Designed by
Williams, Hadiya, American, born 1978
Subject of
Lewis, Shantrelle P., American, born 1978
Lawson, Tony Oluwatoyin, born 1978
Date
2016
Medium
cotton paper with gold foil, tissue paper, wax and string
Caption
With their shared personal and professional focus on design and the diaspora, Lewis and Lawson sought to create what they described as "#TheBlackestWeddingEver" by concentrating their aesthetics on African diasporic influences and by working with primarily African American vendors. These desires connected them to designer Hadiya Williams. The wedding blended the couple’s New Orleans and Nigerian cultures. The couple used the hashtag #jollofandjambalaya in the wedding materials—Jollof refers to the "Jollof rice" common in West Africa (including in Nigeria) and Jambalaya refers to the stew of rice, vegetables, and meat associated with New Orleans.
The "Z" and lion insignia are tributes to Zamunda, the mythical African country depicted in the film Coming to America, referencing the iconic pop culture film in a celebration of the bride’s African-Americanness and the groom’s African roots, just like Lisa and Akeem. This inspiration carries into the wedding suite materials, which designer Williams says is a blend of "pop culture" and "the merging of …worlds across the African Diaspora."
Description
Wedding invitation suite designed by Hadiya Williams for the wedding of Shantrelle Lewis and Oluwatoyin Lawson. The suite consists of the following pieces:
2018.30.1a: (1) large black outer envelope with circular gold stamp at front center, with [Z] at the center surrounded by [11 / 19] on the left and [20 / 16] on the right. In the outer circle of the stamp is [SHANTRELLE & OLUWATOYIN / NEW ORLEANS, LA]. The envelope is closed by a gold foil sticker with lion insignia.
2018.30.1b: (1) invitation with attached RSVP envelope. The navy blue invitation has gold printing with art deco styling. A decorative [Z] is at the top, followed by an invitation from the parents of the bride and groom in small block font. At center of the text is a large [Shantrelle / & / Oluwatoyin] in a script font, followed by details of the ceremony in small sans serif font. Attached below the text is a small white envelope with gold foil lion insignia sticker, to hold an RSVP token (c). The obverse of the invitation has an all over gold foil art deco style ornamentation, with the letter [Z] in the center of a skyscraper building at top center and a lion insignia in a round medallion at bottom center.
2018.30.1c: (1) RSVP token from envelope adhered to invitation (b). The circular token depicts the silhouettes of Lewis (right) and Lawson (left) in the center with the [Z] wedding logo between them with geometric tribal ornamentation surrounding. [RSVP BY SEPTEMBER 15] is printed at the top and [WWW.JOLLOFANDJAMBALAYA.COM] at the bottom. There is a linear border around the outer edge of the token.
2018.30.1d: (1) invitation without attached RSVP token envelope. The invitation is identical to (b) with the envelope removed to display an art deco waterfall skyscraper design.
2018.30.1e: (1) invitation without attached RSVP token envelope. The invitation is identical to (d).
2018.30.1f: (1) maroon invitation envelope with gold stamped return address on closure flap. The circular stamp has the [Z] wedding logo in the center and the return address printed around the outer border.
2018.30.1g: (1) gold tissue paper invitation sleeve with black string wrapping adhered with wax stamp with lion insignia on one side and tied on the other.
2018.30.1h: (1) RSVP token from maroon invitation envelope (f). The token is identical to (c).
2018.30.1i: (1) wedding program with maroon outer cover with gold wax lion insignia on the front. The inner pages consist of two white sheets folded and bound with black string to make four pages. Printed in silver ink on the front page is the silhouette illustration of Lewis and Lawson with the [Z] wedding logo in the center, followed by [Shantrelle / & / Oluwatoyin] in script font. The following pages have the ceremony schedule, the wedding party list titled [THE / ROYAL COURT OF / ZAMUNDA], thank you notes and a list of additional vendors.
2018.30.1j: (1) royal purple wedding handkerchief with gold metallic silhouette illustration of Lewis and Lawson with the [Z] wedding logo in the center, followed by [Shantrelle / & / Oluwatoyin] in script font, [NOVEMBER 19, 2016] and [#JOLLOFANDJAMBALAYA] in smaller sans serif font.
Place made
Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
Cultural Place
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, North and Central America
Nigeria, Africa
Africa
Classification
Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design
Type
programs
Topic
Africa
African diaspora
Communities
Families
Film
Graphic design
Identity
Social life and customs
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Hadiya Williams
Object number
2018.30.1
Restrictions & Rights
© 2016 Hadiya Williams
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5eec26016-8976-44aa-b922-b18839722926

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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