Stella Leung

Stellar Lunar AKA Stella Leung makes pictures of cool girls in spooky situations. From her beginnings in DIY zine-making and merch for local hardcore bands, she's progressed to having sell out shows of her pen and ink single editions and painting large-scale walls and ramps for the likes of Vans and the Sydney Opera House. Now, thanks to a recent should tap by Prada to be one of an illustrious girl gang of illustrators, her work "Fatale" has been combined, collaged and printed across the forthcoming spring '18 ready-to-wear collection, and Leung may not be able to claim anonymity much longer.

Hong Kong born, Leung’s family moved to Sydney’s Northern Beaches in 1992 at just a year old. Now 26, she dwells in her Inner West home studio dreaming darkly and drawing, always in black, never in colour. Bringing together her obsessions with occultism, counter culture and 18th century Romanticism, her punk rock femme fatales live in a nocturnal world where witches, demons and teenage girls co-exist, often in harmony.

How did you first discover art and that you could draw?

Like any kid I just really enjoyed drawing and spent most of my time doing that more than anything else. There’s nothing else quite as satisfying as finishing a drawing that you’re proud of.

What was it that drew you to the idea of being an artist?

As I mentioned before, I just love to draw and wanted to do it for a living from a young age. I think a lot of people have dreams as children that don’t always seem realistic later on in life and end up giving up or are told that they should take more ‘realistic’ routes for stability and financial comfort. That idea of living and working under someone else’s terms never appealed to me. Being an artist means you are free to create the world you want to live in and have an outlet for selfexpression that not many other occupations allow.

What other artists do you love or admire?

Pre-Raphaelite painter John W. Waterhouse, Romanticist painter Francisco Goya, Patti Smith, and my friend Chris Yee. He works in ink and paper just like me but what I love the most about his work is how free he is. I’m quite rigid and planned in the way that I draw but he allows himself the freedom of not trying to make the figures look too perfect. There is a lot of movement and humour in his work as well.

Do you have signature elements in your work?

The images I draw are usually set in a nocturnal landscape. Its very rarely daytime. I love the mystery and eeriness of the night.

How do you come up with the strong imagery you are renowned for?

I think in order to create a memorable image it needs to be one simple idea made up of many small details. It should grab someone’s attention and it should be easy for them to interpret what it’s about. I don’t like using tons of metaphors or symbolism in my work for this reason. While I don’t want the viewer to take my work at face value, I think it’s important not to overanalyse art. Drawing is a form of therapy for me too, as I’m not good with words, if I spent all this time coming up with a complicated idea to make some sort of controversial statement, it wouldn’t feel genuine to me. What I draw often is a mix of subconscious memories either from my teen years, a film I saw or any time in my life where I’ve felt something significant, whether it was feeling angry, powerful, uncomfortable or just content.

How did your image end up as part of a Prada collection?

They emailed me. It came as a complete surprise.

And what has that meant for you personally and for your career?

I never expected to be part of Prada history. It’s really weird how things have turned out for me career-wise because I’ve never really been into fashion. But I think what’s come from this collaboration has been really positive.

Your next art show is at Books Kinokuniya in Sydney in January ’18 – what can you share with us about it?

My show will be called ‘This Place Called Death’. It is a collection of ink paintings depicting a small town in the midst of human extinction. People come to terms with their final days, sharing their space with creatures once thought to only exist in fiction. This body of work explores the feeling of existing in a world you don’t feel like you belong in and whether you choose to accept your circumstances or challenge them in order to make the world something you want to be a part of. It sounds a bit morbid but my intention with this show is to be as honest as possible and in that respect, I hope that it empowers others in some way through the subtle humour scattered throughout each piece.

And you’re also making music now, playing bass in your band Potion. How did the band come about?

I’ve wanted to play in a band since I was really young but I didn’t really commit to learning to play an instrument or trying to make that dream a reality until I met Lee, my boyfriend, who is the main songwriter in Potion. I introduced him to a lot of doom metal when we met six years ago and we decided it would be really cool to collaborate on something creative together. We met our drummer Chris last year and we get along really well and love all the same types of music, so it just worked out perfectly.

What music do you like?

Doom, 90’s metal and grunge. My favourite bands are L7, Melvins and Deftones.

How does making music differ from making your art?

It’s very different in the sense that I can collaborate with other people to create something, where as drawing and painting is a very solitary act. Being in a band requires a lot of moving and travelling around which I never really need to do as an artist working from my home studio. It can sometimes be daunting for me because I spent a lot of time by myself when I’m drawing. A lot of my friends have been making music and playing in bands since they were in high school and I’m really new to it all so there’s a lot of surprises but I generally really love it.

What do you like about being in a band?

I actually love the social side of it, meeting people and talking to them after the shows. Generally performing is something very new and unfamiliar to me, I’ve always hating public speaking or performing in front of crowds so I managed to kind of overcome that fear from being in a band.

How do you feel when you perform?

A little nervous but mostly excited to play.

Lastly, what are your goals for the future? Where do you see yourself going with the work?

I’d like to go into animation with my work. I’d like to explore that as much as I possibly can.

Words CHRIS LORIMER

Photography RAY RANOA