Art works: PRF by Iulia Matei

My comic is called PRF, which stands for Punk Rock Fairies. It’s a dystopic fusion of punk and fantasy, and is the story of a mother called Rox and her daughter Pip, who has a mutation. Because of this, they must flee the authoritarian regime that is hunting them down. Together, they have to navigate being unwelcome in their own society, relying on the people around them and trusting that goodness still exists.

The aesthetic was inspired by some earlier pieces I created, where I wanted to fuse the fantastical and delicate beauty of fairies with a more industrial, hard-edged setting. From there, it was a relatively short leap toward punk, as music is in general a big presence in my life. I was going to name it something else, but I've been referring to it as PRF for so long that it stuck.

The process for the comic is very hands on! I’m using ink on A3 paper, to really try to capture a lot of detail and focus on the DIY aspect that punk is so revered for. I wanted to keep the bulk of the artwork being done by hand as a kind of response to AI. That said, everything is shaded digitally because I was scared of not having ctr+z on that, but I sometimes break from that and have paintings or paper collages that pepper the comic. I’ve also created mini-zine sketchbooks and even some handmade earrings, again to keep that human aspect.

The comic also features posters from Nottingham bands like Rights for Flies or Cheap Dirty Horse. I reached out to them and they agreed to be in the comic which is so cool! Nottingham has an incredible music scene, it would be a crime not to highlight it. 

I’m originally from Bucharest in Romania, and I’ve lived in Nottingham for about seven years now, moving here after uni. I couldn’t really imagine being anywhere else now and Notts very much feels like home. It has everything I could need: gigs, culture, a really cool energy and a great scene with a will to create.

I studied animation at university, but before that I was drawing mostly for myself, faffing about! While uni was interesting, I’ve found the best training for me has always just been to sit down and do it. Whether it’s doing studies of art I love, or practising new techniques, you never know how you feel about something until it’s on the page in front of you.

An artist I really love is Peter Polach, whose work inspired the first pieces I drew that eventually led to PRF. When it comes to comics specifically, I adore Tank Girl. I find the chaos and style of that world really cool.

The comic launches in May after the Kickstarter ends. After that, I’ll be exhibiting at Inkblot, which is a comic festival happening at The Vat & Fiddle! It’s always just such a lovely place to be. The organisers put a lot of work into making it a place for everyone and a celebration of all things comics and art. I’m grateful to be involved with it.

If there is something that you want to make, please, I’m begging you, do it. Make it for the sake of it. Make it for others, even if it’s just your friends. Make the thing when you feel like a fraud. The world has too much polished, optimised, algorithm-approved, garbage art that lines the pockets of millionaires and bleeds the world dry. We need independent art now more than ever.

Head to Inkblot Festival at the Vat & Fiddle on Saturday 30 May to check out Iulia’s work and many more artists.

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