Journey Powell 25 February 2025 4 minute read
Every day at about 9:30 am, as the sun rises over the city that never sleeps; Gabrielle Archibald stretches her body and chants “gratefuls” to herself, then journals. Writing is one of her biggest creative outlets, Archibald says that whether it be reflection, journaling is the birth of all her wildest ideas. Archibald, a 22-year-old Brooklyn native and Spelman College alumna, created Pardon Our Progress Magazine (P.O.P), which she says was meant to empower and showcase the multifaceted talent within the Atlanta University Center (AUC).
Archibald says during her childhood some of her biggest inspiration derived from her family’s creative influence. Clothing stores and Furniture auctions were Archibald’s constant reality. “I can’t recall a specific moment that inspired my creativity. But, I’d say living with my parents and being surrounded by how they think.”
She says her artistic preferences stemmed from their ability to explore their creativity within their traditional professions; The bank and Law industries. Specifically highlighting how her dad taught her the importance of different wood and leather wear, “That background made me have a unique perspective across disciplines and all my interests.” Archibald says being in an environment that fosters creativity undeniably impacted her academic and career pursuits. This led her to study at Spelman College, obtaining a BA in International Studies and the birth of P.O.P.
The magazine covers diverse topics that fall under the category of art, fashion, food, and politics. P.O.P.’s recent issue, “From the Wild West to the West End” echoes the sentiment of Archibald’s mission. Featuring Spelman and Morehouse student models, Truman Johnson (19 years old, Morehouse 2027) and Student Reporter, Journey Powell (19 years old, Spelman 2026). Archibald says her inspiration for the issue sparked after she noticed a resurgence of Western culture within the media through a black lens. “The backlash black people received from fashion shows like Pharell Men’s FW 24 and Beyonce’s Country album led me to conduct my research and contribute to the discourse”.
With her art, she launched a project for black creatives to model, capture images, write, and help direct P.O.P’s fifth issue. Johnson says working for P.O.P. has influenced his creative career, “Gabrielle is brilliant. I love the way she does art and her multifaceted nature.” Further saying how bearing witness to Archibald’s process of styling, prop-play, and capturing images, was admirable.
According to Archibald, P.O.P., began as an idea discussed countless times with her mother, which was then, brought to fruition, releasing an issue monthly. “I’d say that was a really big achievement for me because we had such a small team, we were pushing and motivating each other to push content”. She says that the diversity within each issue theme and topic allowed her to interact with many people. “It brought out different audiences each time. So we got to see a wide variety of talent within the AUC”.
P.O.P’s team consisted of Archibald, Morehouse Alum and Photographer Jalen Turner, and Mallory Butts (Current Editor-in-Chief). P.O.P. 's name was discovered by Turner. “We were having a group brainstorming session, me, Jalen, and Mallory, and I am drawn to alliteration,” She claims to not remember how the name came up but recalls walking around Spelman for inspiration. “Then we saw the big pardon our progress sign on the construction outside of the new arts building”, it dawned upon Archibald, that things are always in progress – ever-evolving.“I felt like it reflected the community at the time, the AUC, specifically had a lot of things coming into motion, with a lot of money from donations, the new arts buildings, etc.”
Reflecting on the creation of the project with her name written across it, Archibald says with her experience in a post-COVID AUC, constant change, and movement is something she always experienced. “Spelman is in a really big changing period, a big shift. I felt like progress was the theme, and not even ‘Pardon’, like an apology, but more things are coming. Always stay at the edge of your seat, Always be excited. Things are always going to be changing.”
Archibald gives credit to her childhood for her artistic drive. Her family and friends encouraged her to explore herself despite being discouraged from having a variety of interests by society. “I’ve always been told, you have to stay within one box,” she recalls people around her often reinforcing this stereotype “If you're creative, you’re just that, and if not, you’re intellectually capable and just that.” These limitations forced her to surpass boundaries. This was heightened particularly through her observation of Clark Atlanta University’s (CAU) fashion and creative presence, while Spelman focused more on academics.
“Spelman is very academically heavy, which makes sense for the curriculum, But the idea of a Spelman woman is changing. I don’t think we should be solely academics.” Sharing that she’d interviewed the Spelman student who’d brought back Lacrosse – Olivia Paraben. Further arguing that there are different paths inside and outside of your creativity, and that limitation is a barrier. “We’re more than a smart school, I don’t think black women especially should be limited to that.”
Creating P.O.P. came with obstacles and milestones. Especially her battle with confidence.“When it comes to having creative ideas and acting on them people discount the effort it takes to get yourself believing in yourself,” she reflects. Building a community, Persevering past unhappiness with her Spelman experience, and gathering the courage to do something on her own accord, were all a part of Archibald’s process. “ I had to take the leap, and it paid off because I did something I was proud of, I made new friends and did new things, I felt like I never did before.” Balancing her senior year and still creating content felt like a huge achievement, because it derived from raw passion. “It puts a lot of perspective into things, if you are disciplined about a goal, you can get anything,” she says.
Though P.O.P was passed down to Mallory Butts. The founder’s impact on P.O.P. is felt long after her first and last march through the Spelman Arch. The Journey of Gabrielle Archibald has just begun, she embraces these changes and is ecstatic to witness the evolution of P.O.P. “I wanted to leave something behind and have some type of legacy. Even if it doesn’t have the biggest impact, it’s still me and people will know it's my name.”