Iman is a Somali-American businessperson, philanthropist, author and former model. Iman’s first career as a fashion model began in Africa when she was noticed by photographer Peter Beard and while she was a student at the University of Nairobi. Beard’s subsequent portraits of Iman became the genesis of Iman’s modeling career and the catalyst that brought her from Kenya to New York. Beginning in 1976 with a booking from Vogue, for nearly twenty years, as model and as muse, Iman maintained a key place among many of both the 20th century’s and today’s epochal fashion designers and portrait photographers.
In 1994, frustrated by the absence of adequate beauty products available for women with skin of color, Iman developed and founded IMAN Cosmetics. Having recently retired from modeling, Iman sought to address, fill and correct a glaring void in the beauty market. While IMAN Cosmetics was the first to offer products specifically formulated for skin of color’s distinct needs, one of the brand’s defining and distinguishing hallmark is its philosophy: Because women with skin of color represent many races, cultures and ethnicities, IMAN Cosmetics is designed for women with myriad skin tones.
Iman’s first book, entitled I Am Iman, was an autobiographical sketchbook of her career and that questions “the unserious business of fashion and beauty and its serious effect on identity.” Aligned with her cosmetics line, her second book, The Beauty of Color: The Ultimate Beauty Guide for Skin of Color examines and pays homage to all skin tones.
For years, Iman has worked to support the efforts of an array of humanitarian organizations, including Keep a Child Alive, Save the Children, the Children’s Defense Fund, CARE and is on the Advisory Board and Creative council at RED. In addition, Iman has worked to help draw attention to war and famine in eastern Africa, appearing in a BBC documentary with regard and also addressing the United Nations.
Derek Fordjour makes paintings, sculptures, and installations whose vivid materials give rise to portraits and other multilayered compositions. Born of both broad sociological vision and a keen awareness of the body’s vulnerability, his tableaux are filled with athletes, performers, and others who play key roles in cultural rituals and communal rites of passage. In his paintings, Fordjour methodically constructs the ground of each composition through collages involving cardboard, newspaper, and other materials and pigments. The textural surfaces that emerge are as complex—and physically engaging—as the dynamic subjects that Fordjour inscribes on top, within, and through them. His ability to grapple with artmaking on physical, conceptual, and human levels allows his work to express a wide range of emotions, from joy to grief. This, in turn, allows him to connect to audiences inside and outside of traditional art venues.
Derek Fordjour is the recipient of the 2025 Gordon Parks Foundation Artist Fellowship and the 2023 St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Spirit of the Dream Award. He has received public commissions for the High Line, the NYC AIDS Memorial, MOCA Grand Avenue and the MTA’s Arts & Design program. Fordjour’s work has been reviewed in The New York Times, Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Los Angeles Times. A monograph of his work will be published by Phaidon in 2027. His work is held in the private and public collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Guggenheim Museum, Brooklyn Museum, The Studio Museum, Pérez Art Museum Miami, Los Angeles County Museum of Art and The Royal Collection in London among others.Derek Fordjour is a graduate of Morehouse College. He also earned a Master’s Degree in Art Education from Harvard University and an MFA in painting from Hunter College. He served as the 2020 Alex Katz Chair of Painting at The Cooper Union, New York and served on the faculty at the Yale University School of Art as a core critic. He is the founder of Contemporary Arts Memphis.
Voices may be over, but the work continues.
“It’s about providing love and support. It is about ensuring that each one of them has what they need to be successful. Not because it’s a gift. Not because it’s charity. Something quite different – it’s because it’s what they deserve.” – Co-Founder & Executive Director, Khary Lazarre-White
On May 14, 2026 we gathered in community at our Annual Voices Gala to honor the heart of BroSis: the belief that every young person deserves to be seen, heard, and supported. Throughout the evening, we reflected on the four themes that have guided BroSis since our founding — Community, Knowledge, Positivity, and Future — and heard directly from our young people about what those values mean in their lives today through a series of moving video reflections (below). It was a reminder of the power of sustained community and opportunity. Every young person who shared their voice is part of a larger story of possibility that supporters like you help make real.
Voices is our signature annual benefit—an inspiring evening that celebrates BroSis’s commitment to helping young people grow into critical thinkers and community leaders. Bringing together more than 500 supporters from across industries, the event is rooted in storytelling, artistry, joy, and intergenerational connection. It’s an opportunity to hear directly from the remarkable young people who inspire and empower our life-changing programming. More than a celebration, Voices is a powerful reminder of what’s possible when young people are supported, seen, and given the tools to lead.
Clara Markowicz
Paul E. Butler
Peter J. Davoren
President and CEO,
Turner Construction Company
Fuquan Collins
Rahsan-Rahsan Lindsay
Ravi J. Mallik
Detavio Samuels
Danielle M. Brown
Ross Haime
Marti Meyerson
Latraviette D. Smith-Wilson
Tiffany R. Warren
Elizabeth Acevedo
Sheila R. Adams-James
Ernest Boyd
Andrew M. Chonoles
Heather Corbett
Adair Curtis
Cynthia Dames
B. Alan Echtenkamp
Sharon Foo
Matthew A. Gibbons
Stephen Graham
Farah Griffin
Damon Hewitt
Kippy Joseph
Marcus Littles
Diarra McKinney
Alondra Nelson
Pedro A. Noguera
Michelle Ores
Lida Orzeck
Alexandra Shapiro
Andrietta Sims
Lauren Starr
Holly A. Thomas
Miguel Vias
Douglas H. White
Alondra Nelson & Garraud Etienne
Jeannie Blaustein & Peter Bokor
Peter Mensch & Anita Bitton
Lida Orzeck
Heather Corbett & William Amenta
Katja Goldman & Michael Sonnenfeldt
Jon Grau & Cameron Lewis
Sheila R. Adams-James
Danielle M. Brown
Paul E. Butler
David Kordanksy Gallery & Petzel Gallery
Dr. B. Alan Echtenkamp & Pamela Sandler
Derek Fordjour
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP
Marcy & Bennett Grau
Allran Electric
Ashnu International
Primiano Electric Co.
3E Infrastructure
Debo Adegbile
Elizabeth Acevedo
Almar Plumbing and Heating Corp.
Amalgamated Bank
Champion Metal & Glass, Inc.
Cynthia Dames & Tamar Podell
Nathaniel & Breta Durant
EJ Electric
Electra
Gotham Drywall
Jacobson & Company
Legacy Professional Services
Clara Markowicz
McKissak & McKissack
New York Women’s Foundation
Otis Elevator Company
Park Avenue Building & Roofing Supplies, LLC
Promethean Builders
Rad & D’Aprile Masonry Contractors
Schindler Elevator Corp
Starr Industries LLC
EDO
Judy Bernstein Bunzl & Stephen N. Bunzl
Matthew Gibbons
Douglas H. White
Apex Building Group
The Buccini/Pollin Group
Columbia University
Cassandra Freeman & Tom Paul
Joanna Hagan Rego
Damon Hewitt
Kasirer LLC
Andrietta Sims
Santiago Taveras & Alexandra Soriano-Tavares
Russell Torres
Peter Urquart
Stephen & Ann Graham
Matthew Colangelo
Component Assembly Systems
Community Service Society of New York
Sharon Foo
Ethan & Eliza Goldwasser
Steve Sabba
Anne Williams-Isom
