A conversation with Fashion Illustrator Joanna Layla

Adrianne, Founder and Creative Director, along with Carlotta, curator of the AW Magazine, engaged in a conversation with contemporary artist Joanna Layla to explore the interconnection between art and fashion. Her unique style applies flowing brushstrokes and refined composition to fashion artwork. Communicating both beauty and concept within her artworks, she has collaborated with Garrard, Adidas, the Victoria and Albert Museum and E.L.V. Denim.

The London-based fashion illustrator created a set of artworks directly inspired by the Adrianne Weber fashion show. We had a chat with her to delve deeper into her sources of inspiration, artistic vision, and creative methodology.

Being both a fashion illustrator and artist, what does fashion mean to you?

As a visual artist, I am fascinated by how we choose to express ourselves through clothes – fashion as a visual expression of identity. I love fashion in its broadest sense –as iconic style, experimentation and expression of self and society. I am drawn to beauty – the zeitgeist found in the unexpected and unconventional. I love the 360 degrees of working as a fashion image maker - from the speed of drawing backstage at fashion weeks, to more considered fashion editorial and brand campaigns, art direction and exhibiting original works across the world. I feel most creative in this environment and working with designers, stylists and fashion editors.

I am also hugely inspired by fashion designers – such as Phoebe Philo, Yves Saint Laurent, Dries Van Noten - who create a unique visual language with their designs, often defining an era visually. The Adrianne Weber SS24 collection felt like a signature statement.

Your paintings beautifully capture the essence of our pieces. Can you describe

a particular moment or element of one of our designs that inspired you during

the fashion show?

While I was watching the show, I felt like I as tracing a translucent ink line from start to finish. The negative space of the page for the whites, the depths of ink for the shades of black. The collection felt like such a complete moment aesthetically. I loved the second skin subtlety of the grey silk dress, the use of sheer fabric and the bold silhouette of the cropped leather jackets. The models brought such attitude and grace, against the abstracted backdrop of the gallery.

Many artists have a unique ritual or regimen that helps them get into the creative flow. Is there any particular place or venue in London that you like to go to when lacking inspiration? I need to move – to walk, run, dance – to find inspiration. (The physicality of moving always sparks something in my brain). So, it’s the journey rather than the destination that I find inspiring. And that journey in London involves street style, people watching, art and abstraction. I love living in London.

Unfortunately, fashion and art are sometimes viewed as separate worlds, but your work bridges the gap beautifully. Can you discuss the intersection of fashion and art and how they influence one another in your practice?

Thank you. For me, the two are inseparable, both are creative modes of expression that are innately human. Throughout the ages we have made figurative artworks documenting life, often with acute attention to clothing and identity. And I think that is what I am interested in when I draw. Capturing moments of identity in time.

You previously stated that you ‘aspire to an image that has depth, layers of meaning,’ which is precisely what we hope people see in our creations. We wish for our audience to interpret our designs in their own way. What meaning would you attribute to our pieces? I love that parallel in our disciplines! As with the garments, the meaning I find in your designs is in the drawings – in the ink. Layer, texture, depth and movement, clarity and minimalism, intelligence, surface and intangibility. I love the Adrianne Weber aesthetic.

At Adrianne Weber, we see clothes as the painting that the artist will apply on the blank slate. We provide the painting, but the real artist is who wears the clothes. Which piece in the collection is your favourite, and how would you let it paint you?

The sheer top that looks like it is made of stars. Effortless, beautiful yet minimal aesthetic. I love the pairing of day and night.