I mean, did you see Prada's Spring 2026 campaign? It was kind of f*cked up. The work created by artist Jordan Wolfson, titled "I, I, I, I am” featured giant freaky ahh birds posed with models, or as he likes to call them, “unnamed unreal dreamlike creatures defined by complex visual imaging”. So, freaky ahh birds. At the same time, you have designers showing work that’s intentionally imperfect. Intentionally human. Which begs the question: do you have to choose one or the other? Or can both aesthetics coexist?

-Sophie Randell, Writer

p.s. enjoy this slightly pared-back YAP as our team takes a few days off for Easter xx

Everybody’s pissed about the AI aesthetic. Yet the brand calls it "ceaseless possibilities, multiplicities of identity and being." Meanwhile, in the same space, somewhat of a protest has begun.

WGSN titled this shift towards process-driven aesthetics “#WorkinProgress.”

With the likes of unpolished looks, process-driven aesthetics, hand drawn/ collage like or even brush stroked graphics and prints. There are worn out textures, or faded, washed looks reemerging on the runway.

Prada presented designs featuring intentional abrasions. Emilia Wickstead embraced painterly florals with an unfinished effect. Ashlyn showcased raw-edge tailoring with visible topstitching. And Henrik Vibskov reworked classic houndstooth with sketchy, hand-drawn updates.

These are polar opposite responses to AI saturation. Both valid, both intentional, both making statements about where we are culturally.

The future is at a crossroads and the choice you make might just say everything about what you value. Choose carefully, young Jedi.

The Prada Wolfson campaign leans heavily into AI surrealism, visuals that feel intentionally unstable because that's the statement. This isn't trying to hide AI or make it look natural. It’s using AI creatively, even intentionally misusing it to expose where the boundaries are.

The giant birds, the glitchy sheen, the dreamlike quality that sits just on the edge of reality.

Wolfson is known for creating hyperreal unsettling figures that blur digital and physical. His practice probes the psychological limits of spectatorship. Animatronics, VR, immersive media that implicates the viewer. The Prada collaboration brings that same energy to fashion advertising--creatures that feel intimate and caring while being obviously artificial and, just… off.

This misuse could be the foundation of the next surrealist language in fashion and branding. Just like Dada used nonsense to comment on World War I, just like pop art used commercial imagery to critique consumer culture, AI surrealism uses intentional instability to comment on our increasingly synthetic reality.

The uncanny valley becomes the medium.

The dreamlike dysfunction becomes the message.

You're not supposed to feel comfortable; you're supposed to recognise that we're already living in a world where digital and physical blur beyond recognition.

The #WorkInProgress trend goes the complete opposite direction with tactile materials, rough type, physical textures.

Imagery with friction and proof of process, worn finishes, stained cuffs, intentional abrasions positioning age and wear as new markers of authenticity and modern luxury.

WGSN's Hannah Watkins says the message is: show the workings, celebrate the hand, let imperfection speak.

Fashion is actively reclaiming human value in an era saturated with AI-generated gloss. Marketing will increasingly spotlight craft transparency. Brands will prioritise partnerships with artisans. And visible creativity and genuine cultural exchange will likely become fashion's most powerful currency.

This is deliberate refuge from the increasingly sloppy digital world, not some meek nostalgia for old school craft or something.

Analogue has become resistance. Imperfection, proof of humanity. The rough pencil lines, the instinctive mark-making, the sketchy florals where imperfections are deliberately left visible.

Brands like Bottega Veneta, Loewe, and Bally have centred entire campaigns around handmade craft, care, and intention. Miu Miu unveiled its Making of Old project showcasing the complexity of research, time, and love that go into leather treatment and it’s to die for.

These are essentially statements of value.

These opposite strategies are both reactions to AI saturation. AI surrealism says: if the digital world is inevitable, let's use its instability as artistic medium. Obviously-human-made says: if the digital world is inevitable, let's preserve proof of human process as valuable refuge.

One embraces the uncanny. One rejects it.

One finds meaning in dysfunction. One finds meaning in craft.

One pushes boundaries through digital manipulation. One pushes boundaries through deliberate imperfection.

They're equally important outputs. They're addressing the same cultural moment from opposite angles. And fascinatingly, Prada is doing both - Wolfson's AI birds in Spring, intentional abrasions in Fall.

The choice between AI surrealism and obviously-human-made isn't just aesthetic preference. It's a statement about what you value in culture. Do you want art that comments on synthetic reality by using synthetic tools? Or do you want art that resists synthetic reality by emphasising human process?

Do you find meaning in intentional instability or in deliberate craft? In dreamlike dysfunction or in visible handiwork? In the uncanny valley as medium or in tactile friction as refuge?

But how brands deploy these strategies, whether they lean into surrealism, retreat into craft, or toggle between both like Prada - reveals what they think culture needs right now.

Both are valid responses to AI saturation. Both are making deliberate statements.

The question isn't which one wins. The question is which one speaks to you.

Giant AI birds chanting incomplete mantras? Or worn finishes positioning age as authenticity?

Your answer says everything about what you think art should do in a world where the line between digital and physical has already blurred beyond recognition.

-Sophie Randell, Writer

Today's viral trend the "Hot take" uses the song "Self Aware" by Temper City, an emerging indie pop trio. The “hot take” format paired with the sound creates sort of a calm but cutting vibe where you say something honest that people don’t always admit out loud. 

The majority of creators are using this trend to share those deeply relatable realisations, like "Hot take: I think the most beautiful kind of love is falling in love at the most random time with the most unexpected person" and "Hot take: Normalize leaving people to avoid empathy burnout". However, your hot take doesn’t have to be super deep. It can just be a simple realisation you’ve had.

Using the audio, turn the camera towards you, keep your expression neutral or slightly detached. Add on-screen text starting with “Hot take:” followed by your confession that can feel honest or a little uncomfortable. 

A few ideas to get you started:

-Fiona Badiana, Intern

Hey Erin,

Our founder, Stanley Henry, talks about this concept called the 5 stages of attention. The idea is that, depending on where you are in your business journey, you will be doing different things to build brand awareness. Sounds like you're a small business, so according to this framework, you should work on building your network in person as much as possible. Go to industry events, networking groups, and get your business in front of people. It's only when you have absolutely exhausted all of these avenues that you should worry about building a social media presence.

Especially since you're looking for local leads, your network is the ideal place to build awareness about your business. If you have the budget, you could also look at running some paid ads to bring in leads. But these shouldn't be your only strategy! You need to do other brand-building activities like I mentioned above so when people see your ads, they already are aware of who you are and what you do!

- Charlotte Ellis, Editor ♡

We get it. Creating content that does numbers is harder than it looks. But doing those big numbers is the fastest way to grow your brand. So if you’re tired of throwing sh*t at the wall and seeing what sticks, you’re in luck. Because making our clients go viral is kinda what we do every single day.