HYPER REALISTIK Manuel Albarran

artPLAY FASHION…LET’S START PLAYING….

MANUEL ALBARRAN is a fashion designer and craftsman with a unique vision. Manuel’s custom made fantasy creations have been seen on such icons as Angelina Jolie, Beyonce, Madonna and in fashion publications ID, Dazed And Confused and Vogue.
Manuel spoke exclusively to artPLAY and shared with us his latest editorial featuring the Hyper Realistik concept.

Fashion – MANUEL ALBARRAN   www.manuelalbarran.com  @manuelalbarranoficial
Photo – Ivan Jimenez Foto @ivanjimenezfoto
Art Director – @angelcabezuelo77   Artistic producer – @thisisdessiss
Hair – @polopelo
MUAS – @raquel_pintado_rosa   @martaruiz.makeup   @mademoiselle_trouble
Prosthetics  – @raquel_pintado_rosa   @nino_del_pozo
Costume assistant – @miriam_sevilla @lolavondage
Talents –  @dshock3  @santakkkk  @didimaquiaveli  @ndongluis  @yulffiwhite  @_luzzzz_ @joelfllores
@mireia_plandolit    @youngthatsme    @marii.alien   @nikawolfe

Sponsored by @ocanabcn

artPLAY: Thank you for artPLAYing with us. We are in love with your out of this world creations, you work is conceptual, original and requires a lots of skills, tell us us about the concept behind your work. How do you come up with those designs?

MANUEL:  My references as a starting point are always other dimensions, from there I research and develop my new concepts. Alternative humans, mutants, cyborgs, aliens, androids became a part of my creative world. My main creative purpose is to transform reality.

My last concept Hyper Realistik is the best example of it; inspired in el Bosco, the garden of delights, this is the type of direction I want in my concepts.

artPLAY: We would like to know more about your choice of materials, as working with metal is not that common, it is something almost as if out of the future, something solid that can not fall apart easily with time. For you, what do those materials represent?

MANUEL:  Materials always support my creative concepts, mostly I use all types of metals and PVC, those are some of my favourites; in my opinion they make the final pieces looks unusual and futuristic, with a great visual effect for the compactness, heaviness, light reflection and shining. They make it look like proper objects, sculptures or gear, far from clothing.
I am highly skilled with those materials. In 1996 I made my first metal piece so I feel very comfortable to work with them.

artPLAY: We are a genderfluid publication pushing the boundaries and challenging traditional views on gender in fashion and art, we know you worked with amazing fashion icons like Miss Fame, how do you view gender in terms of your creations.  Is the future of fashion genderless?

MANUEL: I have been working and collaborating with almost all types of gender. Since I started to be part of the art-fashion-performance world in 1997; one of my favourite genders was trans and androgynous like Amanda Lepore, Carmen Xtravaganza, Polly Fey, Johanna Constantine, Alix Xitron, all of the from the old school. At that time it wasn’t accepted by the fashion industry but I knew they would be a trend as they are today.
Actually genders are developing into a great diversity, so many types and alternative variants. Many people don’t identify with the common genders, it is a total gender freedom self classify, that makes them unique. The reason why they are a trend in fashion is that they industry needs new concepts, faces, genders to innovate every season and to create something new and different.

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