A small handful of people are unanimously agreed upon to be pushing the realm of virtual fashion forwards. From RTFKT to Fabricant, the more you get to know these young digital-first fashion companies, the more you realize how different they all are. None are perhaps more unique than Auroboros; a 30th-century design duo made up of Paula Sello and Alissa Aulbekova. These two visionaries met in London only three years ago and have developed a brand that has put out one of the most notable virtual fashion collections to date. Considering themselves more of a fashion house creating virtual garments as their product offerings than a “virtual fashion company,” Auroboros is very much setting themselves apart. If you look through the images in this article, you’ve likely seen their designs before. I even cited them in my Master’s thesis. And if you don’t happen to know who they are, I’d recommend exploring their work in detail.
I had the pleasure of catching up with Paula and Alissa IRL at the Dreamverse Gallery during NFT.NYC last week. I had chatted with them once before on a panel I moderated for Decentraland Art Week this past year, but this was my first time meeting them in person, and they were, to put it simply, lovely.
Without further ado, please feel free to watch or read my brief interview with Auroboros below:
David Cash: Hello from Dreamverse! We’re back with NTFS.WTF. My name is David Cash, Editor-in-Chief, and we are here with Auroboros in the flesh.
So great to have you guys on the show; thank you so much for taking the time at your exhibition here. It’s so great to just come across you at NFT NYC. How’s your week been so far during this hectic madness of DeFi?
Paula: It’s been great; honestly, it’s a pleasure to be here. We managed to come here from London. So, yeah, moving from the digital to physical, it’s pretty nice. We like the hybrid; we’re real, we’re here!
DC: Absolutely, and I know you guys work in digital, as does pretty much everybody in this venue right now, but we’re really doing a physical takeover of this city. It’s incredible! You know, last year, there were about 500 people here, and this year there are over 10,000 people who came out just to be at these general off-shot events. How has that been for you, since you guys have been in this space a while now and watched it go from just an idea to now so visceral, so real, and IRL?
P: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, we’re excited to meet the community and everyone who’s part of it. It’s quite a diverse audience and group of artists as well. So it’s a pleasure to be part of such a young movement and to meet everyone in the flesh.
Alissa: I mean, it’s so important for fashion to be, you know, sharing and being in a community. So we’re more than happy to be telling people what digital fashion can be for the future and involving them more so than ever.
D: Absolutely, and this is so much more than just NFTs, right? I always like to say that ‘NFTs are the gateway drug,’ bringing you into this much larger web3 ecosystem. You guys are such a great representation of virtual fashion here- seeing this on the screen where people can see how digital fashion can transform their avatars or future selves into art pieces.
So what has been the reaction when people come up and see your work in person? You guys have had a lot of fantastic press, but are only now getting to actually meet some of the people and see their reactions in person. So what has it been like for you guys?
P: Oh, we love the genuine response. It is always very positive, just because people are so amazed that they can participate in this. You know, you can worry about your digital avatar or your representation, but being able to snap up a coat and wear it on yourself through augmented reality just does something different. I think this is because you’re associated with fashion on another level, and it’s more immediate.
A: Also, being able to introduce it to people in person is fantastic. Being able to walk people through the experience, it’s the Trojan horse to the gateway drug, now that everyone’s also got avatars, and it’s all being built out. Then, of course, digital fashion is vital, and we’re excited to bring the craft and the beauty of couture to the metaverse.
D: Incredible; you guys do such beautiful work! How has it been for you guys going between so many different contexts, because you have done stuff, very much in the fashion context, at Fashion Weeks and fashion shows; you have also been at Christie’s and art events, and now you’re at a crypto event! How does this differentiate from some of the other things that you’re doing? And, do you like it?
B: Absolutely. I mean, we’ve been saying that it reminds us of a lot of art events in London as well. So we feel very at home here. It’s my first time in New York. So yeah, loving the Big Apple so far.
D: It’s a great New York debut!
P: I mean, just like the brand, we’re at the intersection of so many different subjects, and we’re so liberated not to be pigeonholed anymore, and to create our path that merges so fluidly, you know, our technology, fashion, and just a positive future for our generation.
A: We’ve always been collaborating as well with scientists, sculptors, VFX artists, so I suppose this comes very naturally to us as well. So yeah, only positivity here.
D: We have the pleasure of doing what we’re passionate about. And so many people are embracing this. Are there any projects you guys are working on right now that the people, some of the collectors and folks watching, might be interested in?
P: Absolutely. We’ve got some big news. We’re going to be whitelisting for our first NFT collection. I mean, finally, people will be able to have a little bit of ownership of what we presented. Our collection has been monumental in the fashion space. I think we’ve already created an RTFKT of the future. So we’re super excited to open this up to the public. So definitely watch out for news from us. And yeah, keep connected.
A: There’s a lot more to come from us. So this is just the first collection!
D: I’m very excited. I hope we get to chat when that’s coming out, very much looking forward to that. Well, thank you so much for taking the time after I accosted you suddenly at this event.
We’re here at Dreamverse. Again, my name is David Cash, and this was NFTs.WTF “new talk show that doesn’t have a name yet.” So thank you all for taking the time.
For more on Auroboros:
- Check Out their website
- Follow them on Twitter
- Follow Paula and Alissa on Instagram
- Check out their London Fashion Week Debut Collection
