The role of art has always been to reflect the world around us whilst offering new ways to understand it. At a time when we are experiencing rapid technological change, shifting social landscapes and urgent conversations around the future of our planet, creativity is vital. Artists inside the August / September edition of Aesthetica Magazine examine complexity, challenge established perspectives and reveal connections that might otherwise remain unseen. Their work encourages us to look more closely at the stories, places and communities that shape our experience. Below is a preview of what you’ll find inside:
Sense of Narrative | Yannis Davy Guibinga is passionate about telling stories rooted in Africa and its diaspora. He uses bright hues and striking imagery to do just that.
States of Becoming | The Aesthetica Art Prize celebrates 20 years with a bold show of visionary practitioners working in film, photography, painting, sculpture and more.
Vibrant Botanicals | Hyperreal plant pictures by Tom Leighton ask us to step onto another planet, which has been consumed by luminous, verdant undergrowth.
Emotive Atmosphere | Vijay Sarathy’s evocative pieces respond to the artist’s life in the Himalayas and his own deeply personal relationship with its diverse landscape.
Surreal Everyday | Bobby Beasley is a self-taught photographer shaking up documentary through unexpected camera angles, saturation and bright lighting.
Living in Nature | Across coasts and forests, architects redefine the myth of the Canadian cabin through site-specific blueprints and more sustainable material choices.
Shaping the Present | Laurence Philomène speaks about their approach to self-portraiture as part of Gen Z, a presentation supporting the next generation of lens-based art.
Staged Constructs | Jada and David are a creative duo who specialise in set design, creating M.C. Escher-esque spaces filled with explosive colours and optical illusion.
Fragile Seascapes | The Baltic Sea is suffering from unprecedented oxygen loss. Małgorzata Stankiewicz visualises this phenomenon through striking cyanotypes.
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Image Credits:
1. Photography and Set Design: Jada + David. Model: Hannah Grace.
2. Yannis Davy Guibinga, To Hold The Moon, (2025). Featuring Haji Maa.
3. Yannis Davy Guibinga, Hallucinogen, (2025). Featuring Raïssa.
4. Alexis Pichot, From the series Marche Céleste (2016-2017).
5. Tom Leighton, Displacement, (2026). Image courtesy of the artist.
6. Tom Leighton, Caustic, (2025). Image courtesy of the artist.
7. Image courtesy of Vijay Sarathy.
8. Bobby Beasley, Seeds. Image courtesy of the artist.
9. Bobby Beasley, Storm. Image courtesy of the artist.
10. L’Antre des Draveurs, SGD A Architecture + Design, Portneuf, Quebec. Photo: Phil Bernard, Northern Exposure, gestalten, 2026.
11. Laurence Philomène, Self Portrait with Oranges, (2016). From the series Me vs Others.
12. Laurence Philomène, Steph as Me, (2017). From the series Me vs Others.
13. Photography and Set Design: Jada + David. Model: Alex Walker.
14. Baltic Algal Bloom D2, (2020-2021). Unique cyanotype print on tengujo kozō paper from a satellite image captured by Copernicus Sentinel (2019) processed by ESA, ca. 30 x 40.5 cm © Małgorzata Stankiewicz.
15. Baltic Algal Bloom D1 – detail, (2020-2021). Unique cyanotype print on tengujo kōzo paper from a satellite image captured by Copernicus Sentinel (2019) processed by ESA, ca. 30 x 40.5 cm © Małgorzata Stankiewicz.
