a friend of mine. The piece speaks specifically of my own experience dealing with grief at a funeral. Being someone who does not cry often or easily, this piece speaks of our human ability to find community and begin healing in really traumatic times in our lives. My writing is something that is very personal to me, so I hope that this translates when read and that it may be looked on in a positive light despite the subject matter.
An excerpt from “Smile” by Bradley Noble.
See, on any given day, I believe in the power of a smile. I believe in the overwhelming positivity it holds and the infectious energy it can transmit to those lucky enough to be in its presence. I believe in its power to heal, to create a sense of warmth. But, right now, I am finding it extremely hard to smile, to be positive.
I smile because the world can be an extremely heavy place when you see young Black girls and boys shot and killed in our communities or incarcerated at such disproportionate rates on TV. It is unfair, disheartening, but I smile because I will not allow that to get me. I smile at people whom I know and even those whom I do not. And, if I am so lucky, and if the conditions are right, I just might receive a smile in return.