Longtime Swiftie and graphic designer Geli Luna shares Folklore-inspired art and her unfiltered thoughts on Taylor Swift’s newest album
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I’m not sure I can explain the full effect that Folklore has taken on me since its unexpected release. I don’t even remember what my life was like before this album because in its few days of existence, I have gone through stages of shock, denial, panic, wonder, pain, curiosity, all culminating in plain obsession. Everything has definitely changed.
I guess if I had the chance to ask you one thing about this album, it would just be this: HOW?!
How have you managed to write and develop a full-length album out of nowhere, in the midst of a pandemic no less? Is it even possible for someone to be this creatively productive in quarantine?
How is the sound new and different, but also somehow so familiar and nostalgic? It’s a genre you haven’t stepped foot in until now, so I can’t stop asking myself this: How is Folklore still so reminiscent of your past work? I feel the youth of Fearless, the vulnerability of Red, the liberation of 1989, the honesty of Reputation, all weaved into the melodies and narratives of fresh stories.
How have you so masterfully executed this sound that it feels like you’ve been doing this kind of music all this time? How come I never saw the shift coming when it just feels so right? Your songwriting and singing were made for these tracks and your choice of collaborators really pulled your vision through.
It’s a new Taylor but also very much the old Taylor. The one who never really died. The one who was maybe always there but had to get through the woods to become this version of you.
I think this just solidifies the fact that your songwriting knows no bounds. I’m convinced that if there is any body of work that can get your naysayers to do a double take, it’s this. I still can’t choose just one favorite song, because each track is so craftily cohesive that I have no choice but to absorb it as one whole piece and one whole experience.
I am entranced by Folklore. I don’t know if (and when) I can get out of its spell, but I’m not sure I really want to.
✺ Words and art by Geli Luna ——
GELI IS A GRAPHIC DESIGNER WITH A LOVE FOR BRANDING AND TYPOGRAPHY. PREVIOUSLY PRACTICING ARCHITECTURE, SHE DEVELOPED A PASSION FOR GRAPHIC DESIGN BY MAKING POP CULTURE-INSPIRED ART WHICH EVENTUALLY LED TO A CAREER SHIFT. SHE ONCE THOUGHT HER FANGIRLING WAS JUST A PHASE BUT SHE HAS NOW ACCEPTED IT AS A WAY OF LIFE. SPOT HER WORKS ON @GELITRIES.
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