ZERO TO REALITY by Papercut Magazine

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zero-to-reality reimaging content THE TEAM managing editor Jamall Oluokun creative director Margaret Walsh content coordinator Jacinta Liu marketing coordinator Shomari Miller web developer Jason Depeaux

There is nothing more exciting than seeing how a creative can find inspiration anywhere: from a mundane topic, to a current event, to an out-of-this-world idea and then breathe life into it. To bring it into being as something of this world which is then interpreted uniquely by every individual who sees it. The work of an artist can incite contemplation of a subject matter, elicit a visceral response, and become a timeless source of inspiration. Our own response and interpretation of a creative work can be greatly affected and transformed by words from the artist. Today Papercut makes that transformation. Throughout itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life, Papercut has always been about emerging artists on the cutting edge of the creative industry. Today it evolves and is reborn, reimagined, and redefined as a magazine that is by artists for artists; a magazine that is about the story behind the design, artwork, or creation. This issue and future issues will feature both work and words from each artist. Issues will include both submitted and curated work. You will find the most intriguing photography, fashion design, music, art, design, and more. You can peruse the work while also learning more about the concept, source of inspiration, behind the scenes details, and more. Any topic you might imagine will be interpreted differently by creatives and here we learn more about these artists interpretations, responses, and visualizations. In this issue you will find work inspired by the nature of life itself, statements on current trends in the world, career paths in a chosen lifestyle, practicality in forward thinking fashion, the beauty and freedom of childhood, social media and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role in a career, the ever evolving inspiration of an artist, and working in the fashion industry. Enjoy! Margaret Walsh creative director

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FASHION

Rebirth david fitt

Rainstalker

Instafame

You Red My Mind

nora krepart

natasha wilson

katia pershin

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47 Chromosomes justine tjallinks

In the Sand felicia simion

ART

Nomadic Canvas

Re/De Construct

steve tierney

matthew dols

Icon by Brys Scotland

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words & photography: David Fitt model: Lea Rostain @ WM art director: Maria Yakhnenko stylist & jewelry designer: Marion Parfait make up & hair: Maud Eigenheer photographer assistant: Nail Janom retoucher: Lucie BrĂŠmeault 4

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JEWELRY

PHOTOGRAPHY

REBIRTH a satorial exploration of the tiger moth

The plan was to create something weird and beautiful. Maria Yakhnenko, a young and talented art director, came up with the idea to work on a line of jewelry inspired by an insect and chose the tiger moth—a white furry moth with orange spots on its body—to influence the forms. The story then evolved naturally, it would be about the tiger moth emerging from its cocoon, free to roam the world and free from its old skin. It should be fragile and poetic, eerie and yet beautiful. It’s a rebirth.

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The most challenging part of this editorial was that it was shot in a daylight studio. It was the first time I shot in this type of studio, and I was stressed about the fact that light would change frequently during the day in its direction, intensity and power. Sometimes the light was dimmed by clouds, putting the photoshoot on hold for minutes until it was bright again. The weather became increasingly cloudy, forcing me to shoot at a quicker pace. When the sun would disappear, I needed to observe the direction of the clouds, so I could prepare the next frame better and be ready not to miss a second from the next sun rays. A

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And as sun started to disappear, the shoot became more and more exciting: the time limit forced us to put in our full 200% when it was time to shoot. Lea was adopting more various and daring poses as I was shooting with increased intensity, to be sure I was making the most of the few minutes the sun spared us. It was a wild blur of movement, with Marion (stylist), Maud (make-up & hair) and Nail (photo assistant) literally weaving around the model between shots, like some sort of weird balletâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; reminiscent of busy bees around their nest.

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This story has a triple meaning for me; a valuable lesson of rebirth that came in three parts. The moth literally working its way out of its cocoon, the model liberating herself from the white veil, and the rebirth of my own creative direction.

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DOWN SYNDROME

PHOTOGRAPHY

47 CHROMOSOMES

the uplifting beauty in down syndrome WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: Justine Tjallinks

models: Bodil, Isis, Jennifer, Jinte, Isa, and Jayda styling: Dieudonnee Bouwman make up & hair: Danine Zwets

It’s amazing how a mother-to-be today can determine if her unborn child has 47 chromosomes — an indicator of Down syndrome. Thanks to science and cautious parents-to-be, fewer children are being born with the condition. When I learned this, I couldn’t help but wonder; could there be no one left with Down syndrome in our near future? No one wants their child to go through life having to cope with a perceived handicap, but when it happens, no parent can imagine living without their child regardless of circumstance. In my photography, I am always searching for the beauty in imperfections, and I was inspired to create a series that features young girls with Down syndrome to emphasize just how beautiful they are. In my preparation for the series, I researched Down syndrome online and came across a few other photo series featuring people with the condition. However, those series featured people with Down syndrome against a white backdrop, clearly highlighting the characteristics of it. That was not my intention. The motivation behind my work is to communicate an emotion and create a sense of intimacy between

the viewer and the subject. I want to provide my audience with an in-depth look into the souls of my models. I created two series based on the subject; the series “Flowers in the Attic” during the end of 2014 and “Feelings” during the beginning of 2015. The shoots themselves were quite the experience. I could not have imagined how different each of the girls were going to be. Some of the girls were very easy to work with — they were at ease and focused. So focused, in fact, that there was an intense connection between me and them. But, on the other hand, there were girls that were so immersed in their own world that it was difficult to develop a connection with them at all — I had only a few short moments to capture their attention to get the shot I wanted. All in all, the project was extremely emotional for everybody — the girls, the parents and my team included. It was one of the most memorable experiences I’ve ever had the privilege of being part of, and resulted in very special portraits of special little girls. v PAPERCUTMAG.COM

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Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused when abnormal cell division results in extra genetic material from chromosome 21. Down syndrome causes a distinct facial appearance, intellectual disability, developmental delays, and may be associated with thyroid or heart disease. PAPERCUTMAG.COM

An estimated 92% of all women who receive a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome choose to terminate their pregnancies.

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People with Down syndrome attend school, work, participate in decisions that affect them, have meaningful relationships, vote and contribute to society in many wonderful ways.

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Steve Tierney is traveling mixed media Artist who lives a nomadic lifestyle. Originating from Australia, he has travelled and worked in multiple international locations. He has held solo and group exhibitions of his art in Australia, Tokyo, Cambodia and México starting in 2003. Tierney has put together a compilation of a “typical” day in the locations he has visited over the last few years. His daily events vary from country to country, from noodles in The Russian Market to scouring the vintage book stores of San Telmo. Here is a “collage” of a day in the life of a collage artist. Enjoy as we live vicariously through his daily footsteps in foreign lands.

NOMADIC CANVA

the life of a traveling mixed me 20

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COLLAGE

ART

edia artist PAPERCUTMAG.COM

9AM (In Mexico) Mornings and late afternoons are the best time to be walking around the streets of Oaxaca, Mexico. It steadily gets hotter and hotter, until around midday, when it’s difficult to walk anywhere for more than 5 minutes in the direct sun. Usually by 9am, I would have gone for a walk to my friend’s café for a coffee and to pick up some fresh fruit from the market. I like to start working early, so once I have a coffee in hand, the ideas start flowing. Now I’m either working on finishing an ongoing image, or cutting into some new magazines I found the day before.

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11AM (In Australia) When I’m working in the studio I generally have at least two to three artworks going at once. With collage, not every piece of the puzzle fits into place right away, so I tend to have a couple of works in progress, switching pieces between them throughout a day, week or even a month. A face will move from one background to another, and back again multiple times. It could get thrown back on to the image pile, only to be given another chance twenty minutes later when the perfect shape or object appears that holds it all in place. Last Summer I spent 3 months in Sydney preparing for a solo exhibition titled “BETWEEN”. I was lucky enough to have my friend Brad Eastman share his studio space with me. On most days, by 11am, we were both already hard at work, me cutting and pasting, him spraying some giant panel for his own exhibition. It was a nice change to be sharing a space with someone, as I’m usually working remotely and am fairly isolated.

1PM (In Cambodia) When Cambodia is fully in the grip of hot season, life in the studio or anywhere without air conditioning is horrific. Daytime temperatures easily reach 40 degrees celsius, at which time even the locals are melting. Working with small pieces of paper and cutting and gluing collage is really difficult with a fan on, so by around 1pm, things get really frustrating. This is when I jump on my moto and head down to the Russian Market to get some noodles. The market is hectic and the ride down is like a scene out of an Indiana Jones movie. It feels as if at any moment, the absolute worse could happen, but it usually doesn’t. I head into the centre of the market, take a seat and order my noodles, sweat bricks, drink a fresh passion fruit juice with soda and ice, and for a moment feel like a human again. Then I ride my moto back home for a post-lunch shower, and attempt to work again in front of the fan.

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3PM (In Nicaragua) When I lived in Cambodia between 2011 and 2012, I thought it couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get any hotter. I was wrong. In October of 2014, I went to live in Granada, Nicaragua for a few months. By 3pm I would have left all my work sitting on the desk in my makeshift studio, and be swimming in the pool. Generally Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d work really early in the morning, and again at night. It was the only way to get by.

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5PM (In Argentina) I spent 4 months living in Buenos Aires between June and October of this year. Before arriving in the country, I made contact with a couple of artists living there, and had planned to work with them. Being a nomadic artist, I am forced to give up a lot of my collage resources regularly, like magazines and books, as they just weigh me down. This is something I imagine a lot of collage artists could never do as we are all hoarders at heart. Over the years I’ve actually learned to appreciate starting new each time I go anywhere. So when I arrive in a country, I like to go exploring for new material, and the interesting thing that happens is that each work I make takes influence from that place in some way. At 5pm in Buenos Aires, I would have either been leafing through one of thousands of antique magazines or books on sale in the hundreds of stores scattered through San Telmo, or I’d be cutting up images in the studio space of Carolina Chocron, a fellow collage artist, who opened up her space to me and shared most of her materials, tools and even some new ideas, during what was without a doubt one of the most influential journeys for my professional development as a mixed media artist.

8PM (In Australia) When I’m home in Australia, this is the time to catch up with family and friends. By 8pm I could usually be found drinking at The Courthouse Hotel in Newtown, Sydney, where most of my friends live. I love the lifestyle of summer in Sydney, and it’s a great feeling to be a tourist in your own hometown. If I hadn’t already spent a full day working in Brad’s studio, I would probably have just returned home from the beach, in which case a beer was definitely on the menu.

12AM (In Mexico) Drunk on Mezcal!... Screaming a whole load of rubbish in Spanish. v

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RAINSTALKER

Fashion designer Nora Krepart channels her inner Sherlock Holmes WORDS & STYLING & DESIGN: Nora Krepart

photographer: Luise Hannah Reichert model: Johanna make up & hair: Sabine Reiter

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FASHION

PHOTOGRAPHY

The main source of inspiration for my collection were Sherlock Holmes novels and in particular, the character of Irene Adler, and touches of vintage skiwear. A PAPERCUTMAG.COM

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Irene Adler is the only character who was ever able to trick Sherlock Holmes. She would appreciate the details of my collection that refer to urban camouflage and hide-and-seek, such as double zip closures, with secret pockets and high collars. A

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Moreover, she would enjoy my color and print choices. These choices worked towards achieving two goals: I wanted the wearer to merge with their surroundings both in the city and the countryside while also causing the observer to be confused about from where the wearer originates. To imitate the look of a garment, which got wet from rain, I dyed only specific areas with a darker color. A

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The strong silhouettes of vintage skiwear have always been a fascination of mine and I used that aesthetic reference in my own collection: long sleeves covering the wrists, turtleneck sleeves that can be pulled over the head and an overall stream-lined silhouette. During the implementation of Rainstalker the idea arose to use waterproof fabrics in a fashionable way not only for jackets and coats, but also for pants, skirts and jumpsuits, which was something that I missed on rainy days. All garments are water proof and lined in order to offer a high wear comfort. PAPERCUTMAG.COM

IN THE SAND

the freedom of a 5 year old WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: Felicia Simion

It all started with a pile of sand, shining in the warm April sun. It was 2014, and I was almost 20, experiencing the pains of growing up. My love, my best friend and I were visiting my grandparent’s home in a quiet Romanian village. I was playing in the garden with Felix, my 5 year old cousin. Not counting the hours we laughed and danced, and suddenly I felt the urge to grab the camera and capture my cousin’s unconditional freedom. Felix climbed on top a little pile of sand, spread his arms towards the sun and smiled. I took a photograph and escaped time. I knew at that moment something new was born inside me. I have no brothers or sisters and spent much of my childhood by myself, as a result, I attempted to fill my time with bountiful activities. The outdoors fed my insatiable curiosity as I was definitely not the read-books-all-day type. I grew up in the countryside and had plenty of things to explore. The forest was a dear friend of mine; I would pick fresh mushrooms with my uncle, break nuts at the beginning of autumn, and have picnics with my family there on the weekends. Things were simple back then, like my Mother’s beautiful flower crowns, the future was a poem in the making. However, as adulthood approached, it was not shaping up to be what I expected; I realized it wasn’t just about wearing high heels or doing the laundry. Near the end of my teenage years, I started to encounter fears I never knew existed, and the path of my photography became rather scattered. 38

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But the moment I began documenting my cousin’s growth, which flowed so naturally, I realized that I needed to face my fears in the same way – with courage, faith, and joy. He was carefree, yet powerful in ways that would leave an adult in awe. I joined his childlike whims and let him be whoever he wanted to in front of my camera. In the pictures, he boldly imitated a cowboy, a blonde little girl and a Romanian shepherd. Through Felix I was able to give my photography a new direction and meaning. More importantly, he taught me a lesson in fearlessness. I gradually let go of my childish fears and accepted that I couldn’t be the apprehensive, foolish little girl forever. v

PHOTOGRAPHY

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Felix’s unconditional freedom and carefree nature was a powerful reminder to be courageous, faithful, and joyous in the face of the unknown.”

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Things were simple back then, like my Mother’s beautiful flower crowns, the future was a poem in the making.”

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INSTAFAME Natasha Wilson

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INSTAGRAM

In 2011 I graduated from photography school feeling pretty lost. I understood that I loved photography and had a passion for it, but I didn’t understand how to jump from student, to a high fashion photographer like I thought I wanted to be. I traveled around for a while, immersed myself in different cultures and climates, and eventually moved to Los Angeles in January of 2015. My roommate Cole convinced me to start an Instagram account to display my work and cultivate an audience. I started posting images from my portfolio daily and to my surprise, I saw a quick response. I jumped to about 5,000 followers after just a few months.

instagram

During this time, I was working at a furniture company, daydreaming about being a fashion photographer. In June I decided to take a leap of faith, and put my two weeks in to pursue my dream. The last day at the office I had butterflies in my stomach about what the future held for me, and if I was going to be able to “make it” by being my own boss. I almost ran back to tell them I changed my mind and I needed to stay. In the middle of my thoughts, a direct message from Instagram popped up on my phone, congratulating me for becoming a Suggested User. At first I actually had to hold in my scream of excitement so I wouldn’t scare my colleagues in the office. Instagram reaffirmed the leap of faith I’ve taken to abandon the “security blanket” and spend every day making myself happy.

PHOTOGRAPHY

deanastacia Killin' It

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deanastacia Hustle sold separately ;)

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instafame

Suddenly I was getting hundreds of followers per minute, and my account ended up with around 50,000 new followers. Because of that exposure, I was booked solid with freelance jobs every day for the next month. With my new following, I am able to reach and engage with more people around the world. There are cons as well. I do get spam comments and messages that I have to monitor and filter out. But overall, Instagram has been such an amazing tool for my business, and just a great way to connect with creatives in general. If anything, having a higher number gives me some sort of credibility with brands and clients that hire me.

inspiration

In the end, I hope my feed can inspire people to constantly let their creative mind flow and never stop exploring. As F. Scott Fitzgerald said: “It’s never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start over.” v

@deanastacia PAPERCUTMAG.COM

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deanastacia Yaaas we love dancing in 117 degree weather. We love it.

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deanastacia Feelin' weird, heading to the woods!

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RE/DE CONSTRUCT The art of destroying beauty WORDS & ARTWORK: Matthew Dols

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BEAUTY

I had just returned from a two month vacation in Europe when I realized I had been doing the same work for six years. It was time to put it to rest and start something new. I was taken by the depth of texture, age, and physicality of European culture, which is in stark contrast to my current home of Abu Dhabi. It is very polished and finished, very clean, almost sterile. In this country, I was rarely allowed to do manual labor. There were always people that are employed here that do these things for me. I became restless. I wanted to do something with my body. I wanted to physically produce something, to sweat, have sore muscles, and bleed for my art. I wanted to create something that was contradictory to the polished society I was living in. I wanted to make something imperfect, showing its flaws and mistakes. As the character Tyler Durden says in Fight Club, ‘I felt like destroying something beautiful’. These artistic urges were the catalyst for my current project, Re/De Construct. It's my attempt at creating something that strips away the perfection of the modern digital photograph and replaces it with the freehand of the artist. I dreamed of creating a work of art reminiscent of “Erased de Kooning.” I wanted to take portraits that involved a considerable effort to photograph and then “unmake” them. I wanted to show the essence of erasure, utilizing white paint and sandpaper. It had to be subtle so that the paper would become as fragile as rice paper while maintaining the image. The works vary from very subtle to angry and torn. But that is partly because of the people and partly because of me. When I stood in front of this work, I decided to work in a scale that allowed my entire body to be physically engaged with the process. I used the motion of my body, and the emotions that were in my head about myself, my life, to create

ART

a physical manifestation of how I felt about each person, and as a mirror how I feel about myself. Some of the works are physically torn in order to express the tears that happen in people's lives and the rips to the soul that life sometimes hands us. The notion of beauty is an issue in my life. I wish I were handsome (male beautiful), but I am not, and I never will be, but I am interesting. And I wanted to take traditionally beautiful people and transform them into the multifaceted and layered beauty that they really are once you get to know them, but that a single photograph cannot express. I wanted to make a portrait of the essence of a person instead of the physical person. I wanted to erase some parts and emphasize others. I wanted to investigate who a person is as an image, and who I am by identifying which parts of them I find more and less interesting. When I was a teenager, my friend Angie told me I was ‘a beautiful building that no one ever entered’. She meant that I was very guarded and did not allow people inside of my head nor my heart. That was 30 years ago, and her words still constantly run through my head. I constantly ask myself whether I have actually let people in, or if I hide behind a facade. Has my mask crumbled or evolved? No matter where I go or what I see, I make judgements and notice flaws. It is my curse and my blessing. It is what makes me great at what I do, and it is what alienates me from many people in my life. I have chosen to value things that most people would not choose. I try to express how I see the world to others through my art. This work is an attempt at allowing people to see the things that I hold dear, and the things that I find beautiful, while still keeping them outside the walls of my ‘beautiful building.’ I am allowing the world to look in through a window, but they never enter.v

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As Tyler Durden says in Fight club, 'I felt like destroying something beautiful.'"

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I was restless, I wanted to do something with my body. I wanted to physically produce something, to sweat, have sore muscles, and bleed for my art."

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YOU RED MY MIND behind the photoshot WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: Katia Pershin

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FASHION

PHOTOGRAPHY

stylist: Alyssa Beltempo model: Nakisa @ Angieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Models make up: Taryn Miller hair: Lori Dyck PAPERCUTMAG.COM

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Our supermodel Nakisa, seen here holding a reflector, as we head over to our first shooting location. Even though we all have our own roles, everybody pitches in to help! We stripped a teammate of their socks… so our stylist Alyssa could tuck it under Nakisa’s elbow so the dress wouldn’t touch the stone steps. Protect the clothing at all costs!

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Biggest challenge, and one of the funniest â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for the team and our spectators - was working with latex! Polymorphe made sure I had everything I needed to execute the right latex look: first I had to cover Nakisa in powder, then she had to carefully slip into the latex so as not to tear it, and finally I was given oil to apply for that wet-shine look. Another tricky feat was waiting 10 minutes for the oil to settle so as not to get it on the rest of the outfit - it was quite the process especially when done in a public place! We saw some great expressions from people walking by! â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Alyssa Beltempo, Stylist.

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Sometimes too many jokes spoil the makeup and hair! But we never skimp on the laughter. It makes the stress of the day so much easier when your team is working all together and having a good time. We brought the plastic as a potential prop, but instead we used it to protect the leather garment during reapplication of hair products between takes, so we wrapped Nataskia in plastic! Adaptability is your greatest creative tool. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s amazing how resourceful you can be when you have to be!

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