Aleksandra Artemova (HangoverMilano) Q&A
-Hi again Alex! Let’s start with a routine, yet crucial, question: how’s it going at this moment in time?
- Hey! Everything is going amazing, I could even say that finally, after years, I sincerely feel happy and fulfilled in everything, starting from my personal life to my professional and creative projects. I am surrounded by incredible people, people who inspire and support me everyday, and that feeling is the best.
-Let’s start by flipping back a few pages. You moved from Kyiv to Switzerland at 10, trained as a professional equestrian and gymnast since a very young age. How did your early years shape your sense of discipline, creativity, and style? Was Hangover and, more broadly, your stylistic flair always simmering beneath the surface?
- Yes exactly, I’ve been moving around quite a lot during my childhood, had an experience adapting to a lot of different environments, meeting a lot of people from different cultures and backgrounds which made my force of today I guess. But I don’t think that the professional sports shaped my sense of creativity. Creativity is something I always aspired to since I was a kid. After intensive trainings I would always lock myself down in my room and shape my dream world on paper. Drawing, writing, experimenting with fashion was my comfort zone, a safe space I created for myself to escape from the pressure of the real world. When I was still living in Kiev, I remember myself getting very inspired by fantasy writers like Kir Boulitchev, Alexandre Beliaev, Ivan Efremov. They belong to the same imaginative lineage of Soviet science-fantasy, where the boundary between scientific speculation and dreamlike adventure dissolves. In their stories, space travel, time loops, underwater cities or far-off civilisations are never just settings but moral landscapes in which curiosity, courage and ethical choice are tested. They wrote with different textures, yet they shared a belief that the fantastic could illuminate real human possibilities. The protagonists of their stories are not mythic superheroes but scientists, explorers, or ordinary people thrust into the unknown, carrying their doubts, hopes and ideals into worlds that feel at once wondrous and plausible. The early ears of my life shaped my creative mind and my vision of the world, the belief that anything would be possible if we’re able to imagine it. That is how I think Hangover was born: we were able to imagine it, imagine a safe space for our inner kids that needed to create, to meet, to feel free, imagine a space without oppression, a space where we can all be whatever we want. Concerning my stylistic approach, I would probably describe it also as “fantasy” but a different kind, a darker and dystopian fantasy, something that can sometimes scare and surprise. I really like putting out on my work the fears, evil and dark side of humanity and human emotions to give them real physical shapes and after we saw them, let us dream about a better world.
-How about we hit fast forward and jump to today, to the Hangover project, born in Milan, where you’ve been living for a while now. You’ve described it to us as a “safe and open space” and a “radical creative current.” Walk us through how it all started!
- Yes, you’re right, I’ve been living in Milan for three years now, so I had a lot of time to deeply discover the arts, fashion and underground scenes of the city. Hangover was born out of a sad realisation I made after attending one of those fashion week after parties; those parties I’ve always dreamed of when I was younger but unfortunately discovered so many wrong sides of it as soon as they became part of my life. So many talented people meet each other almost every night, in different places around the “fashion capitals” of the world, and I was so excited to meet them, talk to them, to discover more about each one of them. Instead, I found myself in venues full of people with no space or time to breath, where all of this talented ones were becoming random drunk strangers to each other, which is obviously not a bad thing when you need to empty your mind for one night, but I thought we all deserved more than that. I thought that we all deserve a space, a moment, some hours where we can all come together and celebrate life, creativity and love with other people who are seeking the same things. We all deserve our moment to party, to get crazy but without loosing the smile on our faces, without loosing our breath, our space to exist... So we created Hangover!
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-In creating the project, you and your collaborators might have taken some inspiration from the experimental club and music scene of the 70’s and early 80’s. A scene that moved between diverse attitudes and music genres like Rock, Punk, Electronic music and more. An era known for its wild freedom, blurred boundaries, and a kind of beautiful chaos where art, nightlife, and rebellion collided. Hangover seems to echo that same spirit, but in a different time, with different needs. What do you think we’ve inherited from that era, and what are the actual needs of such a community?
- Yes exactly, the Hangover Community is not only about events, it’s a revival of pureness, beauty and creativity that was lost in time. I believe that even if the world changed a lot since those years, the souls didn’t and we are still those kids who need a revolution and some magic, those who are burning from inside. To answer your question, honestly, I can’t talk for every person that is part of the community. All of us have different needs and hopes, but I can say that we all needed a possibility to connect, to explore the world and redefine each other’s boundaries in arts and in life.
-Your events mix club energy, performance, immersive art... How do you balance the potential “wild” side of nightlife with that sense of care, for yourself and your community?
- I think that the “ wild” side of the nightlife doesn’t have to be balanced, but understood. During our events all humans have the freedom to be whoever they want. They have the freedom to express themselves as artists, as people, as personalities and all of them are unique and precious. I strongly believe that all of this beautiful souls are conscious about how precious they are, so everyone is finding their own balance. To sum it up, we don’t need to balance, the balance found us and our people, thanks to the harmony we’re all maintaining together.
-As Hangover expands, how do you avoid becoming a “brand” and preserve its radical, DIY ethos? What makes the project stay raw and how do you chose the people you collaborate with?
- I think what keeps hangover radical and raw is its people. We’re not really choosing them, they’re coming to us, all of them with crazy ideas and huge talents. Obviously we can’t collaborate with everyone because some of the people don’t have the same values or the same visions as we do, but usually those who are so much different from us are not even aware that hangover exists, haha. I honestly think that, as with many communities or organisations like Hangover, they can be a point of attraction for some people, while being something to run away from for others. So, the selection happens kind of naturally, if I can put it that way.
-It became clear to us, after meeting you, that the spirit of Hangover isn’t just something you try to spark during events, it feels more like your way of being. How would you describe that attitude? And what do you want this project to become in order for it to truly reflect what you envision?
- Yes, I think you got it right even though, honestly, I don’t really know how to describe this attitude. I think I am just trying to stay true to myself, to others and to my desires and dreams. I would love this project to grow eternally and embody everybody’s dreams and desires as it does to us today, I would love it to open the eyes of those who are still not “aware” and to stay a safe space for those who already are.
-Let’s talk for a moment about the “stage” where the idea was born...Milan. You told us that, despite living here and being surrounded by Italians, you don’t really need to speak the language, as of now, to feel included. That’s unusual to hear from a foreigner in Milan, a city that’s changed a lot, partly thanks to those who’ve moved here. A city where, 10 years ago, was much more difficult to find people who spoke English well enough. So, how do you experience the city? And would you say your work is part of a wider effort to create an honest, open community in a place that can often feel fast-paced, image-driven, and overwhelming?
- Surprisingly, I never felt out place or overwhelmed in this city, I always felt welcome and was surrounded by open minded and loving people, maybe I was lucky to find it here, or maybe life just wanted me to be part of Milan... who knows ? From day one until now I always said and will say that, for the first time of my life, I finally feel home.
Well, that’s great to hear… Alex, to wrap it up the usual Apparel way, with a few rapid-fire icebreakers. This is our funny way to get to know you even better.
-If Hangover were an object, what would it be, and why?
- It would be a relic of chaos and tenderness, something like a piece of obsidian: born from fire, sharp but protective. It absorbs darkness and transforms it into reflection.
-And if it were a city, which one would you be and why?
- Probably Tokyo, it would be a neon melancholy, an alley of intimacy hidden between glass towers. It is very modern but haunted but old ghosts.
-An animal?
- An octopus maybe? Fluid, ever shifting, hiding and revealing itself in colours. Each one of its arms would be a different creative identity, yet all connected to one heart.
-Pick a a geometric shape you feel would describe Hangover.
- It should be a shape that bleeds, folds and mutates, something that moves with rhythm, just like bodies in a room full of emotions, sounds and dreams... Maybe a spiral?
-If it was a piece of clothing, what would it be?
- A white tank top after a long night out: transparent with light, wrinkled, still warm from your body. It would carry the scent of a soundtrack, a kiss, a city. It would be a relic of something real.
-And the last one: if Hangover had a hidden “superpower,” what silly or serious one would it be?
- Easy one haha: eternal life obviously, and it doesn’t need any explanation.
-Thank you so much for your time, Alex, we’re so happy to be able to discover your vision and share it with more an more people out there, have a lovely day!
- Thank you for your time and your interest! The only thing I have left to say is: always keep dreaming, hoping, believing, because dreams die only when you stop believing in them. Give love to all the people you have around you and never stop creating.
