Welcome to Styling, Jezebel’s new video series in which we show how creative people communicate who they are through the clothes they wear—how they embody their work, their personalities, and why they’re just so cool. If you haven’t already, take a scroll down performance artist Trae Harris’s Instagram feed and experience her looks: She radiates a uniquely mystical sense of style, and it’s the reason we went to her East Brooklyn home to learn more about her work, and what makes her style tick. Some might remember Harris from her breakout 2013 role in the comedy Newlyweeds, in which she played Nina who, along with her boyfriend, was a weed addict. Since then she’s acted in Netflix’s Orange Is The New Black, as well as other independent films. But others, especially those in her Brooklyn neighborhood, know Harris for her magic. Feel free to call her a witch—she talks freely about casting spells, and permanently placed along her shrine are palo santo sticks, a crystal ball, energy reading cards and a book called African Ancestry In God. Harris told Jezebel she uses ancient tools and knowledge she’s gained from world travels in her practice, and she similarly centers her fashion on Africa and black culture, which are always present in her work and aesthetic. For Harris, there is no style without her creativity. Learn more in her episode of Styling, above. Senior Producer: Tracy Thompson. Associate Producer: Kayra Clouden. Director of Photography: Santiago Garcia.
