"(...) When celebrating the young, a whole range of attractive characteristics spring to mind: beauty, energy, health, purity, confidence, idealism, creativity, boldness, vision and rebellion. While the adoration of youth is as old as antiquity and remains as the undying ideal of our civilisation, regardless, or perhaps because of, its delicate short-lived nature, the cult of youth and the notion of a young generation didn't really flourish until much later when it became a popular topic among scientists, politicians, educationalists, artists and cultural critics at the beginning of the 20th century. Today, in contrast, the lavishing of attention on youth is so tremendous it often eclipses every other age. In the same way as the marvels of sex are being played out at full volume in the media, the desirability of being young has become the loudest instrument in the orchestra of commerce. Sensing that some of youth's own music has been lost in the cacophony, we decided to give the theme another kind of resonance.
(...)
Why do artistic skills that once stood as the fundaments of cultural life receive so little attention today? In an era of globalisation, increased commerce, mass-production, consumer culture and self-publicity, what does the future hold for the young who have chosen classical training, fine arts and crafts? To illustrate these questions we searched for young people whose talent and dedication breathe new life into traditional art forms from around the world. By placing them within a framework of fashion, art, photography and portraiture, and looking at youth in a broader cultural context, we hope to have shed new light on a subject that has been at the very heart of our company since the beginning. (...)"
in ACNE PAPER - 12th ISSUE SUMMER 2011
Thomas Persson / Editor-In-Chief and Creative Director
(Há mesmo um motivo para a minha fixação pela Suécia...)