ensæmble is a multidisciplinary collective with Finnish, Russian and Belgian roots, calling Helsinki home. The everyday life of ensæmble is run by Alisa Närvänen and Elina Peltonen. These two have a symbiotic way of working in which it is impossible to say where one’s work ends and the other begins. Their work is now being presented at the fashion after Fashion exhibition at the MAD museum in New York among six designer teams who are rethinking fashion. (Continues…)
Around visited the Oltmans van Niekerk (OvN) Design Studio in Delft, the Netherlands and had a discussion with the founders Liesbeth Oltmans and Els van Niekerk. They work in futures studies on lifestyle and design and have just released the latest edition of the annual consumer insight forecast 20/20 Vision 2019>. (Continues…)
“At the moment, I’m interested in the idea of emptiness in the painting. At its best, when I feel that I have succeeded with a work, I have been able to make the painting complete in a way that it becomes empty: none of the elements in the work stick out or annoy the viewer. Everything lives together – form and color speak to each other in harmony, creating something that strikes a balance between substance and emptiness.” (Continues…)
The One-Room Flat installation of Galleria Huuto feels like someone’s apartment furnished with everyday necessities. With a closer look the objects prove to be artworks, made out of different materials and media by a group of artists playing with the idea of memories, nostalgia and everyday routines. (Continues…)
“When spring finally arrives I’m in need for brights. This season I’m drawn towards yellow, ocre and orange – especially the warm burning tones.” (Continues…)
Arela is a clothing brand focused on cashmere knitwear and cotton basics. Around met up with Viivi Arela to talk about Arela For Good events, which aim to raise awareness on sustainable fashion. “I believe we will soon stop talking about sustainable fashion – all fashion brands that want to succeed and speak to the contemporary consumer must be sustainable throughout.” (Continues…)
Elina Ruohonen’s current exhibition, Vallanjako, is a vision of a future with renewed power structures on this planet. The human race is no longer in charge; instead the plants and animals rule. Ruohonen’s works are about everything organic. The exhibition is a plea for the living nature – a study of human and plant hybrids. Her focus has been on the versatile shapes of nature, and the possible mutations between different species. (Continues…)
Psychedelia is a visual direction that is currently inspiring a growing number of designers. As new technologies allow us to explore ideas further, it is not a repetition of the 1960s but rather something completely new. (Continues…)
“My current favorites: The raw sunlight of February. Black. Things that make the days easier like simple everyday wear, a uniform.” (Continues…)
Jenni Hiltunen’s work has a dynamic, beautiful and arresting allure that demands your attention. You want to know what is behind that piercing gaze and imposing pose of the often androgynous, humane, striking and exquisitely dressed women she portrays. “With my new work I pursued for an authenticity in the expression – in the process of painting itself.” (Continues…)
