The background to the Art of Decadence is that our main message is DIY and Underground. We stand for that anything is possible with the right mindset and that there is pride in creating something from scratch, be rebels and dare to do things your own way. It is this attitude that is the core of the Decadence Sweden® brand. That is how Decadence creates music and related art to inspire people to do the same.
Here are words from the artists themselves with comments by Metallic Kitty.
CHARGEPOINT – Inside booklet art by Yumi Nishikata
Yumi Nishikata, Japanese pencil drawing artist. She was born in May 1983. Worked on the inside booklet images of “Chargepoint” as illustrator. The album was released in 2009.
“That was a very valuable experience for me. I tried to paint some clear images that Kitty had in mind. Sometimes, it was a little difficult for me, but we completed it together. “Chargepoint” is my first artwork with a Death Metal band. And the only work with a Growl Voice Queen!” – Yumi Nishikata
“As I started off sketching the front cover for “Chargepoint”, right after Decadence had the breakthrough in Japan with “3rd Stage of Decay”, I stumbled upon Yumi’s art online. As we started talking and got to know each other better, I realized that this girl had to be the one to draw the inside booklet art. The result is stunning, every track has its own dedicated art. Yumi illustrated my thoughts and I put my touch on it in relation to the lyrics and it became a great combination of Eastern and Western styles. I consider this booklet to be the best one we’ve had to this date.” – Metallic Kitty
UNDERGROUNDER – Front cover by Therese Hagström
Therese Hagström, born in March 1984. Raised in Salem outside of Stockholm, Sweden. Working as a graphical designer. Started working with the front cover “Undergrounder” together with a photographer and an illustrator. The front cover was done in 2012 and the album was released in 2017.
“When I started working with the front cover for “Undergrounder” my first thought was blue. Together with Kitty we created an image of how we wanted it to look with the Decadence skull “Raggan” in focus. It was a fun experience. “Undergrounder” is my first and only front cover for an album that I have designed.” – Therese Hagström
“When we started this project I knew that I wanted this art to be more real, not drawn, and it would be the first front cover I handed over to someone else to do. That’s when I found the talented Therese. Decadence faced a new era and the art was to be a symbol of the return of Decadence. The skull is buried in sand, a symbolism of the Underground, but is kind of peeking out of it and actually has eyes looking back at you, more alive this time. I wanted “Undergrounder” to represent of who we consider Decadence to be. And who we consider our fans to be. It’s a statement that we are Undergrounders. Therese and her team made all this possible like I would have never been able to on my own.” – Metallic Kitty
SIX TAPE – Front cover by Ruso Tsig
Rusudan Tsignadze, known as Ruso Tsig, is a Georgian artist. She was born in May, 1997.
“Working with Metal band musicians is my job. I always try to improve my skills in art. It was a great experience working on the “Six Tape” album cover art for Decadence, because it has a lot of details. It’s the biggest project in my portfolio. I worked with the band’s vocalist. Why is she my fav? First of all we rarely meet female vocalists in Metal… and… She is one of them. Second, it was really nice to talk with her… I just want to say it was really great experience with excellent people…” – Ruso Tsig
“It was so easy working with Ruso, I had a crystal clear image in my head of what I wanted the front cover of “Six Tape” to be, and not only did Ruso listen, but it was like she looked into my mind and drew every detail as I wanted it to be. When I first plotted this image back in 2013 the idea behind it was to kill off my character Metallic Kitty (yes indeed…) so I put all my stuff on the ground and took a shot of it. Today, many years later, Ruso helped me do the exact opposite, in the form of an amazing artwork. All my stuff are there in the image, as a statement that Decadence is ready to hit the stage again while honoring the genre influences in music that we’ve had through the years through the color and design.” – Metallic Kitty
OTHER – Cartoon fan art by Koregore
Karen Nava, known as Koregore, is a Mexican artist. She was born in June, 1987.
“I still remember it as if it was yesterday (actually it was like 10 years ago), the first time I heard Decadence with its Corrosion! (And with that my ears and my heart corroded). When I started listening to the instrumentation it injected a huge and incredible strength in me, and I felt uncertain about what I was going to hear and suddenly: “Chained to a rusty illusion…” Woooow! Powerful voice! Wait… it’s a woman! I felt inspired and my hands began to draw. Since then Metallic Kitty has inspired me with her strong voice, her hard work and perseverance. Thanks to all the musicians who have been part of Decadence, they have done an incredible and powerful job!” – Koregore
“It was the MySpace era and I stumbled upon Koregore. She had shared various cartoon versions of Decadence’ members, all over, that were so awesome that I got in touch. Koregore really has a touch for details and she always captures the small things that make our characters so much on spot and has been an important part of the art around Decadence for a long time!” – Metallic Kitty
