Embark on a journey with GLITCHOFMIND, a digital fashion artist weaving narratives inspired by heritage. Explore the fusion of AI and 3D/VR sculpting, breaking barriers in tech-driven fashion. This exclusive interview unveils GLITCHOFMIND's unique creative process and vision for the future of tech-infused storytelling in fashion.
As your work is deeply influenced by your heritage and personal experiences, can you share specific experiences or aspects of your heritage that have had a profound impact on your artistic journey?
I think one of my main personal experiences that has influenced the way I create, and my aesthetic, is related to my identity and heritage. Growing up in Latin America, we don’t learn a lot about where we come from, especially about our African roots. We are indoctrinated into believing and highlighting the European part of our heritage and denied and ashamed of the “other”. Through my journey, I have gone through a process of unlearning and re-educating myself which has helped me liberate myself and find healing in sharing my story through work.
Embracing advanced digital tools like AI, and 3D/VR sculpting is a notable aspect of your artistic process, could you elaborate on how these tools contribute to the narrative and storytelling elements within your digital fashion creations?
3D is the main core of my work, coming from a background of photography and later diving into it within the web3 space, provided me with the freedom to create worlds I saw in my head, and in ways I wasn’t able to do with photography. Costumes I couldn’t make in real life that brought my characters and their story to fruition. With tools like Marvelous Designer and GravitySketch (VR sculpting), I have been able to create garments and accessories that add an element of storytelling to each of them. With AI (Stable Diffusion) I get to explore fabrics, and patterns, that I can convert into 3D maps to apply to those costumes. I can sometimes visualize scenes that serve as mood boards for my creations.
Your art is often described as a personal exploration of your journey as a black queer Latino. How does your identity shape the narratives and characters in your work, and how do you aim to convey these aspects to your audience?
As mentioned before, the core source of inspiration for my work is my own experiences, my surroundings, and my journey. Those stories don’t get to be translated literally as a work of art but more as a metaphor, a storytelling set in a fictional world. But that is for me personally, the source of my creations. For the viewer, my intention is to invite you into that fictional world, to travel into my universe where you get to experience it, to ignite your imagination, and to form your own stories.
A distinctive aspect of your work is the inspiration you draw from Victorian garment aesthetics, editorial photography, anime, and architecture, while infusing a sense of nostalgia for surrealism. How do you navigate this fusion of diverse cultural and aesthetic elements in your creations?
It's all about how those elements can ignite your imagination, even when you don’t know why and how. You don’t need to add those elements literally to be inspired by them. For me, anime for example has helped me become more bold and liberated in storytelling, photography helps me understand light and angles that I can apply in my 3D scenes, surrealism in the elements of symbolism and dream-like fantasies, and so on. Within your work, as an artist, you are free to get inspired by your surroundings and let them inspire you. I find inspiration in so many things that if I had to make a list it would take a few days to write. Just find what ignites your imagination.
Exhibiting your digital fashion creations globally, from London Fashion Week to Art Basel Miami and beyond, how does the widespread exposure of your work impact both your creative process and the narratives you choose to convey?
I have been so overwhelmed with the love and support for my work that it only inspires me to keep going, to become more innovative, and to experiment with ideas I never thought of before. I will never forget how supportive and loving the community has been and how SYKY team and collective have helped translate my vision. It has just made me more determined and confident in my storytelling and practice.
By envisioning the future of fashion as an exciting space where technology allows for greater inclusivity, can you elaborate on how you see technology breaking barriers and creating a more inclusive space in the world of digital fashion?
I think it is the accessibility of it, some programs come with costs,while some are free and include open-source programs that can help bring out your ideas. It’s just a matter of finding what works best for you. This digital wave and social media age have enabled artists to “skip” the gatekeepers and institutions that wouldn’t pay attention to them if they weren’t going to a specific school, location, and so on. Now is just a matter of connecting with your audience and staying true to the stories you want to tell and express. So to me, the more people are educated about the blockchain, the better, because we can immortalize our stories in ways that weren’t possible before.
Your latest collection, INTERLôR Vol. 1: Awaken, introduces the Sentron, artificial beings with unique purposes. What inspired the concept of the Sentron, and how do their narratives contribute to the overarching theme of self-discovery?
The inspiration has been my awakening to my artistic journey as a digital designer. How these new technologies have enabled us to find and shape our identity, and forms of expression in completely new ways. Sparking more ideas and innovation and hopefully one that includes more sustainable ways.
The Sentron archetypes, each wear unique, narratively driven fashion. Could you describe how you approach the design process to ensure that the garments not only look visually stunning but also contribute meaningfully to the storytelling aspect?
One of my favorite movies of all time as a teenager was Pride and Prejudice and one of the elements that struck me from the movie was how elegant yet “constrained” the garments were. I felt like the emotions were bottled-up inside the characters unable to express themselves and for some reason, I related to that with my hidden queer identity at the time, I found it poetic. So with the Sentron, I wanted the garments to be a form of elegant armor and a symbol of emotional constraint.
The post-apocalyptic theme in your work, with the awakening of the Sentron, adds a layer of depth to the narratives. What inspired this choice, and how do you use it to convey a message about humanity's essence?
If we were to look around and truly see the state of chaos we are in, it is really not far-fetched to feel like humanity could be doomed, and not by nature, not by the universe, but by our own hand. The Sentron in this story not only played the role of “savor” in this story, but also the one that potentially could have brought the end to our humanity not only physically but spiritually, when we disconnect more and more from nature and the balance of it all.
INTERLÔR aims to provide experiences utilizing the latest advancements in technology. Can you share any specific technologies or interactive elements you've incorporated into your storytelling to immerse the audience in the narrative?
For this first editorial, I wanted the focus to be purely visual, storytelling, and to share with all of you another aspect of digital fashion as a form of art and storytelling using 3D, VR sculpting, AI elements, and costume digital design. Soon we will be able to explore more technologies that will make the experience even more immersive.
As an artist working at the intersection of technology and fashion, what challenges have you faced, and how have you overcome them? Are there particular moments in your journey that stand out as significant triumphs?
To be honest, every single time that I put myself out there is a win for me. This creation is such an emotional journey for me, of my story personally, and my struggles with self-doubts. Thanks to this experience, I am filled with inspiration and I can't wait to get to explore them soon and just simply put them out there and let go of my fears.
Looking ahead, what future projects or themes do you aspire to explore in your art? Are there new storytelling avenues or technological innovations you're excited to explore in your upcoming projects?
After this experience in Art Basel, I am looking forward to starting to work on a few new projects. Especially in relation to this first collection. So please, stay tuned because it’s going to be super exciting.