Storytelling through fashion illustration

17 Apr 2006 Category: Fashion, Graphics, Illustration, Japan, Worldwide

Storytelling through fashion illustration

The Touch - by Przemek Sobocki

London based Polish fashion illustrator Przemek Sobocki (That’s a hard one! Try pronouncing like P’shem-mek Sobbo-ts-key) came to Tokyo for his recent exhibition at Gallery Speak For in Daikanyama. However, as soon as he touched Japanese ground, he felt like things were a little different this time… While PingMag talked to him at his exhibition he actually made up his mind: “I’m here to stay!”.

Written by Uleshka

Przemek, you started out your first career as fashion and interior designer, including set and costume design for the theatre… But then, your first professional fashion illustration Touch really got picked up by various magazines and also won the V&A Illustration Award. Well done!

the Touch - detail showing bits of the collage

What is the Touch about?

It is inspired by a scene in Double life of Véronique where Véronique comes home and touches a tree. Somehow, I could really identify with that scene, that sensuous touch. There was a time, when I felt like I would disappear and that feeling would only go away if I touched something with my hands. I tried to find a way to make you feel this touch through my illustration.

the Touch 2

You have quite a full on portfolio considering that you actually only started fashion illustration recently: work for Helmut Lang, Miu Miu, Philip Tracey and Izabela Gkagkanis, also Adidas and Nike…


illustration in the corner of the COME&PEACE hair salon in Daikanyama, Tokyo

the LOVE, illustration for 125magazine 2004/

three sisters, WIND02, illustration

illustration for Adidas exhibition, collaboration with Richio Suzuki, RUN DMC

What kind of people actually ask you to create illustrations? And how do they find you?

Well, I often work on stories or do a series about a certain theme and then go to a magazine myself and offer that specific series, for example. Most times they want to feature me after they’ve seen my work and come back contacting me when they are about to publish the next issue. 125 magazine - a really nice magazine which works more like a gallery in a way - asked me twice… others come up to me directly… it depends. I am still about to build up a bigger network.

… and it seems like you are quite good at establishing yourself in Japan already! You did an exhibition 2 years ago in Daikanyama and collaborated with COME&PEACE - a hair salon in Daikanyama, Tokyo - to do the whole interior graphics for their shop…

Daikanyama Hair Salon

Are all your illustrations hand-made?

I mostly make drawings combined with collage and then finish it off in the computer, but think I really want to go back to fully hand-made. I think I like that the best.

Light from behind - detail to show bits of drawing and collage

I like it how you manage to twist the meaning of your images by giving it interesting titles. What was that series with: “My last day with Vivienne Westwood!” or “I will never wear Comme des Garçons again!” about???


I will never wear Comme des Garçons again

Farewell sweet Prada! You hurt too much!

That was actually meant to be some kind of New Years resolution for fashion victims - in a very ironic way. Something like: I promise myself to never get into that stuff again! But then anyway - how could she if she just killed herself? They are all dead: one jumped out of the window, the other stabbed herself with a Prada brooch… It is pretty dark (laughs) - and very much a fashion story.

I know you are very inspired and influenced by movies. When I look at your illustrations, they actually seem like a little storyboard to me, especially A Winter’s Tale! You left enough room to imagine the things that happen between the images, like looking at the snowman with this spikey carrot nose and realizing that the girl ate it his nose the last picture. Excellent!


A Winter’s Tale: finding the snow man

playing with his nose…

…facing each other…

…girl walking away and snow man remaining - with the rest of his nose

Is there an urge to move more into animation or eventually film though?

I was kind of naturally going in to that direction with A Winter’s Tale and then I made some more animated series like the one for Krash Japan with the girl on streets of Kurashiki, Japan, but I’m actually not so sure about that one…


animation for Krash Japan

animation for Krash Japan

There is a movie from the 60ies called: La Jetée by Chris Marker which was entirely made out of b&w still photographs, 28 minutes long. There were actors, you have the voices, announcements of the train… and it is really powerfull! The way he set up a story inspired me very much. I think I prefer to do something that is more simple, focus on each image and how I shape my characters instead of trying to make them move. That might actually be stronger in the end.

Illustration story about the 50s for 125magazine 2005. The whole thing is set up like a fashion shoot with strange titles such as: a journalist in her 40ies, no children, wearing Dior, nylon tights models own, Sputnik by Soviet Union

Illustration story about the 50s for 125magazine 2005: 50ies houses and Sputnik, which is characteristic for that time

Illustration story about the 50s for 125magazine 2005: A student in her 20s, summer in the USSR, no husband and no children, wearing her mother’s design, Sputnik by Soviet Union

I do like your animation for your Undercover series on Hint magazine though. All you actually do is to blend your images and watch the accessories change, but for some reason that works really well! Did Undercover hire you to do this?

Klaus - animated accessory series for Undercover

Klaus - animated accessory series for Undercover

No, that is actually one of those things I just because I wanted to do something for Undercover. I guess now that I am in Japan I will try to contact them and see if they really like it. Who knows?

Good Luck! Have you finally decided to stay here now?

Well, the last two weeks here were just crazy! Incredible! Everything seems to happen much faster than in London, but I love it! I can’t remember the last time I was that stressed out in my life, but as long as I can control the stress, anything else will be fine. Connections just fly towards me… I am really happy to be here and give it a try -but I must say I am scared! Really scared. (laughs)

Przemek chats at his exhibition

Well - relax then and welcome to Tokyo! Hope to hear more from you, soon!

65 Comments

  1. I love this work. It’s so refreshing to see fashion presented as art with art. Beautiful.

    Posted by: Clay Bodine on April 18th, 2006 at 7:41 am

  2. Undercover ai?! I like that brand too; and hopefully he’ll get to design something for Undercover soon. I will await patiently for now.

    Posted by: Ben Tong on April 18th, 2006 at 10:47 am

  3. bardzo ciekawe, trzymam kciuki ale i bez nich wszystko sie udac musi przeciez
    pozdrawiam

    Posted by: Izabela Gkagkanis on April 18th, 2006 at 9:12 pm

  4. very nice pieces! regards from Poland

    Posted by: kuba on April 18th, 2006 at 9:19 pm

  5. great stuff! Congratulations Przemek! Wiedzialam ze Ci sie uda!
    pozdrawiam bardzo goraco

    Posted by: kasia orlowska on May 17th, 2006 at 2:45 pm

  6. awesome collection of illustrations. Stylised in a very refreashing and individualistic way. cheers and God bless
    India

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  7. I don’t think this artist has really found his own voice. There are many cliches: such as young, thin girls. Egon Shiele, Gustav Kimt and the influence of Hiroshi Tanabe etc, etc. I think it’s fashionable work but it would be nice to see a deeper engagement with the world. I think anybody could have made this work really. But his drawing is fine and he’s hard working. Where is his Polish imagination here?

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