JUSTIN WESLEY

Justin Wesley is an emerging talent in contemporary art whose artistic expression has been born through self-discovery. Wesley had no formal training in design, which informed his journey in fashion design and now art as a creative exploration of identity. “I am an unfinished idea, and I believe that my job as a human being and as an artist is to identify, challenge, and go beyond the frame in order to discover and define my own truth,” says Wesley.

Wesley’s debut design, Knuckles Console, represents a personal push against perception at the core of the artist’s identity. He engages with brass knuckles - an object not typically associated with sophistication or elegance – and expands the form beyond its known archetype. Now, like Wesley himself, the Knuckles Console is not confined to an impression. In certain ways, the work is Wesley’s first self-portrait.

Being self-taught, you start in the dark — and with every step and reach, your ideas develop in a way that is truly unique to yourself and your own experiences. As someone who has not been taught what is and what has been, Wesley only sees and concerns himself with what can be. “I am that tenth man, and I believe this makes me more formidable and versatile in my work because I create from curiosity instead of concerning myself with the “rules” — there are no rules in design. Design is free and beyond whatever boundaries we try to plague it with. It is not meant to be confined or restricted — it’s meant to inspire, expand the mind, and reveal possibilities that didn't exist before.”