Meet Maya Golyshkina, the artist who makes clothes out of all manner of objects – including the Autumn/Winter 2020 issue of AnOther
Over the course of the past year, 19-year-old Russian artist Maya Golyshinka has made a name for herself transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary; using humdrum, household objects to create wearable works of art. A scroll through Golyshkina’s Instagram feed is like entering a DIY fantasy land, where mermaids are made from playing cards, gowns are constructed from cigars, and characters like Hello Kitty and Ronald McDonald are brought to life on the artist herself through papier-mâché and make-up.
“I always thought that just sewing things was very boring,” says Golyshkina, as she presents a series of characters crafted using only the pages of AnOther Magazine Autumn/Winter 2020. “I just don’t want to see this world too typical.”
Entirely handmade, Golyshinka’s playful looks – which were specially created for AnOther – range from a voluminous paper dress to a dressing gown and slippers; a boxy Balenciaga-esque ‘suit’ plus handbag, and a wintery ensemble complete with a paper umbrella. “The idea was to show very colourful and well-shaped figures on me,” says Golyshkina. “I wanted to show something completely different from fashion, something funny, in my style.”
Originally a photographer, Golyshinka began creating pieces like this when the pandemic first took hold and forced her to express her creativity from home – where she shared her work with the world from the confines of her bedroom. “I know that for many people it was an awful year, but not for me,” she says of the past 12 months. “I found a new sense of life … I started to realise that I don’t need anyone else to show my ideas, and that they can be even more interesting if I concentrate on my ideas myself.”
Catching the attention of leading brands and magazines, such as Marc Jacobs and Vogue, Golyshinka’s ‘anti-selfies’ are less about revealing her outer appearance, than offering an insight into the inner workings of her mind. “I always hated typical selfies and couldn’t understand why people would take so many of them, with all the pictures looking exactly the same,” she says. “I wanted to show myself and everything that I have in my mind … I love it because it best reveals me – it’s humour and ideas, emotions and narcissism.”
Following the successes of last year, Golyshinka has big dreams for 2021 and beyond, with upcoming projects in the works and sights firmly set on taking her creative talents to new heights. “[I want to] create costumes for music videos, become a creative director of something,” the artist says. “I hope that I can globalise my ideas soon.”
Follow Maya Golyshkina on Instagram here.
