In the times when character-building and designing have begun to hold fun tricks to understand its true functionality and the depth of its complexities, it is fair to say that digitization in art provides the dark fantasy with broader space and fresh perspectives. From the growing interests in horror and thrill genres, as well as a better acceptance of them within the complicated life that surrounds us, Alfred Pietroni spoke to us about his personal involvement in the subject and his approach toward the avant-garde side of art and fashion.

Firstly, I want to know a bit about you before you started making art. How was your social and cultural upbringing and what triggered you into pursuing what you do now?

I grew up very content with my own personal space, I could happily sit alone and entertain myself with comics, imaginary games, and drawing from a young age. I guess this fostered my love for a creative outlet; it certainly allowed me time to explore my own imagination. I remember being introduced to Warhammer and Magic The Gathering by my older brother and 2000AD by my mum at a young age. These wild, incredibly immersive, and dark fantasy worlds were really the initial sparks for me artistically and conceptually. Whether it was time spent playing horror and fantasy games, or sitting on my own reading manga, I believe this solitary engagement and fascination was the key trigger for my artistic pursuit.

The themes that you cover often romanticize the grotesque. How much is inspired from outer sources? Can you describe the visual structures that you have in mind while producing the pieces?

I like to think of my art as the Frankenstein monster. I take different parts of inspiration, different outer sources from all areas of art, film, and media, and stitch them together in my mind. I make sure to inject my own spark into them, my own ‘lifeblood’ to flow through the creations' veins. In terms of outer sources, this can be anything from couture fashion, survival horror video games, surrealist art, or 80’s Sci-fi films. Much like most other people I soak up the world we live in. I save images, photographs, and magazines and then pull them from this library when creating something. The important thing is to draw from this inspiration but also allow my mind to wander and organically design alongside it.

It's evident that you like to channel the dark, you explore a sort of ‘horrific drama’, what is it that makes you want to develop your stories in this category in particular? What is it that you enjoy about it? What feedback do you receive?

I enjoy the beauty in both the darkness and the light and the character designs that can be weaved when combining both of these worlds. I definitely enjoy the juxtaposition of two universes colliding and the melding of genres. The feedback I have received on my art has been generally very positive and encouraging, I worked on a piece for Skrillex last year where I received many positive comments and shares which was really fun to work on. My following and audience are still relatively small and I would love to grow this because I really enjoy the social elements of art; the sharing, the discussing, and the interactions.

The characters that you create are fictional, sometimes mythological, what books or existing artists do you reach out to for creative flow? Tell us about your favorite movies and music artists that validate your mental space and emotions.

For books, my greatest inspiration comes from Berserk [Kentaro Miura] and Akira [Katsuhiro Otomo]. I read both at a young age, and my mind was blown. In terms of inspirational artists I place H.R Giger at the very top, he is my absolute favorite and will forever be unchallenged- along with others like Hieronymus Bosch, Takehiko Inoue, Junji Ito, and the incredible Yoshitaka Amano. It’s hard to narrow down my top films but some of my favorites are Alien, Blade Runner, The Lord of the Rings, Hellraiser, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, and Ghost in the Shell. My favorite musical artists sway between a mix of genres. Electronic; Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Burial, Tim Hecker. Rap; Bladee, Nosgov, Future, Dion. Heavy metal; Windir, Slayer, Taake, Burzum. Some of my favorite fashion designers are Guo Pei, Balenciaga, McQueen, Dilara Findikoglu, Georges Hobeika, and Schiaparelli. Unfortunately, It would take forever to list all of my inspirations but I hope these listed provide some insight into the sheer variety and range that I draw from.

I see a lot of tarot cards elements and artworks sprinkled into your works…

I haven’t noticed this before! I think the creative language that Tarot cards use speaks to me both visually and conceptually. The fantastical, spiritual, and elemental narrative weaved throughout them has no doubt permeated my creative process.

As you continue your journey with digital fashion, please tell us what you plan to work on next.

I have a few things in the works and I am keeping a keen eye on the development of digital fashion within the industry. For now, I am focused on exploring my own avenue and further blending the fashion catwalk with more magical and spiritual narrative techniques. In my previous project [WW-22 Showcase] I designed a look where an iron maiden opens up and reveals a woman in a shimmering blue crystal dress, I am excited to develop ideas like this, ideas where I can continue to explore the theatrical and dramatic storytelling side of fashion and character design and seize a future for my creative outlet.