My Style: Edrece Stansberry

Edrece Stansberry, a local photographer and self-proclaimed “visual storyteller” tells us what his biggest fashion inspiration is, how he interlaces Western film influences into his own personal fashion, and what’s next for him career-wise. Read on to find out more!

Name: Edrece Stansberry
Residence: Indianapolis
Occupation: Visual Storyteller

Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Central Indianapolis right off of 38th and Pennsylvania street. I often have dreams about my childhood home there. It’s weird.

What is your earliest memory of a noticeable interest in fashion?
My earliest noticeable memory about fashion… I can’t say that I had one specific memory about fashion but I definitely had a series of moments that led up to now. When I was a kid, I grew up watching a lot of Clint Eastwood Western classics, horror films, and drama films about love (which I watch now on a daily basis).

Who or what influences your style?
My grandfather, my grandmother, the Western Era, and Prince mainly influence my style. With my

grandfather being someone who loves expressing individuality with purpose, I would always see him change his outfits according to the occasion. He was a very serious man with a quirky sense of humor.

He owned his own construction company and if he was doing any sort of construction work he would have the gear on needed to perform the job: Carhartt baseball cap, Red Wing steel toe boots, Levi/Carhartt blue jeans, a clean white t-shirt, a Carhartt vest, and a hard hat. If he was going to church, he would have a classic black and white suit on with aviators, and instead of having a tie on, he would have a western styled pendant. I just love how he expressed himself according to the occasion. Everything he wore was purposeful and intentional.

My grandmother always and still to this day loves to wear all different types of eye-grabbing, colorful dresses or long skirts. Mainly forms of purple, orange, green, and hints of pink. My pops of color in accessories or some part of my outfit are definitely influenced from her. I often go to her whenever I wear an outfit for the first time or if I buy something new to try on. Her opinion means the most to me. As for the Western era, I have watched so many Western films and relate to the decade so much. It is a part of me now and slowly reveals itself in different ways over time. As far as Prince, I mean it’s Prince. His style and individual expression cannot be copied in any way shape or form. His personality and style clashes perfectly in between masculinity and femininity and I love that so much.

What are your favorite Instagram accounts to follow?
Man, that’s a hard one. I really love Virgil Abloh, Bella Hadid, Alton Mason, Lamar Taylor, Luka Sabbat, and any fashion inspired pages from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s.

Describe your personal style in four words or one phrase.
Created to fit me.

What’s your go-to item in your closet?
My go-to item is anything that complements my Paul Smith boots.

Who are your favorite designers, and what do you like about their designs?
My favorite fashion designers are Alexander Mcqueen, Virgil Abloh, and Maison Valentino. I am sure I’ll add one or two more as time goes by. I love certain designers for their approaches to what they create in relation to the clothing. I specifically love Alexander Mcqueen for his edge and forward thinking in the way he presented his clothing. He revolutionized the way clothing was presented and is indeed a pioneer in fashion. If you know, you know.

For Virgil Abloh, his sleek, minimalist, philosophical yet complex approach to his womenswear and overall brand is absolutely genius and very relatable. He is just getting started and I can’t wait to see what he has in store for winter. For Valentino, everything oozes elegance, prestige, deep refined colors of luxury and dominating forms of Red, my favorite color. What could you not like about Valentino besides the price?

Did you ever consider leaving the Indy area? If so, what made you stay?
Yes, I definitely will be moving out of Indiana but never leave will leave the city behind. As great of a city it is, creative opportunities are not very forward here. Don’t get me wrong, of course it has progressed, but way too slowly for me. I believe it is a great city to start out at and really develop your craft before going to more fashion and creative, forward-thinking cities such as New York, Toronto, and LA.

Being in Indiana has made me realized what I truly want in my creative endeavors and if I truly want it. which is very valuable for anyone in a creative field. We are all so spontaneous and skilled in different areas so we tend to easily get lost along the journey but being in Indiana truly humbles and refines our creative “wants” into “needs”.

What trends are you noticing for spring fashion?
This past spring was filled with a lot of uniformed, military styled looks in the realm of high fashion to streetwear.

A huge thing this spring was a lot of straps from top to bottom, whether it was a bag, shoes with straps, etc. Besides the obvious, everything had underlying goth and religious influences. A specific examples was the theme for this year’s past Met Gala and what certain celebrities wore. Those things are already developing into new forms of ideas from specific leading designers so the trends don’t really matter.

It’s what relates most with this generation, what can be worn 10 years from now, and which leading designs represent this culture that matters; everything else is temporary. But those temporary designs that do start to “trend” or bad designs that do not stick around for very long sometimes lead other designers to create great ideas so it depends how you look at it. I am not the “trendy” kind of guy. I’m just trying to find which pieces truly represent who I am.

What’s next for you? What short and long term goals are on your list?

I am currently an Artificial Intelligence Operator for Amazon and specifically creative directing multiple stories. Some are personal projects but mainly collaborating and working with other individuals. As far as my goals, I see myself making a drama film and being in a creative field under or with Vogue in the next five years.

Define fashion.
Authentically expressing your most internal self through clothing.

Worst fashion trend
The worst fashion trends have to be safety pin face jewelry in the ’70s, Uggs with mini skirts, low waisted or low rise jeans, and the color patterns in the ’80s. I absolutely love the ’80s but oversized sports coats and wearing every color possible in one outfit is not the move. If you can pull off any of these, mega props to you.

Best fashion trend
The best fashion trends have to be hemming your pants to your shoe height, embracing your shape, and wearing pops of color in accessories, such as a purse, crossbody bag, etc. I really dig that.

Last but certainly not least, name your favorite fashion icon.
My favorite fashion icon is absolutely Diana Vreeland. Her approach and execution of fashion stories are timeless. She changed the dynamic of how fashion editorials in print and fashion in general should be presented. Amazing woman and one of a kind.

Where to find Edrece Stansberry:
Instagram: @edrecestansberry

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