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THE NEW HYPE
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#PhilippinesOnTop!
JOSEI CUIZON Editor - in - Chief
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M I G U E L A L O M A JA N WILMARK JOLINDON VA K S E E N R X A N DY C A P I N P I N RON BEN REBEKA ELIZEGI N I N A V I L L A N U E VA N ATA S H A K I L L E E N H A Z E L L AO DA R I A A M A R A N T H DA N I E L M A R Q U E Z ARAI MOLERI A L E X A N D E R D L U Z A LT M A S H A Z A B I YA K O
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Editor-in-Chief // Founder
JOSEI CUIZON Creative Director // Founder
M AT T P I N G K I A N Art-Direction // Web
NIELS GERSON LOHMAN / BKDSW
How about you send us your works?
S U B M I T @ B L N C - M A G. C O M
www.blnc-mag.com
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NEW POLLU TION N ATA S H A K I L L E E N Australia
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Natasha Killeen 25 Sydney, Australia Currently working full time as a fashion and portrait photographer. Self taught 2017 Eclectic, dangerous & powerful with a touch of nostalgia. AUSTRALIA Australia has a very unique aesthetic, its a flavourful mix of beach culture & wearability with a serious nod to current and past high fashion and couture. The fashion scene, is small but passionate, it cultivates and develops some amazing talent in its students and exports them to overseas fashion capitals. GET INSPIRED My inspiration usually comes from people, anyone really, particularly people passing on the street. I also find great inspiration in locations, i love location scouting and basing entire shoots around magical spots i have found. JAMES JEAN + RELEVANCE Oh this is a tricky one, I am really inspired by the cross over of art and fashion that is particularly prominent in recent collections. James Jean been one well known artist that dabbles both in fine art and high fashion, collaborating with Prada on several collections. His work is very inspiring and gives way for a new breed of creative. EARLY START I have always been interested in the arts, mainly painting & illustration, despite this I ended up perusing a career science and finished a degree in Marine Science. Throughout that time i was randomly shooting here and there, after i graduated i felt that photography was something i would love to pursue, from there i kind of just went for it and shot every chance i had. THE SHOOT + THE STYLIST This shoot was a collaboration between myself and the amazing stylist, I was visiting interstate and wanted to do some editorials while I was in town. The shoot was inspired predominately by the amazing designs she pulled, the colours were contrasted with cities iconic museum and gardens. NEXT TRAVEL, i am hoping to shoot overseas soon.
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Designers Top- Dannielle Posadowski Pant- Sarah Hope Schofield
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ALL: Sarah Hope Schofield
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ALL: Sarah Hope Schofield
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ALL: Sarah Hope Schofield
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LIONEL LIM Singapore
Designers Top: Violeta Karac Pant: Elizabeth Hutchinson
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Photographer: Natasha Killeen Stylist: Kristina Wong Model: Rosie of Pride models HMUA: Rob Povey
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B U R N T S I E N A
E M M A N DA D O R Ta c l o b a n
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I am Emmanuel Gariando Dador but my friends call me Emman/Mawi. I am an Aeronautical student. I always dreamed of becoming a pilot and travel the world. Recently i joined Ginoong Leyte 2017 and got the first runner up title. BURNT SIENNA Imagine wearing triple coat under the scorching heat of the sun! That was not easy haha but I enjoyed it so much. Its been quite a while since I did my last shoot but my best (Juan Carlos Miguel/ Migs) photographer gave me so much energy and positive vibes in order for me to give and get the perfect shot. PAGEANTS I never imagined myself myself joining pageants. The thing is I hate swimwears exposing myself to public. But i get to realized that I have to expand my horizons and let myself in, whatever it takes. It really did push me harder to become better. I met a lot of new friends (my co candidates) I actually miss them. I constantly remind myself that I should always strive in whatever path ill take. This would not be possible without the Help of our Almighty God.
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I constantly remind myself that I should always strive in whatever path ill take.
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Photographed and Styling by : Miguel Alomajan Model: Emman Dador of Wafer Models Location: Leyte Capitol, Tacloban
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Anna Christina
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LA LLORONA
REBEKA ELIZEGI Madrid
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Gloria
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We n d y
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Montse
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INTERESTING ARTISTS OF TODAY I don’t know who is more relevant in general for the public or society ... An artist that interests me a lot is JR, and in the world of fashion, Irina Dzhus, with her singular style. And all the small designers and artists who work far from the big trends, creating their own style and faithful to their identity.
Rebeka Elizegi (Artistic name: RBKcollage), 49 years old, I was born in Donosti (Basque Country – Spain). Nowadays I’m located in Madrid, but really I’m living and working between Madrid and Barcelona. On the one hand I see it very well, because nowadays there are many young artists with very interesting proposals and there are also many platforms (especially online) to publicize and share art. But on the other hand, it’s difficult to live in art, since many opportunities for publication or work proposals are without fee, and therefore, many artists stop creating because they can’t live of their work.
I studied graphic design in the Massana School, in Barcelona. I have worked for 20 years in the world of graphic design, publishing and illustration, but for some years ago, I’m dedicating more and more time to collage, to my personal expression and my artistic work. I have dedicated many years to working with this technique. I always work manually: I like the scissors, glue, and the exploration of various materials. At the moment I’m working in small, medium and large format, but always applying handmade collage techniques. The female figure is largely the central focus of my work. I also work on the idea of generic diversity, always with surrealistic language, and allowing total freedom of interpretation to the observer.
MADRID ART The purely artistic scene is stronger in Madrid, there are more artistic opportunities, more galleries and art fairs, and yet the scene around the design is more advanced in Barcelona. That is why I believe that for an artist it is very important not to be alone in a city or a country, but to take the better and learn from different places. In the past I have lived temporarily in Berlin and elsewhere, and it has always been very interesting for my work. For me would be ideal to change city and country more often, but this is not easy, work and life style doesn’t always allow it ...
EARLY STAGE I think that my interest about collage, drawing, graphic design, began at the moment I was born. When I was a child, my most fun game was to draw, cut-and-paste and create my own paper and cardboard toys. Along all my live I do the same.
DIFFERENT. ALTERNATIVE. QUEER. I find inspiration in life, in the street, in the people I see and know. The female figure is largely the central focus of my work. I also work about the question of the generic diversity. Especially I’m interested in people who lead alternative lives and who go beyond the established norm; I am interested in what is “different”, “alternative”, “queer” ...
STYLE “I prefer to be described by others, I express myself better with images ...” - Rebeka Elizegi
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Keeping the passion and desire to learn. Socrates already said “The only thing I know is that I know nothing”, this is my way. 35 blnc-mag.com
Fernanda
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Anna Paulina
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LA LLORONA La Llorona is a very special project that I did after my trip to Mexico. In the summer of 2015 I visited in Mexico City my friend Ismael Rosales, a photographer who lives in this city for some years ago. From this trip was born the collaboration between us. I wanted to make a series about Mexican women; like a visitor I wanted shape the feelings that this country of extreme contrasts produced in me about these women. I requested Ismael to photographed 10 Mexican women, and over these portraits, I did the collages. The series is inspired in the Mexican legend of La Llorona. Like all my work, this series has been exclusively handmade, without digital intervention or redimensioning, using the classic collage technique, cuting and pasting graphic material extracted from printed media of different times and places. The original pieces have a measurement of approximately 50x70 cm. My last exhibition was in the gallery “La Isla”, in Madrid, and some pieces of this series still are available on sale in the gallery. ACHIEVEMENT All the artistic projects and exhibitions are important for me. But what I most value, is to be able to dedicate myself professionally and work day by day in this; is the more important for me. GOAL To provoke a personal and critical look at the observer of my work. That’s why I like to work in a surreal language and allow total freedom of interpretation for the observer. I like people to think for themselves, to have their own opinion about what they observe.
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Mehida
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Alex Sol
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Gabby
www.rbkcollage.com
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EX PO SU RE M A S H A Z A B I YA K O Russia
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START I began to take interest in photography as a young man. It all started with an interest in modeling, I then worked in a local agency. I grew up in this environment, the interest grew, the taste developed. I gradually moved on the other side of the lens - it seemed to me, I see a little wider than what the photographers around me are trying to capture. In 18 years I bought myself the cheapest camera, which, by the way, I use until now. It seems to me that the technique is not as important as it is attached to it. It seems to me, it is possible to photograph sharply on the sneakers, the main thing is to apply imagination and have a vision.
Masha Zabiiako. 21 years old. I’m living in Russia, Saint Petersburg. Photography is my own passion 2017 RUSSIA We are trying to imitate European and American cultures, which is sad, because Russia has an insane potential for creativity, I feel that it has some unique inimitable feature: sad, naive, vulnerable, different from the other world. So far, few Russian artists have learned to see it and use it correctly. Someday this potential will unfold and it will be a completely different era, I see and feel it. While we simply exist in the reality of a globalizing world, this is not bad, it’s just a given.
STYLE Weird, ironic, sarcastic, honest
“Where do you look for fashion inspirations?”
LERA I was very lucky with the team. Lera is my muse. She is the same person who begins to act even before I say what needs to be done, so shooting with her is my favorite.
That’s funny: once upon a time I took a part on one local competition. In judgement was a man – photographer, who asked me the same question. It was 3 years ago, on that time my answer sounded like “I making it by my own. I don’t need somebody to be inspired”. He kicked me out of the competition. Passed a couple of years and he saw my photos on the Internet. He liked them so much that he tells me about his photos in photography (he teaches photographs) about me and puts me as an example as a photographer.
HANDS-ON To tell something concrete, in my opinion - boring. But for me the most valuable fact is that I organize the shooting myself from and to. This is, sometimes, really difficult, but otherwise complicated, because I rarely find my like-minded people who understand me from a halfword.
This story is like a preface to the idea that for inspiration, sometimes it is enough to open our eyes wider and see the irony, hysteria, absurdity of the surrounding reality. And then - just capture it.
FUTURE I stay in search of like-minded people. I want to organize more global projects, which, at the moment, need support. That’s all I can say now
FASHION IS TIRED Fashion is spherical, multifaceted and interconnected. You can go out in the house with slippers, curlers and a sweatshirt from second-hand, and the next day it’s the most recent trend. People quickly grasp the new, they are open to everything, as I said - the fashion is tired, we seem to have seen everything and are ready for anything. Designers create completely wild, sometimes, things, but it’s cool, it catches, excites. It’s something for which we all in this business - to stir people’s minds, to break and admire.
GOAL I deserve to be independent, to have my audience, which will understand my vision comprehensively. I dream to work with holistic and truly understanding people who really understand how vast and versatile fashion and art are. I think only in such conditions I will feel that I have achieved something as a photographer.
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Everything happens for a reason
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CHRONICal
DA N I E L M Ă R Q U E Z Guadalajara
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2017 Risky and we´ve touched the future GUADALAJARA Growing up, with a lot of style, and it´s going heavy in the middle INSPIRATION Editorials and fashion campaigns, music maybe STYLE love movement, colourful, and I think can tell stories CHRONICAL movement, masculinity, body, lines, cuts, and no gravity I met an excellent and lovely team and i discover that I love shot when people is in real action ACHIEVEMENT Can see the world by my own perspective and then tell you what I saw NEXT Travel GOAL I don´t know, i have a lot of thinks to do and i will try to get far, to be the most popular where can be, teach people about photo and about my experiences, etc.
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My self, my pass and my future
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Photo: Dann Marquez Mua: Angeel Corona Styling: e.salim Model: Fernando Fonseca Wardrobe: Sharky LeFunk 69 blnc-mag.com
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the girl guide
H A Z E L L AO Cebu
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My name is Hazel Alejandra Lao, I am an Advertising Arts student from the University of San Carlos and I am based here in Cebu. I grew up in Camiguin, a small island in Northern Mindanao where I did not even know about the existence of Adobe programs up until I entered college. I took up my course without any of the slightest idea of what I was getting into except that I know I can draw. I could say that my ‘real’ training as an artist began when I took up Advertising, because since then I have learned many ways of expressing my ideas through visual communication. My groupmates and I won Lantawan’s cover design contest last year and that has been my greatest achievement in college, so far.
RELEVANCE AND RIHANNA Fashion-wise, it would be Rihanna. Like they said, a garment is ugly until Rihanna decides it isn’t. She can make any look work for her and her style is always unpredictable and keeps everyone on their toes. She never stays on the safe side and always takes bold fashion risks, that’s why people look forward to what she does next.
INFLUENCE My uncle, Jorge Lao, is a painter and my grandmother’s home was filled with his works. At a young age, I would look at his paintings and thought to myself that I wanted to be an artist, I wanted to create what he does. My way to spend my past-time since I was a child was by drawing and sketching, and I got to learn more techniques and really delve into it when I took up my course.
ART Revolutionary. Art has always been subjective, but with how almost anything is shared and posted online now, more people are appreciative and can see that any expression of creativity and passion is an artform. Drag is art. Makeup is art. A well-curated Instagram account is art. INSPIRATION
STYLE
Today, you can look for inspiration anywhere online. I usually go to Pinterest or check an artist’s account whenever I need to feel inspired, though I keep myself in check to only do it at a minimum so that it’s not entirely copied or based off someone’s style. Recently, however, I have been obsessing over Rupaul’s Drag Race and seeing how the drag queens from the show are very conceptual and creative has inspired my craft as well.
I can’t define my style specifically as I am still experimenting, and continuously evolving. However, one common thing about all my works, whatever style it maybe, is that it always has that feminine touch to it, whether it be on the technique, the light strokes or the choice of colors.
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THE GIRL GUIDE It started off as a joke by my friends to do a project about a sex book, but something in my mind clicked that I could turn this into a genuine idea by making it an advocacy for safe sex. It is rarely talked about despite its immediate importance and I took it as a chance to give light to the matter. The common misconception about sex education is that people associate it with malicious connotations. They think that it encourages adolescents to have sex, when in the truth is that it teaches us how to make safe and healthy choices for our own reproductive health. I scrolled through countless pastel goth Tumblr accounts for two months so I could really tap into the feel of that aesthetic. I have many illustrations that did not make the cut as I was constantly revising every detail so that everything turns out cohesive. This was also the first project where everything was mostly done on Photoshop, which I rarely use. I am a self-confessed Illustrator girl. One particular memory that comes to mind was during the first time I went to have it printed. The pages turned out wrong. The person who printed it cropped and edited some details which ruined the layout. I broke down then and there at the printing shop. It has become a fond memory now when I think about it. TROPHY I don’t want to make this predictable but so far, my greatest achievement was making The Girl Guide. The way it was warmly received was a huge deal for me. It was not only for the praise I got but for the message I was trying to get across, the way people were open-minded and accepting towards my advocacy makes me think of it as a great achievement and it gives me a lot of hope for the future. GOAL I want to say that my goal is to be an Art Director but that sounds conclusive and restricted. As clichÊ as it is, all I want is to be able to live up and unlock my full potential, to be the best that I could be and then I’ll let the chips fall where they may.
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ever wing
R X A N DY C A P I N P I N Manila
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Rxandy Capinpin, San Juan, Manila, teaches fashion photography at Institute of Creative Entrepreneurship. 2017 Romantic plus athleisure. PHILIPPINE FASHION Boring and comfort. INSPIRATION Asian pop culture. 2017 MOST SIGNIFICANT ARTISTS Hip hop artists. START High school, I played dress up with friends, we get our portrait taken at Great Image, got interested, bought my camera. STYLE Conceptual, Kitsch, Campy. “Stuck with celebrity portraits and missed doing play shoots.” ACHIEVEMENT 10 years in the fashion business is an achievement. NEXT Planning my exhibit. GOAL International
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Dont eff it up!
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Photography: Rxandy Capinpin Styling: Edrick Paz
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AUTO SUGGESTION ARAI MOLERI Urug uay
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I am Arai Moleri, 29 years old based in Montevideo, Uruguay. I am self-taught in photography, although I studied related things, I am an industrial designer and studied three years of fine arts. I also did retouching courses for fashion and beauty. My interest began when I was a little girl, at 6 years I had my first Kodak camera, then at 18 I started to experiment with a zenit analog also and at 20 I started doing my first works in fashion, I was doing faculty of industrial design and I shared some subjects with students of fashion, so I began to take pictures for of those students, then at 23 I was hired as cameraman for the first stop motion film that was made in Uruguay, that was my great school of photography , and i was one year working on that film, at the same time I continued doing fashion jobs. “ I am a huge mixture of many areas in which I have interests.” I believe that nowadays according to my vision it becomes increasingly important the manifestation of a unique personality, beyond the tendencies. I value the people who through the fashion manage to express their personality differing from the rest, also having criteria to the hour - to choose to consume, respecting our environment, retrying, reusing, consuming sustainable or recycled fashion. FASHION IN URUGUAY The fashion scene in Uruguay has changed a lot in recent years, and is growing in great strides. It is not easy for a tiny country in Latin America with only 3 million of habitants to draw attention in the world, often lacking resources, money, materials. But I think that has also played in favor, and adversities have generated fighters, creative and conscious designers of what they do. There is a lot of talent here. In addition to the local designers and brands have grown events in relation to fashion, interesting things
are happening, for example events such as mondesign, slow fashion entrepreneurs, local brands that design and produce in Uruguay, such as Pastiche, Telma, Majo Rey , Srta. Peel, Vestale, Hómini, Nina Hauzer, Sarah Kosta, Black and Liberty, Sabrina Tach, Savia, Mutma, Mares, among others, a good place to find out what happens in Uruguayan fashion is blogcouture.com SEEK I usually follow the work of fashion photographers more than I do in specific fashion brands, the main places where I look at photographs are Pinterest and Instagram, I am also subscribed to some pages and brands that interest me, several from Uruguay, But also others such as Givenchy, Gucci, Kenzo, Clo, also magazines such as schon, nylon, vogue, flur... STYLE My style is varied, and changes from time to time - like me, it is difficult to describe a single style because it depends on what we seek to achieve with the client, besides that, I do not dedicate myself to fashion photography, I also do architecture that I like so much, food photography, jewelry, object design, etc. In my personal work lately it could be described as a oniric style, where I seek to generate appearances of places and elements known but with changes that make it can not be completely real, seeking a state of total consciousness, dream. I am also working on an artistic project with the Collective Licuado (www.colectivolicuado.com), they paint figurative murals around the world, and I make the previous photos on which they are based to paint the murals, this may be one of the projects that has most motivated me lately.
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AUTOSUGGESTION “A process of suggestion in which the person unconsciously supplies or consciously attempts to supply the means of influencing his own behavior or beliefs” For the photography I was inspired by the dance, the postures, the forms of the body.
GOAL I do not have a final objective, for the time being I am mainly interested in working with creative, authentic, interesting and innovative people, perhaps my objective is to be able to keep on meeting more people of this type. Over time I have learned that my main objective has to be that way - enjoy it, build it, learn from it and let it surprise me. Some years before when I put final goals, I did not enjoy the road very much and after achieving the goal I felt desactivated in relation to the subject, so I’ve been working on enjoying the way, I think it’s been a good change in my life. “Human relations, good taste, nature, art, design, architecture, love, music, discover places, discover myself, All forms of life, those we can see and those we don`t see, enjoy the little and fantastic things of life..”
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MAJO REY Photography: AraĂ Moleri Hair: Leo Cromo MUA: Daiana Etchamendi para Cromo Model: Lia Hannay Dietrich
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metro dreams
VA K S E E N
Los Angeles
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ART
STYLE
art is anything created that makes people feel somesort of emotion.
I’ve developed a distinct collageinfluenced painting style (Vanity Pop) that fuses elements of cubism, photorealism, fashion design and pop surrealism into vibrant, alluring portraits. While most viewers assume they’re viewing collage or mixed media art, each creation is in fact meticulously hand painted directly on canvas.
L.A SCENE Oversaturated & very diverse. VERY lol. I honestly feel like EVERYONE creates “art” these days lol and no matter what type of art you’re into, there’s going to be a local scene for it. I love the LA scene for that very reason. Obviously the scenes are bigger and more diverse in larger cities like LA, but art is big in pop culture so even the smaller cities thrive. INSPIRATION I get all of my inspiration from life, women, fashion, beauty and popular culture. I’ve always been fascinated by people, the things we do and how we’re influenced to do them. BEGINNINGS Everything you see from me is actually a painting, as opposed to collage. Most people think it’s a collage lol. I’ve been an artist since birth but I started my collage-styled paintings back in 2012. It sort of just happened organically, as I was at a point in my career where I wanted to find a specific style I could birth and own. After the reception of the first painting, I knew I had something special. From there I focused my full attention on developing my style and showing in as many galleries as possible.
METRO DREAMS I aim for my art to celebrate diversity and the acute imperfections and endless perfections that exist within every woman. Vanity Pop is a celebration of women, beauty, fashion, duality, insecurity and self preservation. With that foundation, My abstract portraits are a visual dialogue about our society’s idolization of beauty, the cosmetic enhancements endured to meet the status quo and the impact this has on popular culture. I think the viewer’s experience is the most interesting aspect of my work. 95% of the time people just assume they’re viewing a collage. It’s not until you really get up close for examination or see a large crowd of people around my work that you actually realize everything is fully hand-painted. Even then, people still think my work is mixed media of some sort lol. So you have these beautiful portraits that you see and appreciate online or from a distance, but up close, in person they’re so much bolder and alluring. My work and art in general is truly meant to be experienced and appreciated in person.
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ACHIEVEMENT
VANITY POP
They’re all amazing to me so it’s hard to say one achievement has changed my career. Every single opportunity is a blessing and collectively they help me grow my brand as an artist. I can say I’m currently in the biggest feature show of my career at La Luz De Jesus Gallery. They’re one of the most important galleries in LA and are known for birthing the lowbrow & pop surrealism movements; so it’s a huge deal! The show just opened July 7th so I’m beyond excited about that achievement!
I aim for my art to celebrate diversity and the acute imperfections and endless perfections that exist within every woman. Vanity Pop is a celebration of women, beauty, fashion, duality, insecurity and self preservation. With that foundation, My abstract portraits are a visual dialogue about our society’s idolization of beauty, the cosmetic enhancements endured to meet the status quo and the impact this has on popular culture. I think the viewer’s experience is the most interesting aspect of my work. 95% of the time people just assume they’re viewing a collage. It’s not until you really get up close for examination or see a large crowd of people around my work that you actually realize everything is fully hand-painted. Even then, people still think my work is mixed media of some sort lol. So you have these beautiful portraits that you see and appreciate online or from a distance, but up close, in person they’re so much bolder and alluring. My work and art in general is truly meant to be experienced and appreciated in person.
NEXT Any exciting plans in the future? My current feature show just opened and is on display through July 30th. I have 3 big shows (including one with Vans) coming up in August and have a few amazing secret projects in the works. I’m also really excited about EXO’s (K-Pop act) new album dropping soon. I’m a music producer as well as a visual artist and my company is doing a lot of incredible things in Asia! The best way to stay in the loop with my future is by following me on social media. I’m @ Vakseen everywhere!
ACHIEVEMENT They’re all amazing to me so it’s hard to say one achievement has changed my career. Every single opportunity is a blessing and collectively they help me grow my brand as an artist. I can say I’m currently in the biggest feature show of my career at La Luz De Jesus Gallery. They’re one of the most important galleries in LA and are known for birthing the lowbrow & pop surrealism movements; so it’s a huge deal! The show just opened July 7th so I’m beyond excited about that achievement!
GOAL I want to grace as many homes/walls as possible. I want to see my work in museums. I want the love and support from the people, as well as the respect of the “art world”. As for my actual art, I only hope to be fortunate enough to produce work that consistently ignites discussion, captivates the senses and most importantly, questions the importance we place on outer appearances.
NEXT
STYLE
Any exciting plans in the future? My current feature show just opened and is on display through July 30th. I have 3 big shows (including one with Vans) coming up in August and have a few amazing secret projects in the works. I’m also really excited about EXO’s (K-Pop act) new album dropping soon. I’m a music producer as well as a visual artist and my company is doing a lot of incredible things in Asia! The best way to stay in the loop with my future is by following me on social media. I’m @Vakseen everywhere!
I’ve developed a distinct collageinfluenced painting style (Vanity Pop) that fuses elements of cubism, photorealism, fashion design and pop surrealism into vibrant, alluring portraits. While most viewers assume they’re viewing collage or mixed media art, each creation is in fact meticulously hand painted directly on canvas.
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I K N O W I K N E W
D A R I A A M A R AT H Saint Petersburg
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Daria Amaranth (my creative alias). I live in Saint Petersburg, mostly I am self-taught but 2 years ago I took some photography classes. At the moment I haven’t get any photography awards.
FUTURE I would like to create more complex works, to study the world of mysteries, feelings and emotions in a more complicated way and reflect it in my photography
My interest in photography in photography started about 4 years ago, but I got into photography with a sense that I really needed it in 2015. First I took some street and documentary photographs but then I understood that staged photography is the closest one to me, I like to create a unique story with a lot of feelings in it.
GOAL
Insects are often present in my works and they are also part of this world - sometimes in a symbolic and metaphorical way. They help me to plunge into this imaginary world where all my stories take place. HUMBLED My participation in the portfolio review during PhotoVogue Festival which was held in Milan last year, it was amazing experience.
The most important thing is to be true to my vision and try to implement it in every work I create. And it would be great to see my works in a big gallery or museum one day. SEEK I follow my intuition, I also find a lot of inspirtion in cinematography, painting, literature, and a lot from my imagination, so mostly it’s a combination of everything that reflects my inner reality. STYLE I think visually my style is a mixture of sensual and dramatic fine art and fashion elements, some vintage hints and something bizarre and extravagaint in a way. I like to create everything that is far from objective reality but at the same time something very close to a heart.
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Stay true to yourself.
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free style!
N I N A V I L L A N U E VA Manila
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Nina Eiisa Villanueva | Age: 25 | Based in Manila, Ph | Graduated from Enderun Colleges in 2014 with a degree in Entrepreneurship | Studied photography in 2016 at Instituto Marangoni in Milan & Paris | Have been pubished in publications such as Style Weekend and Elegant Magazine.
FREESTYLE The inspiration behind this shoot is freedom in style in street wear. I’ve been wanting to do something that veers away from the norm so I decided to do a shoot with a remix of high end street wear instead of the usual urban/hip hop influences. I wanted to show street fashion is liberating as it can be used to freely express not only one’s style but also personality and even mood.
2017 FASHION isn’t just about trends and fads but more of an expression of personal style and individuality as well as our response to our surrounding environment.
CHANGE IN PERSPECTIVE
FILIPINO STYLE
I wanted the shoot to feel free so I experimented with angles and backgrounds that you wouldn’t really use if this were a different type of shoot. I thought the change in perspective would add a nice touch to the concept and styling.
Filipinos are very creative in expressing their personality through style and fashion. Here in the Philippines, we only have two seasons (summer and monsoon season) and because beaches are so accessible, we embrace flip flops, swimsuits, shorts and all things summer fashion.
TROPHY I would say one of my great achievements, as a photographer as well as an entrepreneur would be opening my studio in Makati though I would say the “greatest” achievement yet still has to come.
When it comes to rainy days, a little layering and light sweaters and jackets looks fashionable yet provides the right amount of coverage fro the tropical winds and rain. I think the fashion scene here in the Philippines is also largely influenced by street and urban style especially in the city.
NO PLANS EXCEPT: Continue serving my clients ensuring that they get the best service and treatment I can offer. Shooting and learning from my experiences. Continuing to grow as an artist and improve my skills and knowledge in the craft. Teaching and imparting knowledge to the other young and aspiring artists.
UNDERSTATED ELEGANCE When it comes to shooting fashion, my style embraces simplicity and understated elegance. In shooting portraits, I believe that each person is fearfully and wonderfully made so I aim to bring out the best in my subjects and make them feel and look their best.
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Keep God first. Making God a priority in my life hasn’t only given me faith to hope for better things but also strength to overcome the challenges and obstacles that come my way. He keeps me grounded and focused.
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Shot by Nina Eilisa Villanueva of ENVY Creatives @itsninaeilisa Makeup by Xeng Zulueta Hair by Dorothy Mamalio Styling by Matt Panes Assisted by Von Villalon
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personne
A L E X A N D E R D L U Z A LT Mexico
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Creative crisis (as always, in good times of progress). Fashion has created design categories and designers, and within these, they all do the same. There is no risk and therefore there is no proposal. There is a stagnation that reveals the comfort by earnings.
year, because my interests changed but when I went back it was not only to take photos, but to create photographs; I found a big difference. I like photography as photography, not as a medium. I am interested in light, material and forms, also in its use as a file and documents.
Describe the fashion scene in your country?
This story will be the most peculiar of blnc magazine, because the process was very different. I’ve made little fashion photography and I’m interested in it. But using designers clothes, having a customer as a brand or a campaign, the proposal degrades. This is very noticeable. So I steal. I use the couché paper magazines and experiment on them with my interests and what is the responsibility of the public, the fashion consumption using the bodies as things in the models, sexism and racism, when they create models to follow, prototypes of life, molds, or when they sell symbolic value in the form of decorated fabrics. In this is based this series, which approaches more to images or photographs intervened; appropriation of the apparence.
There are more and more interested in the scene in Mexico. I bet on the recently graduated designers or those who just create a brand, because they are the least united to the market and therefore their interests, ideas and collections are richer in content and proposal, Conceptual and aesthetic. Something I celebrate is the creation of groups and young people who seek to redefine the contents, clothing for local consumption, not only European molds that in no way adapt to the corporality of here, as well as models that change the aesthetics of what called “Exotic” when it has always been our norm; our corporality and skin tones. INSPIRATIONS
Anything interesting or memorable about the shoot and did you experiment or had a new approach on this particular shoot?
Instagram, Tumblr, fashion magazines, paint, of course in visual arts, theatre, performance, touching everything and at clothes stores
I used the cut on the paper and take advantage of the double impression in the sheet, creating games of opacity and transparency with the light, reinforcing the idea of superposition of people.
Alexander Dluzalt. 22 years old. I live in Mexico City. I studied at Facultad de Artes y Diseño, I´ve accomplished eight solo exhibitions and participated in nineteen group exhibitions, among them ETHOS in “Expo Bancomer Santa Fe”, PRESIÓN in “La Grieta”, La Plata, Argentinta, and Photo Press Nikon 2016. I am co-founder and co-director of Comunidad Sí. I am part of Presencias Liminales, a theater company, as an actor.
NEXT In October we will present ANY|BODY|ONE in Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Mx, a gateway-video-installation-performance; transformation of signs and creation of symbols, a transdisciplinary event based on the collaboration of different areas and disciplines. I work it and direct it with Comunidad Sí, a couple of friends an
Tell us how did you get into photography. When did your interest in photography start? When I was 8 I bought an analog camera. A mess, veiled the movie, but I loved the experience. After that I had a cell phone with camera and it used to shoot everything. I decided to study photography and I started in the Visual Arts career. I did not do the photography until the third
GOAL
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Propose practical solutions to the questioned and contradictory that is problematic and therefore, interesting.h
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TIE THE KNOT
WILMARK JOLINDON Manila
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Wilmark Jolindon is a commercial and fashion photographer based in Manila. He took up advertising arts at the University of Santo Tomas and fashion photography in SoFA Design Institute.
niques into portraits; for a year I did conceptual portraits. After college I tried to make my work more marketable so I gradually shifted to fashion photography. As I gain more experience and connections I expanded to do commercial works as well.
2017 is revolutionary in terms on how designers and brands present their image and what they cater to the market.
I got into fashion photography for I enjoy the feeling of creating fashion images and collaborating with creative people. I was more inclined to art than fashion when I was young. My model friend would show fashion images in magazines or in online chat and we talked about how beautiful those images are. From there we got inspired and we try to imitate those. Eventually from just imitating what has been done, we started in exchanging pitches for original shoot ideas and hopefully we could execute them in the future. I always look forward on working with a team; with each member’s skills and expertise we form those beautiful images. Fashion shoots have been my creative outlet and escape.
EMERGING The fashion scene in the Philippines is gradually expanding and innovating. The movement of supporting local fashion is prevalent and is backed up by the combined efforts of emerging brands and young fashion designers and creatives. BRAINSTORMING I get fashion inspiration through browsing local and international fashion magazines and from interaction with creative minds. From a simple conversation with them, we end up brainstorming and exchanging fashion shoot ideas.
I would describe my photography style as “perfect imperfect”. I tend to polish and gloss up my images, but I leave some imperfections – those could be blemishes on the face, some strands of messy hair, or some dirt in the background; so that the images are in borderline “real” and “perfect.” After all, imperfections can sometimes make things perfect. Our fashion story is an eccentric, naïve and youthful take on wearing denim pieces. We imagined two siblings being silly and playing around with apples while dressed up in denim styled from the practical looking to the fashionably way over the top.
YOUNG CREATIVES The most significant personalities in fashion today are the young creative individuals. With their open mindedness, collaborative spirits, and relentless willpower, they have the potential to innovate fashion for the better. MOREOVER While I learned the basics through the photography classes in college, I got myself immersed in photography when I do casual shoots with friends. I have one particular friend whom I candidly captured him posing with a joker card held in hand. He then became my regular model for seven years and counting. At first we only did shoots for either fun’s sake or photo assignments. Later on, as I tried on practicing for my photography thesis, he would model for me to test the setups. When are both working, we find time on weekends to do shoots. As the years go by, the quality of our skills improve with him as a model and me as a photographer. My genre and interests in photography shifted through the years. Initially I shoot generally under the sun. When the casual shoots came, I got to do more portraits. My photography thesis involved applying different photography tech-
What’s memorable in this fashion story is that our execution is something different from what everyone in the team used to do. Usually our fashion shoots are either artsy, edgy or glam. We also managed to pull out clothing from different young student designers hailing from different schools. PLANS I’m hoping to do more projects in both commercial and fashion works. I’m also considering to go back into my roots and do some simple portraits on the side or recreate and update what I did in my college thesis, but we’ll see…
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PHOTOGRAPHER: Wilmark Jolindon STYLIST & ART DIRECTOR: Hillary Lee MAKEUP: Janell Capuchino HAIR: G Mande MODELS: Erica Lau of Mercator & Kevin Cantos PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT: Dennis Sulit CLOTHES: Celina delos Reyes, HA.MÜ Mood & Lean Profeta SPECIAL THANKS: Zoomburst Photo Studio, Jouie Sta. Ana, & Mary Faye Murphy
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TO DO DEBAJO DEL SOL
ROB BEN
Los Angeles
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2017: A REVIVAL I feel that the 70’s and 90’s decades both have had a heavy influence in current high fashion. Both of these decades were based on street style, which I think have found their way into the high fashion realm. INTERESTING INSPIRATIONS Growing up, I was surrounded by my family who was involved in making uniforms for health care professionals. The different textures and colors of the fabric used to make the uniforms, inspired me when I was younger and influenced my color palette. Since, I am also from Peru, a lot of aspects of Incan culture inspired my photoshoots. I am very proud to be both a Peruvian and an American citizen, which allows me to create a unique fusion between the two cultures. I feel that I am creating a new story by combining my experiences in Peru and my life in Los Angeles. RELEVANCE 60’s Italian Film Director, Michelangelo Antonioni & Actress, Monica Vitti are very significant even in today’s fashion world, in my opinion. Antonioni often sent important messages through his films using fashion to convey the importance of the female as a lead role. Through fashion, he was able to start a conversation that transcended time and is still significant and relevant today. My name is Ronald Benjamin and I’m 22 years old.I’m from a huge Peruvian family and have lived in LA since I was seven. My Mom had a clothing company and our home was filled with rolls of fabrics of vibrant colors and textures. My mom quickly figured out that I wasn’t going to be the next best Peruvian soccer player so she immersed me in the arts. I started photography at ten and I have found that so much of the richness of my childhood- the culture, the colors, the feelings, have influenced how I work today. I attended the Art Center College Design in Pasadena California and my work was showcased in my school’s gallery throughout my four years there. When actually started working on my own, I loved to control everything on set, including the fashion, the emotional story, and the lighting as well as the colors. And I also like to be involved in the smaller details, posing of models, the styling, and the textures. I am a huge believer that the small things come together to create the bigger picture. And I like to be right in the middle of it all.
TODO DEBAJO DEL SOL I was inspired by the concept of a polyamorous relationship. I find it to be intriguing how people can find love within a three person dynamic and I wanted to create an editorial based on this personal life-style. I also wanted to incorporate a theme that show cases the Californian heat, so the models were extra sweaty for this shoot. I aimed to create a sensual theme enhanced by lots of lighting, minimal makeup, and messy hair. I try to make every shoot different from the one before. I try to push myself out of my comfort zone by experimenting with different types of hair styles and makeup. Pat McGrath is one of my biggest inspirations for makeup right now. I like to have fun and bring something new to every shoot. ACHIEVEMENT I would have to say, that having the opportunity to work with “W” Magazine, right after college, was a huge accomplishment for me. However, being able to inspire and mentor other aspiring young photographers has been my greatest achievement as a professional photographer. SHORT FILM PROJECT Last year, I was given the opportunity to direct a commercial for a fashion clothing company. I was so inspired by this, I decided to create and direct my own short film, which will start shooting at the end of August and will be premiere at the end of this year. The film is a response to last year’s Presidential elections told through the eyes of fashion.
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Photographer & Stylist: Ron Ben Model: Nadia TWO management. Freddy NEXT management Eugene NEXT management Assistant: Jofre Francisco and Miah McCarthy
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THE NEW HYPE
M A U R E E N
W R O B L E W I T Z
Photography: Miguel Alomajan Stylist: Ica Villanueva and Aaron Mangsat Hair and makeup: Theresa Padin Video: Jear Velasquez Photo assist: Jet Soliman Style Asst: Joey Buenaobra Special thanks: Chinie Go Prima Stella Mgmt Mark Bumgarner
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m Mark Bumgarner
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My family moved to Germany, that’s where I lived for 6 years. It took me a long time to get along with the people there and find friends. For me the Philippines is a place where I wanted to live. After I got scouted on Instagram when I was 15, that’s when I really wanted to move to the Philippines but my dad wanted me to finish high school so I had to wait for 3 years before i could officially move. My passions for modeling started when I was 13, and my passion for fashion started later when i was 15 but that was all happening in Germany. But in Riyadh, I was a completely different person. I didn’t think about modeling yet because I wasn’t exposed to the modeling world and I didn’t know much about modeling. GROWING UP It was when I was 13 that I realized I wanted to be a model, but before that, I wanted to be an actress. But when I was even younger I wanted to be a Veterinarian because I love animals but once I saw blood, I knew that the field wasn’t for me. Growing up I was really shy but I really had to push myself to go out, socialize, and meet new people. It was really hard for me. I switched slowly to being confident and me moving to the Philippines helped. I was always scared to do the things that I wanted to do. I was even scared to be part of Asia’s Next Top Model. Before I flew to Singapore for the competition, I was freaking out. Being in a reality show, being with the other girls and there were cameras everywhere made me freak out even more. I was this girl who knew what she wanted, I knew I wanted to be a model and fulfill my dream but I was always afraid.
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URGE
3 FACTS
My biggest motivation was mostly my family. And then my manager pushed me join the competition. Also, I saw that it was a perfect opportunity to get out of my comfort zone and to be more confident in myself. That’s all what I really wanted; it was to be more confident, believe in myself and know that I can do it.
I worked as a waitress in a gelato shop. I got fired from my very first job. I can switch raising my eyebrows very fast. OUTSIDE MODELING I hang out with my family and friends. And I love cooking and baking and I try to do that as much as I can.
CHANGE The show changed me in how I approach other opportunities which made me more confident and made me not be afraid to do the things that I love to do. I discovered a lot about myself. I realized that i’m stronger that I think I am and that I can do it.
PROUDEST MOMENT BESIDES WINNING
What was your most memorable experience?
I wouldn’t do nude shoots. I won’t do something too sexy unless it’s Victoria’s Secret.
Me being on the cover of Nylon! It was my very first cover so it was a very great achievement. LIMITATIONS
The moments that were not aired. The things we did behind the scenes where would just watch movies. I was really close to the twins and we would cook each other food. Those were the little moments that didn’t get to be on TV but were very memorable.
BEAUTY SECRET After I’ve had a long day, I make sure to clean my face, moisturize and get some sleep. I also try to drink a lot of water and avoid touching my face.
Who was your toughest competition during the season?
GOAL
From the start, my biggest competitors were always Shikin and Tu.
I want to do different kinds of modeling. I want to be known not just as a pretty face commercial girl. I want to model for high end and luxury brands also.
Who was your favorite judge? My favorite judge is Cara. She’s so nice and sweet and you can see that she really wants to help us. She’s like our mom and it’s so nice to have somebody there who really supports you.
NEXT For now, my main focus is modeling. I hope I get to travel for work, maybe in Europe or the US. Of course, I would consider acting in the future.
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Mark Bumgarner
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Mark Bumgarner
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Mark Bumgarner
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HYPE HYPE HYPE HYPE
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