Collaborations – LoveIsMyReligion

Our featured Belgian artist, Sammy Slabbinck: an up-up-update!

Kaya Jay — Wed, 16 Nov 2016 09:12:16 +0000

We can say with pride, since we were lucky or (hey, maybe even) insightful enough to ask Belgian collage artist Sammy Slabbinck to design for us before he hit the big-time, that Sammy is getting the worldwide recognition he deserves!

It seems his surrealistic collage style, which certainly has roots in traditional Belgian surrealism and magic realism, is becoming a coveted style by big bands, big brands and great artists.

After a stint with Coldplay basing their last videoclip ‘Up & Up’ on his work (but failing to give the appropriate credit to Sammy), and creating an animation video for Gucci and their new shoe line, he now also has created the album cover for Leonard Cohen’s ‘You want it darker’.

This was made possible with credit to Instagram, which allows for an artist’s work to be picked up by anyone around the world. In this case by Cohen’s son, who was so intrigued by Sammy’s work, he then asked the artist for this notable honour. The cover shows Cohen with cigarette in hand, staring into cubic space. Simplicity that conveys the style of Cohen – unique style and raw authenticity that he maintained to the end of his life – merged with Sammy’s playful treatment of geometric shapes.

Leonard Cohen was able to release this work before sadly passing away at age 82 on 7 november 2016. His unique voice, his mellow composure and the mark he made on music will be with us forever. (Listen to the album below)

LoveIsMyReligion would like to pay our respect to this great master and his family,

and we wish Sammy Slabbinck many more successes along his surrealistic path!

Check the organic cotton collection we made with Sammy Slabbinck’s exclusive design here

https://www.facebook.com/AdamCohenMusic/photos/a.152549721472525.34513.130212317039599/1284718111589008/?type=3&theater

// All Sammy shirts now on site! Limited Edition //

Kaya Jay — Fri, 20 May 2016 08:07:13 +0000

The new collection is now available on our site!

Read up more about how it all started here

Part of the proceeds will be donated to Girlsnotbrides, to end child marriage.

This organisation unites grassroots initiatives on the ground to educate and empower young girls so they can take control of their future, and realise their hopes and dreams.

The whole collection is made up of organic cotton, and sprinkled with a vintage-style collage created by Belgian artist Sammy Slabbinck

Limited edition:: Possible future prints will be different!

Ring the alarm: Sammy T-shirts and Tank Tops have entered the building!

Kaya Jay — Wed, 11 May 2016 12:51:43 +0000

So – recap – I got in touch with collage artist Sammy Slabbinck, because I liked his work and found it had some of that ‘Belgian surrealism’ that we are known for. (Maybe by now, Belgium is just known for ‘absurdism’, but hey!) Fortunately, he was willing to design something exclusively for us around our theme – which is….. Love Is My Religion.

Of course.

It was the first artist that I approached about this, and it was great that he was attracted to the theme instantly. Kinda proved that the idea was on the right track…

Then came the painstaking selection of colours and models of shirts. Eco shirts are not abound and plentiful, so you have to really put a lot of thought and feeling into the choice of tops.

I knew that I wanted only the most beautiful soft colours, to match the colourful and eclectic design and bring it to a stylish unit.

For the printing procédé, the really cool vintage style effect is achieved only by discharge print. This is not up to eco standards – yet – but the high quality and the authenticity made it the ONLY way we could do these shirts properly.

If Sammy uses vintage photographs to make his collages, the print has to be as vintage as it can be. Right?

It’s a concept shirt, after all.

The other great advantage to discharge print is that the print is deeply rooted inside the fabric, it becomes a part of it, which means it will last pretty much til your shirt falls apart. And we all know this can take a really, really long time.

(Though I must admit some people are better than others at destroying their clothes..)

So it took a while, and we had some delays and struggles. But now, oh how sweet it is when the result is exactly what you wanted… and better!

It just takes a while to get all the mise-en-place going and bring those elements together. It’s a birth. It’s all the first time.

There are two short movies about Sammy coming up really soon, they are finished and ready to launch, but first I’ll have to get all the product pictures for the website, which I’m doing next – but is a real pain in the a@’s. Pardon my French.

So bear with me just a little while longer, but know that there is a lot of love (sighing, crying, inspiration, happiness – on shuffle and repeat) going in to this collection.

And it will be worth it!

Love Is My Religion

These shirts have a special print position, the heart!

I had to go back several times to get this right, to avoid what we can best describe as a ‘boob print’. This would not be flattering for the girls…

It was a gamble, but turned out pretty neat and sweet!

New Design by Sammy Slabbinck

Kaya Jay — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 12:21:24 +0000

Collaborations with artists is what we are all about! And the first one is finally a fact.

We have been announcing that collage artist Sammy Slabbinck will develop a special collage for LoveIsMyReligion, and the moment has arrived!

In his typical style, he has created this 50s housewife examining love. The colours and the digital heart create an interesting contrast with the black and white lady.

The first tests are being printed as we speak.

We can’t wait to launch a new collection of shirts, tops and hoodies featuring this beauty!

sammy slabbinck tumblr for more collage work

sammy slabbinck vine for his animated movies

Sammy Slabbinck (°1977 Belgium ) is a Belgian artist based in Bruges. He began as a vendor of vintage postcards, and this led to him finding his voice as a collage artist.

He renders dynamic surreal collage prints and original collages on paper, combining vintage photographs with contemporary compositional styles. The images are cut up into pieces and redistributed, playing with exaggeration and proportions. Other times, the images are placed in a reverse context, juxtaposing modern ideals with traditional states of mind.

The result is a composition that meditates on the past and considers the absurdity of popular culture.

Paradise Trips : the movie & the shirt

mitchel — Tue, 22 Sep 2015 01:50:43 +0000

This is a collaboration with Paradise Trips, a movie by our friend Raf Reyntjens.

To celebrate the release of Raf’s debut feature movie, which – as movies do – cost him a lot of blood, sweat and tears (not to mention mountains of patience), and which coincides with our first steps into the world, we liked the idea to produce a very limited edition collection as a kind of try-out ‘original merchandising’.

The face of leading actor Gene Bervoets, who altered his appearance impressively to become main character Mario Dockers, was redesigned to become a main theme of smiley face happiness. We named our character Mario D. and gave him a second life online. Check out #MarioDwashere on instagram or Facebook to see what he’s been up to.

The story of a grumpy bus driver taking on a final job, delivering a colourful bunch of psytrance neo-hippies to a festival, and accidentally being confronted with his estranged son, played by Jeroen Perceval, and hence facing his own restricted ideas and prejudices, resonates with our own message of LoveIsMyReligion!

I want to shop this

Raf Reyntjens (°1975) is a Belgian director of fiction,commercials, and videoclips.

In the summer of 2014, Raf recorded his first full length movie, Paradise Trips. The movie focuses on a generation conflict, while inviting viewers and main characters alike to open our minds and hearts to our prejudices.

Raf wrote and directed two short movies before this. A Message from Outer Space won prizes in Belgium, Canada en the US, and even got a US remake. Tunnelrat was part of MoMA’s exposition for the occasion of 100 years of WOI. In both movies a young Mathias Schoenaerts took the lead.

Raf is also an in-demand director for videoclips. Notably his last for Belgian revelation Stromae, Papaoutai, has been watched more than 280 million times on YouTube, making it the most viewed french-spoken videoclip of all time.

Raf is currently working on his second full-length movie, Ponie & The Death of Zorro.

Sammy Slabbinck : coming soon

mitchel — Wed, 01 Jul 2015 02:29:01 +0000

Sammy Slabbinck (°1977 Belgium ) is a Belgian artist based in Bruges. He began as a vendor of vintage postcards, and this led to him finding his voice as a collage artist.

At all times a purist attitude leads to the image in it’s simplest form, without too much digital manipulation, and collage is treated as craftsmanship.

The result is a composition that meditates on the past and considers the absurdity of popular culture.

Read his article: Sammy Slabbinck A Modern Magritte The Telegraph UK

Sammy Slabbinck

is creating

an exclusive design

for

Loveismyreligion

Check out his style here:

http://sammyslabbinck.tumblr.com

The Statement Shirt : our message, our muse, our

mitchel — Mon, 29 Jun 2015 12:00:03 +0000

The statement shirt is our first in-house design.

It was inspired by the ‘Je Suis Charlie’ signs that swept over the world after the attacks in Paris on Charlie Hebdo in january 2015.

We felt there was a need for this statement that could unite a wide array of multicultural, trans-racial and trans-religion believers.

Because, really, isn’t love the teaching of any religion?

All shirts are 100% organic cotton.

I want to shop this

I refuse to let fear cramp my freedom,

I refuse to let hate cramp my heart.

Love is my religion,

And I will fight for it until the end

LoveIsMyReligion 22/03/2016

Brussels Attacks

We believe in the massive evolution that the world is going through in our time.

An evolution towards love and empathy, that is ultimately uniting us.

It may not be a smooth road but we believe there is an intrinsic need in all humans to co-exist in a friendly way, take care of our planet, and create a better world.

We believe this has been visible over all the world, with a lot of initiatives being taken to counterstrike the negative, bitter, fearful and radical tendencies of our world at this moment.

We believe in the new power given to the people, as our world is becoming smaller and smarter. We stand for being informed, and the Internet has become a powerful tool to break down the walls of ignorance.

‘In the age of information, ignorance is a choice.’ – Donny Miller

When we put love first, we open our hearts and minds, it becomes a philosophy that we can apply to all things in our life, no matter how small.

We are standing up for peace. For appreciating how much we can learn from each other.

For learning and teaching wisely, by how we carry ourselves and by what we say.

For what we believe with all our hearts: love will prevail.

This message is our heart, our body and our soul …

Love is my Religion