Issa Rae Partners With LIFEWTR to Raise Awareness About Systemic Bias in the Arts
Issa Rae has partnered with LIFEWTR for the launch of Life Unseen, LIFEWTR’s new platform in the fight for fair representation in the arts. Life Unseen seeks to raise awareness of the systemic disparities that continue to stifle equitable access and exposure across the arts, celebrate the work of diverse creatives and help cultivate new opportunities for the next generation.
“As a creative and an avid consumer, I’ve witnessed firsthand how bias flows through fashion, film, music, visual arts and other creative territories,” said Rae. “LIFEWTR understands that creativity literally doesn’t exist without diversity of culture, perspective and interpretation. Together, we’re inviting everyone to help shine a light so the work of unseen artists can be seen.”
As part of the platform’s debut, Life Unseen will bring four key campaign elements to life:
- The Life Unseen Study: Life Unseen introduces a first-of-its-kind study, developed by the Institute for Quantitative Study of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity (QSIDE). The study can be viewed in its entirety as well as through an interactive tool, and seeks to increase awareness of representational blind spots and systemic disparity across four major creative industries, including fashion, film, music and visual arts, that impact those of diverse, underrepresented backgrounds, including people of color, persons with physical disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community and women.
- The Life Unseen Artist Collective: The campaign includes a 20-strong artist collective, featuring creatives spanning fashion, film, music and visual arts, who have been selected to showcase their artistic expressions and stories with the world. Each creative was tapped to submit their own inspired pieces of artwork, which will be featured on the LIFEWTR brand’s largest bottle collection to date.
- The Life Unseen Launch Video: LIFEWTR unveils its latest visual content on behalf of Life Unseen, serving as a visual representation of what happens when diverse artistic works go unseen, featuring diverse creatives both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.
- The #LifeUnseenContest: Aiming to inspire creative flow for all, LIFEWTR and Issa Rae are calling upon the next generation of creatives to share their own concepts using the hashtag #LifeUnseenContest now through July 30, for a chance to receive exposure through the LIFEWTR platform, mentorship from Issa Rae and $10,000 to fund their future endeavors.
“At LIFEWTR, we believe nothing should limit a creator from sharing their perspective with the world. Yet, we remain acutely aware that pervasive bias across creative industries has left entire communities and their work unseen by the masses,” said Zach Harris, Vice President, Water Portfolio at PepsiCo Beverages North America. “That’s why, together with Issa Rae, we’re thrilled to unleash Life Unseen into the world, featuring our largest bottle collection ever, as we continue to use our platform to support the work of all creatives.”
For more information on Life Unseen, visit LIFEWTR.com.
