SCRT® x Dazed Club
Gallery / 10 images
London streetwear brand SCRT® has partnered with the creative community of Dazed Club on an art competition, inviting people to get cosmic with their graphic designs for clothes.
Everyone was asked to take inspiration from the world of sci-fi – a theme orbiting future visions, distant planets, and cosmic artefacts – from cult films and vintage pulp covers, to classic literature, cryptic quotes, or entirely new universes of their own invention.
In line with SCRT®’s ongoing commitment to championing emerging creators, the callout offered not only exposure but also the chance for at least two artists to win a cash prize and have their work included in the AW25 collection. From hundreds of submissions, four artists stood out for their bold and imaginative takes on the expansive possibilities of the sci-fi genre. Below, meet the winning artists, explore their t-shirt and hoodie designs, and discover the inspirations behind their work.
“My art really started from making YouTube videos as a kid – Minecraft, Fortnite, all that stuff. That’s where I learned how to edit, experiment and just push myself creatively,” says artist Jonathan James. Those early experiences with video and photo editing shaped their approach to image-making, teaching the artist to combine technical skill with instinctive creativity.
James’ winning design, the Body Hammer T-Shirt, draws from Tetsuo: The Iron Man, a film whose dark, grungy aesthetic provided the perfect canvas for their style. “I wanted it to feel chaotic and alive, like it’s moving even though it’s on a shirt,” they explain, layering ink and water their design reflects a fascination with visuals that feel “a little unhinged, like they’re alive beyond the screen.”
Where did you find inspiration for the project?
Jonathan James: I have to give my praises to my boy Sebastian – he’s the biggest movie buff I know and I went to him for help on what movies we thought would work best. A design of Roy Batty’s monologue from Blade Runner was on the table and an Akira design too, but I later dropped them both. Me and Seb narrowed it down to a handful of films like Solaris, End of Evangelion, Strange Days, 2046, and a few more. We ended up choosing Tetsuo: The Iron Man. It has such a dark, grungy, unhinged visual aesthetic, super textured – it gave me a lot to work with in my style.
What was the process of making your winning design?
Jonathan James: One of my favourite parts was actually submerging the whole thing in water before scanning it. My scanner acts funny with contrast and everything always looks super dense, but the water crushed the blacks in the ink even more – it made the contrast extra crunchy.
I had to be careful though because of how many layers I’d stuck together. Once the paper was soaked it went really brittle and started falling apart as I moved it to and from the scanner. I also added droplets of water on the title, which gave it this super cool rusted look once the ink bled.
Do you have any advice for young creatives?
Jonathan James: Don’t put external validation over your own passion. And make stuff! And more importantly, make mistakes – you’ll progress naturally. (I got this one from a new friend of mine called Alex.)
Ben Lees’ work is rooted in introspection, pulling from whatever philosophical ideas or personal contemplations they’re exploring at any given moment. His practice is shaped by a curiosity for big questions – identity, belief systems, and the tension between humanity and technology.
Lees’ winning entry, the Conscious Machine T-Shirt, is inspired by Ex Machina, using the film’s portrayal of artificial intelligence and blurred human boundaries as a springboard for design. The piece captures the film’s pivotal moment where Ava, the protagonist, encounters a wall of synthetic faces. “I wanted to explore the paradoxical relationship between man and machine, and the uncanny familiarity of artificial life,” he explains. “We’re already seeing a glimpse of it today with AI’s current state, but this truly gives us a look into how blurred the lines between man, machine and God may become.”
What are some favourite themes you explore in your work?
Ben Lees: I always just let whatever I have been feeling or contemplating recently influence my work. For example, recently I have been journalling and thinking about God a lot as a concept and as a value and moral system. This has led me down the rabbit hole of researching works from the likes of Nietzsche, Confucius, Kierkegaard and Baudrillard to help develop my own understanding, which I hope to use to create pieces in the future.
What’s a favourite piece of yours?
Ben Lees: Violent Dance. This was inspired by boxing and how there’s a lot of hidden elegance to the sweet science under the surface of it. I’m really happy with how I was able to give the piece a lot of energy, amp and movement that seems to transfer through and between both the boxers and the ballet dancers with an almost x-ray-like effect, showing how similar they are despite one being stereotyped as violent and the other being seen as graceful. This piece was the result of days of experimentation and has really influenced how I go about designing today.
Who’s a dream client or collaboration?
Ben Lees: For me it’s gotta be Glaive. I love how creative, raw and unique his music is, so I’d love the challenge of translating that visually in whatever medium that may be. He also just seems like a super cool fella, so I reckon it would be a blast.
Paige Howes is drawn to the macabre in the everyday. This approach shows in their viscerally stylised designs that often invite the viewer to confront ideas that are at once familiar and unsettling. Film plays a central role in their creative process, serving as a vessel through which they interrogate perception. Howes’ winning entry, the Judgement T-Shirt, revisits Terminator 2, focusing on the film’s depiction of human fragility and technological inevitability.
What are some favourite themes you explore in your work?
Paige Howes: There’s a definite draw to the macabre, or the way the macabre interweaves itself into the mundane – the ‘every day’… I like it when a client tells me they chose a piece of mine to get tattooed because there was something uncanny about it.
Do you have any advice for young creatives?
Paige Howes: If it doesn’t resonate with you, abandon it – sunk-cost fallacy is real. It’s never too late to start again. Strive to keep learning, make mistakes, seek out mentors with experience and listen to them, even if you don’t agree. Let go of your ego and accept constructive criticism. Get out of your comfort zone.
Any new, out-of-comfort-zone things you’ve been trying recently?
Paige Howes: Putting my phone down. I’m sick of that fucking thing. The algorithmic overlord ensures that trend cycles are tightened via our curated social media feed echo chambers. If I see something ‘new’ on Pinterest, without fail I will see it referenced on several of the tattoo flash sheets posted online in the weeks after. I, too, am a victim of this. It makes me feel trapped.
Who’s a dream client or collaboration?
Paige Howes: Travis Scott. I admire his creative fluidity and I’m always genuinely excited to see what he does next. I thought Circus Maximus was a wonderful feat in collaboration that felt very refreshing.
Sue Lee’s work is driven by a love of sci-fi, tech and the mechanics of the human body. They often focus on fluidity, sharp lines, and small details – joints, fingers, feet – while mixing media and typography as core parts of their visual language.
Lee’s winning entry, the Android Dreams Hoodie, pays homage to the giants of sci-fi culture – from Ghost in the Shell and Blade Runner to Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – blendinf dystopian aesthetics with questions of identity, humanity and longing. “This year’s theme feels more relevant than ever,” they say. “It makes you ask: What do you dream? Who are you in the world you’re building?”
How did you get into image-making?
Sue Lee: In elementary school, we had to write down our dream job and I wrote ‘designer’ because it sounded cool. I ended up going to school for it and now I do it for a living. Manifested it.
What’s your favourite piece of your own work?
Sue Lee: A quick type work that reads ‘end of dream’ in Korean – ‘꿈 (dream/ggum)’ and ‘끝 (end/ggeut)’. I made it when I was feeling down. Months later I’d already forgotten about it, flipped it and realised it also reads as ‘FONTS’. Type is fun like that.
Any new, out-of-comfort-zone things you’ve been trying?
Sue Lee: Experimenting with AI, learning Blender and working on projects that aren’t in my usual wheelhouse or taste. It’s challenging but a good way to stretch my brain and push myself a bit.
Any advice for young creatives?
Sue Lee: Everything you see, breathe, hear and experience becomes the baseline of your thoughts. If you use it consciously, it’s a cheat code for image making. Also, personal passion projects. This is advice to myself too, but don’t stop. It’s fun.
