Dialogue on Art: the Rise of Tunnel Vision Creative Agency

Written by James Quinn, originally published in August 2021 print

In my conversation with photographer Dominic Malone, he stated “Art is the reflection of the soul”. If art is the reflection of the soul, then Malone’s soul is just as diverse, inspirational, multifaceted, and innovative as the agency he has founded: Tunnel Vision Creative Agency.

Tunnel Vision Creative Agency is an outlet that not only creates spaces and represents up and coming Black artists in a multitude of mediums, but also sponsors and creates art festivals, music events, and their own digital content and media. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Tunnel Vision Creative Agency has been making strides in Black creative power since 2013. They are a collective of artists and organizers dedicated to the authentic and successful development of Black artists’ careers. This writer had the privilege of sitting down and talking more indepthly about not just Tunnel Vision as a business agency, but what its role is in the overall new art movement for the African diaspora.

“Artists need representation,” said Dominic Malone when asked about the beginnings of Tunnel Vision. The art collective and agency was created out of his own need to find representation for himself and other photographers. Malone started his professional photography in college while attending Howard University with a major in Psychology. Wanting to make money, Malone decided to use his photography skills as a side hustle. “My mom always made me take family pictures,” said Malone. “It used to annoy me, but in college I decided to use those skills to help run my own business for extra money.” Working as a freelance photographer, Malone connected with several different photographers and artists that he would later collaborate with in Tunnel Vision. It was during this time that Malone started to fall in love with his craft. “We had powerful images of Black art in the home and I saw the impact,” Malone said, reminiscing on some of his artistic inspirations.

After receiving his Bachelor’s degree in psychology, Malone began working in education for years as an assistant, teacher, and even a dean. He started to take more of an interest in photography with more intent, and it was when Malone moved to Brooklyn, New York that he began to find a way to express himself through this art form. Wanting more exposure, Malone started looking for agents to help represent his art. Although an expert at his craft, Malone and other photographers of color found hard times getting agents or representation, often being told they needed to “diversify” their work. Eventually fed up with trying to find representation from other art agencies, Malone teamed up with several other photographers to represent and be agents for each other. From that starting point, they began a disciplined art collective of filmmakers, videographers, painters, muralists, musicians, and photographers to represent other artists as well as create culturally relevant events.

The services that the Tunnel Vision Agency provides are just as diverse as the artists who make up its collective. Tunnel Vision helps other agencies and organizations create events such as block parties, art and music festivals, and art galleries. Malone made a point in saying that these aren’t your typical “stuffy, or boring” kind of art festivals, but they’re often lively with food trucks and musical guests. “We start with an anchoring theme,” said Malone when asked about planning events. “We explore the how and why we’re doing this art festival for the people and what it could mean for them.” To make these events as lively and as lavish as possible, each artist from Tunnel Vision takes it upon themselves to learn the techniques and skills to create their desired outcomes.

Tunnel Vision also features and provides content of their own including short films, documentaries and docuseries, photography, art festivals with paintings and muralists, and promotion for their own musical artists as well as other local artists in Brooklyn.
When asked about their most successful and popular output from the organization, Malone mentioned their musical EP, Mantra-Loops, by Geminelle. The roll out, promotion, advertisements, and events centered around the project were done by Rowlanes Malone.
Another successful product from Tunnel vision that Malone considers impactful is an event he calls the 5/Fifths. 5/Fifths is a collective art show that was centered around the theme of making Black people feel whole, the title being in reference to the old declaration of African Americans once only counting as 3/5ths of a citizen. Malone considers this event impactful for the self-image of the Black community.

After the formalities of talking about the Tunnel Vision agency, I asked more questions concerning his views on art and artistry in the African diaspora. When asked about the artists that inspired him, Malone mentioned some of the many artists he has collaborated with in Tunnel Vision. Geminelle of the Mantro-Loops EP is noted as a big inspiration for Malone. “Her music touches your soul whether it be through singing, harmonizing, or writing film scores,” he says.

Malone lists many of his great collaborators for points of inspiration. He mentions his long-time collaborator Steven Small Warner, a filmmaker who Malone has worked with both on business and art. Malone goes on to list others from the Tunnel Vision collective as his points of inspiration: Dexter Jones for capturing beautiful femininity in his art, Justin Lamar, the director of photography, videographer Rose Sanchez, Sofia Dawson for her murals and paintings dedicated to old Black elders that are political prisoners, Jazmine Haze for making paintings and murals about the Black experience through an anthropological perspective, and Bertishal Eggerton for using African fabrics in contemporary fashion.

Some of the more mainstream artists that have inspired Malone are older generations of rappers such as Tupac for his diverse self-image, Snoop Dogg for his creativity, Tracy Chapman, and E-40. “E-40 is the king of California,” said Malone. “His pen was dropping facts about how to survive the hood.” Malone especially recommends E-40’s early album “Grit and Grind” as a great example of the artist recording events that occur in the hood and his opinions on them.

Dominic Malone was also asked about the artists he believed were pushing the boundaries of Black art and entertainment. Malone believes that Black artists now are becoming bolder and more willing to be themselves. We bonded over many of us having to hide our interests in comics and anime, but because of the internet, more and more Black people are finding other Black people with common interests in these areas and more. Black artists are also becoming increasingly experimental, and Malone praises Willow Smith for her recent musical and artistic endeavors illustrating this feat.

The future of Tunnel Vision Creative Agency looks like it will be ever evolving and ever changing with the growing times of the new Black artistic movement. Dominic Malone hopes to expand Tunnel Vision to distribute more Black art and showcase more innovative creators. “I want us to be a platform that’s like BET but a lot more culturally conscious,” Malone explained. “A single platform to program balance in the world with immaculate art.”