Jada Akoto’s design practice explores the intersection of pop culture and the African diaspora

The LA-based designer’s practice is rooted in online content consumption and her childhood love of collaging.

Date
5 October 2022

If the designer Jada Akoto had to pick the most memorable creative outlet of her childhood, it would have to be collaging. Now, it’s a methodology that informs the ethos of her work. “I loved configuring found images and colours to create whatever I wanted,” she explains. With stock images, free online archives and Photoshop – her “favourite tool” – Jada creatively “fabricates” the world she wishes to see.

Originally from Memphis and now based in LA, Jada explains that her work “sits on the intersection of pop culture media and the African diaspora”. Jada sources inspiration from a wide range of figures – the writers Zeba Blay and Saidiya Hartman, to name a few. But, Jada tells us, “most of my creative influence comes from watching so much content and then thinking too much about things like reality television, K-Pop and social media platforms”. Perusing her portfolio, you’ll find a publication focusing on the Black women in reality television, and a vintage playable PC video game parody humorously looking at the perils of modern dating.

Above
Left

Jada Akoto: Bad Girls Club Magazine Cover (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Right

Jada Akoto: Bad Girls Club Mantra (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Above

Jada Akoto: Bad Girls Club Mantra (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Above

Jada Akoto: New York vs. Pumkin (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Above

Jada Akoto: Theebadgirlsclub.com (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Above

Jada Akoto: Leave It at the Door Screenshot (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Above

Jada Akoto: More Than Love (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2022)

Above

Jada Akoto: Oh, Dolly! (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Above

Jada Akoto: For Benny (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2020)

Above

Jada Akoto: The Black West (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2020)

Hero Header

Jada Akoto: Theebadgirlsclub.com (Copyright © Jada Akoto, 2021)

Share Article

About the Author

Olivia Hingley

Olivia (she/her) joined the It’s Nice That team as an editorial assistant in November 2021 and soon became staff writer. A graduate of the University of Edinburgh with a degree in English literature and history, she’s particularly interested in photography, publications and type design.

It's Nice That Newsletters

Fancy a bit of It's Nice That in your inbox? Sign up to our newsletters and we'll keep you in the loop with everything good going on in the creative world.