Janeshia Adams-Ginyard didn't wear clothes to the "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" premiere [1] on Oct. 26. Instead, the actor and stuntwoman covered her entire body in paint, paying tribute to late costar Chadwick Boseman [2], who played T'Challa in the first "Black Panther [3]" movie and passed away [4] before filming the sequel.
The main focus of Adams-Ginyard's body art was a large statement illustration of Boseman's face on her back, but the finer details were a tribute to her ancestors. "Full Body paint like what my ancestors did to recognize events," Adams-Ginyard captioned an Instagram video [5] of her thoughtful attire. The clip showed her gracing the red carpet wearing a velvet cape that she removed to reveal vibrant, multicolored body paint with tribal designs over her bare skin, courtesy of artist Jo Steel [6]. While the body art was very clearly paint, it simultaneously resembled jewelry and clothes.
On Adams-Ginyard's wrists, Steel's art echoed long, regal, gold cuffs, which correlated with a collar-like necklace design on her neck. Her entire chest was covered in abstract, intertwining swirls that comprised a breastplate-like design. Beneath it, Steel painted a panther, an image from the film itself, right across her belly button.
For a closer look at the star's body paint and beautiful homage, keep reading.
