Meet Zoe Osborne | Interior Design, Curator, Poet, Founder of Mahogany Culture

We had the good fortune of connecting with Zoe Osborne and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Zoe, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I started Mahogany Culture because of a desire to connect with other Caribbean people in Toronto without the pressure of there being a singular narrative of what a Caribbean person talks and acts like. I didn’t fit in to any of the existing communities that I found and I wanted to create space to ‘feel at home in a metropolitan city’. Too often the Caribbean identity is limited to Jamaican dialect, sunny beaches, Jamaican patties and palm trees. I wanted to create a space that broke free from that and instead explored each individuals expression of self.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There is no singular thing or person that has led to my success so far. It has been because of the support of my family, friends and the people I have met along the way that have instantly connected with my work. As a Bajan watching Rihanna grow and diversify her entrepreneurship and use Barbados as an inspiration in what she has done has been inspiring. Throught meeting other Bajan creatives that share similar goals and practices, such as the owners of Miletreecandles, RawSoul, Haleek Maul and Black Curatorial Labs I have been able to develop relationships with people that empower and inspire me. Also, Whenever I have an idea for my business I put it to my mother and best friend for their feed back. If it makes the cut I’ll ask others for their opinion to ensure that I am accurately representing the community. Being able to gage whether or not people connect with the nuances of culture that I try to convey has been an important learning journey.
Website: https://www.mahoganyculture.com/ https://zoeosborne.myportfolio.com/work
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mahoganyculture/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/thezoekid1
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0jNhfpams2r92zoVBSex3w
Image Credits
Beach House Escape by Zoe Osborne Mural by Mahogany Culture and Troy Burgess A Dream of Home – Installation and Digital Animation by Zoe Osborne Fxrst Nxme, Rootz Culture and Nya-Krystien Greene