The Young Creatives To Watch Now: Arianna Aleezon, The Experimental Nail Artist & Designer

Despite her diminutive frame, it’s clear Arianna Aleezon is a force to be reckoned with. Following the success of fashion collective Youths In Balaclava - where she is one of the two females in a 13 member troop – who had an underground following before being discovered by Comme Des Garcons and their first showroom at Paris Fashion Week, the 24-year-old freelance menswear designer is now paving her own path with r.cane09.

Currently a private nail studio and experimental space, r.cane09, which started in June last year, provides gel manicures and press-ons, as well as jewellery, and has become a favourite amongst members of the burgeoning arts scene. One might recognise a similar vein of the DIY, punk sensibilities so closely associated with YIB. But the designer is adamant about charting her own path and aesthetic. “R.cane09 for me is a way for me to explore myself, and it’s more true to my style. I’m still figuring it out and experimenting... I’m still young, so it’s nice to get to explore through this.”

How did r.cane09 come about?  I was out of a job when COVID hit, so I was at home a lot. It was quite a rough time, I had family issues, and got kicked out… So I just wanted to do something, and see if there would be an audience. The whole process happened gradually.

I’m also always on Instagram looking at nails, and checking out celebrities who hire nail artists. I’m a big fan of @maiko_ neuron. She’s a manicurist based in Tokyo with a nail salon, her designs are really out of this world. You know those long nails for commercial shoots, which are crazy? Hers are crazy but still wearable for everyday. That’s also the other reason I started r.cane09 – when I go to nail salons, and I give them these references, they are like, “What’s this? No, we can’t do this, so ugly.” But I can do it, no? So I just did it.

Youths in Balaclava has quite a strong anti-institution, punk attitude reflected in its work. Was this something you’ve translated to your own vision as well? Yeah, I very much resonate with this feeling that we are the new wave, so we cannot conform to the ways that have come before us. I mean, anything is possible. We’ve decided that we can do fashion, without going to school for it. It’s still achievable in today’s world, and it’s even easier now, thanks to the internet.

What about nail art? Was it hard to pick it up? The creative process is the same. It’s just a change in medium. But you have to know the technicalities, and the materials, and what to do with the materials. But I didn’t take long to pick up, I just watched a lot of Youtube videos (laughs).

For my process, I just keep making. If I want to do a set of nails, I’ll focus my entirety on it and make a lot. Quality, of course, has to be there, but in terms of getting the ideas out, the way I work is that I make a lot, and then narrow it all down, rather than focusing solely on one design at the start.

Were you always a creative person? I am a very intuitive person. The reason I got into fashion was because I did badly in secondary school – and the teachers were eyeing me. So I had to make all these decisions – I mean, everyone did as well – but I was really pressured. And I found fashion was the only thing that I wanted to do, and a different form of self-expression.

Thoughts on the creative scene here in Singapore?  The scene here is still closed off, in the sense that it still follows an established path. I feel everyone has their own path, and if they want to do it that way, it’s fine. At the end of the day, they are still a part of your community, so why the need to condemn them?

What is it like being a young female artist in Singapore today?  I think I will just give advice to young female artists or designers – to not be naive, to not trust anyone too much.

Find Arianna at @r.cane09 on Instagram