Is there anything new about fiction? Fiction has always existed and always will, thriving in transformation and metamorphic natures. Fiction can get old, but can still be new as technology develops its simulation abilities. Fiction as invention or belief in something fake, fiction as literature in the form of prose that describes imaginary events and people: a too much broad and fluid concept to be fixed in definitions.

Fiction is a liquid form that keeps up well with nowadays hybridity and blurred contexts of fictional and real dimensions. In Economist John Maynard Keynes’ terms, “liquidity” refers to a property of the financial markets – the ease with which agents may divest themselves of their assets and acquire others with which to replace them. Taking the cue from Keynes, Sociologist Zygmunt Bauman has applied liquidity to relationships that are easily revertible and to systems that are unstable and precarious. Liquidity is thus a fitting metaphor for fiction, as it brings to the surface fiction’s ability to travel easily: it ‘flows’, ‘runs out’, ‘splashes’, ‘pours over’, ‘leaks’; unlike solids, liquids are not easily stopped–“they pass around some obstacles, dissolve some others and bore or soak their way through others still” in Bauman’s words (2000,2). Fiction is a liquid form as it’s linked to speculation, intended in both its good and bad connotations. Fiction is what makes us imagine and create. Fiction is a form of escape and running away from reality in a constant flux of dreamlike and tangible experiences.

Why do we need fiction in our lives? Why don’t we?

Who: Anna and Silvia Cristofolini, R_evolution
What: Fashion and Design Students
Where: Fornace (Trento), Italy
When: September 24, 2001–22 years old
Why: Fiction plays a significant role in our lives, as it helps us understand the world around us and make sense of the experiences we have. The possibility of telling stories, real or fictional, allows us to explore different emotions, values, and perspectives. However, fiction is not always necessary or inevitable, especially given the special twin bond. For us twins, the authentic nature of our relationship allows us to be ourselves without the need to pretend. We feel comfortable and in tune, which allows us to express who we really are. Pretence becomes part of our personality when we use it as a flexible tool to communicate, interact, and deal with different situations. It is a manifestation of our versatility and ability to navigate between different contexts. Although we try to maintain our authenticity in our relationship with each other, we see fiction as a resource that we can consciously use to face the challenges that life throws at us, while still maintaining our deeply rooted identity. In the fashion world, we see fiction as an opportunity to express emotions and experiences through our garments. Fiction in our clothes is a technique for capturing a moment in a way that is unique and extraordinary. By creating unrealistic shapes that develop with the movement of the clothes, we can capture the essence of a garment in ways that go beyond the real. This research allows us to create pieces that tell stories, arouse emotions, and inspire a deep and personal connection with fashion within people. Capturing volumes and shapes in transition in clothes in a way of representing the dynamism and fluidity of life itself. When we design clothes, we capture the essence of a moment of transition, which is intrinsic to our very existence. Fiction becomes a way to enhance this fleeting beauty and make it tangible through our creative work. Ultimately, fiction allows us to turn art into a tangible and visceral experience, allowing people to connect with the aesthetics and emotion we want to convey.

Who: Pascal Möhlmann
What: Painter/Artist
Where: Zuerich, Switzerland
When August 20, 1969–53 years old
Why: I definitely need fiction in my life. I love life but I wouldn’t be able to deal with all the hard facts of reality without a healthy dose of escapism into fiction, fake, and fantasy. Creating a softer-coloured atmosphere, through storytelling. Be it books, movies, or, most of all, art. Not least my own paintings, of course, in which I can create my own world and have complete say over what goes where and whether at all. I’ve never liked to be told what to do and what not to do, so I generally try to avoid situations where other people or authorities confront me with obligations that I have to deal with and instead spend as much time as possible playing. the oftentimes useless appearance of fiction is therefore much more than mere entertainment: it’s self-determination. It’s not a luxury, it’s a method of remaining sane.

Who: Miso Extra
What: Musician and Interdimensional Being
Where: The Misoverse
When: March 30–Aries, Virgo Rising
Why: The way I see it, fiction is a daydream that has been allowed the space to breathe and exist. For me, it’s crucial to the development of self and forming bonds with others. It’s life’s lessons packaged in a more palatable way.

Who: Inés Maestre
What: Visual Artis
Where: My heart is in Spain but I’m currently in NYC and Zuerich, Switzerland
Why: I believe that fiction is a part of reality. One cannot be separated from the other. In the same way that joy would be meaningless without sadness or light could not exist without darkness. We are never more certain of reality than when reality is, in fact, fiction. It is evidence that real life as we perceive it is not enough for us. The fear of getting bored floods us and makes it hard to live without that exaltation, without that sense of going beyond. We look for magic, we look for something crazier and more beautiful. Something out of the ordinary, unlike everything we are used to, and far from the routine and realities that occupy our daily lives. Our little human heads probably aren’t designed to stay in that first layer of real life. We have to ride relentlessly towards intensity and beauty in order to believe in the mirage of reality.

Who: Lawrie Abei
What: Stylist
Where: Berlin-based, originally from Ghana
When: May 15, 1994–29 years old
What: I’ve been around the industry for almost 5 years now. Everything I’ve been doing is driven by the awareness that imagination is at the centre of my practice. my work brings to a physical reality an imaginative fiction, thus what I have in mind. Fiction comes into my work in that way, and that’s what it means to me. Styling transforms imagination into a realistic dimension to believe in.

Who: Nikolina Granic (I go by Nina G)
What: Model and Multidisciplinary Artist
Where: Based in Milan, Italy
When: June 14, 1994–29 years old
What: We most definitely need fiction in our lives. That’s a given. An escape from reality, a way to believe and harness a brighter future reality. That’s what fiction does for me and I think many people. The current state of the world at large is quite sad, filled with negativity and brutality that human beings cannot thrive or grow in. Fiction allows us to do that even if it seems impossible. Fiction allows us to dream and helps maintain a more positive relationship with ourselves and the world around us. I believe we have the power to use fiction as an escape but also as a way to actually transform reality for the better. It doesn’t hurt to fantasize, to want more for yourself. If we imagine change at a cellular level within ourselves first and use art as the means to vocalize those dreams we can set into motion the growth humanity needs. I think art is one of the only ways to truly move humanity forward. It is food for our souls from our souls. Fiction to me is so many things. It’s in the way I play different personas and behave as different characters on set. It’s the way I express my emotions on a canvas. It’s the way I make sense of my thoughts by singing them out in a song. It’s in the way I carry myself when I’m in a mood. Sometimes I like being so involved in my own fantasy that I cannot tell what is real or not. And that fact is the one that actually allows me to remain positive and move forward while I deal with the hardships in my life. Without fiction, I don’t know if I could survive. Fiction means everything.