This week we are excited to launch an exclusive collaboration with ​contemporary artist and illustrator Alexa Coe. A former Journal interviewee and Glasshouse friend, Alexa has partnered with us to create a range of original artworks inspired by her favourite items from the Shop. Alexa’s work often focuses on simplification, and these pieces are no different. Taking a few thoughts or feelings from each item, the final illustrations are beautifully abstract interpretations of the products’ ingredients and function. The collection includes the Sans [Ceuticals] Bio Active Body Exfoliant (Smooth lines, smooth curves & simplicity), Guy Morgan Black Thorn Facial Oil (Floral, uncomplicated), RMS Vintage Cake Liner (Bold, linear), Sans [Ceutical] Nourishing Hair Hydratant, (Fluidity, lightness), Honest Cleansing Balm (Bare-faced, raw) and Abel Cobalt Amber Eau De Parfum (Natural, energetic).

For centuries the female form has been idolised in art, from Botticelli’s Birth of Venus to Picasso’s portraits of Marie Therese Walter, yet there is little that looks at femininity through the eyes of a woman. Alexa’s work primarily focuses on this notion and on changing the way that art sees nudity. “As a woman, I obviously have a unique experience of the female form. I know it’s lines and curves more than anyone else and so I wanted to offer an alternative perspective” says Alexa. Though her portraits can be considered ‘sexual’ in some ways, there is a distinct difference between her work and the popular media’s portrayal of the female body. Using alternative angles and shapes, Alexa challenges women to take pleasure in their own bodies and celebrate the diversity of the female form.