
#GramGen is a series profiling the most radical characters in youth culture, who continue to shape trend behavior and spark controversy through their avant fashion sense and candid social media personalities.
Meet Reilly, the pop artist blowing up your Instagram feed with his graphic new media art. By recreating iconic ads from Supreme to Céline, Reilly has garnered the interest of over 50k IG followers and some of the biggest designers in the game.
Despite his growing fame on the visual platform, Reilly remains somewhat anonymous, keeping his personal life distant from his social media celebrity. Luckily, we were able to catch up with Reilly to talk about his creative process, his interest in fashion, and his advice for up-and-coming artists using Instagram as a workspace.
How old are you?
I aim to keep my personal identity separate from my public work so age or personal circumstances aren’t really relevant.
Where are you from and where are you currently based?
Originally from Glasgow in Scotland, currently living in London England
You have a following of over 50k on Instagram. Has IG always been the platform you share your work on?
Yes, though I also have a website which I try to update every now & then, but instagram is so immediate, its reach is staggering. To be able to interact with people across the world, for good + bad is so important to me as an artist, it totally spurs me on to create more.
Your pieces portray luxury and streetwear brands reimagined as both iconic pop culture images. Are there any artists who inspired you to do this kind of pop culture parody?
Hmmmmmm I can’t really think of any to hand actually, I’m not entirely sure how I even got to where I am at the moment.
You’ve created artwork for brands like Gucci and Nike. Do you owe this wild recognition to your Instagram fame?
I worked with brands before instagram but it certainly helped to put my work in front of a much bigger audience which has led to more commissions, so it's true I owe a lot to instagram !
Have any of the designers or celebrities featured in your pieces responded? If so, what’s their response like?
Yeah a few, creative directors Silvia Venturini Fendi + Kris Van Assche at Dior both have regrammed my work which was a touch and Erykah Badu is currently using a piece I did of her as one of the backdrops in her current world tour. I got a sweet email yesterday from Chanel which was a proper nice surprise.
When you’re not working on an official collaboration, how do you decide what brands or images to feature?
I don’t really have any rhyme or reason to what I work on next. I suppose a lot has to do with what’s happening news wise, hence why my work jumps all over the place.
Walk us through your creative process. What comes first, the image or the brand/person you’re featuring?
I’m constantly writing down ideas either in notepads or on my phone. I have lists + lists of shizz to work through, some make it others just stay on the page. So it all really begins with words.
Have you always had an interest in fashion or did that come with being in the creative industry?
Yeah pretty much, I used to have my own menswear label for a few years which was an education, I really enjoyed it but man was it hard work. I am currently thinking of heading down that route again so check in with me later……
Which designer or brand would you like to work with next?
I’ve always really admired Rei Kawakubo and Comme des Garçons, to work with them in any sort of form would be the ultimate.
What Instagram advice do you have for up and coming artists and creative directors using IG as a medium to showcase their work?
Just enjoy it and don’t be to precious, personally I try to put out stuff that not only makes me feel good but hopefully brings a bit of a smile to some of my followers.
For more #GramGen, meet @suziegrime, Berlin’s queen of #content with the IG feed to prove it.