Artist Alvaro Barrington and Ferragamo's Maximilian Davis How to Achieve Longevity in a Trend-Driven Field . (This link opens in a new tab).

At first glance, the 42-year-old visual artist Alvaro Barrington and Maximilian Davis, the 30-year-old creative director of Ferragamo, have little in common aesthetically. Barrington, who is the subject of solo exhibitions at Thaddaeus Ropac in Seoul (through April 12) and Sadie Coles in London (March 5–April 26), is known for creating immersive installations that are kaleidoscopic in color, texture, and sound. Meanwhile, Davis—one of the youngest creative directors of a major fashion house and a favorite of the first-name crowd (think Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Kim)—is known for clean lines, pared-down silhouettes, and the slick use of leather and lamé.

Yet, the duo has a long list of shared influences, from dance to their grandmothers to Carnival and other cornerstones of Caribbean culture. (Barrington grew up between Grenada and Brooklyn; Davis was born in the U.K. to Trinidadian-Jamaican parents.) Both men are also committed to infusing the often-uptight worlds of art and fashion with a sense of dynamism, community, and play. In the following conversation, they compare notes on the creative process.

Maximilian Davis: I went to Frieze London [last fall] and saw this piece of yours [featuring American rapper DMX] that made me giggle so much. When I first saw it, I was drawn to the colors and the craft that went into it. I had no idea it was DMX until the gallerist held up his phone with a picture of him. To me, it was a personal moment because I remember [listening to] Ruff Ryders growing up. My sister had a T-shirt with [them] on it. I’ve always found it interesting to bring more personal research into my practice.

Alvaro Barrington: One of the things that makes our practices exciting is that it feels like the world is catching up to the culture we grew up in as a form of value. DMX brought this energy after the vacuum Tupac left behind. So much of rap is about craft—it’s about your ability to put words together in a certain way. [In your practice], you sometimes get associated with minimalism. You’ve reduced the language to start thinking about not only the craft of tailoring, but also culture and all of those things you can build out from it.