Hulisani Ravele celebrates 30th birthday with portraits and poetry
by
Bridgette Matjuda
Hulisani Ravele recently turned 30 and she chose a unique way to celebrate her milestone. She took to her social media to share details of her special project which commemorates her 30th birthday.
Here’s what she had to say about her reflections and beautiful birthday.
I will be releasing a series of 30 portraits reflecting emotions of what 30 years of life experience has brought with it and built in me. Each portrait will be narrated with poetry written by talented writer Sizakele Phohleli, @her_mentality, in a collection she has coined ‘Blues for Hulisani’.
30 is a big milestone and I wanted to celebrate it in a unique way. Bringing #30PortraitsAndPoetry to life was both exciting & nerve-wrecking. I started off by writing a list of 30 emotions I felt my life journey has brought with it so far. That meant stripping myself bare and being vulnerable and comfortable with listing the bad or negative emotions alongside the good, happy ones.
The images that will be released are untouched and unedited. A decision I intentionally made because being famous does not mean that I am perfect nor do I have to be. I accept and love myself; freckles, flaws, scars, stretch marks, and all; and I hope that those seeing the images are inspired to feel the same about themselves too. I had a terrible break-out on my face leading up to and on the day of the shoot, and that’s exactly how I am going to release the images, as they are.
2018 is a big year for me. Not only do I turn 30 but this year also marks my 21st year in the industry. I am looking forward to sharing this special project with those who have followed and supported my career for the past 21 years. I truly hope that this honest introspection and the portrayal of it inspires others to not only do the same but to also be accepting of the results of that introspection. We are all just doing the best we can at this life thing. It will come with its ups and downs, its mistakes, its trials and triumphs, but for as long as you keep putting one foot in front of the other, it will be YOUR story to tell. And it will be beautiful.”