Simone Prick

Pure Memories Photography©

“Growing up I was a dreamer, living in my own little fantasy world, surrounded by beauty.” So begins the biography of Simone Prick, one of the Netherlands’ most exciting young artists. While Simone’s opening gambit may be entrenched in the vernacular of the creative, she reveals in our conversation that her love of art is a totally consuming passion. In marrying the two worlds of graphic design and fashion, Simone Prick has spent her blossoming career focusing on a tactile approach to observing the fine details and nuances that underline the true elegance of fashion.

To understand her current work, it is first important to gain a further insight into the artistic process. Simone reveals, “My passion is in particular for the graphic design of fashion brands and the overall (two dimensional) presentation of fashion collections.” She continues, “I love to express elegance, femininity and sensuality through my designs. In this sense fashion is a big source of inspiration to me.”

Graphic design is commonly understood as the necessary element with which fashion reaches its material result. However, in Simone’s work, the graphic design is an intimate analysis of the ways in which we appreciate the emotive effects of fashion. In linking these worlds together, Simone states, “Graphic design communicates the identity of a fashion brand in a unique and recognizable way. What I like to do most is to translate the main style of a fashion collection into original and exclusive graphic presentation designs, such as branding, packaging and illustration. In particular, I enjoy the use of graphic aspects in garments such as graphic prints, typographic elements and illustrations on garments. I believe the use of exclusive materials and paper can contribute to a luxurious feel of the brand identity.”

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It became clear early in our conversation that Simone had a specific desire to work in a physical, rather than a digital, manner. By combining what she learned from her childhood attempts to build birdhouses and jewelry boxes, along with her belief in using exclusive materials, Simone explains her technique with striking clarity: “Designing handmade, instead of digitally, gives me freedom in my creativity; the designs develop while I am building them with my own two hands, using ink, paint and pencil.” She further reveals her process: “[I finish] most of my designs and illustrations digitally, but the basis always starts from a handmade drawing. I love to pay attention to every single detail—from the design itself to the paper that it is printed on.”

As our conversation draws to a close, we focus on Simone’s current work, centered around the zodiac signs. Simone explains how the project was first conceived: “During a short city-trip to Rome I made a sketch of an artistic looking girl at a cute little bar. When back at home, I started to make an illustration inspired by this girl. While I was drawing, the illustration developed into something different: the end result I named ‘Gemini.’ It was the first word that came to my mind when the illustration was finished. The first of twelve zodiac signs was born with this illustration.”

The winter signs, Sagittarius, Capricorn, and Aquarius, are currently on display, and Simone’s plan is to release the next season of zodiac pieces in March. In discussing her spring zodiac signs, Simone furthers her insight into her connection to astrology as she states, “I have always had an interest in the zodiac signs and how they influence a person’s character. I believe your zodiac sign can tell you a lot about your personality. When I was asked to present some of my illustrations in an art gallery called ZIN in Holland, I decided to present the twelve zodiac signs. It seemed the perfect topic to exhibit, while the art gallery has a spiritual feel to it and it focuses on the four seasons.”

Revealing that she herself is a Pisces, a zodiac sign known for its strong creative energy, Simone currently works as a freelance designer under her company Atelier Prée. With her zodiac work set to continue into 2014, the stars seem to be aligning for Simone Prick.

Text by Ben Blackburn
Photography by Kim Booij

THE SPRING ISSUE

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