Artist Naomi Okubo's bright and vibrant images are inspired by her experiences as a teenager growing up in Japan. As she explains it, "In my personal experiences, when I changed my own image, people changed their attitude toward me... I have been interested in appearances ever since". Okubo's paintings are beautifully saturated and visually appealing, featuring vivid florals, clear landscapes,…
Originating from the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, near the border with Ukraine, Motorama delivers a cold-wave sound that never freezes. After working anonymously for several years, Motorama seem to have crossed a new plateau with their third album Poverty released March 10th on the French label Talitres. Motorama was a well-kept secret until their second full-length album Calendar (2012). This band makes…
Ah, the plastic bag! Ubiquitous in modern life. A billboard for where you've shopped. Often stored under sinks, lining trash bins, or tangled in tree branches. The victim of bans in numerous progressive minded cities. But what if you're a fan? Surely there's something to appreciate about them: light, easy to carry, unassuming. With the plastic bag, it's what's inside…
They say that traveling the world can change your life. For Kristen Robison, it did just that. She had just decided not to go to law school when she took a trip that helped her decide her future. Before this trip, she had dabbled in wire-wrapped jewellery that she managed to sell. However, while in India, she learned how to solder jewellery and made her first ring.
For better or worse, beauty contests instill passion in Colombia. Jennifer Osborne, a Canadian photographer, decided to go to Cartagena in 2009 after leaving her job at Fabrica, a communication agency in Italy. Her trip to Cartagena was specifically planned around photographing pageants, and staying with a Colombian family to get an insiders look into the renowned Colombian pageant world. She took the time to share her thoughts on the worrisome psychological effects of beauty pageants, the Colombian beauty ideal, and how beauty pageants can (surprisingly) empower young women.
Jessica Harrison creates unique, delicate porcelain figurines covered in intricate and beautiful sailor tattoos. The Scotland-based artist offers an interesting perspective on the relationship between the body and the world. Her artist statement proposes a multi-directional and pervasive model of skin as a space in which body and world mingle. In this sculptural project, Harrison places the female body at…
All eyes were on Maria Prada as she arrived at the Palais dlena in Paris to show off her Miu Miu Spring 2015 collection. This Miu Miu girl is a rebel and she's audacious. With vintage accents and vibrant clashes of colours, the much-anticipated collection is elegant and daringly seductive.
Helicon Bats are a fraternal duo from Denmark. Originally from Silkeborg but now operating out of Copenhagen, the Davidsen brothers (Jeppe and Emil) released their first EP Spring after having performed as solo artists and in various other projects for years. Helicon Bats could be classified as something between neo-psychedelia and lo-fi. Their music is very much rooted in the psychedelic rock movement of the late 1960s, but not so derivative as to be pastiche; their sound is definitely their own. They are currently planning on recording more tracks with a full band in early 2015, possibly to be supported by a tour later in the year.
