Astra Zero Explained

Birth Name:Dustin Nicholls
Birth Place:Merritt, British Columbia
Nationality:Canadian
Website:https://astrazero.com/

Astra Zero, born Dustin Nicholls, is a Canadian digital artist, illustrator, photographer, creative director, graphic designer and musician.

He began to use the name Astra Zero as a teenager in a punk band "and we all decided we wanted alter egos and for whatever reason".[1]

Family and early life

Nicholls grew up in Faro, Yukon. His biological father is part-First Nation, part-Scottish. He was a keen artist from a young age, painting and drawing. His grandfather, also an artist, taught him as a child. He began experimenting with digital art as a teenager, using a family scanner and printer saying, "I would collect random stuff like leaves and garbage and scan it and then layer it over old photos and then print them out and draw over them." He then moved into using Photoshop and other similar programmes.[2]

Work

Astra Zero's greatest influence is the Canadian artist, Floria Sigismondi. Other inspirations are horror, sci-fi and fantasy films, 90s cartoons plus gay and pop culture.[3]

Collections have included Infernal, Queer Horror Icons, Night Rebels, Dirty Paper, Latex and Bones, Restless Vampire, Pop Culture and Dark Vintage.

Historical parodies

He created historical parodies of:

His most popular parody is Temptation of Adam & Steve, a revamp of Adam and Eve (1628) by Peter Paul Rubens.[4]

Other work

Astra Zero has worked regularly with Alice Glass[5] and Alice Longyu Gao[6] as photo and video editor,[7] artist, photographer, animator,[8] visualiser and director.[9] [10]

Astra Zero created the animation for The Pretty Reckless's 2020 music video Death by Rock and Roll with art direction by Lucas David. He created the artwork and text for the cover of REZZ + Alice Glass's single Not Enough and Saint Agnes's album Bloodsuckers. His work featured on the front cover of Bear World Magazine's 10th anniversary issue in October 2023.[11]

Publications

He has published the following books:

Music

Astra Zero has released eight singles to date:[12]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Hernandez . John . 2023-10-06 . Beef, Bears and Horror: The Art of Astra Zero . 2023-12-26 . Bear World Magazine . en-GB.
  2. Web site: Hernandez . John . 2023-10-06 . Beef, Bears and Horror: The Art of Astra Zero . 2023-12-26 . Bear World Magazine . en-GB.
  3. Web site: Introducing... Astra Zero . Michael Turnbull . loverboymagazine.com . 2023-12-09.
  4. Web site: Hudson . David . 2023-09-15 . People are praising this VERY revealing portrait of a Biblical ‘Adam and Steve’ . 2023-12-26 . Queerty.
  5. Web site: Alice Glass Unleashes New Single "Lips Apart" . Allie Gregory . exclaim.ca . 2023-12-27.
  6. Web site: Alice Longyu Gao is creating a maximalist, queer sonic party world that's better than our own . Sadie Bell . altpress.com. 2023-12-27.
  7. Web site: Alice Longyu Gao Drops Video for New Song ‘Kanpai’ . KONSTANTINOS PAPPIS . ourculturemag.com. 2023-12-27.
  8. Web site: interview alice glass . Braden Bjella . schonmagazine.com. 2023-12-27.
  9. Web site: Alice Glass Previews Debut Album With New ‘Baby Teeth’ Video . ALTHEA LEGASPI . rollingstone.com. 2023-12-27.
  10. Web site: Alice Glass Takes Control of the Narrative . Kyle Munzenrieder . wmagazine.com. 2023-12-27.
  11. Oct 2023 . Astra Zero . Bears, Sex and Horror . Bear World Magazine . New York, USA . No. 73 . Gray Jones Media . 1.
  12. Web site: Astra Zero . . discogs.com . 2023-12-27.
  13. Web site: INDUSTRIAL/POP MUSICIAN ASTRA ZERO RELEASES NEW SINGLE 'LET IT ROLL' . . brutalresonance.com . 2023-12-27.

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