There are Black People in the Future: A Conversation with Erwin Hines

Written by Ciara Hendrix, originally published in January 2022 print

You have to decide who you are and force the world to deal with you, not with its idea of you.

James Baldwin

As children, we often surmise what our lives will look like through drawings or imaginative role play with one another. We are encouraged to dream big, to bypass the fear of not making these dreams come true. Somewhere along the line though, these dreams grow farther away from realization. In tandem, it can be difficult to conceptualize how expansive one’s life can and should be if the possibility is never presented.

Erwin Hines is a multi-hyphenate artist and forward-thinking designer focused on reimagining the future of Black history. Now an LA transplant, Hines unabashedly reps his native city Cleveland, Ohio. He comes from a dedicated family of urban developers and community advocates, so it’s no surprise that purpose-driven design is the intersection where we meet him. 

Future is Color, his T-shirt brand, is the vector and tangible culmination of his vision for a vast future within and for the diaspora. It was established to challenge the age-old narrative that Black people are not pivotal determinants of what the future looks like for the rest of the world. The mission and purpose for the brand, and for the culture are rooted in exchanging stories and carving out space for empathy to permeate our lives. The facets of Black culture and our diversity is what drives Erwin to create engaging, wearable art. 

THROUGH YOUR JOURNEY WITH ART & DESIGN, WHO ARE YOU MOST IMPACTED BY? 

[EH] I’ve always been impacted by pop culture, hip-hop and the influence of Black culture in the world specifically. My parents instilled in me the beauty of the spectrum of Blackness when I was growing up and my aunts would regularly bring me biographies of Black historical figures when they came to visit. 

CAN YOU EXPAND ON THE LITERARY PLAYLISTS THAT CORRELATE TO YOUR DESIGNS? 

[EH] As Black people we’ve contributed so much to this nation and the world, so the study of culture has always interested me. I used to be a creative director at a digital agency, and in that role, I had to do a lot of research to understand the impact of digital tools on the human brain and our society. It wasn’t until I actually went back home for a bit that I made the connection that I couldn’t design unless I read or was engaged in research. Design was my conduit into loving education. Each piece I create is directly related to what I’m presently going through, which spurs me to read more, to better understand and navigate my emotions. So this year has been full of Bell Hooks, Audre Lorde, etc. The playlist is there to provide people with the tools to go deeper within themselves. 

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON PURSUING ART AS A MEANS TO THRIVE & TAKE UP SPACE IN THE WORLD?

 [EH] I think it’s super important. We as Black people shouldn’t be held or relegated to specific career paths or industries. In Black and other traditionally marginalized communities, it is a real issue. We have been oppressed for so long that our communities struggle to make room for other pathways like arts or technology; we’re made to feel like we can only get ‘out’ in specific ways.  

The disparities between large brands and how they engage with communities of color create ripple effects that touch the lives of everyone involved. Oftentimes, the ways in which we are engaged or invested in perpetuate restrictive narratives. “I believe that real freedom is a human being having the opportunity to explore who they are and how they fit into this world by any means necessary,” Hines says. 

He wholeheartedly believes in art as a conduit to see and understand the world differently, to form meaningful connections. “This is a huge influence in my design process now; I purely want to design things  that aid in  shaping space and help people understand that we as Black people are beautiful, spectrumed individuals who carry this amazing history with us and we’ll never be able to shed that” Hines shares passionately.