1st place
gold star award
Constanze Han
united states 
title
In the Dancehall
Like many other African Diaspora communities, there is great importance in the act of taking pictures or creating an identity through one’s image. How you look identifies you. In the dancehall, personal appearance and the ability to stand out from others using fashion and styling has cultivated a culture with a heavy visual emphasis.
In recent years, Dancehall music and Jamaican culture and style has spread beyond its strongholds in the Caribbean and Africa to popular culture in the United States, Europe and beyond. Dancehall, came to the United States in the 1970’s and is credited to giving birth to Hip Hop. Nowadays, its influence can be seen in the work, speak and dress of popular artists as Drake, Rihanna and Justin Bieber. This has led to some coverage in mainstream media, yet the genre remains largely overshadowed and under-credited. Many of Dancehall’s pioneers and key players have never received their rightful recognition.
Han graduated with a B.A. in Art History from Northwestern University where her focus was on art and photography of Africa and the diaspora. She continued her graduate studies at The University of Southern California.
While pursuing her university degree, Han worked both as an editorial contributor and freelance fashion stylist to several publications including the international editions of Marie Claire and Harper’s Bazaar. During her twelve-year media and fashion career, she contributed to publications such as Esquire, Elle, Glamour, Interview, Time, Spin and i-D. She served as Fashion Director for the feminist music and culture magazine VenusZine where she worked on stories that featured a compelling female voice including Cat Power, Zoe Kravitz, Yoko Ono, Bjork and Dita von Teese.
Over the past decade, Han has worked with an extensive roster of actors and musicians and served as a creative consultant for several Fortune 500 companies including Toyota, Lexus, PespsiCo and Diageo. However, an underlying calling to connect with people and culture in a deeper way led her to transition in 2014 to behind the camera.
Han is currently working out of Brooklyn, New York and Kingston, Jamaica where she has spent the past three years focusing on the complex and visually dynamic world of Jamaican Dancehall culture.
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entry description
In Jamaica, Dancehall is more than music. It is an all-encompassing culture and lifestyle with deep social, economic and political implications. For many citizens, especially a marginalized, poorer class of people, Dancehall provides an outlet in otherwise bleak circumstances. It is entertainment and enjoyment but also a driver of economic opportunity and entrepreneurship for those who would otherwise have limited access to financial means.Like many other African Diaspora communities, there is great importance in the act of taking pictures or creating an identity through one’s image. How you look identifies you. In the dancehall, personal appearance and the ability to stand out from others using fashion and styling has cultivated a culture with a heavy visual emphasis.
In recent years, Dancehall music and Jamaican culture and style has spread beyond its strongholds in the Caribbean and Africa to popular culture in the United States, Europe and beyond. Dancehall, came to the United States in the 1970’s and is credited to giving birth to Hip Hop. Nowadays, its influence can be seen in the work, speak and dress of popular artists as Drake, Rihanna and Justin Bieber. This has led to some coverage in mainstream media, yet the genre remains largely overshadowed and under-credited. Many of Dancehall’s pioneers and key players have never received their rightful recognition.
about the photographer
Constanze Han is a visual artist, photographer and writer. She was raised in New York and Hong Kong where she first discovered the power of storytelling through the films of Hong Kong cinema.Han graduated with a B.A. in Art History from Northwestern University where her focus was on art and photography of Africa and the diaspora. She continued her graduate studies at The University of Southern California.
While pursuing her university degree, Han worked both as an editorial contributor and freelance fashion stylist to several publications including the international editions of Marie Claire and Harper’s Bazaar. During her twelve-year media and fashion career, she contributed to publications such as Esquire, Elle, Glamour, Interview, Time, Spin and i-D. She served as Fashion Director for the feminist music and culture magazine VenusZine where she worked on stories that featured a compelling female voice including Cat Power, Zoe Kravitz, Yoko Ono, Bjork and Dita von Teese.
Over the past decade, Han has worked with an extensive roster of actors and musicians and served as a creative consultant for several Fortune 500 companies including Toyota, Lexus, PespsiCo and Diageo. However, an underlying calling to connect with people and culture in a deeper way led her to transition in 2014 to behind the camera.
Han is currently working out of Brooklyn, New York and Kingston, Jamaica where she has spent the past three years focusing on the complex and visually dynamic world of Jamaican Dancehall culture.
back to gallery
