Meet Agnete Morell

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Agnete Morell. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Agnete below.

Agnete, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

I have always thought that what I’ll do in the future was not invented yet.
Somehow this prepared for the blurry future of what creativity, plurality and silo thinking means.

When I was a child my biggest dream was to become an illustrator or artist. I was always obsessed with drawing and in particularly manga and anime. I guess the obsession with this otherwordly culture opened up my eyes for what is beyond the borders of Denmark. Already back then I loved Chobits – this brilliant manga about a robot gaining consciousness and questioning what it means to be human. It was first many years later, this manga (among many others) regarding life, identity and the integral integration and impact technology have on humans life came back to me.

When I was 14, I remember going to one of those prepared school trips to figure out what you want to do, when you grow up. I randomly went to hear about a BA in Visual Communication Design. After the presentation I was determined of getting into this BA, where you can live off being creative. I went to a boarding school in Design trying out all kinds of design – from Architecture to fashion to graphic.

I spontaneously got into my BA in visual communication 14 days before the school started. I was supposed to have a gap year after ending my high school, however a quick turn of events and I entered university instead. They teached us all the basics of graphic communication, but rather than design thinking it was focused on the practicalities of graphic design. Everything was skill-based, which made us suited into industry thinking and working in an agency straight after school, however I kept being curious about what happens outside of graphic design. There was an electronic engineering music school next to us. I started doing visuals and in general real-time graphics exploring what happens when graphic design becomes spatial. (This almost felt as a long/ on-going exploration of Iannis Xennakis Expo58 with Le Corbusier haha). During my BA we also had to do an internship. I was inbetween going to New York, Munich, Copenhagen or Berlin. Very different opportunities from commercial work to more experimental. However I decided to go fully outside my bubble and ended up at Studio Olafur Eliasson (which is an art studio!) I was wondering, what would happen if you entered a different field than design. I learned a lot and I’m grateful to this day being part of that studio.

Afterwards I went to Central Saint Martins in London to do my Masters in Graphic Communication Design. It was a really free period in my life, and the school actually allowed me to keep exploring my interest in 3D design and what it means to be posthuman, so I started developing games, getting interested in 3D scanning and Augmented Reality – everything with a focus on what it means to be human with an increasingly mediated reality. On top of these questions I actually graduated during Corona (2021). That was a surreal time and I think my mindset wasn’t fully prepared for what isolation means (as well as a fully mediated reality). During my MA I started working with International Magic and went full-time. They are an experimental design studio and I ended up working on a variety of projects all questioning human experience. We worked more than 4 years with Martine Rose (fashion designer subverting fashion in the best way and bringing a strange meaningfulness in her garments and thinking to the industry), Nike, Selfridges and many others. It was a fruitful time and I ended up being the Art Director and CG Lead.

I have always been curious in my thinking and exploring how I can help making the world a better place. I think I’m not fully done. I went to do a research fellowship afterwards (with Farida!) exploring the impact of AI through worldling, sonic futures, glitches and the world as computational images. It puts my practice into perspective. I do still find these pockets of thinking rare. I love being surrounded by thinkers – and there is many ways to think – whether it’s by writing or experimenting.

I keep learning and I feel slowly I’m gaining a resonance and figuring out how I might fit into this ever-changing world. I’m still on a journey, but I’m excited. I somehow think my journey will be slow and thoughtful (as I might be an experiential thinker as well haha )

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Professionally I’m focused on thinking and experimentation.
It is an endless hermeneutic circle of on-going learning. I try to be in as many circles as I can. I’ve been in particular inspired by how manifestos and design strategy is coming back. It seems as if, there’s an emerging re-definition of what it means to be designer today that is uprising. I’ve been experiencing some design studios actively starting to consult in their thinking rather than their doing. I’m actually also currently writing my own manifesto. If you are interested please reach out to me on Instagram (@Amoerelllll and I will be happy to share it)

I also just recently became more serious in my artistic career as well. It allows me to process what I do in my professional life and vice versa. It is a quite fruitful relationship, however I hope to integrate them more tightly together.

I have an upcoming exhibition in Chile in December with fellow artist Samuel Dominguez about the everchanging landscape and integration with agricultural machines at Galpón Independencia in Santiago. It will explore Food security, the symbiocene, disaster capitalism, environmental visions, material exploitation and agricultural sustainability it aims to provoke new realisations about our relationship with technology, nature, and food production. While nature and technology tend to feel wholly separate from, even incompatible with, one another, they are both ecologies: spaces of profound interrelation, sociality, and ever-evolving capabilities. If you look at the two closely, in both you’ll see nodes of connection, architectures of shared ideas and resources, and webs of aliveness.

We see the internet and its associated technologies as a massive leap forward in human evolution, as it has enabled our species to mimic resilient, interconnected root networks—while simultaneously working and thinking across space and time. From this expansion of collective intelligence, new possibilities are already emerging.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

In general I think it is:
– Always thinking about that the people you meet on your way up are the same people you’ll meet on your way down. Be kind and open. I try to treat people equal no matter of their experience. There’s always so much to learn from each individual and no matter of your journey keep doing what makes you happy.

And then keep doing your personal projects or weird interests. It is what makes you and your thinking unique. I almost forgot how important this is. Sometimes it can even be scary not to work on something or for someone, however there is a true strength in being able to work for yourself and do what you believe in. (I think this might be me coming back into my artist career now haha)

Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?

In general this is my thinking as well as (re)learning disciplines.
I just did a slight career change as well as a whole new chapter in my career.

I’m sensing that the next years will truly be transforming.
I’m still learning about myself and skills. I just completely stepped outside my comfort zone and it feels as if I’m opening my eyes up for the first time and learning about myself (this might sound quite corny haha). I guess it’s never too late to learn. In my new professional role I’m a UX-designer and digital designer. It is the first time in four years I have a specialised role. In some ways it is nice diving into such a specific genre within the graphic design ecosystem.

Contact Info:

• Website: This is coming (but look out for this on my Instagram)
• Instagram: amoerelllll
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/agnete-morell-104655192/

Image Credits

International Magic