It’s been years since I’ve touched my feature but I still dream of one day directing a science fiction epic. Every once in awhile I’ll run across an artist with an aesthetic so otherworldly I find myself itchy to unleash them on an alien playground. Here are a few who capture my imagination.
Makeup
Hungry
The “distorted drag” created by German drag queen Hungry is so original it shocked me the first time I saw it. I’ve never seen makeup used so effectively to morph the features of the human face into something at once so unsettling and intriguing in its beauty.
Costumes
Iris Van Herpen
Fashion designer Iris van Herpen, formerly a ballet dancer, creates entrancing pieces with an eye for movement using intricate materials and abstract constructions. You’ll probably recognize her work from memorable celebrity looks at the Met Gala and other red carpets. If that’s not enough of a résumé for you, she’s already dressed actual extraterrestrial Tilda Swinton.
Jewelry
Hannah Jewett
&
Laura Estrada
Between Hannah Jewett’s liquid geometry set in chrome and the intricate wiring of Lauren Estrada’s face pieces, any alien delegate would be satisfied to be so elegantly adorned.
Creature Design
Kohei Nawa
Last spring I found myself on a spontaneous work trip to New York City and face-to-face with one of Kohei Nawa’s PixCell deer at the Met. I captured an ethereal photo that remains my iPhone wallpaper to this day. I know the creepy deer visual has become quite the trope in science fiction but I’d love to see him try his hand at other creature design using his many mesmerizing techniques.
Props
Saks Afridi
“Sci-Fi Sufism” is what Saks Afridi has dubbed his futuristic vision launching Muslim culture and aesthetics into space. The artifacts from his SpaceMosque collection in particular slake my thirst for non-white imagination in sci-fi's cruel desert of colonial narratives.
Choreography
Ryan Heffington
I first encountered Ryan Heffington’s work in Sia’s music video for “Chandelier,” featuring a young ballet dancer moving with unpredictable emotion. Years later, when the supernatural “movements” were introduced in science fiction show The OA, the choreography felt familiar. Turns out these unearthly gestures were another brilliant product of his visceral imagination.