Archive – SWARM MAG – Page 14

In a free-wheeling interview, Belarus-born mixed-media and 3D artist Volcia Porakh afforded us a little glimpse into her world, that took us all the way to summer-sun coloured childhood memories smelling of playfulness, wide-eyed discoveries, old Disney comics, and warm, melted plasticine.

"Has popular music been completely consumed by melancholy, anxiety and hopelessness?" Karel Veselý and Miloš Hroch ask in their 2020 book named after a song by The Cure, and today we delve into their compelling narrative.

Aposematism in animals – bright, patterned colouration – exists to warn off predators. But colour plays a vastly different, nearly opposite role in the collections by Slovak fashion designer Dominika Kozáková. Playful, crustacean- or bunny-like elements emerge in elaborate and soft headwear, which invites us to hug and snuggle. Interview with the designer follows below.

When famous animals quote Baudrillard, Borges and McLuhan to discuss their cultural representations, you know it is time to listen. This excerpt from Georgie Brinkman’s eclectic treatise showcases the author’s playful search for new ways of telling stories that involve our kin.

ZSIGMOND is a sustainable menswear brand from Hungary with a palpable connection to heritage, soil and traditional garment-making, which reflects also in the brand's sustainability efforts. The collections feature remade pieces that are recycled, reversible, sometimes crafted of century old collected folklore textiles or dyed with plant and fruit pigments. ZSIGMOND's founder Dora kindly let us into her world via an in-depth interview.

The thick hair hiding the personalities in Erik Sandberg’s paintings may not be opaque at all, the growth speaking and representing volumes of its own. This exploration of our oft-derided animal nature reminds us that even in a sterilized and epilated world, body hair and fur have an allure of their own.

In an insightful and poignant essay, art theorist Tereza Špinková takes a fascinating plunge into the perceived Anthropocentric border on which liminal animals, othereness, monsters, and non-human-centred art currently exist. Ethereal, primordial-like digital fuzziness provided by illustrator Juliana Höschlová accompanies the written piece.

The political edge of Sample’s recent fashion collection points at the industry’s ossified binary structures and practices. Last year’s release saw a turning point in the designers’ approach, turning this time to a radical representation of what sports clothes can mean in the anthropocene, and today’s article goes in-depth to their motivations.

Where others see demonic human-animal hybrids, illustrator Anna Dietzel sees creatures just doing their thing, vibing and simply existiing. Get to know her world of black backgrounds, slithering bodies, fangs and unsettling smiles in an interview for SWARM Mag.

The eclectic 3D compositions of Laurent Allard breathe movement into a visual genre traditionally depicting the static. By employing digital tools, the artist creates a sense of fluidity in the materials, bordering on the grotesque and naive.

Austrian fashion designer Maximilian Rittler is not one to shy away from boldness. From the candid editorials, we get a whiff of the backstage of the golden era of glam rock, hairspray, glitter, velur, and all. In the interview, he talks the magic of creation, the power of music, and Antwerp's bustling culture scene.

Anna Ruth’s love for nature shows in her every brushstroke. The Prague-based artist and musician conjures sensual and yet mysterious images, which never lose their touch with playfulness and a gentle joy. In today’s interview, you will learn about her relationship to the living world and its representation in her art.

When encountering the works of Austrian illustrator Lony Mathis, the first look reveals the squishy cuteness of inflatable toys and the second one some lurking, vaguely disturbing details. In an exclusive interview, she talks the destructive powers of perfectionism, favourite aesthetics, and dogs' unconditional love.

Floryan Varennes’ suspended assemblages of medical plastic, stainless steel and jewelry explore a history of violence as a means to strengthen the soul. Their abstract shapes and motions are accompanied by a curatorial text that swirls in tune with the creations, all for you to immerse yourself in today’s SWARM MAG installment.

The early morning summer sun filtering through the leaves, flickering under the eyelids and warmly kissing your skin; vast fields of cereal rippling in the caressing breeze. The work of fashion designer Emma Bruschi reflects the romanticized notion of places where humankind still tries to utilize, understand and revere natural resources without outwardly exploiting them.

Robert Roest’s paintings of candid dog snapshots play with the absurdity that new media sometimes deliver, emphasizing the uncanny, unexpected aspects of visual technologies. Without clinching to a particular style, the artist instead suits his tools to the tasks at hand, and in this insightful interview explains the backstory of the images of loving pets turned demonic.

Linus Stueben, a London-based German fashion designer whose work has been referred to as “disgustingly cute”, utilizes storytelling as the cornerstone of his playful, tongue-in-cheek wearable creations, each piece an anecdote, a tale. Are we all secretly governed by dogs?

Harry Appleyard’s engraving-like 3D images rise streaked with hued reflections to show an “unassumingly crucial underside to an otherwise unmarred look at the world.” In today’s article, Harry discusses his inspirations that led him to his creative process that resembles a digital archaeology.

“Maybe there is a little bit of a dog in me too.” Andrew Tseng, Amsterdam-based illustrator, visual artist and occasional clay sculptor, brings to life warped, spilling shapes in drawings that feature canines more often than not. Read about his love for four-legged companions, and his designing techniques and approaches in the exclusive interview below.

If the recent years have seen comfort clothing proliferate into street fashion, Venla Elonsalo’s work shows us what the trend should have been all along: "The collection researches emotional comfort of plush toys by combining them into garments. The aim was to design clothes that give comfort in the same way as a favorite garment or a plush toy.” Let’s get cozy!