Skin

“SKIN” by Lodown Magazine

Skin as manifold exterior. Skin as signifier. Skin as identifier. Skin as protector and delicate receptor for Vitamin D.
The surface is deep, evidenced by the 32 million bacteria occupying each square inch of your arm. Altogether that’s, well, don’t worry about the total number on your body. It’s gross. Or rad. Especially considering these bacteria span 1000 different species. So much life everywhere. On us. Inescapable. Our skin like the taught sails of a mighty ship with uncountable microbial stowaways hitching a ride to their next destination. Or the wildest party you’re constantly hosting. We are not alone.

Skin as a remarkable material. Waterproof. Highly stretchable. Utilitarian. A barrier. Armor. Tough. Resilient. Also vulnerable. Skin softened as flesh. And even more fragile: A baby girl with a rare disease making her skin as delicate as butterfly wings. Skin provides the most necessary shelter to our physical experience in the world. Skin changes through that experience. Scarred with stories of intense friction and sagged by lifelong exposure to gravity.

Skin keeps us together. And the most together two people can get may be referred to as hitting’ skins. Skin is nasty. Extraordinary. Powerful. Flabby. Necessary. We all got skin in the game.

Enjoy this issue! Highlights include:

ALICE HAWKINS
Anyone can get dressed up for their fifteen minutes of fame. It’s an easy trick anyone is able to master by now. Impromptu. Deciding what you actually want to express, deciding about the way you actually want to live, well, that’s a very different story. And that’s exactly what makes Alice Hawkins’ images so captivating. The celebrated British fashion photographer released her first book titled “Alice’s Adventures“ earlier this spring, which doesn’t only outline her many travels and highly diverse projects, but proves once again that attitude and style is owned and cannot be bought. Regardless if she’s shooting a Page 3 pinup, an A-list actress or some teenagers in Indiana - capturing the beauty of individuality is the thread that certainly holds her impressive work together.

SAGE ELSESSER
Sage is definitely not your average skate kid. Jason Dill supported him at a young age with Workshop boards, followed by Brian Lotti’s Telegraph Skateboards and recently turning pro for Fucking Awesome. He’s part of the Cherrington effect and the infamous Supreme Team. Sage is still humble with a good head on his shoulders hoping for a unified and peaceful consciousness of humanity. Listen up, it’s Sage Gabriel Carlos Atreyu Elsesser.

PATRICIA PICCININI
Artist Patricia Piccinini invites us to reimagine the natural world of living organisms and ecosystems where natural and artificial ambiguity thrives. Her art occupies a surreal expanse where science and sentiment converge in new cultural mythologies and narratives. It’s a trajectory that exists not beyond our comprehension. Piccinini’s art is compelling and confronting because it is very much of our time. Advancements in biotechnology are challenging our fundamental assumptions of the natural world and what constitutes nature when the distinction between artificial and natural becomes unclear. While it may be hard to fathom, artificial is the new nature.