CREATIVE SPOTLIGHT - RAMARIO CHEVOY

If you’re a creative in London chances are you’ve heard of Ramario Chevoy. The founder of Island Bwoys and stylist for Nao is known not just for fashion but his choreography skills also. Having been circulating the scene for a number of years Ramario has worked with the likes of Notion, Nadia Rose, Shea Universe and Clash Magazine - showing that his work is not bound by type or setting. His ability to create a vivid and diverse colour pallet whilst also nodding to his own Caribbean culture creates a body of work that is rich in both visual art and deeper meaning. Here’s what he said about the industry…

You can catch him on Instagram at: @ramariochevoy

What inspired you to create Island Bwoys?

I decided to create island bwoys because I saw there was & still is a lack of representation when it comes to Caribbean creatives within the industry as a whole but especially in london. I feel when it comes to the Caribbean & Jamaica specifically the whole world loves to take from our culture & country but we don’t get the credit/recognition we truly deserve. Even when I was thinking what to call the project at first I was stuck after doing a bit of research & reaching out to people within the creative scene in london to find out their heritage. I wanted a balance of fully black males & females but sadly it was very very hard to find & island bwoys became the name because the majority of the creatives featured so far through the project have all been males, but it also just further strengthens my point of us as a community not being represented enough & also our visibility.

Does styling and dance have many similarities, if so what are they?

I would say styling & dance do have some similarities. Firstly & the main one they are both creative outlets, with both styling & dance stories can be told- with dance through movement & with styling through a particular theme of the shoot.

What advice would you give someone who wants to get into styling?

Advise for someone who wants to get into styling would be make sure you’re ready to work hard. Most of the time people only see the finished product/outcome & think oh that looks cool I want to do that but what they don’t see is the process. They don’t see the running around collecting loads of different looks from PR agencies, the paper bags ripping in the rain, having to return all the items after the shoots done etc. All people see is the ‘glory’ & they don’t know the ‘story’ behind what it really took to get that one image for the cover of a publication etc. So moral of the story is be ready to work hard!.

Which shoot or look has been your favorite to date?

oh gosh this is such a hard question…..I couldn’t say there’s one shoot that’s been my favourite there’s a few. When I got to style recording artist Bree runway for an editorial for pause her magazine that was super fun because I had wanted to work with Bree for a while so it naturally aligned & because I knew she would literally look good in anything it was super fun to experiment as well as her being an amazing dancer & super flexible I had fun with that as well in terms of what poses & creative direction to go in. I’ve been working with recording artist Nao since 2018 & we’ve been doing a lot of beautiful work recently for her new album…..can’t say too much but the best is yet to come, but her latest single titled ‘messy love’ I got to style the cover artwork for that which I’m super proud of because it’s simply stunning.

Do you try to represent yourself in your work?

I try & represent myself through all my work of course. Especially with the artists I work closely alongside I like to push them & take risks I feel like it’s 2021 & people are still playing things safe which is boring, we should be trying to elevate our craft. Also saying this I think it’s vital to incorporate roots & culture where possible as well.

Who are your favourite creatives at the minute?

To be honest I don’t have any favourite creatives I try not to. Of course there’s people who I think are amazing but I try just to focus & stick to me & my own lane as that’s more important than anyone else.

Who or what would be your dream to work with?

I’d love to work with Rihanna she’s one person I know I could really experiment & have fun with as she’s so versatile!.