Features
Work
News
Nicer Tuesdays
Shop

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube

Advertising
Animation
Architecture
Art

Fashion
Film
Furniture Design
Graphic Design

Illustration
Interactive
Miscellaneous
Photography

Product Design
Publication
Sculpture
Set Design

It’s Nice That

About
Contact
Submit
Advertising Opportunities
Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy
Cookie Policy

Network

Printed Pages Magazine
Here London Symposium
Nicer Tuesdays Event
Company of Parrots Shop
If You Could Jobsboard
Lecture in Progress
Anyways Creative Agency

All Sections

Features
Work
News
Opinion
Watch
Publications
Events
Partnerships

Regulars

Things
Bookshelf
Diary
Friday Mixtape
Monthly Brief
The Graduates
Review of the Year
Ones to Watch
The It’s Nice That Podcast

Editorial Staff

Bryony Stone
Ellie Robertson
Jenny Brewer
Lucy Bourton
Ruby Boddington
Daphne Milner
Emma Latham Phillips

Social Media

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Pinterest
Tumblr
Soundcloud
Newsletter
RSS

Championing creativity

Advertising • Animation • Art • Graphic Design • Illustration • Photography •

View all categories

Magritte — le palais des rideaux (the palace of curtains)

Work / Set Design

Romain Lenancker

Words by Charlotte Simmonds, Monday 27 February 2012

We laid some love on Romain’s sweeping paper sculptures back in 2010, and since then his portfolio has expanded by leaps and bounds we felt hard pressed to ignore. With commercial work that blends seamlessly with personal projects, it’s his singular passion for bringing visual drama to set design that’s won us over yet again. Pictured here is his take on Magritte, giving the classic painting le palais des rideaux a modern make-over and a high-def wash. Click through to see more of his latest work.

www.lenancker.com

Most Recent

Kim Gehrig's latest commercial for Covergirl combines comic chemistry with cosmetic commentary 17 July 2018
Watch Nicos Livesey explain how he made his embroidered BBC World Cup spot 17 July 2018
Photographer Niall McDiarmid travels from town to town to capture the essence of Britain 17 July 2018
Design studio Varv Varv's well-reasoned practice is an enquiry into "making things public" 17 July 2018
Radical Essex is a publication that aims to uproot the county’s misguided stereotypes 17 July 2018
Petrichor: a short film about snooker and mental health, beautifully packaged by Housework Press 17 July 2018

More like this:

Work / Photography Benedict Morgan exposes the trickery of a photography set in his Tableware series with Lisa Jahovic

There’s always something intriguing about how a visual illusion is performed, and it’s our curiosity towards such trickery that photographer Benedict Morgan has been investigating for years now. His latest personal work to do so is Tableware, a set of images revealing the “truths” of a photography set. Each shot – co-created with set designer Lisa Jahovic – is split in half, the top showing a printed photograph, the bottom showing the set in real life, immaculately sewn together in-camera. The results make anyone want to look closer.

Jenny Brewer — 21 May 2018
Work / Set Design Nico Krijno's new work steps into energetic and chaotic set design

It is difficult to describe which discipline the work of Nico Krijno falls under. Widely known for his editorial photography, when we stumbled across the journal section of his website our eyes were met with collaged works, and in their mishmash of colour and texture we struggled to work out whether they were digitally made or were born out of a unique style of set design.

Lucy Bourton — 10 January 2018
Work / Set Design New Studio's diverse editorial work for The New York Times Magazine

Derek Brahney set up his studio in Brooklyn after working freelance for a few years as a way to officially separate his commercial work from his artistic practice. “I had gotten to the point where I could finally (barely) afford to rent a small studio space, which felt like somewhat of a milestone,” Derek explains. So when he acquired his new studio he decided to celebrate the fact and name it New Studio, of course.

Ruby Boddington — 13 December 2017
Work / Set Design Thomas Petherick and Georgia Pendlebury explore the sculptural quality of clothes for Novembre Magazine

“When I was a student, I met someone that was studying set design and remember thinking, ‘how boring, I couldn’t think of anything worse’,” explains London-based set designer, Thomas Petherick, “ten years later, here I am and it couldn’t be any less boring!”

Ruby Boddington — 08 November 2017
Work / Set Design Michela Natella’s hyperreal world and stand-out set designs for Toilet Paper Magazine

The hyperreal world is where Michela Natella spends her time, sifting between a colourful land that makes you question what is real and what is purely imagined. Having spent the last 10 years in set design, this area of practice is her most crafted and defined, stemming from a hugely creative background and hands-on approach.

Ayla Angelos — 06 September 2017
Features / Set Design Set designer Gary Card on the importance of being a chameleon

“This is, I think, the generation of the polymath. Everyone’s a polymath! It’s a word that’s thrown at me quite a lot.” Meet Gary Card, a multi-talented set designer, illustrator, artist, and lately, sculptor. Adaptability is part of the territory for a set designer. “Every day is completely different. It’s a great thing being a set designer: you’re constantly making new things, you’re constantly shifting. By our very nature we have to be chameleons to be able to apply a brand new set of skills to each job.”

Bryony Stone — 22 February 2017

Work / Advertising Kim Gehrig's latest commercial for Covergirl combines comic chemistry with cosmetic commentary

Having recently worked with clients as diverse as Lurpak, Uber, and Chaka Khan, London-based director Kim Gehrig returns to transatlantic screens this afternoon with a new commercial for American cosmetics brand Covergirl as part of a campaign orchestrated by Droga5.

Josh Baines — 17 July 2018
Regulars / Nicer Tuesdays Watch Nicos Livesey explain how he made his embroidered BBC World Cup spot

Animation director and It’s Nice That One to Watch from 2017 Nicos Livesey never takes the easy route on a project. His latest film, the BBC’s promotional video for the 2018 World Cup, was one of his most extravagant works to date, embarking on a mammoth task where each frame would be embroidered, and then animated.

It's Nice That — 17 July 2018
Work / Photography Photographer Niall McDiarmid travels from town to town to capture the essence of Britain

Niall McDiarmid travels up and down the country to capture portraits of the people of Britain. Each image, with their pops of colour and character, beautifully summarises the mood of each place he visits. “It’s an interesting time to be a British photographer”, Niall tells It’s Nice That. “Britain, along with many other European countries, has become much more diverse, and I want to capture that in my own style”. Niall’s project, Town to Town is packed full of people of all ethnicities, sexualities and genders, truly reaching into the heart of Britain.

Emma Latham Phillips — 17 July 2018
Work / Graphic Design Design studio Varv Varv's well-reasoned practice is an enquiry into "making things public"

For a design studio which began life as an ambulating bookshelf, Varv Varv’s output of printed matter is suitably impressive. The culmination of Anders Stockman and Mathew Whittington, who are based in Malmö and London respectively, the studio works across visual identities, websites, typefaces, exhibitions and publications.

Ruby Boddington — 17 July 2018
Work / Publication Radical Essex is a publication that aims to uproot the county’s misguided stereotypes

Essex as a county has been historically judged by misguided stereotypes, summed up in the Spitting Image’s anthem, Essex is Crap. Radical Essex is an ongoing project dating back to 2016 that aims to uproot these malignant categorisations; it “re-examines the history of the county concerning radicalism in thought, lifestyle, politics and architecture, and sheds light on the region’s vibrant, pioneering thinking throughout the twentieth century”.

Emma Latham Phillips — 17 July 2018
Work / Graphic Design Petrichor: a short film about snooker and mental health, beautifully packaged by Housework Press

“I’ve always loved watching snooker. Don’t ask me where I got it from, I’m the only person in my family who’s into it,” explains filmmaker Louis-Jack, “before I even knew the rules, I was just utterly mesmerised by it on the TV.” Based in London, Louis-Jack has recently worked with Bafta-nominated writer Kenny Emson and production company Pavilion – AKA Morgan Faverty and Jake Evans – to concept a film which explores the psychological aspect of snooker, and the toll it often takes on its top players.

Ruby Boddington — 17 July 2018

Work / Photography KangHee Kim's images are as satisfying to create as they are to look at

Photographs by KangHee Kim are known in corners all over the internet. Instantly satisfying but including something just-not-quite-right, her crafted images have garnered a huge following, always stopping people whilst scrolling through feeds.

Lucy Bourton — 16 July 2018
Regulars / Printed Pages Cover Stories: Veronica Ditting on the covers that left a lasting impression on her work

To celebrate the release of Printed Pages SS18, we’ve asked a selection of influential people in creative publishing to choose the seminal book and magazine covers that they loved, and made an impact on them and their work. The publications could be from any time, place or niche of the publishing world. In this series, they’ll tell us why these particular covers left a lasting impression.

Ellie Robertson — 16 July 2018
Work / Art Alix Marie’s photographic sculptures celebrate bodily experiences

Throughout history, the body has always been deemed as a place of abjection, particularly with regards to the female form. Alix Marie’s artwork strives to make us come to terms with our own bodily experiences, forcing us to face what is natural. Breaking away from the narrow western capitalist standards of beauty advertising, Alix aims to “picture bodies genuinely,” she says. “I don’t understand why a scar or a stretch mark has to be considered ugly or disturbing. We all bear witness to events on our skin, and I think it’s important to consider and represent them”. At times grotesque, and definitely enough to make the viewer squeamish, Alix displays magnificent magnified images of the skin — deep purple bruises, pink, plush pimples, wet lips and dried, cracked blemishes.

Emma Latham Phillips — 16 July 2018
Work / Illustration Nadine Redlich’s new book illustrates the moment you realise you actually hate your partner

Illustrator Nadine Redlich is a creative we, and practically everyone else, absolutely loves. Nadine’s work is ridiculously relatable. It covers hangovers, procrastination, general self-doubt and everything in between. But it doesn’t do it in an illustrative style that’s too close to home; instead, she designs squidgy sweet characters like a blunt-faced rock or a cheeky little blob. But, watch out loved-up couples, Nadine’s new book I hate you… you just don’t know it yet, is here to point out some of the best and worst parts of any relationship.

Lucy Bourton — 16 July 2018
Work / Illustration Sophy Hollington’s striking tarot deck combines mysticism with a glam-punk contemporary twist

It’s no secret that It’s Nice That is an admirer of Sophy Hollington’s illustrations. In this instance, the artist has collaborated with writer, David Keenan for Rough Trade Books, to create a beautiful linocut tarot deck that retains its mystic roots but also displays a glam-punk contemporary twist.

Emma Latham Phillips — 16 July 2018
Work / Digital Christopher Golden creates colourful digital environments that utilise visual abnormalities

Christopher Golden, who works under the moniker The Studio Gold, uses CGI and new media platforms to create visual content that “activates architectural and digital landscapes”. Inspired by companies who fit their stores experimentally, such as the Korean brand Gentle Monsters, Christopher is drawn to synthetic spaces. He mimics them, using 3D as a medium or tool “to create digital realism that simulates the real world in a similar way”. His work is hyperrealistic yet at the same time, their vibrant colours and strange movements create anomalies that give the pieces a unique twist. “Abnormalities create pieces that stand out from the crowd”, he tells us, “it’s also a way to provide a signature element that becomes a key component to the overall composition”.

Emma Latham Phillips — 13 July 2018

Work / Illustration Erin Aniker's quietly radical, feminist illustrations remind us that activism doesn't have to be loud

It’s perhaps unsurprising that Erin Aniker’s work takes a feminist stance. “My mum was always going to marches for Turkish and Kurdish women’s rights,” she says, “she marched with IMECE Women’s centre in Dalston. There would always be some kind of protest boards lying around at home and she used to take me and my brothers on the marches since we were babies, and strap the protest banners to our buggy”.

Kieran Yates — 13 July 2018
Work / Publication Marion Jdanoff explores the historical context of the world's big cats in Léopard = Nuit

For French illustrator Marion Jdanoff, animals are always reoccurring in her work. Fans of hers will notice this too from seeing “dogs and wolves on one hand and big cats on the other, especially tigers and jaguars,” she tells us.

Lucy Bourton — 13 July 2018
Work / Photography Photographer Catherine Losing uses objects to tell stories referencing culture and history

When still life photography is done well, it’s nothing short of captivating. Slick, glossy and often indecipherable in terms of how it has been achieved, it’s subtle and incredibly satisfying. It’s in this space that London-based photographer, Catherine Losing’s work sits. Although her practice spans more than just still lifes (increasingly including moving image as of late), perfectly composed collections of objects are a personal favourite of hers – and ours too.

Ruby Boddington — 13 July 2018
Regulars / Friday Mixtape Friday Mixtape: A world cup special from the It’s Nice That team

It may not be coming home for Eng-ger-land this year, but the World Cup is still on and all is to play for between Croatia vs France this Sunday. It’s been a month of ups and downs, heart-attack inducing penalty shootouts, underdogs rising to the top (that South Korea vs Germany game, my god) and, well, waistcoats.

It's Nice That — 13 July 2018
Work / Photography Peter Franklyn Banks’ series Cromer Pier is a melodic call to the sea

Peter Franklyn Banks’s background in cinema brings a crucial element of storytelling to his photography. His project Cromer Pier documents the pier over several years, with the photographer regularly returning to capture what has changed. “Since my mum moved out to the seaside in Norfolk, I’ve got no family remaining in Nottingham”, the photographer explains. “This project is an attempt to connect with a new identity. As I return every year I see familiar faces and the changes in them; you start to feel like part of that community”. Revisiting a particular subject is a theme seen throughout his work, down to his appreciation for “relationships or community and how they develop over time”. Many photography projects seem to end abruptly, and often you can’t help but long for them to go on, so you can continue following the story and the characters you’ve become so attached to. In this case, “I don’t know where the project ends, but at the moment it feels like I have to keep going back”, Peter comments.

Emma Latham Phillips — 13 July 2018
Work / Illustration Anu Ambasna's playful illustrations celebrate club culture, brown bodies and perfect paunches

“Club culture influences my work in a subliminal way – if I see someone in a club wearing a string vest, I’ll most likely end up drawing them that week without even realising”. Illustrator and DJ Anu Ambasna is discussing how music unwittingly influences the work that she makes; however, despite designing flyers for club nights and hosting her own show on east London internet station NTS radio, music is just an accompaniment, rather than top billing.

Kieran Yates — 13 July 2018

Work / Digital Territory Studio designs media for James Bond experience in the Austrian mountains

Set upon the summit of Gaislachkogl, an icy, snow-capped mountain in Sölden, Austria, a striking new modernist gallery has been built. It houses a breathtaking new exhibit, 007 Elements, the world’s first cinematic installation dedicated to the world of James Bond. The visitor journeys through a series of high tech, interactive galleries, “each distilling the craft of the signature elements that define a Bond film”. It is an immersive, educational experience “that places the guests inside the world of 007 while also revealing how that world is made”.

Emma Latham Phillips — 12 July 2018
Sponsored / Converse x JW Anderson Five creatives visually respond to the question: What makes something art, anyway?

It’s Nice That has teamed up with Converse and JW Anderson to celebrate the launch of their latest collaboration. A sculptural tribute to colour and gloss, the new collection sees the classic Chuck ‘70 reimagined in ultra-slick patent leather and conflicting graded colourways. High-energy and provocative, the project explores the intersection of art and fashion, questioning what art is, and can be.

Ruby Boddington — 12 July 2018
Work / Photography Drawn to subcultures, Kevin Faingnaert photographs Summer Solstice at Stonehenge

Annually, thousands flock to Stonehenge to celebrate Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. It occurs when one of the Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt toward the sun. Pagans and druids meet together at the ancient site to watch the sun rise above the Heel Stone, celebrating rebirth. On 20 June of this year, Kevin Faingnaert journeyed with them. With an affinity for people and places, the Belgian photographer documents subcultures, telling their untold stories. “I stood between druids, fortune tellers, pagans, Buddhists, Hare Krishna’s and tourists”, he tells us, and “as the sun rose, at around 4:52, an incredible party broke loose”.

Emma Latham Phillips — 12 July 2018
Work / Graphic Design Luke Insect designs a "BMX break up album about teenage love and endless summers"

Following a degree in graphic design and illustration at Newcastle, graphic designer Luke Insect got an art working/tea making, break in London. It was the 90s and his first design jobs were working on record sleeves for the likes of Funkadelic, Parliament, Motorhead and Ozzy Osborne. Experience under his belt, Luke headed east “to the near-empty Old Truman Brewery in the deserted Brick Lane (this was 1998!),” and set up his own design and illustration studio, Insect. Taking his new found knowledge, the studio put out a bunch of sleeves, flyers and posters for independent record labels each “riding a bit of a new wave of maximalist illustration and street art at the time,” he tells It’s Nice That.

Lucy Bourton — 12 July 2018
Work / Exhibition Beci Orpin and Carla McRae’s exhibition, Out of Bounds, explores the notion of play

Beci Orpin and Carla McRae have collaborated on an exhibition at Boom Gallery that explores the notion of “play”. Play is an essential part of childhood — that “time spent without purpose in exploration, losing track of the hours”. However, as we get older expectation entails that we grow out of it. For their joint exhibition, Beci and Carla look to explore “the way that these spaces can be cultivated as adults and how we can tap back into those headspaces. Because they’re still there”, they tell It’s Nice That, “they’ve just shifted forms”.

Emma Latham Phillips — 11 July 2018
Work / Graphic Design Rudy Guedj's design work sits between "figurative motifs and their abstracted representations"

With illustration and drawing a recurring tool in his practice, French graphic designer Rudy Guedj’s work spans print and exhibition design as well as publishing. His theoretical and conceptual approach to design, however, also reaches into more fine art-based pieces including animation, murals, prints and installations.

Ruby Boddington — 11 July 2018

Work / Sculpture Photographer Jamie Hawkesworth on expanding his creative practice to include sculpture

“What I always preach about photography is that it’s just great to see what you come across,” Jamie Hawkesworth, an artist who needs little introduction, tells us about his creative practice. It’s this approach, one of both wandering and wondering, that has gained Jamie respect in numerous cultural fields and his latest venture is no exception, but this time its sculpture.

Lucy Bourton — 11 July 2018
Work / Publication Claire Milbrath shares her best bits of Editorial Magazine's new issue

If Editorial Magazine came out monthly or weekly, It’s Nice That would be full of articles about it. Each time it’s released founding editor Claire Milbrath brings something brilliantly new to the table, from her commissioning to the subjects the articles dive into. The most recent issue has just done it once again. But, rather than ramble on about it ourselves, we’ve let Claire take the reigns this time.

Lucy Bourton — 11 July 2018
Work / Photography Luca Anzalone’s photographs twist the stereotypical narratives of classical culture

Luca Anzalone’s photographs blur the boundaries between fantasy and reality; their surreal, performative quality twists the “stereotypical narratives of classical culture”, he explains. “What we constantly struggle to define as reality is just an illusion in our brains”, Luca tells us, “I’d rather play with that concept”. His images are reminiscent of an Alice in Wonderland-like world, a mixture of logic and nonsense juxtaposed to create experimental and theatrical photos with a scent of subtly and grace that is deeply sensual.

Emma Latham Phillips — 11 July 2018
Work / Photography "The power of the camera has always amazed me": Will Cooper-Mitchell's explorative photography

For photographer Will Cooper-Mitchell, photography and place are inherently linked, neither existing without the other in his practice. Shooting almost exclusively on black and white 35mm film, Will’s classically stylised work sees him using the medium to explore the world, drawing inspiration from greats such as Bruce Davidson, Robert Frank and the Japanese Provoke movement.

Ruby Boddington — 11 July 2018
Work / Animation Olivier Lescot's animated music video for Breakbot effortlessly merges from scene-to-scene

Breakbot AKA Thibaut Jean-Marie Michel Berland, a French producer and DJ has enlisted director and animator Oilvier Lescot to create the music video for his latest single Another You, featuring Ruckazoid, which is being released today.

Ruby Boddington — 10 July 2018
Work / Art Ellie Ji Yang’s idyllic paintings explore the rhythms of the natural world

Ellie Ji Yang’s joyful and colourful paintings explore the rhythms of the natural world. Brought up in Gwang-ju, a city in South Korea “that balances city and nature”, Ellie was surrounded by “greenery and small forests” from a young age. “Connected to nature, my memories of these places are the foundation of my imagination”, she tells us. Now based in Brooklyn, NYC, Ellie’s paintings vividly recall her childhood, creating idyllic, vibrant scenes, pointedly absent of anything human-made. Many of her works include animals reminiscent of Asian culture and symbolism, while others showcase worlds containing mysterious prehistoric and religious references.

Emma Latham Phillips — 10 July 2018

Keep up to date with It’s Nice That — Sign up for our daily newsletter and follow us on social media

Daily Round-Up
Weekly Top-Ten
Nicer Tuesdays
Printed Pages & Shop
Here

Please select the newsletter categories you'd like to recieve

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Pinterest
Tumblr
Soundcloud

21 Downham Road,
London, N1 5AA, UK

@itsnicethat
+44 (0)20 7739 5222

Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy and Cookies Policy

We use cookies on this website to analyse your use of our products and services, provide content from third parties and assist with our marketing efforts. Learn more about our use of cookies and available controls: cookie policy.

Please be aware that your experience may be disrupted until you accept cookies.

I accept It's Nice That's use of cookies