Aesthetica Magazine Issue 100

April / May 2021

The past 12 months have been filled with a lot of noise. This pandemic has rocked us to the core. I’ve been experiencing a strange sense of nostalgia towards the first lockdown a year ago. I look at photos of the small things: the pet rocks we painted; visiting the “fun trees” near my house. It’s oddly comforting.

We have all been changed by this experience, but there are some positive things to take away, such as the support for independents – films, arts, music, retail, coffee – you name it. I feel, now more than ever, that we need to spend time with and invest in independent culture. This moves me on to the fact that this is a special edition of Aesthetica Magazine. We are 100 issues old, marking 18 years of the publication.

Inside this issue we are celebrating this momentous milestone. You’ll find a feature from me about how we set up this magazine in a small northern city in England – how it has grown to become one of the world’s leading voices in contemporary art. We also have a spread of some of our favourite photographs over the years, accompanied by text about what makes each image so successful.

The other features in this issue exemplify the spirit of independence. We speak with curators worldwide including Cindi Strauss, Curator of Decorative Arts, Crafts and Design at Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and Sarah Schleuning, Curator of Decorative Arts and Design at the Dallas Museum of Art, for the show Electrifying Design: A Century of Lighting, which takes its starting point from the invention of the first electric light by British chemist Humphry Davy in 1808. Lighting technology has fascinated engineers, scientists, architects and designers globally, and has inspired periods of extensive creative expression.

Living in Nature, a new monograph published by Phaidon, considers the role that the organic world plays in contemporary architecture. Finally, be inspired with the photographers in Issue 100 – from fine art to experimental, there is a life-force of innovation and idea generation on each and every page. Thank you for being part of Aesthetica – supporting independent print and our talented artists.

Obscure Portraiture

Alma Haser’s puzzle-piece portraits negotiate the boundaries between the real and the manufactured; they are intriguing and unsettling.

Symbiotic Architecture

Four billion people live in urban areas, a figure set only to increase. The only way forward is to welcome the environment into the blueprints.

Playful Geometry

Michael Oliver Love lives and works in Cape Town, South Africa. His style is centred on an interest in organic lines and fluidity in nature.

Identities Transposed

Kriss Munsya was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and raised in Brussels. The Eraser series is a story of change and transformation.

The Story of Aesthetica

Aesthetica is one of the key voices for contemporary visual culture. Hear from one of the founders, Cherie Federico, about setting it up.

Pivotal Illumination

Seminal designs chart the evolution of international lighting as a catalyst for global technological, functional and artistic expression.

Spatial Minimalism

Japanese design studio, Nendo, is known for a prolific output and playful style. We unpack its appeal in an age of pared-back aesthetics.

Fleeting Moments

Alex Mitchell is a photographer from Toronto, whose work explores Surrealism using an everyday lens. He transforms the mundane.

Forging New Pathways

China’s most forward-thinking architects are repurposing structures to offer a new landscape that is both culturally resonant and sustainable.

Breaking New Ground

Aesthetica Magazine looks for images that change the way we see the world. Discover some of our favourite photographers from over the years.