Pilar Zeta | |
---|---|
Born | Pilar Zeta 15 June 1986 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 2009–present |
Website | pilarzeta |
Pilar Zeta is an Argentine multimedia artist, graphic designer and creative director currently based in Mexico City. She is best known for her surrealist style, influenced by ancient Egypt and cosmology. After meeting Phil Harvey, from British rock band Coldplay, she made artworks for A Head Full of Dreams (2015), Everyday Life (2019), Music of the Spheres (2021) and Moon Music (2024), with the second being nominated in the Best Recording Package category at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.
Her efforts also include creative direction for Lil Nas X's debut album, Montero (2021), and Camila Cabello's "Don't Go Yet" music video, which received a Clio Award. During the same year, she designed Hall of Visions, an installation at Faena Hotel for Miami Art Week. In 2022, Zeta launched The Space of Variations and Future Transmutation, with the former being her first solo exhibition. She then created Doors of Perception, an installation exhibited at Galerie Philia in 2023.
Pilar Zeta was born on 15 June 1986 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. [1] She began to draw and paint at six years old, [2] with her mother (an art history teacher) being a "driving force" for non-traditional inspirations such as metaphysics, indigo children philosophies and the paranormal. [3] Moreover, she used to be taken to various art museums by her father, becoming "so overwhelmed with the colors and techniques that as soon as I was home I was trying" to recreate the artworks seen. [2] With her brother owning a record collection, Zeta enjoyed investigating album covers used by bands including Pink Floyd, the Alan Parsons Project and Led Zeppelin. [4]
She has also commented "obsessing over them" was among the things which helped her decide what she would later do for a living: combine visual and musical art "into an amazing magical blend". [2] Another source of inspiration was dressing herself from a young age and making her own clothing from the age of 13. [5] Zeta then became a user of softwares like Corel Draw and Photoshop during her teenage years, [5] spending "hours doing different drawings and making color collages" which she liked to print. [2] Her favourite subject while in school was computers. [2] The artist affirmed being "fully trained" by the end of her senior year as well, hence why she never went to college to learn graphic design. [5]
After graduating from high school, Zeta enrolled on a fashion course for two months, but abandoned it because she was not "a fan of learning in an institutional environment". [5] She then moved to the United States as an exchange student at the age of 19 and got her first graphic design job. [4] In 2009, she was based in Berlin to exhibit her works in galleries from London and Moscow. [6] The artist had also worked for Island and Big Beat Records by 2011, plus joined art collective Outland, which held various exhibitions and shows in Europe. [6] She later met producer Jimmy Edgar and founded the label Ultramajic with them, [4] eventually becoming part of the electronic music scene. [7] Zeta then decided to prioritize her artistic efforts and launched an installation at Los Angeles' Standard Hotel in January 2015. [8]
Still in 2015, the artist began to be represented by MAAVVEN, an agency sending weekly newsletters to advertise their launch at the time. [9] One of them included a GIF image she designed and it was found by Coldplay's creative director Phil Harvey, who commissioned a piece for the band's seventh studio album A Head Full of Dreams . [9] Zeta collaborated with them on a studio in London to make a three meters handmade collage with images from their childhood. [9] The final result was edited into a kaleidoscope and a colorful version of the flower of life was added to the center, becoming the record's cover. [9] Zeta has been working as Coldplay's art director ever since. [10] She then made select designs for Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" on Witness: The Tour (2017–18). [11]
Her partnership with the latter singer also included directing his performance of "Come Through and Chill" and "Sky Walker" at the 18th BET Awards. [12] Similarly, she directed music videos for Bea Miller's "It's Not U It's Me" and "Feel Something". [13] Resuming her activities with Coldplay, Zeta designed Everyday Life (2019) and earned a Best Recording Package nomination at the 63rd Grammy Awards. [14] She then created visuals for their ninth album, Music of the Spheres (2021), [10] accompanied by fellow artist Victor Scorrano. During the same period, Lil Nas X commissioned her work as art director for Montero and she was hired by Camila Cabello for the music video of "Don't Go Yet", which won her a Clio Award. [15] In 2022, Zeta directed a video campaign for Carolina Herrera's Hot! Hot! Hot! fragrance, while 2023 saw her directing The Second Self, a fashion film for Bimba y Lola. [16]
Zeta was commissioned by Faena Art to make a large scale installation at Faena Hotel for Miami Art Week in 2021. [17] Termed Hall of Visions, the project featured a sculpture named Hatch, which depicted a cracked egg and referenced a moment of "renaissance and realization". [18] It has also been described as a tribute to madí and the history of art deco. [19] Argentine newspaper Clarín praised the "triumphant arches", calling "back an hotel as much as a temple". [20] Deepak Chopra held a meditation session in the installation, [21] which ranked among the "must-see" works of the event. [22] Hall of Visions was then animated into a video and split into five excerpts that were auctioned off as NFTs through a collaboration with marketplace Aorist. [19]
In the following year, Zeta launched The Space of Variations (2022), her debut solo exhibition. [23] The event was held at Los Angeles' Praz Delavallade and included "surrealistic landscapes, neo-metaphysical concepts, bold colors, and abstract shapes". [23] Similarly, the works were inspired by quantum physics, "esoteric knowledge and the history of ideas which create alternative interpretations for reality". [24] According to her interview for Vogue Spain , humanity is entering "the age of the sixth digital sense, but we cannot forget we are physical beings", which is why the exhibition focuses on the "connection between these two worlds". [24] Animated pieces were part of the exhibition aside from the physical artworks as well. [25]
She then took part in Miami Art Week once again by creating Future Transmutation (2022), a "large-scale sculptural garden" specifically for the path of "mathematics, astronomy and occult philosophies as creative devices". [26] Presented in partnership with W Hotels and the Mambo Creatives agency, the setup was completely glazed in shades of purple, [26] which is considered by Zeta "the color for transmutation", as it is right "between red and blue". [27] In February 2023, she designed an installation called Doors of Perception, which was part of the Antipodes exhibition at Mexico City's Galerie Philia. [28] It featured smooth surfaces and soft textures, being displayed alongside "rough and organically shaped" sculptures from Andrés Monnier. [29] British magazine Dezeen described the setup as "a tribute to an ethereal and non-tangible space as her thoughts, represented and created on a digital world but [ultimately] materialized by rock". [28] The artist also introduced her first collection of collectible furnitures, [28] which included pieces such as tables and chess pieces. [29]
Zeta's style is heavily influenced by her upbringing and an interest in ancient Egypt, cosmology and metaphysics. [30] She has cited Studio Alchimia, Leonora Carrington, Hilma af Klint, René Magritte, Joan Miró and Mariko Mori as inspirations, with the third being a reference for the symbolic and the occult. [31] Her works have been compared to Salvador Dalí as well. [31] According to American magazine Flaunt, she adopts a "pastel postmodernist aesthetic". [3] Moreover, the artist affirmed her visuals are defined by "minimalist, surrealist landscapes, her bold use of color, and of deconstructed shapes", coining the term "mystical futurism" to describe them. [32]
While she prioritizes working with softwares because they make her feel "more comfortable and free when it's time to create", [31] Zeta has used multiple mediums throughout her career, which includes drawing and scanning her own art, using photographs from flea markets and old books for collages, and producing her own resources from shapes to textures. [2] Additionally, she commented wanting her works to be "immersive", [33] so people can connect with "[their higher selves]". [34] In 2022, the artist began to explore with furniture designs at her own house, "playing with Feng Shui's principles and creating surrealist pieces that have function, but also a subconscious meaning". [31]
Following the release of Moments of Reality (2018), Zeta affirmed her sound was shaped by an obsession with postmodern furniture: "I was trying to redecorate my house while we were doing the music. All these lines crossed, and after a while, we just had all the songs for the album, and making the artwork was just so easy because it was part of it". [35] The record has been described as an experimental, [36] new-age release. [37] Jimmy Edgar helped her produce the songs, which were influenced by Japanese musician Haruomi Hosono and pioneering synth-pop group Art of Noise while she tried to fulfill her desire of fitting art, music, and clothing "seamlessly" together into one cohesive aesthetic. [35]
Year | Work | Artist | Label | Role |
---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Sweeter Than | Audiofly | Supernature (SPNX010) | Design ·artwork |
2010 | Sweeter Than (The Remixes) | Supernature (SPN0106) | ||
Betta Days | Zev | Supernature (SPN014) | ||
Captain My Captain | Pan-Pot | Mobilee (MOBILEE 071) | ||
Heartbeats | Various | Supplement Facts (SFR026) | ||
2011 | Time to Lose It | Dinky | Visionquest | Design |
Bittersweet | Rodriguez Jr. | Mobilee | ||
Where The Freaks Have No Name | Benoit & Sergio | Visionquest (VQ001) | Design ·artwork | |
Visionquest Beach Collection | Various | Visionquest (VQ005) | ||
"Mr. Duke" | Sebo K | Mobilee (MOBILEE 080) | ||
Step Aside | Life and Death | Visionquest (VQ009) | ||
Visionquest Fall Winter Collection | Various | Visionquest (VQ007) | ||
2012 | Iron Triangle | Hobo | M-nus | Design |
So Far... | Various | Mixmag | ||
Get Lost V | Acid Pauli | Crosstown Rebels | ||
This One's for the Children | Jimmy Edgar | Hotflush Recordings (HF033) | Design ·artwork [a] | |
The Picture | Tiga | Crosstown Rebels (CRM100) | Design ·artwork | |
"Sea" | Roosevelt | Greco-Roman (GREC025D) | ||
From the Vaults | Jay Haze | Supernature (SPN021) | ||
Good Times (Part 1) | Ray Okpara | Mobilee (MOBILEE 101) | ||
2013 | Times | David August | Diynamic Music | Artwork |
Singal Flow | Dirty Hands | Touch of Class | ||
Hot Inside | Jimmy Edgar | Ultramajic (LVX001) | Design ·artwork | |
Metaphysix I: Mentalism | Aden ·Creepy Autograph | Ultramajic (LVX002) | ||
2014 | Twenty Scope | Alix Alvarez | Endless Records | Artwork |
Names | Treasure Fingers ·Bosco | Fool's Gold Records (FGR107) | Design ·artwork | |
Mercurio | Jimmy Edgar | Ultramajic (LVX003) | Design ·artwork [a] | |
Whip | Aden | Ultramajic (LVX004) | Design ·artwork | |
Silicon | Danny Daze | Ultramajic (LVX005) | Design [a] | |
Four | Aden | Ultramajic (LVX006) | Design ·artwork [a] | |
Metaphysix II: Rhythm | Various | Ultramajic (LVX007) | ||
Rub | Chambray | Ultramajic (LVX009) | Artwork [a] | |
Circlon | Spatial | Ultramajic (LVX010) | Design ·artwork | |
Saline | Jimmy Edgar | Ultramajic (LVX012) | Artwork [a] | |
2015 | A Head Full of Dreams | Coldplay | Parlophone | Art direction ·artwork |
2017 | Witness: The Tour | Katy Perry | Capitol | Design |
7°CN | CNBLUE | FNC Entertainment | Art direction ·artwork | |
2018 | Ascension Tour | Miguel | ByStorm · RCA | Creative direction |
"Sky Walker" (Live at BET Awards) | Live performance direction [a] | |||
"Come Through and Chill" (Live at BET Awards) | ||||
2019 | "It's Not U It's Me" | Bea Miller · 6LACK | Hollywood | Music video direction |
"Feel Something" | Bea Miller | |||
Everyday Life | Coldplay | Parlophone | Art direction ·design | |
2020 | A View of U | Machinedrum | Ninja Tune | |
"Malibu" | Kim Petras | Amigo · Republic | Music video direction | |
2021 | Cheetah Bend | Jimmy Edgar | Innovative Leisure | Design ·artwork |
"Don't Go Yet" | Camila Cabello | Epic | Creative direction [b] | |
"Higher Power" | Coldplay | Parlophone | Art direction ·design | |
Music of the Spheres | Art direction ·artwork | |||
Montero | Lil Nas X | Columbia | Art direction | |
Big Bunny | Playboy | — | Creative direction [b] | |
2022 | Hot! Hot! Hot! | Carolina Herrera | Creative direction | |
2024 | Moon Music | Coldplay | Parlophone | Art direction ·design |
Nam June Paik was a South Korean artist. He worked with a variety of media and is considered to be the founder of video art. He is credited with the first use (1974) of the term "electronic super highway" to describe the future of telecommunications.
Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese contemporary artist who works primarily in sculpture and installation, and is also active in painting, performance, video art, fashion, poetry, fiction, and other arts. Her work is based in conceptual art and shows some attributes of feminism, minimalism, surrealism, Art Brut, pop art, and abstract expressionism, and is infused with autobiographical, psychological, and sexual content. She has been acknowledged as one of the most important living artists to come out of Japan, the world's top-selling female artist, and the world's most successful living artist. Her work influenced that of her contemporaries, including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg.
Wangechi Mutu is a Kenyan American visual artist, known primarily for her painting, sculpture, film, and performance work. Born in Kenya, Mutu now splits her time between her studio there in Nairobi and her studio in Brooklyn, New York, where she has lived and worked for over 20 years. Mutu's work has directed the female body as subject through collage painting, immersive installation, and live and video performance while exploring questions of self-image, gender constructs, cultural trauma, and environmental destruction and notions of beauty and power.
Cornelia Ann Parker is an English visual artist, best known for her sculpture and installation art.
Renée Stout is an American sculptor and contemporary artist known for assemblage artworks dealing with her personal history and African-American heritage. Born in Kansas, raised in Pittsburgh, living in Washington, D.C., and connected through her art to New Orleans, her art reflects this interest in African diasporic culture throughout the United States. Stout was the first American artist to exhibit in the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art.
Ebony Grace Patterson is a Jamaican-born visual artist and educator. She is known for her large and colorful tapestries created out of various materials such as, glitter, sequins, fabric, toys, beads, faux flowers, jewelry, and other embellishments. Her "Gangstas for Life series" of dancehall portraits, and her garden-inspired installations.
Hayv Kahraman is an Iraqi-American-Swedish artist of Kurdish descent, who was born in Baghdad and fled to Sweden with family during the Gulf War, studied in Florence, and is currently based in Los Angeles. She is primarily a painter.
Alan Roger Faena is an Argentine hotelier and real estate developer who has developed properties in his native Buenos Aires, as well as Miami Beach, Florida.
Xenobia Bailey is an American fine artist, designer, Supernaturalist, cultural activist and fiber artist best known for her eclectic crochet African-inspired hats and her large scale crochet pieces and mandalas.
Glenda León is a Cuban artist born in Havana, in 1976.
Simone Leigh is an American artist from Chicago who works in New York City in the United States. She works in various media including sculpture, installations, video, performance, and social practice. Leigh has described her work as auto-ethnographic, and her interests include African art and vernacular objects, performance, and feminism. Her work is concerned with the marginalization of women of color and reframes their experience as central to society. Leigh has often said that her work is focused on “Black female subjectivity,” with an interest in complex interplays between various strands of history. She was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.
Pilar Albarracín is a contemporary Spanish artist. Albarracín is known for her performances, video, drawings, photography and interactive sculptural installations "that focus on the cultural construction of Spanish identity, especially that of the Andalusian woman." Curator Rosa Martinez considers Albarracín "one of the most significant artists of the contemporary Spanish scene." Writer Paula Achiaga names her one of the most controversial Spanish artists in a 2014 article.
Antonia Wright is a Cuban-American artist born in Miami, Florida. Through a multidisciplinary practice of video, performance, installation, sculpture, sound, and light, Wright responds to extremes of emotion, control, and violence as they relate to systems of power in society. Alpesh Kantilal Patel of Artforum wrote of her work, “the body is the true medium she explores.”
Firelei Báez is a Dominican Republic-born, New York City-based artist known for intricate works on paper and canvas, as well as large scale sculpture. Her art focuses on untold stories and unheard voices, using portraiture, landscape, and design to explore the Western canon.
Consuelo Castañeda is a Cuban artist, professor, and art critic whose work includes painting, installations, photography, graphic art, architecture, and print. She was a major part of a movement of the relationship between art and politics in the 1980s avant-garde scene and revolutionized how women were treated in the art world. Castañeda is also credited with helping to catapult the cultural production of the Cuban avant-garde onto the international stage and shifting the popular understanding of the relationship between art and politics in Cuba, as well as in broader Latin America. Castañeda was living in Miami, Florida until 2016, and then moved back to Havana, Cuba.
Everyday Life is the eighth studio album by British rock band Coldplay. It was released on 22 November 2019 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom and Atlantic Records in the United States. It is a double album released as a single CD, with the first half titled Sunrise and the other Sunset. The release coincided with Coldplay: Everyday Life – Live in Jordan, in which performances of each half of the album were live streamed from the Amman Citadel in Jordan, at sunrise and sunset, respectively. Many returning producers and collaborators joined the band's efforts including Rik Simpson, Dan Green, Bill Rahko, Davide Rossi, and Emily Lazar.
Nancy Baker Cahill is an American new media artist based in Los Angeles, California. She has created immersive augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) experiences, video installations and blockchain projects, oftentimes rooted in drawing. Her work frequently merges technology and public art, drawing upon both feminist land art and the history of political interventions to examine systemic power, body autonomy, civics and climate crisis, among other issues.
Music of the Spheres is the ninth studio album by British rock band Coldplay, released on 15 October 2021 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom and Atlantic Records in the United States. The album was produced by Max Martin, who is a new producer to the band's discography. It features guest appearances from Selena Gomez, We Are King, Jacob Collier and BTS, as well as returning contributions from electronic producer Jon Hopkins.
Luna Paiva is an Argentine visual artist.
The contributions and influence of American artist Madonna in the landscape of underground and contemporary arts have been documented by a variety of sources such as art publications, scholars and art critics. As her footprints in the arts are lesser-known compared to her other roles, this led a contributor from W to conclude that both her impact and influence in the art world have been "made almost entirely behind the scenes". She is noted for taking inspiration from various painters in her career. Once called a "continuous multi-media art project" by Jon Pareles in 1990, art critics and academics have noted she condenses fashion, dance, photography, sculpture, cinema, music, video and painting in her own artwork.