RAAM made a promise. He had finished art school in Accra, Ghana and was facing an uncertain future.
He chose to take a path with no guarantee of success and promised himself that he would do everything he could to make a career as an artist.

He began painting shirts and taught himself to sew, convincing local fashion shops to give him their extra scraps of cloth. He experimented with combining collage, paint and dying techniques- all from his parent’s home and began running his own business. He promoted his ‘art you can wear’ every chance he could get- spending long hours at the crowded Accra bazaars only to sell a few shirts.

But soon his hard work started paying off. He started spotting people around town wearing his shirts and in his community of Labadi, he was being treated like a local hero. He began renting his own shop and hired his brothers to help him with production. With his profits, he began paying the school fees of several children in his neighborhood.

Two years ago, RAAM met Branson Skinner, an NYU student studying in Accra for the semester. Together they formed Of Rags: Sustainable Fashion to market RAAM’s creations to an international audience.

Of Rags is now at the forefront of organizing and building the fair trade fashion movement in NYC and they employ 6 people in Labadi. Two of their employees- Sylvia and Emmanuel- are supporting their families with their income and have been able to enroll their children in school.

Today we are thrilled to be releasing the portrait of RAAM that we filmed in Ghana while working with Of Rags.

RAAM represents exactly what ListenIn Pictures is about- the story of an ordinary person who has the courage to do extraordinary things- without forgetting their connectedness to those around them.

Enjoy! And we would love to hear your reactions/impressions.

Right outside RAAM's home in Labadi, Accra