Samantha Salguero
Fashion Designer and Content Creator
Quito, Ecuador
Don’t avoid existential voids. Live them until it gets so uncomfortable, that you have to create something meaningful for a change.
I found Egomania Magazine because I’m a daughter of the internet. I also found the concept so accurate to my recent existential opening so I thought I must get involved, and I'm so happy I did. I never have had the opportunity of writing about myself, neither about my beloved project.
So…. First things first. Who am I ?
Well.. that’s a pretty existential question at the moment. During these strange strange times. I have really asked myself this question, cause it has been really complex to recognize myself when I feel so influenced by this unstoppable- immersive and speedy internet era, in which its so difficult to stay lucid about who you are and what you want with all this information, influencers and images messing our minds. But just know, that I'm having this freedom of writing, I'm able to have my lucidity momentum in which I recognize myself (truly). I am Samantha Salguero, I'm 22, but still feel 21. I’m Ecuadorian and I’m a Latin American fashion designer, content producer and life amateur. I'm a loner, who believes in individuality as much as I believe in collectivity. I’m not a team worker, but doesn’t mean I don’t intend to be. It's just that I’m really into this ideology of creating things on my own terms, without the moralistic imposed by society, in which we all have to be either team workers, inspired persons, or super productive beings. My project is called SSCORPIO, and it has nothing to do with astrology. Both SS stand for my name, and scorpio is my zodiac guidance in life. SSCORPIO started as a university project, then turned into my hobby, and then it turned into my passion. I’ve self- managed my content and my project for almost 3 years now. I have 336 real followers, 10 of them are my family members and close friends, which I didn’t realize was pretty lame, until naive me figured out how “important” is to be Instagram famous, in order to spread our speech, our work, and ourselves. As an independent creative self-manager-lame instagramer inside this nepotistic industry, its really a heavy luggage to carry on. Cause the first step around isn’t create something and become famous. It is being instagram famous for whatever the hell, and then create something. So it becomes this vicious cycle of being recognized because of a privilege of popularity better than having a safe space that offers a correct dissemination of our work without any privileges. Wait… What was the question again??!
The thing is, that this kitsch lifestyle, has been present in our markets, in our streets, in our pop culture and in our daily lives since forever.
What’s SSCORPIO anyways?
SSCORPIO is born from the utopic dream of a Latin American fashion project which rescues Latin American heritage, and celebrates it with a creative perspective and humor. I believe in decolonization. First of our minds, then of ourselves and how we see us. Under that philosophy I have thought of a motto that is HEGEMONY SUCKSS with capital letters and both SS, to emphasize how it genuinely suckss… I really don’t try to create anything at SSCORPIO , but to resignify what already exists in our context. For example all kitsch and camp style and behaviour, that is so typical from our territory and yet so neglected. It wasn’t until this “aesthetic” trend and the ugly beauty avant-garde revolution, proposed by white people came out, that I felt it was in the air and everyone was surprisingly okay breathing it, even if they had roughly criticized it in the past. The thing is, that this kitsch lifestyle, has been present in our markets, in our streets, in our pop culture and in our daily lives since forever. We can go to a market and find the butcher selling meat at the same table in which she’s selling clothes and toys. All these surreal dynamics that converge at the same place are the ones that explain the magical realism that Gabriel García Marquez wrote about. And of course he did! He was Latin American.
That’s what SSCORPIO message its about.
HOW DO YOU DECOLONIZE THINGS IN YOUR PROJECT AND DAILY LIFE?
CHOLO, for example, in México is a subculture, which also became "interesting” once a photographer from the United Kingdom photoshoot them at their natural state. Here in Ecuador, it's not recognized as a subculture, and it comes from the Quechua language chulu, which means mixed race. It basically refers to people that are not white, who have bad taste for things, mostly kitsch things. I have heard this term for many years during my existence, even before, and never questioned it, until one day when the epiphany happened.
If CHOLO means NOT WHITE, and we are Latin Americans, from Ecuador, for instance definitely not whites. Then, aren’t we all CHOLOS? And, isn’t it FUCKING GREAT???
I felt that was the very first step to start a conversation with myself about decolonization and start reflecting it in my projects, so people know where I come from or at least feel curious about it, but most of all feel identified. That’s how I started with CHOLX with an X , hence inclusive. So I created this whole persona around it, which is a fashion, queer, kitsch proud latino, cholx. Integrally, I began my manifesto, with 3 statements. TODXS SOMXS CHOLXS, HEGEMONY SUCKSS, and KITSCH CAN BE FASHION, if you want to. Meaning that if you think about it, everything can be fashion, if you want to. And how can you want it? Decolonizing your mind shit.
It wasn't until this “aesthetic” trend and the ugly beauty avant-garde revolution, proposed by white people came out, that I felt it was in the air and everyone was surprisingly okay breathing it
How would you define your project then?
I would like to say punk. Even if punk is such a harsh-cool word to say. But I truly feel SSCORPIO like an anarchist, in a way. Few months back I dictated a workshop called TALLER CREAR DESDE LA INTUICIÓN Y CREATIVIDAD NATA. Which was legitimately punk and flashy, I guess, cause it encouraged intuitive creativity, based on anti-systematic and non methodic exercises for reaching more accurate types of creation by latinx artists and creatives. I did it once, and never again. Cause it wasn’t meant to be something massively, it was a subject I felt concerned about, and I still do. So It was a flash idea from the heart, to share it with others frustrated by the system as well. I don’t believe in tautology. I belive in constant changing. If not is boring. So yes, I still don’t know if I should call it punk, but I would define it as definitely not boring.
Any thoughts for the future?
Don’t avoid existential voids. Live them until it gets so uncomfortable, that you have to create something meaningful for a change.
And remember…HEGEMONY SUCKSS. :)
THANK YOU FOR READING <3 KEEP FOLLOWING MY PROJECT ON INSTAGRAM!
IG:@SSCORPIO___
VISIT MY PAGE FOR MORE :)
PH1: JULIÁN GRANDA
PH2; ZOE LENA
PH3: SAMANTHA SALGUERO
PH4:DAVID JOWHARI
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