Commissions — ivor.ws

Karla Quiñonez Leon as ‘La Llorna’ for her inaguaral solo exhibition ‘Para Ecuador, Con Amor’
Karla Q. Leon

Creative Direction by Karla Q. Leon
25–10–24

Photography for Karla Q. Leon in a self depiction as ‘La Llorna’, a fabled figure in Latin American culture, “('the Crying Woman, the Weeping Woman, the Wailer') is a vengeful ghost in Mexican folklore who is said to roam near bodies of water mourning her children whom she drowned in a jealous rage after discovering her husband was unfaithful to her. Whoever hears her crying either suffers misfortune or death and their life becomes unsuccessful in every field” (2024, December, Wikipedia).

Leon chose to embody this depiction of folklore to subvert the meaning of its negative omen through her own existence, being proof of a fruitful career, as a rebellious and triumphant act to take claim in her identity as an artist whilst in homage to her Ecuadorian roots. The direct aim of inspiration were her nieces who became firsthand exponents of being gifted the opporutnity to explore their own interests for their paths in life.

The images were shown from the 25th of Ocotber until the 27th, in the London Bridge area, alongside her sculptural works and archive of family imagery.

Commission
Photography, La Llorona, Exhibition, Karla Q Leon, Hair, Ecuador, Para Ecuador Con Amor, 2024,

‘Burn The Right Things Down’ (LP)
Maverick Sabre

Creative Direction by Working Studio
18–10–24

Music available via mavericksabre.com

Creative Direction, Design, & Direction for Maverick Sabre’s fifth studio album, ‘Burn The Right Things Down’ via FAMM.

Released on the 18th of October 2024, following a launch exhbition on the evening of the 17th, after a series of singles - ‘Roses Ether’, ‘If I Could Only Love You Again’, ‘Lay Down On Me’, & ‘You Don’t Even Need It’, complete with music videos/visualisers.

“The title was birthed from a conversation about inner conflict on wanting to burn everything to the ground to rebuild again for change, but battling with something more peaceful and patient inside. Ivor asked is it not more about ‘Burn The Right Things Down’ instead of everything.” - Maverick Sabre.

Commission / Commissioner
Creative Direction, Graphic Design, Direction, Music Video, Visualiser, Burn The Right Things Down, Maverick Sabre, FAMM, Working Studio, Exhibition, 2024,

‘Deliver Me’ (EP)
Demae

Creative Direction by Working Studio
04–09–24

Music available via demae.co

Creative Direction, Photography, & Direction for Demae’s ‘Deliver Me’ EP via FAMM.

Released on the 4th of September 2024, after a trio of singles - ‘Speechless’, ‘Go Your Own Way’, & ‘Bloody Bouquets’. And subsequently followed by two visualisers - ‘Deliver Me’, & ‘Regret’.

Commission
Creative Direction, Photography, Direction, Music Video, Visualiser, Demae, Deliver Me, FAMM, Working Studio, 2024,

‘No Shoes Inside’

Directed by Sean Dendere
13–05–24

Production Design for Sean Dendere’s short film directorial debut, ‘No Shoes Inside’, was created during his residency at Metal Cutlure – read more. Taking a focus on creating a tethering cord to the protagonist’s role, as a maternal ancestral figure, through an intentional selection of objects and colour palettes that prompt a sense of nostalgia for home.

First premiered at EartH Hackney followed by a panel conversation alongside the filmmakers Bafic & Penny Woolcock, moderated by Blu Smith for the Central Saint Martins Creative Unions Symposium in 2024 - see here.

Now available for viewing via Dendere’s website - here.

“You come home and dust off your shoes, right? Or at least that’s what the world thinks you may or should do. Well, that’s not quite the premise of Sean Dendere’s No Shoes Inside. Rather, it’s a semi-autobiographical exploration of how he, and how he has observed others, interact with ideas of home, including through ancestral memory and routine becoming interchangeable with rituals. The short film explores the colourful yet complex nuances of the different places - and potentially, things and people - we have learned to attach the home label. As a second-generation British-Zimbabwean raised in Peterborough, journeying through life with a wisdom derived from foreignness and pieces and artefacts of home laid bare beside settees and in entryways, these are the gems that signal home - but as the lines and lives blur, which one becomes more representative of home? It’s this questioning that provoked the multihyphenate to unravel what home has come to mean to him; the shared love for flavoursome aromas, ritualistic movements and whispers from the mother tongue, Dendere’s story is, and can only be, multifarious. In doing so, he offers comfort to those who have experienced displacement, domestic struggles or the loss of loved ones, leading to a compromised sense of home which echoes through generations.” – Aswan Magumbe

Commission
Production Design, Sean Dendere, No Shoes Inside, Independent Film, Short Film, 2024,

‘Portraits Of Lovelustre Man (Part I)’
Benjamin Clementine

Directed by Curtis Essel
16–02–23

Music available via benjaminclementine.com.

Costume Design for the ensemble cast/dancers. By Curtis’ direction the dancers’ apperance was tasked to feel as part of the environment by reflecting the theistic location of this Hackney church and to simultaneously usher in a tone of congruence and uniformity amongst them to represent the societal depictions in Clementine’s lyrics.

Available for viewing via Nowness - see here.

“Director Curtis Essel weaves the British artist’s third album through a short film reflecting on survival, relationships and self-control [...] An enigmatic statement in film that further highlights the critically acclaimed musician’s singularity, the combined creative showcased in ‘Portraits of Lovelustreman (Part 1)’ defies categorization, much as Clementine’s literary themes, and at times avant-garde approach to chamber pop mark him as one of the UK music scene’s most undefinable modern geniuses.” – Nowness.

Commission
Costume Design, Production Design, Benjamin Clementine, Portraits of Lovelustre Man, Curtis Essel, Short Film, Music Video, Dance, 2023,