Dena Cooper’s Illustrations Highlight the Very Essence of Fashion

Fashion illustrators get to enjoy the best of both worlds. With their finger on the pulse of the fashion scene, they get to experience one art form and express it in another medium altogether. The end result, most often than not, is greater than the sum of its parts. A good fashion illustrator can express a fashion moment not only in terms of color and texture but with composition and movement.

We’ve recently taken to Dena Cooper’s illustrated interpretations of the fashion world (an umbrella term that also includes beauty and lifestyle). Raised in Virginia and currently based in Brooklyn, Cooper has dabbled in the arts from a young age—studying fine arts in high school and college before transitioning into fashion design.

Now combining both passions, her clients include brands like Miu Miu, Cartier, and elf Cosmetics, and her work has been featured on Hypbae, 1883 Magazine, and Domino, amongst other publications. She’s also recently won he Fida 2020 Commercial Fashion Illustration Award.

Her work, though focused mainly on the aesthesis of fashion, also acknowledges its social constructs and cultural impact. “It’s no longer enough for me to paint something beautiful, there needs to be an added dimension of responsibility and truth,” she noted in a recent interview with Fida.

“I want to explore solutions to these problems, fight for change, and discuss ideas about how we can move beyond the existential crises that plague our society,” she added in a post on Instagram. Follow her social media pages for some reflections on fashion and beyond.