Ashley Munns, is a designer, image producer, director, stylist and multimedia artist, living in Mill Valley, California, United States. At the edge of a national monument called The Muir Woods. Versatile and complex artist, finding his inspiration in the meanders of the net. She refuses to follow trends, preferring to remain natural, anchoring herself in the raw reality of the image, without artifice or Photoshop effect. His atypical childhood allowed him to acquire a curious and lively mind, the desire to see the other side. Exclusively, she allowed us to learn a little more about her, and her vision of the fashion world. She also presents her latest collaboration project with the Solarium Swim brand.
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Ashley Munns, is a creative based in Mill Valley, California, USA - at the edge of a national monument called The Muir Woods. She is an image producer, director, stylist and mixed media artist. Versatile and complex artist, finding her inspiration in the meanders of the net. . She refuses to follow the trends, preferring to remain natural, by becoming staying focus in the raw reality of the image without tricks or photoshop effect. His atypical childhood, allowed him to acquire a curious and lively mind, the desire to see the other side. Exclusively, she allowed us to learn a little more about her, and about her vision of the fashion world. She also presents her latest collaboration project with Solarium Swim brand.
Can you tell us a little more about yourself? Where do you come from ? Were you born in Los Angeles?
I was born and raised in Orlando, Florida, known in America as the "House of the Mouse" because of Disney World. I went there every weekend when I was a kid. I think this has had a huge influence on my sense of visual comprehension because when I travel to other cultures and countries everything just feels wrong - like I'm doing a Disney carousel ride or a movie set!
My childhood was magical. We had horses and dogs and rabbits and a tennis court in our backyard! Our neighbors had peacock and ostrich farms and all the streets in our area were named after horses. My street was there "Mustang Ct".
When I was about ten years old, I discovered a house at the end of our cul de sac called "The Dome Pleasure" . There was a domineering face called "Pony Jean" and she was shuttling between people at the local grocery store for sex parties. My sister and I were snooping around and peeking through the windows to see whips and chains hanging around! Unfortunately, my parents hired a private investigator to kick them out of the neighborhood.
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When I was three, my family moved to Japan's northernmost island because my father was a Mormon missionary. I went to a Japanese preschool and had to star in all of their plays - I went out like I was doing chores. This experience helped me learn how to cope with being different at a very young age. Being raised by Mormons I have always been different.
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As an adult, I was able to travel and move around a lot. I now live in the San Francisco, California area. I live at the crossroads of the Golden Gate Bridge, through a rainbow tunnel and a magical forest filled with beautiful sequoias and animals. I swear the trees are dancing and the birds help me get dressed every morning. The style of my house is gothic .... it's super big and scary. The kids on our street think he's haunted and whisper as soon as they sneak up and we find that too fun! Sometimes my boyfriend will make a creepy noise at the window while the kids try to approach the house just because it's so cute and funny to see their reactions!
Did you study in an art and / or fashion school before doing what you are doing?
I was educated at a really conservative Mormon school in Utah called Brigham Young University . They are SO conservative that they don't even offer a fashion design program - instead, I chose to study visual arts specializing in collage and multimedia. In my final year, I embarked on a field study in New Zealand and Tonga to teach children about Maori reservations and learn about non-Westernized schooling patterns.
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After I graduated from college, together with a friend of mine, we created a clothing line called RosenMunns - this is where I learned the most about fashion design and the industry in general. My approach was very Guerilla Style and luckily my partner in this business knew more about business, marketing and design than I did. I am very creative but I do not do very well with the numbers, the pattern and the precision cutting! We had a lot of success with our little experimental clothing line, but we had to stop after 5 years.
Can you tell us about your work as a whole? What is your guideline?
It's always complicated to try to define what I do. One thing I'm sure about is that I'm in the business of producing images. It requires doing a lot of collaborations, which I manage to do successfully. The keys to a successful collaboration are the same for all relationships: trust, respect and communication. I try to work with people who also believe in these values. I'm not a technical person so I have to trust others to do this part for me and in turn I ask them to trust my direction and my aesthetic - grotesque as that sounds. My strengths are style, concept construction, creative direction and casting. And my guidelines are simple, really ... just follow your gut and don't be a motherfucker.
What are your artistic influences? Musical?
or in fashion?
I consider myself to be an image hunter - I spend a lot of time looking for inspiration on the internet. I can look at a photo and know right away whether I like it or not. This way, I am more natural as an editor. I am inspired by humor, nature and human nature.
Have you ever participated in Fashion Week? If yes, which ones ? What are your thoughts on this?
I am not at all involved in Fashion Week and have never been. I would kill to work as a stylist for a show but I'm not really part of that scene at that level. Oddly enough, the only fashion / show week I have technically worked for, was in Burgos, Spain about 10 years ago! I have always followed the parades but I never had the contacts to go there in person.
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Can you talk to us a little more about yourself? Where do you come from? You were born in LA?
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I was born and raised in Orlando, Florida which is referred to in America as the "House of the Mouse" because of Disney World. I went there every weekend as a kid. I think this had a huge effect on my sense of visual understanding because when I travel to other cultures and countries, everything feels fake- like a Disney ride or movie set!
My childhood was magical. We had horses and dogs and bunnies and a tennis court in our backyard! Our neighbors had peacock and ostrich farms and all of the streets in our area were named after horses. My street was Mustang Ct . When I was about ten, I discovered a home at the end of our cul de sac called "The Pleasure Dome" . There was a head dominatrix there called "Pony Jean" and she shuttled people in from the local grocery store for sex parties. My sister and I would snoop around and peek in the windows to see whips and chains hanging around! Sadly, my parents hired a private detective to throw them out of the neighborhood.
When I was three, my family moved to the northern most island of Japan because my Dad was a Mormon missionary. I went to a Japanese preschool and got to be the star of all of their plays - I stuck out like a sore thumb. This experience helped me learn how to deal with being different from a very young age. Being raised Mormon I was always different.
As an adult I've traveled quite a bit and moved around a lot. I am now based in the San Francisco, Ca area. I live across the Golden Gate Bridge, through a rainbow tunnel and in a magical forest filled with beautiful redwood trees and animals. I swear the trees dance and the birds help me dress myself every morning. The style of my home is gothic .... super tall and scary looking. The kids on our street think it is haunted and whisper as they scurry by which we find very entertaining! Sometimes my boyfriend will make a scary noise out the window as the kids approach the house just bc it is so cute and funny to see their reaction!
Did you study fashion design in a school? If yes which one?
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I went to a really conservative Mormon school in Utah called Brigham Young University . They are SO conservative that they don't even offer a fashion design program - Instead, I chose to study the Visual Arts specializing in collage and mixed media. My last year I went on a field study to New Zealand and Tonga to teach kids on Maori Reservations and learn about non westernized ways of schooling.
Upon graduation from University, a friend of mine and I started a clothing line called RosenMunns - this is where I learned the most about fashion design and the industry in general. My approach was very guerrilla style and luckily my partner knew more than me about business, marketing and design. I am super creative but I don't do well with numbers, patterns and precision cutting! We had quite a bit of success with our experimental little line, but called it quits after 5 years.
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Can you tell us about your work in general? What is the guideline?
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It's always really hard trying to define what I do. I know one thing for sure and that is that I'm in the business of image production. This requires an immense amount of collaboration which I'm still learning how to do successfully. The keys to a successful collaboration are the same for any relationship: trust, respect and communication. I try to work with people who believe in these values as well. I'm not a technical person so I have to trust others to do this part for me and in turn I ask them to trust my direction and aesthetic - no matter how grotesque it may seem. My strong points are style, concept building, creative direction and casting. And my guidelines are simple, really ..... go with your gut and don't be an asshole.
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What are your artistic influences? Musical? or in Fashion?
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I consider myself an image huntress - I spend a lot of time trolling the internet for inspiration. I can look at a photo and know right away if I like it or not. I'm a natural editor in that way. I'm inspired by humor, nature and human nature.
Have you already participated in Fashion Week? If yes which one? What are your impressions about it?
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I'm not at all involved in fashion week and never have been. I would kill to style a runway show but I'm not really part of that scene at this point. Funnily enough the only fashion week / shows I've technically been to were in Burgos, Spain about 10 years ago! I've always followed runway but I've never had the connections to get me there in person.
Do you work exclusively for Fashion? Or magazine?
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Since I am based in San Francisco, it is virtually impossible to work exclusively in the Fashion scene bc their simply is not one here. The industry here revolves around tech companies like apple, uber, etc. etc. It isn't always creative work when I style commercials and stuff for these clients, but it has helped me to learn professionalism and has given me all kinds of helpful tools. I also work on movie sets and tv shows as a costumer which is really intense and involves 14 hour days regularly. To satisfy myself creatively I create my own shoots for niche magazines. I find myself the most at home in the world of niche magazines and my dream is to be a fashion editor for one.
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What do you think of Fashion today? and the Fast Fashion?
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Fast fashion isn't even a temptation for me personally because by the time the trend hits the shelves at my local Zara, I am sick of seeing it everywhere. Even the big fashion houses are fast fashion now - in fact they are the ones fueling the fire. If I see that stupid Balenciaga croc one more time I might scream. It grosses me out that people are so obsessed with Vetements and Balenciaga ..... It was exciting at first to see these houses change the game a bit but now they seem stuck in a rut with only a couple of tricks up their sleeve. You know, it isn't even the stylist or designer behind the house - it is the way we fucking drill it into the ground as consumers that ruins the creative process. Go to your local fucking thrift store and find something unique - it is way more rewarding on every level.
Do you work exclusively in fashion? Or for magazines?
Since I live in San Francisco, it's practically impossible to work exclusively in the fashion industry because it's not what is done most here. The industry here revolves around tech companies like Apple, Uber, etc. etc. It's not always a creative job when I do advertisements and stuff for these clients, but it has helped me learn professionalism and it has given me all kinds of very useful tools. I also work on film sets and TV shows as a client which is very intense and involves 14 hour days on a regular basis. To satisfy myself creatively, I create my own shoots for independent magazines. I find myself better in my world through small magazines and my dream of being able to be a fashion editor for one of them.
What do you think of fashion today? in particular of "Fast Fashion"?
"Fast Fashion" is absolutely not a temptation for me personally, because just as the trend hits the shelves of my local "Zara", I'm already sick of seeing it everywhere. Even the big fashion houses are all the rage now - in fact, they're the ones fueling the fire. If I see those stupid "Balenciaga croc" one more time, I might scream. It pisses me off that people are so obsessed with Vetements and Balenciaga ..... It was exciting at first to see these houses changing the game a bit, but now they seem to get stuck in a rut with only a few laps in their hands. handle. You know, it's not even the stylist or the designer behind the house - it's how we as heavy consumers destroy the whole process of creation. Go to your local vintage store and find yourself something unique - it is much more rewarding on every level.
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Do you think it is even more difficult to progress in this environment today?
I think it's easier to be seen today but a lot harder to stand out. Ideas and trends are so accessible and visible to everyone now. The imagery goes so viral so quickly that it's harder to stay inventive and anticipate the game. My reaction has been to just put it all away from me rather than get caught up in it. I'm often told that I should keep some of my inspo images to myself rather than posting them all (I post a lot on instagram) but I'm not patient enough to take this advice. If I put them here it is for them to be taken and if someone can be inspired by them and do what I wanted to do but better, then make it happen .... more power to them !
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Coming back to your work, the clothes on the photoshoot are your creations?
I didn't create the clothes, but I create the looks. I use clothes from emerging designers and a local costume house.
Do you think it's difficult to progress in this environment today?
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I think it is easier to be seen yet harder to stand out. Ideas and trends are so accessible and visible to anyone and everyone now. Images go viral so fast that it can make it hard to stay inventive and ahead of the game. My reaction has been to just put it all out there rather than hoarding it. I'm often told I should keep some of my inspo images to myself rather than posting them all (I post a lot on instagram) but I am not patient enough to follow this advice. I put it out there for the taking and if someone can do what I wanted to do better than I can, so be it .... more power to em!
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To return to your work, so the clothes on the photoshoot are your creations?
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I don't create the clothing, but I do create the looks. I use clothing from emerging designers and a local costume house.
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Your universe is very particular, and the photos are like amateurish, as if they were stripped of all visual aesthetics, in contrary the others fashion magazines. What would you want to explain? This is an artistic choice? Can you develop why you choosed this artistic view?
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My approach is pretty rough around the edges and raw. I'm never too hung up on making a polished and pretty picture. There isn't a polished bone in my body .... even in my physical appearance ..... no matter how hard I try I always look a bit rough and tumble - I guess I decided a long time ago to stop fighting this and embrace it.
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The clothes presented will be in the new collection for this summer?
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The swimwear in this shoot is from Solarium Swim and is from their last holiday collection. The accessories and clothes are from local thrift stores. Does it have to be from the current runway to be relevant? My answer is a hard "no". It's now what you wear, it's how you wear it.
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Have you had the opportunity to collaborate with other artists? If yes which one?
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Yes I've been super lucky to have worked with amazing photographers, designers and magazines. My boyfriend is the secret weapon behind it all - he is the one that has to hear all of the weird ideas and proposals. Photographers I have worked with include Henry Mason Dent IV, Dana Boulos, Corey Olsen, Miriam Marlene and Damien Maloney. These are artists who have big imaginations and even bigger hearts.
What are your future projects?
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I'm organizing a drone shoot at the moment - the future is now!
Your universe is very particular, and the photos are almost amateurish, as if they were stripped of all forms of visual aesthetics, unlike what we can see in other fashion magazines. Is it an artistic choice?
Can you expand on why you chose this point of view?
My approach is quite rough and crude. I'm never too keen on taking a polished and pretty picture. There is not a polished bone in my body ... even in my physical appearance ..... no matter how hard I try, I always look a little rough and drooping - A long time ago, I guess I decided to stop fighting with this and accept it as it is.
The clothes presented will be in the new collection this summer?
The swimsuits in this shoot are from "Solarium Swim" and are from their latest vacation collection. Accessories and clothing are sourced from local thrift stores. Are they going to be featured at a parade to be of value? My answer is a harsh "no". Now is if you want to wear it, this is how you will wear it.
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Have you had the opportunity to collaborate with other artists? If yes, which ones?
Yes, I was super lucky to have been able to work with amazing photographers, designers and magazines. My boyfriend is the secret weapon behind it all - he's the one who has a knack for hearing all the weird ideas and proposals. The photographers I was able to work with: Henry Mason Dent IV, Dana Boulos, Corey Olsen, Miriam Marlene and Damien Maloney. They are artists who have a big imagination and an even bigger heart.
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What are your future projects?
I'm planning a drone shoot right now - the future is now!
CREDITS
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Photographer
Nicholas o'neill
https://www.instagram.com/nicodirect/
Style and Direction
Ashley Munns
https://www.instagram.com/ashley.munns/
Model
Lauren
In Northern California, we get a last blast of summer every year in October. This particular shoot was on our last true "summer" day - a day which is always well into Fall by the rest of the hemisphere's standards. One really does have to endure the elements - the blazing sun, the burning sand ... the cold water, steep waves and crumbling rocks. Luckily our little kitty was one tough titty!