Location in FLANNEL: Los Angeles
In our latest Spotlight Q&A, meet Australian-born, Los Angeles-based artist, director and production designer Liam Young, whose work explores the intersection of architecture, technology and imagined futures. In conversation with FLANNEL, Liam shares his approach to style, the differences in lifestyle between LA and Australia, his favourites places to travel, cultural recommendations and a bit about his latest exhibition, In Other Worlds.
How would you describe your style?
Military and workwear-inspired as travel and remote location documentary work is a critical part of my film and art practice.
You chose the FLANNEL Shepherd Shirt and the Repare Goods Denim Shirt Jacket. Why did these pieces stand out to you?
I appreciate the timeless practicality of workwear.
Can you give us a brief insight into your lifestyle in L.A as opposed to Australia? What are the standout differences?
LA is a fiction machine. I’m here to connect with the storytelling infrastructure of Hollywood, so it’s a place of relentless work and constant imagination for me. Australia is where I escape to. I sit on a beach, soak in saltwater, eat an early dinner at a sidewalk café. LA is about making imaginary worlds; Australia is about remembering there’s a real one.
What do you miss the most about Australia?
I miss the landscape, the colour of the sky, the vast horizon. I miss the small pleasures of walking barefoot through a shopping centre, feeling the heat of the pavement, salt still on your skin. Australia has a physicality that stays with you.
FLANNEL's designs are hugely inspired by traveling and embracing the art of wanderlust, so where are you headed on vacation this year and what place remains on your bucket list?
I try to make it back to Australia every year. It’s home, and I always need to return to that landscape and the ocean. Somewhere I am still yet to visit is the Ouarzazate Solar Power Station in Morocco. It’s an extraordinary piece of planetary infrastructure, millions of mirrors concentrating sunlight and storing its energy in molten salt. It feels almost like something from one of my imaginary worlds, which is probably why I’m so drawn to it.
Can you recommend us a book to read, a podcast to listen to, and an album / playlist that enhances your experience when traveling?
I love the Imaginary Worlds podcast which explores how we use science fiction and fantasy to make sense of the real world. For a book, Invisible Planets, a collection of Chinese science fiction short stories, is perfect for traveling because you can dip in and out of entirely different worlds. And for music, Oneohtrix Point Never’s latest album. He is focusing on film scores now, so listening to him while traveling turns a journey into a cinematic experience.
And finally, if you can you give us an update on anything you’re working on for 2026 that would be great.
My largest solo exhibition to date, In Other Worlds, has just closed at the Barbican in London. The project continues through the rest of 2026 and into 2027, as we take the exhibition on a journey around the world. It’s exciting to see these imaginary worlds leave London and encounter new audiences and places.