ART & DESIGN
A Czech-inspired lounge featuring specialty teas, board games, simple food, & tobaccofree hookahs with live music & local art to boot! 201 Harbord St, Toronto, Ontario www.bampottea.com www.facebook.com/ bampothouseoftea/timeline Mon - Wed: 5:00pm - 11:00pm Thu: 12:00pm - 11:00pm Fri - Sat: 12:00pm - 1:30am Sun: 12:00pm - 11:00pm
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Conceptual Photographer Cover Photo
Mina Adel
Fashion Designer
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Artemano
Natural furniture, crafted from exotic woods, to complement any home décor.
Massa Farouq Illustrator and Graphic Designer
Reem Eissa
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El Seed
“Calligraffiti” artist, a blend of the historic art of Arabic calligraphy and the modern art.
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Editor’s Letter EDITOR CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
ART DIRECTOR
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHY
GRAPHIC DESIGNER MODELS
Rola Kuidir Paola Hax Livia Tauber Rayna Rae Sara Alex Linda Soulstar Christine jordan Amanda Woody Ken Dyment Rola Kuidir Reem Eissa Caroline Walton Parker Powers Beth Hinton Rola Kuidir
Welcome to the first issue of Horizon. I believe inspiration is all around us. However, Seeing other artist’s work and knowing how, when, and what tools they use might introduce new motivational methods of creating art. There is nothing I enjoy more than meeting likeminded people in person. That’s why I am so excited to work on this issue featuring great artists in various art platforms. With informative talks, interviews, and expert advice at hand, this magazine is the perfect place to get inspired. Covering artists who work in graphic design, interior design, fashion design, photograpyh, and art. This magazine wouldn’t have been possible without some of my talented friend’s contributions.
Veronica Russel Cameron Lee
We would like to hear from you.
PHOTO EDITOR
Rola Kuidir
Have a great weekend.
AD DESIGNER
Rola Kuidir Julia Deo
CONTACT US
info@horizon.com
SUBSCRIPTIONS SUBMISSIONS
subscribe@horizon.com contact@horizon.com
www.horizon.com
Rola Kuidir rolakkuidir@gmail.com
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M A S S A
What is your educational background?
I’m currently majoring in Illustration at OCAD university in Toronto. What is the message you are trying to deliver through your work?
FA R O U Q
I think the main point I always try to focus on is showing people/ educate them on my culture and religion. I’m very proud of my Middle Eastern roots, and I feel like the western society is really missing out on the richness and beauty of this culture/religion. People get so caught up looking at the Middle Eastern culture through the eyes of the media –mostly the news- that basically means they’re forming their ideas about a certain culture from one perspective only. What I try to do is basically show the other sides’ point of view, and simply help people in creating a more realistic image about this culture/religion. How did you realize that this is your passion? tell us the story of how it all started?
I’ve always loved art and drawing, since I was very young. My father is an architect, my aunt was an artist, and my grandmother was an art teacher. So I was raised under a very artistic roof, where I was always surrounded by inspirational artistic sense of the
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people around me. When I got to the point in my life where I had to choose my career, I knew it would be in this area. So when it came down to the final decision my heart was always going to steer me in this direction. Where do you find your inspiration?
I’m a true believer that we don’t find inspiration, but rather it finds us. This is why it’s sometimes difficult to be working in this field. Inspiration doesn’t work according to your schedule. It has its own. But I do believe that there are some things/moments in our day to day lives that trigger inspiration. How do you stay up to date with trends in your industry/field?
I think we’re oh so very lucky to be in the age of technology, where everything is accessible in a blink of the eye. I heavily depend on social media platforms and search engines in keeping up with not only trends in my field, but also trends from other fields that could be applicable to my own work. What do you find most rewarding about your role? Most challenging?
I think no one can argue that the most rewarding feeling in this world is when you present your work and people actually like it! I feel so proud when someone praises my work in any way. On the other hand, one of the most challenging aspects of working in this field is pleasing different tastes. Taste is a big part of the art and design field. And since taste doesn’t come in a certain shape/size/color, it’s our job as designers/artists to try to please as many different tastes as possible. And that is, certainly, a very challenging task. How do you manage your time? What is your best time-saving trick?
Time is a very important factor in every design/artwork. Of course the more time you give yourself the better. HOW that is done, is a mystery that I’m yet to uncover. I’m still a student in the field of time management, but I hope the more experience I get the more efficient I become with managing my time. When did you start using social media as a form to post your work? and how did it affect you?
Nowadays, social media could be a maker or a breaker for some people’s careers. When people started realizing the importance of social media, it became a form of advertisement that companies/individuals heavily depended on. Social media forms a big part of my life. Not so long ago, I decided to open an instagram page (diamondsfactory) dedicated for my work. It has proven to be a very useful tool in not only putting my name out there, but also encourage me to do more work in my personal time to share with the world. I’m also working on a website that will contain all my information and artworks/designs. What are the skills you had to teach yourself to get better at what you do?
At this point, I think I’ve taught myself most of the things I know. This field is a very self-driven. Most of the time you are on your own in the teaching and learning process. But I always try my best to work with different mediums, and always go out of my comfort zone with the type of materials I use. What is the greatest piece of career advice/ wisdom you’ve ever received? Where have your work been featured? if any
So far, a couple of instagram pages. And some likes here and there from artists that I like and respect. Tips for aspiring professionals in your field?
Dream big and don’t let anyone bring you down. Push yourself –and your work- outside all boundaries. Don’t limit yourself to something specific, try everything! What do you do when you are not working? (Hobbies)
Nothing major –since I turned my number 1 hobby into my career, but I do like to write some poetry every once and a while. And if eating, sleeping and watching shows count as hobbies then I’m pretty good at those too. Any future projects you are working on that you would like to share with us?
Well, I’m going into 4th year. Which means, thesis! Still working on my ideas so nothing yet. Wish me luck!
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What is your educational background?
Honours Bachelor of Science in Psychology from University of Toronto. What is the message you are trying to deliver through your work?
I love for my work to portray a strong female character, a sort of heroine of her own story that doesn’t need saving. I love juxtaposing the fragility and resilience of the human spirit. The stories behind the images, while they may not be concrete, talk about personal feelings with an ethereal twist to push them just outside the realm of what’s real. I try to hide the identity of the model, usually myself, being a self-portrait artist, in order to allow for the viewers to relate better to those stories. How did you realize that this is your passion? Tell us the story of how it all started?
In my first year of university, I made a friend who is also a photographer and that was my first introduction to photography. I bought a camera and started teaching myself how to shoot. Soon after, I discovered fine-art photographers on flickr.com like Brooke Shaden, who will always be an inspiration of mine, and realized that I wanted to create conceptual imagery and so went on to teach myself how to use photoshop and that’s how the story went. What was your first project that you worked on?
I started off working on a 30-day challenge where I would shoot and post a photo every day to flickr. Once that first month passed, I wanted to continue and kept going for around 200 days. Towards the end of that project, my work started cheering towards the conceptual side of things and I explored that further in my Project 52, where I created an image a week. 10
Where do you find your inspiration?
Much of my inspiration comes from my life experiences and mental processes but also derive inspiration from childhood fairytales, greek mythology, music, etc. Why do you do what you do? What makes everything worth it?
It’s an incredible experience to be able to create something so personal and be able to share it, knowing that there is vulnerability in that, it’s quite liberating. I love getting feedback from people, hearing that something I created had inspired them in some way. When did you start using social media as a form to post your work? and how did it affect you?
I started posting pictures to flickr.com and my personal facebook page from day 1. I started my Photography page on Facebook in March of 2015 and it’s been a great way to share with even more people and get some more feedback from people that aren’t just my family and friends but strangers from around the world. It’s been a very humbling experience overall.
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What are the skills you had to teach yourself to get better at what you do?
I started off having to learn the ABCs of using a DSLR, all about different lenses and settings and such. Then learning photo editing skills was the next step, I started off using GIMP before I moved on to use Photoshop and learned many of my skills through Youtube Tutorials. Where have your work been featured? if any
I have had images featured on Vogue Italia’s online magazine, UofT’s online magazine and print news letters, The MOOTS’ Facebook Page and abduzeedo.com. Any project closest to your heart and story behind it/why?
I think almost everything I’ve created this far has had some meaning to me, it’s really tough to narrow it down but I’m always fond of photos that challenge me technically and that force me to become more creative in the way that I edit to get the outcome I imagined in my mind. Is there a must have tool in your studio/an item which you cannot live without?
Definitely my tripod and camera remote, I can’t do much without them! But I do have many odd props, from dresses to giant butterflies, frames and bird cages that I love to incorporate. I’m always looking for new things to use in images and get inspired by, things that might help me tell stories.
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Tips for aspiring professionals in your field?
What do you do when you are not working?
I think this goes to aspiring professionals in any field: take constructive criticism, be honest with yourself about it and ask yourself how you can use it to make your work better. It’s hard to hear it sometimes, especially when your work is very personal to you, but it’s a great way to improve one’s self. Also, if you’re an aspiring artist, only put work out that you are personally proud of. If a project doesn’t work out, it’s okay to start from scratch and challenge yourself to do it better the second time around!
Well, photography started off purely as a hobby for me and still is for the most part. I do take on individual and couple shoots as well as weddings from time to time but the fine-art aspect is what takes up most of my photography time.
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Any future projects you are working on that you would like to share with us?
I am planning to photograph some conceptual work with dancers and hope to create more commissioned work for other artists, which is something I very recently started doing.
WWW.NADEGE-PATISSERIE.COM
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Toronto - 25 year old new Canadian women’s wear designer Mina Adel uses her imagination of fantasy and elegance to design your dreams and make it all come true. As a new graduate of Toronto Film School (The Academy of Design), Adel is looking forward to demonstrate the beauty of fabrics within her designs. She has been awarded academic distinction by receiving the President’s List during her years in the fashion design program. Inspired by industry’s standards of beauty and femininity, she can also design flattering garments for a real woman’s curves. Her technical knowledge of a garment’s proper fit and design, combined with her innate creative abilities, results in an effortless and wearable line that reflect the kind of woman she is herself. Mina Adel presents her graduate collection, entitled “PLAY” for spring/ summer 2016. She was inspired by classical games of chess, the black and white of the piano keys and colors of Rubik’s cube. This women’s wear collection focuses on color blocking.
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What is your educational background?
Fashion design. Business admin
When did you start using social media as a form to post your work? and how did it affect you?
beauty, elegance, femininity
I started using social media since the second year and it went well of getting likes and feedback from people.
How did you realize that this is your passion? tell us the story of how it all started?
What are the skills you had to teach yourself to get better at what you do?
What is the message you are trying to deliver through your work?
I started to sketch at a younger age thought that it was only drawings, yet it became a dream that i had to work on making it true.
Sewing, sketching and how to be patient every single moment.
What was your first project that you worked on?
Do what u have to do with patient and u’ll achieve success within period of time.
a zipper sample with muslin Where do you find your inspiration?
From the classical games that every one including myself still playing! How do you stay up to date with trends in your industry/field?
by following WGSN for example Why do you do what you do? What makes everything worth it?
The final garment, when i see it i feel joy and success. How do you manage your time? What is your best time-saving trick?
Time saving in this industry is impossible, yet try to do everything on time as don’t say I’ll do this tomorrow and i think u’ll be fine.
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What is the greatest piece of career advice/wisdom you’ve ever received?
Where have your work been featured? if any
I’ve been featuring myself Any project closest to your heart and story behind it/why?
My thesis. My dream which became true. Is there a must have tool in your studio/an item which you cannot live without?
See through a ruler. What do you do when you are not working? (Hobbies)
Eat, dance, pray, love, live a life basically.. swimming, playstation, sketch. Any future projects you are working on that you would like to share with us?
Yes. Caftan”abaya” collection for spring/ summer 2017 inshallah.
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eL Seed is a ‘calligraffiti’ artist, a blend of the historic art of Arabic calligraphy and the modern art of graffiti, mixing street culture from Paris and Arabic history to poetic effect. Born to Tunisian parents in the suburbs of Paris, eL Seed spent his formative years juggling different cultures, languages, and identities. Today eL Seed’s pieces have developed out of two worlds colliding, with these two cultures clashing and blending into one another, to form a new identity, a unique mark and a distinctive style.
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eL Seed uses intricate composition in his work to call not only on the words and their meaning, but also on their movement, which ultimately lures the viewer into a different state of mind. Working primarily with subjects that seem contradictory, eL Seed’s art reflects the reality of mankind and the world we live in today. In mid-2012 eL Seed completed his largest piece to date, in the southern Tunisian city of Gabes, a 47 metre high minaret on the Jara mosque, spreading the message of unity. In 2013, he went on to leave his unique and one of a kind mark in Qatar, when he was commissioned by the Qatar Museums Authority to paint tunnels in Doha on Salwa Road. eL Seed sought out the help of the local community to create 52 individual pieces of art for the tunnel walls. More recently in the summer of 2013 in Paris, eL Seed took part in La Tour Paris 13, the largest collective street art exhibition in the world.
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LEARN THE RULES SO YOU CAN BREAK THEM
- Pablo Picasso