Inside Out July 07 2016

Ten prominent fashion illustrators (all but one British and UK based - Tina Berning lives and works in Berlin) have joined creative forces to exhibit a powerful new collection of original works on paper at Magma in Covent Garden, London from Thursday 7th July until 8th August.

Co-curators (and featured artists) Erin Petson and Lucy MacLeod, were inspired to organise the exhibition titled 'INSIDE OUT- Fashion dreams on paper', following a visit to the Hilma af Klint exhibition at The Serpentine Gallery in May.

Now considered to be a pioneer of abstract art, the Swedish painter uses colourful, surreal symbols and natural forms to communicate her enigmatic ideas and predictions on a large scale. Blown away by the mystic beauty of the reclusive and until recently unknown female artist's work, Petson and MacLeod approached eight carefully selected commercial illustrators with the challenge of responding to Hilma af Klint's work by creating imagery that reflects the notion of the 'cosmic and spiritual'.

Featuring both leading and emerging illustrators, the group, which includes Jason Brooks- recent winner of the V&A Book Illustration Award 2016, have all risen to this challenge; producing an eclectic and exciting collection of work that challenges fixed notions of what it is to be a fashion illustrator.

As Lucy MacLeod puts it- 'All ten illustrators are exciting in different ways and possess unique strengths but we all have one common interest - juicy linework... It's this focus on the line- whether created by a pencil, paintbrush or digital pen, that unifies us as artists and allows us to relate as draughtsmen, to all kinds of visual artists.'

Magma bookshop and gallery- considered a designer and artist's haven for rare books, magazines and all things creative- serves as the perfect venue for this creative outpouring and will also host a series of related talks and workshops led by the featured illustrators in conjunction with the exhibition.

Collectively the featured artist's clients include - Levi Strauss, Ralph Lauren, Phoebe English, Liberty, Louis Vuitton, Anthropologie, Sunday Times Style Magazine, GQ Style, AnOther, ShowStudio, Chanel, Virgin Atlantic, L'Oreal, Revlon, Samsung, British Airways, Ritz Hotels, Guerlain, Veuve Clicquot, American Express, Coca-Cola , Saatchi and Saatchi, Laurence King, Wall Street Journal, GQ, Elle, Vogue, Agent Provocateur, Puma, Absolut, MTV, BBC Television, Harvey Nichols, Canon, Vodafone, Penguin, Mercedes-Benz, Tiffany & The New York Times.

Featured Artists - Lucy MacLeod / Erin Petson / Jason Brooks / David Bray / Helen Bullock / Fiona Gourlay / Tracy Turnbull / Amelie Hegardt / Tina Berning / Petra Borner

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Amelie Hegardt

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How did you become involved with the project?

Through Lucy and Erin who contacted me by the start of the summer.

Were you aware of Hilda af Klint’s work? Did you see the Serpentine exhibition?

Yes, I’d just been to the exhibition when they contacted me. I was living in Stockholm around the time they were showing her work at the Modern Museum for the first time.

What inspired the pieces you made for Inside Out?

I’d been teaching an entire day and this is what came out of me when I came home.
Hilma af Klint, Pina the choreographer, some fashion, the body and ballet were all in the back of my head.

Line and draughtsmanship are a central theme in this exhibition, Klint’s relationship with line and drawing has a practical and a spiritual significance, as a method of divining information from realms beyond the perceivable world - do line and drawing play a significant role in your practice?

It’s the start to everything I do. Hilma af Klints largest works are still on paper and the sketches Im exhibiting at Magma are preparation for large scale.

What role does the abstract have in fashion illustration?

Whats beautiful about fashion illustration is that it leaves out rather than includes everything.

What kind of industry is the fashion industry to work with?

Challenging.

Are you aware of particular changes and particular trends?

Yes, ever evolving, social media has had a great impact, for better and worse.

Do you find this affects your approach to the work?

Without a doubt, yes. It started already a few years ago and it made me rethink my entire relationship to the profession.

How do you see fashion illustration changing?

If you refer to the industry I think it already has, as I mentioned above.
I’d like to believe fashion illustration will grow in value. We can see fashion designer’s work is exhibited in museums for example and along those lines I think fashion illustration can bring another level to the fashion archive. But of course it depends on its creator. I think there is a lot of work that will be fading away too.

Do you see the possibility for it to be considered in other contexts independent of the industry?

I think fashion illustration is of great value for the industry. I hope it will be better recognised there. I’ve learned a lot working as a fashion illustrator. It has brought me so much to my own work.

What part do non-commercial projects such as this one play in your practice?

Fashion illustration is a great source as I work a lot with the body as subject. It’s a great image based catalogue for elements relevant to my practise.

Are you a spiritual person? Do you have a relationship with the cosmic?

No. I like the artist William Kentridge’s take on the power of the triangle between your brain, elbow and hand. I may say that I believe in the ancient ideas of the muse coming when you open her door. Whether you are convinced about a spiritual concept or philosophical theory it doesn't really matter unless it helps you to overcome your barriers. Hilma Af Klint broke barriers.

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Erin Petson

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How did you become involved with the project?

I decided to curate the exhibition with Lucy Macleod, after a lengthy lunch meet up in Kings Cross. We then invited the Artists to be involved.Often as artists we work alone, so we wanted to create a sense of community around the show.

Were you aware of Hilda af Klint’s work? Did you see the Serpentine exhibition?

Yes I did and it blew me away, this show is a very small creative homage to her wonderful ground breaking works.

What inspired the pieces you made for Inside Out?

My pieces are inspired by my esoteric studies, my artwork is very intuitive and ethereal. I looked at 1920's egyptomania fashion.

My line work and mark making has always been a meditation for me, it's very intuitive and emotive. Almost free thinking, it's very significant in my practice. Creativity, flows through us infinitely.

What role does the abstract have in fashion illustration?

As everyone has their own human brain, I believe all fashion illustration is abstract, it comes from within and has its own vibration which is only really clear to the creator, we all see it and take from it on another level. Often fashion illustration is simply an abstract version of the fashion look.

What kind of industry is the fashion industry to work with? Are you aware of particular changes and particular trends? Do you find this affects your approach to the work?

It's a fast one. I'm always “aware “of trends the shows they are always so inspiring, with their new take on textures, shape and colour, it affects your work.

How do you see fashion illustration changing? Do you see the possibility for it to be considered in other contexts independent of the industry?

Fashion illustration is evolving into its own art form, it can't be compared to fine art. However social media has transformed it into a tour de force, artists are commissioned by fashion houses for their own individual creative flair and approach to fashion drawing, rather than being in-house artists, churning out the latest looks. They are selling their works to collectors.

What part do non-commercial projects such as this one play in your practice?

Vital, your creativity has to be fed and cultivated in order to move forward, and be all that you can be.Vital, your creativity has to be fed and cultivated in order to move forward, and be all that you can be.

Are you a spiritual person? Do you have a relationship with the cosmic?

I would say yes, very much so. I practice a daily sadhana of meditation and yoga, I pay attention to seasonal solstices and planetary movements.

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Helen Bullock

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How did you become involved with the project?

Erin told me a while back that she hoped to put an exhibition together so yes! When she asked if I’d be involved I said Yes! Of course!.

Were you aware of Hilda af Klint’s work? Did you see the Serpentine exhibition?

Unfortunately NO to both of those questions! I’d attempted to go to the opening… but friends were late and the gates to the park were locked!! I’ve seen many images on Instagram and was told by many people that I would have loved it.

What inspired the pieces you made for Inside Out?

I drew two dream looks (Marni & Vesace)… and was very much swayed by the interconnected nature of the prints and the back drop to the show - a mass of shape always gets me!

Absolutely. They’re elements that are key to my practice. Line is a strong carrier of emotion.Absolutely. They’re elements that are key to my practice. Line is a strong carrier of emotion.

What role does the abstract have in fashion illustration?

I like that fashion illustration can divert the reality of a look… you then allow the viewer to change their initial response to what they see.

What kind of industry is the fashion industry to work with? Are you aware of particular changes and particular trends? Do you find this affects your approach to the work?

It’s a fickle industry... Jumping on the next new thing at high speed. I try not to adapt my work to suit particular trends or fads, mostly because I actually can’t! I want to be true to my own path – anything else ends up feeling forced.

How do you see fashion illustration changing? Do you see the possibility for it to be considered in other contexts independent of the industry?

I think fashion illustration is definitely being viewed as a more valued entity, and has as much of a place in an exhibition as it does in a magazine.

What part do non-commercial projects such as this one play in your practice?

They are always a welcome addition!

Are you a spiritual person? Do you have a relationship with the cosmic?

YES! When I can be… it’s a feeling that is very present when I’m surrounded by the countryside, or in the sea. It’s a light that gets buried by the city... I need regular doses of the above.

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Jason Brooks

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How did you become involved with the project?

I was invited by Erin Petson, one of the contributing fashion artists in the exhibition and I really like Magma’s aesthetic and style of presentation so it was an immediate decision to be involved.

Were you aware of Hilda af Klint’s work? Did you see the Serpentine exhibition?

I haven’t seen the Serpentine exhibition and wasn’t actually aware of her work before now. It’s always interesting to discover someone new.

What inspired the pieces you made for Inside Out?

I like the way Hilda af Klint uses areas of apparently flat colour that actually contain a lot of subtle modulation and brushstrokes. I also enjoy her colour palette, so those were the two things I wanted to allude to, as well as making images that looked fairly geometric and paired back.

Yes, drawing is the basis of everything I do. The art of Illustration is about conveying information through images, so drawing and mark making is the first step in translating what I have in my imagination into something that can be shared. In my commercial work I scan my original drawings on paper into a computer and work with them in Photoshop, so producing original pieces for an exhibition is a bit like rock climbing without a safety rope, It’s more exacting and spontaneous and closer to the things I do for my Instagram account in my spare time which tend to be a bit more personal and experimental.

What role does the abstract have in fashion illustration?

A huge role I think. I’m really drawn to graphic, minimal compositions and love simplicity. Last year I visited Japan and was really inspired by the elegance and balance of the Japanese design aesthetic. The same love of harmony and abstraction in Japan stretches back centuries and can still be seen everywhere today in shop fronts, graphic design, street signs, architecture and fashion.

When visual information is pared back and reduced to the point where it walks the line between being abstract and recognisable I think it can be really compelling and powerful. Great fashion photography, art and cinematography often has this slightly abstract quality and fashion Illustration is no different.

What kind of industry is the fashion industry to work with? Are you aware of particular changes and particular trends? Do you find this affects your approach to the work?

I see trends in illustration and find them interesting, but I never follow them. There seems no need to follow and it doesn’t really feel like really learning or improving so I prefer to stay on my own path and if anything I consciously avoid trends.

The fashion industry is obviously monopolised by photography and fashion Illustration is used as a rare and interesting diversion or surprising foil, so most of my collaborations are with brands in the beauty industry or brands who make different products with strong identities who want to introduce information through the style and graphic pleasure of illustration.

How do you see fashion illustration changing? Do you see the possibility for it to be considered in other contexts independent of the industry?

I think the border between fashion illustration and fine art can be crossed and that’s definitely an area I want to explore. It’s also a tremendously popular area of the arts that really speaks to young people developing their own identities, so I think the younger generations who are growing up with much more of these hand created fashion images around them will take that into their working lives and we will see it used in new and surprising ways over time.

What part do non-commercial projects such as this one play in your practice?

I believe life is about learning, so for me projects like this are an interesting opportunity to make artwork in non-digital media, see it in a different context, and learn from that.

Are you a spiritual person? Do you have a relationship with the cosmic?

Yes I’m a very spiritual person but in a way that is personal and based on extreme curiosity and open mindedness rather than subscribing to a particular prescribed ideology. In terms of ‘a relationship to the cosmic’ I’m very aware of the paradox and mystery of us all living our lives on a small and insignificant planet spinning in the vastness of space and despite the distraction and fascination of everyday life, its struggles and joys. I find thinking about this strange fact of life quite liberating.

Modern life is very complex and thinking ahead to later in the century is a good way of distilling what’s important to focus on now, particularly as a father of two children. My belief is that we are here to consciously observe, enjoy and learn about the world and universe around us and this separates us from the unconscious matter that makes rocks, gases and planets. One of my favourite quotes is by Goethe: ‘In us, nature opens her eyes and sees that she exists.’

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Petra Borner

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How did you become involved with the project?

I was invited to take part in the show by Lucy as we initially got in touch through Instagram - So that's very nice.

Were you aware of Hilda af Klint’s work? Did you see the Serpentine exhibition?

Yes, I know of her work work since I was a teenager, when my brother gave me a book of her work for my birthday, not sure quite when. It's beautiful and I've always treasured it since.

It was a beautiful experience seeing her work at the Serpentine Gallery. In fact it was one if the most amazing gallery visits of my life. I went with my father and we explored the paintings together in a very profound way and shared our thoughts.

I will treasure that moment forever.

What inspired the pieces you made for Inside Out?

I often explore dreamlike states in my work and both these pieces feel transient or absent minded. I suppose I’m placing the figures on in a statuette position, out of reach, elevated. But for me it’s more about the state of mind, feeling elated.

They sort of glace at us from the side, illusively, old fashioned, perhaps a bit koi. The eyes are significant to me for many reasons, so these often become a focal point.

Line and draughtsmanship are a central theme in this exhibition, Klint’s relationship with line and drawing has a practical and a spiritual significance, as a method of divining information from realms beyond the perceivable world – doline and drawing play a significant role in your practice? Line work is essential to my work.

I think in lines and blocks, but not sure. I love working from/ with a bold line when searching for a composition. I believe that a single line can communicate an array of moments and is loaded with energy. It drives itself (and you) straight into another universe if you let it.

What role does the abstract have in fashion illustration?

I studied fashion and worked within the fashion industry for many years, but I don’t really KNOW about fashion. I’ve never felt part of it. But to me it seems strange if the abstract wouldn’t apply much the same in fashion as within other creativity and art. We need abstraction to explore our minds, our thoughts, the unknown and to define reality too. Without abstraction life is too painful and harsh to the mind, would make us feel very judgemental.

What kind of industry is the fashion industry to work with?

Confusing at time, fast moving, exciting, creative, inspiring, layered. There are so many different angles to approach and collaborate within the fashion industry.

Are you aware of particular changes and particular trends?

No, not really.

Do you find this affects your approach to the work?

As above.

How do you see fashion illustration changing?

I really don’t know. Fashion has always been changing so I can’t see what it’s changing from.

Do you see the possibility for it to be considered in other contexts independent of the industry?

As art in it’s own right, yes.

What part do non-commercial projects such as this one play in your practice?

It’s all in one big pot and I love variety in my work. I approach all products the same I think.

Are you a spiritual person? Do you have a relationship with the cosmic?

Yes, I feel part of a wider COSMOS. I’ve always loved simple pleasures like drawing, dancing and singing. I feel that it transports me closer to the LARGE, the universe. I love the feeling of inclusion and connecting to other people as if we are one. I love the feeling of being understood and included and to do the same to others.

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Tracy Turnbull

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How did you become involved with the project?

I was approached by the lovely Lucy Macleod through the magic of social media.I was approached by the lovely Lucy Macleod through the magic of social media.

What inspired the pieces you made for Inside Out?

I was inspired by the contemporary feel of Klint’s work, her use of clean shape mixed with fine line. I also took inspiration from the exhibition title “Fashion Dreams on Paper”. My subjects are deep in thought, in a state of reverie.

I'd say they do. I've tried to create works that mix traditional methods with digital techniques: mixing the old with the new: pencil detail with linear line where the inside pattern forms the outside silhouette.

What kind of industry is the fashion industry to work with?

I worked as a clothing designer for a number of years before I fell into illustration. You have to be extremely dedicated and willing to work hard. It's a tough industry, but at the same time it's so rewarding, very exciting and constantly evolving.
I have to admit I prefer working in the illustration world, everyone is so friendly and supportive towards each other's work.

Are you aware of particular changes and particular trends?

Completely. I think it comes from being a designer. I always keep up to date with the latest fashion, illustration and graphic design trends. I've also been working with a well known trend prediction company lately which helps.

I'm a bit of a technology geek, always looking out for the latest plug-ins to help me experiment and develop my illustrative styles.

Do you find this affects your approach to the work?

As above.

How do you see fashion illustration changing?

Fashion illustration, like design, is forever evolving. I feel technology has played a huge part in this. Drawing digitally is becoming even more popular, especially now that you can just pick up your iPad and create.

My aim is to work with old and new techniques, mixing them to create new textures, transparencies and line. Social media has also had a huge effect. There are more fashion illustrators showing their work across multiple digital platforms, making it far more accessible..

Are you a spiritual person? Do you have a relationship with the cosmic?

No. I’m completely the opposite. I'd say I am totally down to earth!No. I’m completely the opposite. I'd say I am totally down to earth!.

Inside Out July 07 2016

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