lina bodén: her romantic/surrealistic style
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Today Swedish illustrator Lina Bodén has stopped by TrustYourStyle to talk about her work and inspirations. Lina started out as a print and pattern designer for H&M and Monki and has now moved into fashion illustration. Hoping you will enjoy her dreamy work as much as I do!
p.s. {Wouldn't you just love a gold silk rain coat like the one in her illustration below?}
mj: How would you describe your style?
lina: Romantic, surrealistic and time consuming
mj: Does fashion inspire or influence your work?
lina: Maybe subconsciously. I frequently browse through Italian Vogue and Another Magazine and find much inspiration in photography by for example Tim Walker. But I mostly get my inspiration from art, film, literature and nature. I love to draw people and clothing, and I give a lot time and effort in drawing the material and fabric of the clothes they wear, but to create a world that surrounds them, to catch an atmosphere are just as important.
mj: What is your favorite project that you've designed so far?
lina: What I love the most is to have free hands to interpret something in my own way, as in the work I did for Alter/Mode and + 46 Fashion Awards. At the same time I always need some kind of restriction or framework to get creative, without them I easily get performance anxiety. I love when I have time to really get into the drawing and do not have to hurry. To draw in such a detailed way sometimes feels like meditation. My drawing style does not prefer quick assignments. That can get problematic sometimes, though I've been forced to develop my technique and draw faster and faster for each assignment.
mj: In terms of your drawing style, who are your influences and how did you develop your style?
lina: My style developed when I was working on my exam project at Beckmans School of design in 2007. During my education we mostly worked with quick, weekly assignments. Therefore I decided that my exam project was going to be something really time consuming and detailed. I always work with graphite on A3 format papers, I draw every object for itself and then scan it and put everything together and color it digitally.
I can't really mention a direct inspiration for my drawing style, but there are a bunch of artists, writers and filmmakers that have inspired me in terms of feeling, mood and atmosphere, like John Bauer, Alfonse Mucha, Max Ernst, Hans Arnold, Aubrey Beardsley, Erté, Lewis Carroll, Tim Burton and Jean-Pierre Jeunet, amongst many others.
mj: Do you have new projects that you're working on?
lina: I've recently finished working with the Christmas campaign for Åhléns (a department store chain in Sweden and Norway). Right now I'm working on a Christmas gift for my boyfriend.
mj: What would your ideal project be?
lina: I would love to work more with illustrating novels or articles, to interpret words into pictures. I´m also planning on making a series of wallpapers.
Here are A FEW THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT LINA:
A) THE 4 MOST STYLISH PEOPLE THAT INFLUENCED ME:
1 Björk
2 Karin Dreijer
3 Tilda Swinton
4 Diane Pernet
B) FOUR WAYS THAT STYLE MAKES THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE
In this time of over-consumption and shallowness I actually am not convinced that it does. Style is great fun and it can make you feel nice and beautiful and interesting. But I honestly don´t think that style is essentially important for life on earth.
C)MY FAVORITE DESIGNERS
Swedish fashiondesigners like Helena Hörstedt, Sandra Backlund, Diana Orving and Carin Wester
D) FOUR JOBS I HAVE HAD IN MY LIFE:
1 Letter carrier
2 belly dancer
3 cashier at a small movie theater
4 print design-assistant at H&M and Monki
E) FOUR MOVIES I WOULD WATCH OVER AND OVER (AND DO):
1 A swedish lovestory
2 Le Fabuleux destin d´Amélie Poulain
3 Orlando
4 Trois couleurs: Bleu
F) FOUR PLACES WHERE I HAVE LIVED:
1 Stockholm
2 Malmö
3 Gothenburg
4 Nice
G) I don't watch TV i listen to music instead:
1. Fever Ray
2 El Perro del mar
3 Hope Sandoval
4 Stina Nordenstam
H) FOUR PLACES I HAVE BEEN ON VACATION IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS:
1 New York
2 Budapest
3 Amsterdam
4 Berlin
FOUR Favourite WEBSITES
(Though I do not do not visit them weekly)
1 www.ashadedviewonfashion.com
2 www.formfiftyfive.com
3 www.circusmuseum.nl
4 www.showstudio.com
J) FOUR OF MY FAVORITE FOODS:
1 Japanese
2 Italian
3 Libanese
4 Swedish home cooking
K) FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE RIGHT NOW:
1 New York
2 Tokyo
3 Berlin
4 Paris
Thank you Lina for stopping by! And many thanks to cwc-i for making this interview possible! xo
posted by Mary Jo at TrustYourStyle at
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
I'm Mary Jo, a handbag designer living in sunny California.
TrustYourStyle is where I
share inspiration and connect with other
style lovers. Did I mention I celebrate 
3 Comments:
Lina is fantastic. She renders the clothing stunningly. I think a star is born!
Completely stunning! love the purple, burgundy and black. Just stunning!!
xx
callie
thought I had commented on this when I first read it. Absoluetely stunning. Im quite enjoying the recent interviews you have done, but this one, Im in love.
Thanks for such visual inspiration. XOX.meli
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