THE MORE AI I SEE, THE MORE I CRAVE IMPERFECTION: LARA VIOLETTA

You never know what Lara Violetta will come up with for the next issue of her magazine, Violet Papers, and that is the point.

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty by MAC Cosmetics: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

Lara Violetta grew up in the Bavarian countryside, where, as she tells 032c, a very boring upbringing did wonders for her creativity. Today she is the founder and editor-in-chief of her own magazine Violet Papers. A true nerd, Violetta is devoted to print, paper, typefaces, and handwriting, and with equal fervor to hats, bags, books, and make-up. Her Instagram following celebrates her infectious excitement and her particular sense of beauty, which is inseparable from her affection for mess. She is not afraid to look tired when she is tired. In fact, a Lara Violetta beauty tutorial might linger over heavy-set eyes until exhaustion starts to look like a desirable mood.

What she is afraid of is sounding too polished—a fear that is immediately connected to the rise of AI-generated content. That’s why the latest issue of Violet Papers introduces an element of chaos to the magazine design: unwrapping a copy releases thousands of particles of designer Julie Kegels’s red glitter. The font of the cover isn’t a computerized typeface but the spindly, scrawny handwriting of the legendary Antwerp graphic designer Paul Boudens, who has previously worked for Maison Margiela, Yohji Yamamoto, and Dries Van Noten, and has now taken charge of the magazine’s art direction.

In collaboration with MAC Cosmetics, this beauty editorial by Franka Rosa Maria Klaproth and Luke Abby explores beauty through a confidence in imperfection, featuring the MAC Cosmetic Studio Radiance skin tint stick.

dress GUCCI

Beauty: Faceglass Hydrating Skin Gloss Primer, Strobe Cream (Uvlite), Glow Play Highlighter (Sky Kissed), Pro Longwear Paint Pod (Sink to a Whisper), Dazzleshadow Liquid Eyeshadow (Crumbled Diamonds), Lustreglas Sheer Shine Lipstick (Lil Squirt), Lipglass (Clear)

Franka Rosa Maria Klaproth: What was the initial impulse to found Violet Papers?

Lara Violetta: It was and is a passion project. I grew up with this huge love of print, and when I started working in the digital field as an influencer, I continued to buy a lot of magazines. I talked about print in my YouTube videos back then, and even if not a lot of people watched them, it felt natural for me to combine the two mediums. I wanted to extend the idea of merging the past and the future on paper with the magazine.

FK: What is the most challenging thing about being an editor-in-chief?

LV: Ha, the good thing is that when I got into this, I had a certain naïveté. In my reality, print was never dead. I think the position of editor-in-chief comes with the challenge of fitting many different visions under one hat. What's beautiful about a magazine is that it is in a way a collaborative project, with your internal team and contributors. I mean, the number of people involved in an issue? Incredible. It’s a balancing act to be sensitive and flexible while trusting your own intuition and vision.

shirt TOM FORD, ring CARTIER glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Studio Radiance Skin Tint Stick (Light 2), Multisculpt Matte (Omega and Pinot Noir), Lipglass (Clear)

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

FK: As a fashion editor, I always try to consider different perspectives, without losing sight of my own vision.

LV: That’s the beauty of it: to stay flexible. If the creative process weren’t an open conversation, it wouldn’t turn out as good. I have the privilege to call a lot of great minds my friends, and I gladly ask for their thoughts. They don’t have to be in the publishing world. For example, I talk to my partner Philemon about everything.

FK: Your editor’s note begins by saying: “all I’ve been doing is overthinking how we communicate, and lately I haven’t seen much that I like.” What do you mean by that?

LV: With the rise of AI and AI-generated texts, our communication has shifted. I felt the pressure to prove that our texts are not written by AI. In the end, the value of the magazine is our thoughts, ideas, and the way we express them.

FK: To me, AI-generated text always feels soulless. There is no edge to it.

LV: Exactly. It has no substance or point of view. You have to live through something to get to a point of view.

dress GUCCI

Beauty: Face Glass Primer, Strobe Cream (Uvlite), Glow Play Highlighter (Sky Kissed), Pro Longwear Paint Pot (Sink to a Whisper), Dazzleshadow Liquid Eyeshadow (Crumbled Diamonds), Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Lil Squirt), Lipglass (Clear)

dress and bra PAULINE BARKE, jewelry sticker JULIE KEGELS, shoes FENDI,

Beauty: Maximal Matte Lipstick (Lady Danger), Lipglazer (Lady Danger), Mineralize Skin Finish (Soft&Gentle)

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

FK: Not long ago, it was the goal to publish an error-free magazine. This direction has now shifted. For example, you mention in your editor's note that you had “a scare of sounding too polished.” How do you emphasize that your magazine is made without AI?

LV: I wanted this issue to feel human and very personal. It is about celebrating mistakes, intuition, and learning through trial and error. It always starts with long conversations between me and my deputy editor Lien Devriese. I felt the visual component should have a lot of handwriting and analog elements. This was the perfect moment to start working with the legendary Paul Boudens, who has shaped the visual landscape of fashion through his analog work for many years. We also explored placing text in a kind of “anti-placement” within the layout: lines sit very close together, sometimes even touching, tickling. The magazine is full of these small, deliberately anti-perfectionist details, that are still very elegant.

FK: Can you describe your own handwriting in three words?

LV: Messy, wild, and unpredictable even for myself.

FK: Do you have a favorite handwriting?

LV: I mean, I’m open to all handwriting. I think that’s also the beauty of it, that each handwriting is different. If I had to pick one, of course it would be Paul Boudens.

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty by MAC: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

full look ALAÏA, gloves BALENCIAGA, necklace TALENT'S OWN

Beauty: Powder Kiss Soft Matte Eyeshadow (Such a Tull), Colour Excess Gel Pencil Eyeliner (Commitment Issues), Excess Longwear Smokey Eyeliner (Ecru), Glow Play Cushiony Blush (Totally Synced), Maximal Sleek Satin Lipstick (Pink Peppermint)

FK: How did you ask him to be the art director of Violet Papers?

LV: We had interviewed him in the fourth edition of Violet Papers. Reading the interview over and over, I could feel his love and dedication for his practice, it is almost electric. Asking him was a shot in the dark. I was nervous before calling him, so I put a few words in my notes app to remember what I was supposed to say. These are now the opening notes and conversation of “The Current Issue.” Working with Paul felt like driving a Porsche for the first time.

FK: One thing you learned from Paul Boudens?

LV: The list is long, but most importantly having fun is fundamental!

FK: Paul Boudens’s handwriting is also the cover of your newest issue. Do you have a favorite font?

LV: A favorite font? Caslon Classic, like our text font of Violet Papers. It’s romantic without being too romantic.

FK: Are you a futurist or a romanticist?

LV: Both.

FK: Your favorite book?

LV: Beauty by Andy Warhol.

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

FK: What does beauty mean to you?

LV: I think beauty is something very personal. Beauty has a lot to do with confidence. It's the relationship to yourself, being in alignment with yourself, and radiating this outwards. If you're think you're beautiful, I think so too. On a more practical level, beauty is the routine that people have. Beauty keeps us busy.

FK: What are you tired of at the moment?

LV: This morning? FedEx shipping conditions.

FK: What gave you hope recently?

LV: I’m still very much in the positive shock from the latest Violet Papers launch at Dover Street Market in Paris. It was so overwhelming to see so many incredible people showing up and celebrating print.

FK: Your close friend Julie Kegels, whose designs and glitter you feature in Violet Papers, has recently won the LVMH Prize. Where were you when you found out that she won?

LV: I was visiting my dad. My boyfriend Philemon—who works for Julie—and I had just taken a nap. When I checked my phone, I immediately woke him up to tell him that she won. He was still in between dreams and reality, so his reaction was very funny.

dress and bra PAULINE BARKE, jewelry sticker JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Maximal Matte Lipstick (Lady Danger), Lipglazer (Lady Danger), Mineralize Skin Finish (Soft&Gentle)

FK: What’s your favorite Julie Kegels piece?

LV: That’s difficult. My most worn piece is the Double Bag—I truly wear it all the time. I have so many beautiful bags—I’m a lucky girl—but I always end up grabbing my Double Bag.

FK: What was the last fashion piece you bought?

LV: You should ask me tomorrow, I’m going to the Alaïa sale.

FK: Favorite fashion show of last season?

LV: Matières Fécales, for many reasons. I read their show notes, it was a very long text with not a lot of spacing. It said they actually had the conceptual idea for the show during their university years. They now finally had the resources to bring the concept to life. I found it fascinating that it began as a student idea because, at that stage, you don't necessarily think commercially or feel bound by those structures.

FK: What makes you stand out is how distinctively you express yourself. You dress with confidence and precision, not bound by the male gaze or certain conventions. You have found a very unique voice through your style. Was this something you always just had, or was it something you had to learn to develop?

LV: Thank you, that’s a beautiful compliment. I think how I look and feel now, is truly how I am and always was as a person. I might have lost it along the way for some time—I drifted away from it a bit in my early 20s—but I found it again after moving to Paris.

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

FK: You lived in Munich before then?

LV: No, in Berlin. I also appreciate my time there, but I just feel more like myself here. In Paris I get to wake up every morning and be myself in every possible way. I’m very grateful for it.

FK: Just like your persona, your magazine concept and visual language are very precise. You have a sharp point of view. Do you ever doubt yourself in your creative process? How do you deal with it?

LV: It is always a process, and of course I have moments of doubt, but I ignore them as well as I can. When I doubt myself, I act like I don't. Eventually, the doubts disappear.

FK: What advice would you give others to get to this point?

LV: Be around people that inspire and uplift you, and that really love you for who you are. Conversations with friends help a lot. At the same time, building a good relationship with yourself is super important. Spend a lot of time by yourself.

FK: You seem like an extremely inventive person. For instance, to carry your print magazines around in style, you designed a bag strap specifically constructed to wear a magazine cover as a bag. It made me wonder what other inventions you came up with. I can imagine that your inventiveness was already present in childhood.

LV: I have always loved spending time by myself. This is where I find my strength, and start thinking. For me, as a child, the best thing ever was being alone in my room, listening to audiobooks and drawing. My dad had an old video camera and I was mesmerized by it. One day, I was home by myself and could finally steal it. I desperately wanted to make a movie. I grew up in the countryside of Bavaria, and I found it incredibly boring there. I got very frustrated, thinking that I had no theme for my movie because of this almost paralyzing boredom. I decided to make a movie about how boring it was for me to live there. Since time passed so slowly for me back then, I tried to make a super long movie that was as deadly boring as possible.

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)

FK: Turns out a boring upbringing benefits creativity.

LV: For sure. It’s a luxury to be bored as a child.

FK: What’s your life credo?

LV: I approach life keeping in mind that I am only visiting this planet, and I always try to remind myself to not take things too seriously. It’s scary and liberating at the same time. What's yours?

FK: The biggest freedom we possess is our reaction to things. I read in Violet Papers about the Sagrada Família in Barcelona, which has been finished after 100 years of construction, and long after Antoni Gaudís death. It’s taking up the thought that patience is a virtue, and that the ability to wait for something is sometimes crucial. From my point of view, in this capitalist system, with attention spans getting smaller, information floods, and digitilization, no one is used to waiting or wants to wait anymore. What is your perception of this?

LV: I think patience can help you in so many ways. I had to learn to be a patient person. Patience is also one of the most beautiful gifts you can give somebody in relationships and friendships. In this fast-paced world, we all put ourselves under so much pressure—in terms of age, career, or whatever. But we forget it’s not a sprint, and the race is very long. Being impatient doesn’t lead to great work.

FK: If you could pick anytime to be alive, which era would you pick?

LV: I actually don't like the thought of leaving my now. I wouldn't be surrounded by the same people. I think I would just like to live in this moment and try to make it better.

FK: As of now, what does your perfect day off look like?

LV: My perfect day off would be after I finish something important, because when you’re working on something you’re passionate about, you work on it everyday. The satisfaction of having finished something helps me calm down on a day off. I would visit a sample sale, find and buy a new piece that I'm really excited about, and take it to bed with me. I love to be surrounded by beautiful things. I live in a shoebox apartment in Paris, so I can always see everything I own and love: my makeup, my shoes, my clothes, my hats. Then I would just listen to audiobooks and podcasts, read magazines, and scroll through TikTok—always alternating between sitting on the bed and sitting on the floor. I also love organizing my makeup. It's calming to me.

FK: What sets Violet Papers apart from other magazines?

LV: I hope it’s recognized for merging two mediums and experimenting with the combination of digital and print.

FK: What legacy do you aspire to leave for the fashion world?

LV: A paper trail: print is forever.

glitter JULIE KEGELS

Beauty: Lustreglass Sheer Shine Lipstick (Housewife), Skinfinish Colourstruck Blush (Honey Love)