Portrait: Discover the Lille-based artist Morganne Borowczyk

Morganne Borowczyk, a Lille-based artist who has had the opportunity to work for numerous bands and artists, took the time to answer a few questions for Distrolution Merch! Discover our interview without further delay.

Photo: Aurélia Sendra (Instagram)

Hi Morganne! Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions! Can you introduce yourself to our readers?

Hi! Thank you very much for this interview :) My name is Morganne Borowczyk and I'm an artist from Lille. I started making concert posters around 2012 to help out some friends and it has followed me until now. I preferred the title of illustrator for a long time, but today, my practice also encompasses typography, lettering, animation, and graphic design in general.

You mention on your website that you have "a taste for dark aesthetics and loud music". How would you define your artistic universe?

The largest part of my body of work is illustrated in ink, with a pronounced black and white contrast. I address themes such as nature, cosmos, and witchcraft.

Currently, I'm also incorporating a lot of fluid shapes that distantly resemble Art Nouveau. I find there's something super interesting in the elegance of curves. I try to translate that in a contemporary way with more aggressive shapes, closer to metal codes.

What about your musical universe?

Currently, I'm listening a lot to the latest White Ward, the new Russian Circles singles, and Sinner Get Ready by Lingua Ignota. When I need to refocus, I loop All Thoughts Fly by Anna Von Hausswolff, and conversely, when I need a boost, it's often Nine Inch Nails that plays.

Where do you draw your daily inspiration from?

I'm mainly inspired by nature, whether it's forests, the underground world, or space. It's vast! Medieval-fantastic influences go back a long way, with The Black Cauldron, The Lord of the Rings, The Dark Crystal...

For lettering, I dig through old books and keep my eyes open wherever I go. You can find interesting shapes everywhere, and once you've defined an intention with a few letters, the rest follows naturally.

You're from Lille. Do you have any local artists / bands to recommend to us?

There are our dear Queen(Ares) with whom I often work and who are preparing something big for soon, The Lumberjack Feedback and Barque who need no introduction, the cool solo projects of Manic Maya and Ekby Östen, the completely crazy UFO that is Monsieur Thibaut... We have a lot of great things in Lille, I'm rarely disappointed!

You've designed visuals for many bands, artists... Is there a collaboration / creation that particularly stood out to you?

Each project is always unique, but my favorite is the one for Coole Max who gave me carte blanche for the release of his first EP. I was able to propose a complete artistic direction, with a CD produced in an extra limited edition, merch, a live video, and even a stop motion clip! It's truly a joy to have been able to build this universe and adapt it to so many different media.

Let's talk about merch. In general, is there a merchandising item that you give particular importance to? If so, which one and why?

Yes and no! For me, every piece you release must be impeccable. People pay for it, they deserve to have a quality object and especially an object they want to show off. 

It's better to create a small, varied, and coherent merch capsule, with a few well-chosen items. In any case, the t-shirt is often a good idea: fans wear them everywhere, it's the item that allows for the most visibility expansion.

The final word is yours! Feel free to share your future projects with us!

Thank you Distrolution Merch for this interview! I'm taking the summer to recharge my creative batteries and I'll be back in the fall with a new typeface and surprise projects. In the meantime, feel free to follow me on Instagram or on Twitter.