Meet Shahfaq Shahbaz, a stylist and photographer who graduated from Southampton Solent University in 2019. Shahfaq is inspired by her Pakistani heritage and Muslim faith in the work she does, aiming to promote greater representation of Muslim women in the fashion industry — whether it’s in marketing campaigns or the catwalk.
“Black Muslim women face numerous daily battles (racism, colourism, sexism and Islamophobia) and my work aims to highlight their beauty in their existence despite these awful perceptions and stereotypes of Black women,” says Shahfaq. “My work shows how Black Muslim women deserve to be treated equally and with kindness.” Read more about her work below!
What is the most valuable thing you have learnt at university?
Being the only Pakistani Muslim young woman on my course may have you thinking that it would’ve pushed me away from my culture since our surroundings play a huge part on how we think and feel, however, that was not the case for me. My course brought me closer to my religion and heritage. I found immense comfort and happiness in exploring parts of my identity and culture within my work. During my final major project, I was given the freedom to decide what I wanted it to be on and so, I chose to explore my Pakistani heritage because this is what I am most passionate about.
My course enabled me to connect with my roots in a way that I have never before. My lecturers gave me the space to create and express in a way that made sense for me throughout my course, but particularly for that project. It wasn't like any of the others; this project felt like home. So to answer the question simply, the most valuable thing I learnt during my university experience is that my cultural roots will always be a part of me no matter where I go or whomever I meet. I will forever be inspired by it and explore all parts of it.
Tell us about your current projects and work, what have you been working on?
Since graduating last year, I have worked at London fashion week as a Getty images street style photographer’s assistant and I will continue working within the great team and company. Through this experience, I had the opportunity to meet highly influential and interesting contenders within the fashion culture. I hope to use my experience to access bigger opportunities in which I can make more connections with a diverse range of people including, models, actresses, influencers etc. As well as this, I undertook event photography for the grand opening of LWC, a recent start-up company that sells luxury jewellery and watches in Milton Keynes. I have also been building my portfolio with more fashion and travel photography.
What form does your work take?
My work is based around Fashion Styling; I portray this through photography and creative direction. Culture and diversity are the main elements within my work because I want my work to represent myself (a South Asian woman) and other minorities and cultures. Unfortunately, the industry is severely lacking representation of people of colour and so, I aim to show our voices and lives in my work to make sure we are seen. The form of my work highlights the beauty of culture and it is a well-deserved light that needs to shine rather than conceal.
How have you evolved as a young creative while studying / working?
During my first two years at university, I would get handed a brief and complete it robotically. Now, I look back at my work and my system of working and I realise so much growth was made through those set briefs. Although I may not be so fond of my earlier work, I have improved after every shoot. As a result, I have become a stronger photographer and stylist. I am heavily inspired by Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram and my own past work/creativity. As cliché it may sound, I just ‘go with the flow’ when it comes to my shoots and it’s always successful. I work well with my surroundings and see what I can work with at the given circumstances and some of my best pieces are purely accidental.
What are the messages and themes behind your project that you want people to take away? Do explore any topics like diversity, sustainability or politics in your work?
I thoroughly enjoy presenting and exploring diversity within my work through my choice of models. Recently I directed my own a Hijab photoshoot that explored Muslim women of a Black and South Asian heritage. I wanted to show how diverse Islam is and that the religion has no discrimination regarding colour; Islam is a religion of unity and peace. Islam is not a race nor does it have a set race. Within society, Black Muslims have been neglected in many spaces and so my shoot was also an act of solidarity for the BlackLivesMatter movement. Black Muslim women face numerous daily battles (racism, colourism, sexism and Islamophobia) and my work aims to highlight their beauty in their existence despite these awful perceptions and stereotypes of Black women. My work shows how Black Muslim women deserve to be treated equally and with kindness.
What’s an aspect of the fashion industry that you’re passionate about fixing or having a positive impact on?
I want the fashion industry that shows Islam in a positive and diverse manner rather than something that is uncomfortable to see due to the negative perception of it. I want more Hijabi models of every ethnicity walking on the runway. I want the hijab to not be used as a political statement but a human one. I also want South Asians represented on bigger platforms/magazines such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, not just a one-off South Asian edition but I want it to be consistent. As well as this, I want clothing companies such as PLT, Topshop and Missguided to sell more clothes for women who want to dress modestly in the summer.
It is very difficult and incredibly rare to find clothing items that serve well for women who want to be modest. By making these changes, the audiences of these companies will expand and be far more inclusive. They will have a boost in their sales and women who dress modestly will feel catered to. I understand that big companies may fear that they’d lose customers and receive backlash catering to such women but previous records show that this change delivers a positive outcome. Companies such as ASOS and DKNY have resulted to nothing but positivity but this needs to happen at a larger scale.
What is your plan for the future?
I hope to carry on working as an assistant for a Getty images photographer at London fashion week so that I can continue to build my interpersonal skills and connections. I am hoping that this will enable me to become a successful stylist, creative director or photographer for a well-known company/brand. As well as this, I will continue to build my work and create more editorial shoots based around culture and identity. It is not only a hobby but it is the career path I want to pursue and progress in. I also wish to work with magazines such as Azeema or Gal-Dem who base their publications around women of colour and explore the lack of representation in their images and articles. I want to work alongside similar magazines that will feel close to home, where the women will be just like me, where I will not be an outcast and know my voice will be heard.