PLASTIK 21

There is a moment when you board a plane on the way home from a long summer holiday, you take your seat, buckle up, lights are dimmed for takeoff, and you gaze through that tiny hole at the bottom of the window in utter silence. Your fate is in the hands of the pilot, while you are devoid of everything – all you have is residues: the tan you got in ST.TROPEZ, the postcard you purchased in BARCELONA, the sunset you watched in MYKONOS, and the tunes that got stuck in your head from the closing parties in IBIZA. It was the summer we stayed up all night to GET LUCKY, blasted off to bed and all we could see is BLURRED LINES before the fiesta turned into a siesta and we thought to ourselves, “WAKE ME UP WHEN IT’S ALL OVER.” It is the very moment when you realize that the fun time is over. FALL is when things fall back into place. You will sit at your desk the next morning and tell your stories to your coworkers, while everything would seem so diaphanous, so distant and surreal. All the I MISS YOUs and WISH YOU WERE HEREs are only encrypted in your memory. You were on a virtual flight to LA LA LAND. I’ve always hated that moment. Some call it SUMMERTIME SADNESS, others call it POST-HOLIDAY BLUES. But I’ve also learnt to live with it. Because once you’re up in the air, there is a certain feeling of closure – and that in itself is comforting. The lights will be on again, you’ll be free to leave your seat, have a little chitchat with the stranger next to you – and when you run out of things to say about the war or the weather – you’ll reach out for your carry on and pull out votre plaisir coupable: the latest issue of PLASTIK. It is that moment. 

IGNASI MONREAL

Interview

Spanish-born Ignasi Monreal will only turn 23 by the end of august and yet he is already one of the hottest and most sought-after fashion illustrators and graphic designers in the world today. His work appeared in, among other publications, Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue Spain, V Magazine Spain, Candy and Dolce & Gabbana’s online magazine swide.

GREGOIRE GUILLEMAIN 

Interview

As spiderman puts his teeth into a Hamburger, the mighty hulk rolls a Joint, and wonder woman is going to the Loo, batman and robin do what everyone Thought they would do when not fighting Evil: making love! In the secret life of Superheroes, french artist Gregoire Guillemin offers us a glimpse of the Superhero’s life that normally remains. Behind closed doors in the marvel and dComic books. Greg guillemin is a french illustrator In his 40s who is not afraid to listen to his inner geek. While most people would  consider the latter a negative term, Guillemin cherishes it. To him, it refers to Any adult who has not yet lost the ability To play, and who dares say so. While the secret life of superheroes Represents his biggest success to date, Guillemin has a whole range of other Works that can be admired on his website. See for example his rather minimalist Series of film posters and his series of Capsules that, in a few lines, capture The essence of such icons as che, dali or Ghandi. Guillemin also draws his own Cartoons. Plastik* asked the creative genius about Being a child, a geek, a superhero and An ‘eclectic graphical gamer,’ as thatIs what Gregoire Guillemin likes to call himself.

CHRIS BRACEY 

Feature

For some 20 odd years, britain’s neon man Chris Bracey created the designs that lured customers into the red light district of soho. Today, his work adorns paris catwalks, Hollywood movie sets, hip art galleries and just about every self-respecting celebrity’s bedroom