INTRODUCING KATIE MCINTYRE

When asked to interview Katie McIntyre I was surprised there wasn’t a plethora of articles written about her journey and the work she’s created throughout her career. Now thanks to NFT’s, VFX designs are credited in the artworld and McIntyre’s signature VFX designs have gone viral using her compelling style of femininity as a weapon. “I would say my work is often fighting the same battle I am fighting, in many ways my work is my sword and I use my art and vision to push back against the ownership and oppression of women or anyone who identifies with the feminine.”

Aside from being a visual effects guru, the artist works as a creative director, designer, and activist. She began her career at Apple rendering and creating 3-D design work before being submerged into fashion and product design togetherwith album art for the hottest musicians in the game such as Nicki Minaj, Latto, & Cardi B to name a few.

Although her work is fairy-like and aquatic there is an air of power and heroine portrayed with intention. “For the Latto album cover I did recently, it was inspired by the overturning of Roe v. Wade and really wanting to create an impactful piece that hit on how I was feeling. I also really wanted to remind women who were scared in the circumstances that they have to be brave, they have to be strong, remember the fight is not over but that they have what it takes. That despite having their power of choice being taken away, they are still sublime and powerful.”

LATTO ALBUM COVER BY KATIE MCINTYRE.

LATTO ALBUM COVER BY KATIE MCINTYRE.

Staying true to the overarching theme in her work placing emphasis in being both ethereal and strong; McIntyre designed a luxury sports car that appeared in a Mugler x Goat campaign. “The car took about two years of iteration and R&D to create. It was a really exciting moment for me to have these worlds connected, the bold and cutting edge fashion of Mugler with my forward thinking feminist product design.” The artist is using design to showcase femininity in a light that cannot be dismissed but seen and acknowledged. Available for use today, Monday 29th, the VFX superstar designed an Instagram filter with two options for type that read “protect women” and “protect our rights.”

In addition to the genz and millenial form of protesting, the filter has a call to action donation feature where proceeds are sent to an orginization of your choice such as Planned Parenthood or Mayday Healthcare. “Raising awareness of where to get resources, showing solidarity, and creating empowerment for users and reproductive health organizations is the main motive.” Show your support for women, women’s rights, and for those women pushing boundaries in male dominated fields by downloading the filter pack.

To learn more about Katie McIntyre, her ground-breaking work, and the women’s rights filter pack she created check out the gelbsy exclusive interview below:

HOW DID YOU START YOUR CAREER AS A CREATIVE DIRECTOR, VFX ARTIST AND DESIGNER?

I started my career as a creative director through Silicon Valley and the music industry. I interned for Apple’s creative directors and was ushered into a world that had an immense impact on me in terms of the craft, rendering, and 3-D design work.

I also worked for Joe Perez, who has designed pretty much every iconic album cover of our generation. This really influenced me in terms of wanting to be a part of that industry and contribute to the culture. VFX art came about through the NFT boom really, I mean I was doing 3-D work for years, but it was not until 3-D art started being recognized as art that I have been identified as an artist.

My fashion design work and product design work is really a natural extension of the VFX work (in the sense that having started my career with my computer as my main tool it was easy to flex into different programs and extend my vision). I think world building is really what I focus on now. I do all these various positions for projects but they are all under the same vision—a feminine future and empowered future for women.

YOUR TYPE AND IMAGERY FOCUS AROUND EMPOWERING WOMEN WHETHER A GOOGLE SEARCH DESIGN OR THE NICKI MINAJ “QUEEN” ALBUM ART; WHAT’S YOUR MISSION AS A WOMAN DESIGNER ?

I would say my work is often fighting the same battle I am fighting in many ways my work is my sword and I use my art and vision to push back against the ownership and oppression of women or anyone who identifies with the feminine.

There is a desire to subvert and keep powerful feminine design work out of the public eye. Having worked for some of the biggest companies in the world—it was clear to me that there is actually a deliberate effort to keep women from gaining power or influence, there is a strong push back. I think that this only made me want to become a leader whose mission is the opposite of those that I experienced.

In all of my work, my goal is really to uplift women and remind them of their divine power. I think the centuries spent with women struggling and struggling to play the game to achieve influence is not something I can tolerate. I am just breaking down the doors, sometimes regardless if that makes me a target. In some situations it has, but I get no greater joy than when I get an impact response from a young woman saying I inspired them or they want to work for me.

YOUR TYPE AND IMAGERY FOCUS AROUND EMPOWERING WOMEN WHETHER A GOOGLE SEARCH DESIGN OR THE NICKI MINAJ “QUEEN” ALBUM ART; WHAT’S YOUR MISSION AS A WOMAN DESIGNER ?

WHERE DO YOU PULL INSPIRATION FOR YOUR DESIGNS AND WORK AS A WHOLE ?

I get a lot of inspiration from the great women innovators of our time Zaha Hadid, Iris van Herpen, Neri Oxman, to name a few. Men very often build upon the work of other men as a sign of respect for their hard work and these are deemed art movements.

I am sort of the same in that I study their work really closely and then also add my own dimension and perspective. I think of these individuals almost like my books to give me a guiding route to the feminine future. I also get quite inspired directly by nature or by current events.

A lot of my work tends to be naturalistic and fairly aquatic and my approach to design is that of trying to coexist with nature and the female form instead of trying to control or censor nature or women. For the Latto album cover I did recently, it was inspired by the overturning of Roe v. Wade and really wanting to create an impactful piece that hit on how I was feeling.

I also really wanted to remind women who were scared in the circumstances that they have to be brave, they have to be strong, remember the fight is not over but that they have what it takes. That despite having their power of choice being taken away, they are still sublime and powerful.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR DESIGN STYLE/ AESTHETIC ?

I would describe my style as expressive, crafted, feminine and bold. I often get told my style is futuristic because I use so many modern design tools; I personally think this is just my style that people are not accustomed to yet. I think as my vision continues to spread more people will see it as the next wave and modern rather than futuristic. The formal principles of my work are heavily influenced by the yonic and feminine forms of Judy Chicago and Hilma Af Klimt and Bjork.

WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR OTHER YOUNG WOMEN WHO WANT TO BREAK INTO THE INDUSTRIES YOU’RE INVOLVED WITH ?

I would say don’t be afraid to ask questions. Use the internet as a tool, in the beginning I would reach out to so many designers asking advice, questions etc. Sometimes I would not get an answer, but often times I would. In VFX when you hit road blocks around hardware or software it can feel very isolating and defeating if there is no resources.

So, I really made a concerted effort to build relationships with people I wanted to learn from. I would also say that you should never be intimidated by a software, anyone can learn a software and this should be empowering. I also tend to answer a lot of questions so you are also welcome to reach out to me as well.

TELL US ABOUT SOME OF YOUR RECENT PROJECTS THIS YEAR AND UPCOMING?

I recently designed a car alongside Edouard Suzeau that was featured in a Mugler/Goat campaign.The car took about two years of iteration and R&D to create. It was a really exciting moment for me to have these worlds connected, the bold and cutting edge fashion of Mugler with my forward thinking feminist product design. I am heavily influenced by fashion in my approach to modeling the body panels on the vehicle, It feels like such an exciting territory to be creating in and I am inspired by the long term vision of the car.

I have a lot of upcoming work, I have a company that I will be launching soon focused on fashion, product design, and technology. I also have an AR campaign that’s arriving soon, it will be focused on using AR and social media as a tool to support for access to reproductive health care. It’s really important to me to be smart about how these tools are used so there is a direct benefit to those who need the most empowerment.

HOW DO YOU WANT TO MAKE A CHANGE IN THE DESIGN INDUSTRY WITH THE IDEOLOGY TO PUSH WOMEN FORWARD?

I think my biggest mission is to create the space I never had. I want to cultivate an environment where women feel they can express themselves, where they see their value, and are able to exist in a physically safe community of nurturing as well as empowering energies. I think I also want to really change the playing field in terms of the woman customer relationship and brand loyalty in the industry. I think that part of the ideological flaw of the patriarchy is that often times women are not considered important enough to advertise to or pay attention to their needs. That’s why Rihanna has been such a powerful force in the lingerie industry—she speaks to the female clientele while Victoria’s Secret really was a product geared towards the male gaze. They have no ability to keep up or compete with her now, they are sort of left struggling against their own brand vision, so they have no core essence that appeals to customers. I think that my vision for my company is similar to Savage Fenty—in that it is designed to speak to the feminine consumer and offers them the first ever solution to design and technological needs not built and bred by the male gaze.

TODAY YOU’RE LAUNCHING A FILTER THAT READS “PROTECT WOMEN”, HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE CONCEPT OF YOUR FILTER?

I came up with the concept for the filter by thinking about how social media and AR can be used as a tool for empowerment and creating a strong social network of support. I was inspired by the internal anatomy that is under threat. Historically this has been such a deep part of sexism, even the word “hysteria” is derived from this internal organ which is said to be the root of women’s mental illness. I think this false projection is very interesting to turn on its head, in my filter, the anatomy is a crown almost, a source of power. I think this dichotomy is incredibly profound. I also am used to seeing femininity in design portrayed in often a very soft and approachable way, towards the male gaze. I think the true state of femininity is actually fierceness, and I wanted this filter to give that access of power to the user. It gives permission to be fierce warriors towards your own rights, for not having to make yourself smaller.

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO ACCOMPLISH WITH YOUR FILTER “PROTECT WOMEN?”

The filter pack has an option for both “protect women” and “protect our rights” to make it inclusive for all individuals. My goal is really to start a social media trend that promotes continued support of these causes and awareness and solidarity with those that are struggling. I think that AR is becoming a tool for donation towards reproductive health as well as being used as an access point for those who might not know which resources to use. Using the filter along with the donation feature to Planned Parenthood, Mayday Healthcare, or any of the organizations I listed is the best use for it. Raising awareness of where to get resources, showing solidarity, and creating empowerment for users and reproductive health organizations is the main motive.

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