In fashion and art, the most compelling stories often emerge through observation. With Mars On Earth, German photographer Kira Bunse transforms the volcanic terrain of Lanzarote into a haunting visual meditation for Marsèll’s ongoing creative platform, Formato. Set against the stark beauty of Timanfaya National Park, the project unfolds like a cinematic diary, where lava fields, mineral textures, and vast horizons create a landscape that feels suspended somewhere between reality and imagination.
Lanzarote’s Timanfaya National Park is one of Europe’s most extraordinary geological sites. Formed after a series of volcanic eruptions that lasted more than six years during the 18th century, the region remains defined by blackened earth, dramatic craters, and surreal rock formations. Its resemblance to the Martian surface has drawn the attention of scientists and astronauts for decades, with the terrain frequently used for Mars rover testing and geological training exercises. In Bunse’s lens, however, the landscape becomes something more intimate and emotional, shifting from scientific curiosity into visual poetry.
The project exists within Marsèll’s evolving Formato initiative, a multidisciplinary exploration of photography as both an artistic and interpretive language. Rather than approaching photography as straightforward documentation, Formato invites artists to engage with places through instinct, atmosphere, and personal perspective. The result is imagery that feels deeply tactile and emotionally resonant, shaped as much by memory and sensation as by the physical environment itself.
Bunse’s work has long centered on cultural observation and the quiet details of everyday life encountered through travel. Living in Paris while working internationally, she approaches photography with a sensitivity that balances realism and abstraction. In Mars On Earth, that sensibility is amplified by Lanzarote’s elemental scenery. The volcanic terrain appears simultaneously ancient and futuristic, stripped down to texture, shadow, and silence. The images evoke a sense of solitude that feels almost meditative, allowing the viewer to drift into a world detached from time.
Marsèll’s relationship with contemporary art has consistently shaped the brand’s creative identity, and Formato continues that dialogue through collaborations that privilege artistic freedom and emotional depth. Instead of imposing a singular narrative, the project creates space for photographers to interpret environments through their own visual vocabulary. With Bunse, that vocabulary is atmospheric, restrained, and undeniably cinematic.
There is also something particularly timely about the fascination with Mars-like landscapes and remote terrains. In an era increasingly defined by digital overstimulation, projects like Mars On Earth invite audiences back into contemplation. Bunse’s photographs resist urgency. They encourage stillness, curiosity, and immersion in the physical world. The volcanic plains of Lanzarote become a reminder of nature’s ability to feel alien, mysterious, and profoundly beautiful all at once.
The title itself carries an almost dreamlike tension. “Mars on Earth” suggests escape, fantasy, and exploration, yet the photographs remain grounded in the tactile reality of stone, dust, and light. That balance gives the series its emotional power. The imagery never feels distant or untouchable. Instead, Bunse reveals the extraordinary hidden within the earthly landscape, transforming Timanfaya into a place where geology, imagination, and artistic vision quietly converge.
At its core, Mars On Earth is about perception. Through Marsèll’s Formato and Kira Bunse’s contemplative eye, Lanzarote becomes more than a destination. It becomes a study of atmosphere, silence, and the emotional resonance of place.
