18-05-13 // Photoshoot

Just uploading a few pictures from today, a little collaboration work with some friends. 

I really want to work on my photography skills and build up more of a portfolio, so this was the perfect opportunity to do work. I really enjoyed this shoot, hopefully I'll get more of a chance to do some work like this soon!

Photography // Nathan Henry 

Styling // Tegan Robertson

MUA& Hair Stylist // Adam Just 

Model // Becky Ryan  

Versace Versus // JW Anderson

Versace relauched their Versus line on Wednesday in New York, presenting their first collection with JW Anderson. For me I think it's something interesting to see them working with JW Anderson, I think working with such a young fresh designer is exactly what they need. 

I think the whole collection looks really interesting, with varying colours and patters and different uses of shape too. Something really interesting I think is Jonathan's idea and use of unisex which seems to flow through his work. I think presenting menswear with dresses is something really innovative and different, honestly having such a young fresh designer on board is brilliant for Versache.

I've talked about it before but I think there's something about younger designers that even older desingers can learn, they know more about current events and honestly I think they take more risks. I think they're less concerned about money as a driving force and want to put their mark out their instead. 

Personally I love the idea of men wearing crop tops showing of shoulders and hip bones, I think if women are allowed to do it why shouldn't men and vice versa. I think Jonathan is really innovative to play around with this concept, really almost tackling equality by just forgetting its an issue. To me this collection seems really interesting, to contain so much black and white and yet still appear the way it does is something to be admired.

As I said about working with a young desginer will help look at a more youth focus, the Versus party also had performances by acts like Grimes and Angel Haze. Firstly their H&M collab and now projects like this, I think Versace are really trying to appeal to youth and get them on board with their branding and really appeal to them.

Anyway I love this collection and I can't wait to see more from it and also JW Anderson. Something else to think about is the fact the collection went online almost imediately, is this something new to expect now to tackle fast fashion, rather than waiting we can get it instantly? I've seen a lot of people discuss this recently and it might be interesting to see how it works.

British Vogue // Alexandra Shulman Talk

So yesterday we were lucky enough to have Alexandra Shulan, Editor of British Vogue come to Ravensbourne to have a talk about Vogue.

Firslty, it was such a interesting talk and also an honour to have her come to uni. She talked about so many things and wanting to possible follow into a career like hers I was so glad to hear her talk about her work.

During the talk she taked about some really interesting things British Vogue had done, also touching on various obvious points I hadn't thought about. When talking about cover imagery she added that the cover must be the most comerical thing in the whole magazine, it's never really been something I've thought about. To sell the magazine it's really important to have that comercial cover to speak to everyone and really draw in sales. 

She also talked about the success of the December 1999 cover, which I found interesting, really looking at how special collectors editions can really help boost sales, press and interest. I really love the concept of this Vogue cover really speaking out to the customer, making them the cover star. It's genius.

I also enjoyed the other topics she covered: the Vogue Festival, Digital vs Print content, Vogue as a platform for talent and British fashion at the current. 

I think one of the main issues that I really thought about from the talk was almost the power a magazine can have, Alexandra talked about Vogue being respected because it has authority because of its longevity. I think this is such an interesting and true idea, Vogue stands as the main authority of fashion news and content not to say it is the only thing you should read and follow. I think the Vogue festival is a really interesting concept too especially since fashion is ever growing as a topic of entertainment.

The talk really was a pleasure, for me being a student wanting to head into the fashion industry having someone in such a highly regarded position and of such authority come and deliver a talk is amazing. It's inspiring to see the people that make me want to work in the industry and I love the fact that Alexandra doesn't regard print as a dead medium, something we both seem to agree on!

Punk//Chaos to Couture

With all the focus around the Met Gala and their Punk Chaos to Couture exhibition I wanted to highlight something I found really interesting about it all. 

I saw this picture circulating around the internet of Grace Coddington being interview about the night, her reply being: 

"Well I'd Like to see some real punks in here, some real street punks. But I doubt they were invited." 

In all honesty, the woman has a point. Now excuse me for being someone to dampen the mood but personally I don't see how Kim Kardashian attending is remotely punk in the slightiest. It's almost insulting. Kim Kardashian is probably the opposite of punk, again not to attack her but I felt this with most people who attended and dressed up with to the 'punk theme'. 

Don't get me wrong I love the idea of it all but is it really okay to imply that punk is just a costume, rather than a culture? 

So compare the difference between real punk shot by Steve Johnston in 1978 to Katy Perry and Madonna today in 2013, I think it's almost so far removed is it really punk? I mean certain outfits have been deemed questionable and the fact they still were worn to the Gala has been described as acting 'pretty punk' but in all honesty, get a grip. I think there's more to punk that just the style and some people really did look amazing and I think yeah that outfit is punk. But it's also more than that they pull it off because they feel it, rather than dressing and looking out of place. 

Anja Rubik and Miley Cyrus are two people who personally I think look amazing, Anja in Anthony Vaccarello looks amazing and Miley in Marc Jacobs. These two both managed to capture the essence of punk rather than just using it as a costume. Especially with Miley and her Disney upbringing it's like two different people. 

I really think that the who affair just ironically really isn't very punk. Like Grace said, she doubts any real/street punks were invited, which is probably be a good thing because they'd most likely be offended. I do think it's a good thing that punk influences luxury brands and designers, I think it's great to see designers using youth and subcultures as something to be respected rather than ignored.

But I think getting various A-Listers to dress up to a 'punk theme' can just misses the whole idea of punk. I think you could almost call it ignorant, I know it goes hand in hand with their exhibition but then still is the respect there or was it just seen as a theme?

Small Galleries//Benefit

So as part of my group project, which is to create a magazine we're looking at doing a piece on smaller galleries around London.

I've been slowly visiting a few including:

// Large Glass //

392 Caledonian Road London N1 1DN

// Website //

//The Crypt Gallery//

St Pancras Church, Euston Rd, London NW1 2BA

// Website //

I've still got a few more to see but as I've been viewing these exhibitions and galleries I've had a few questions to think about.

What is the benefit of these small galleries?

It can't be money, so then what? Is it that the smaller galleries possibly care more about art looking to display works even at a small cost. I was talking about this idea to some artists who'd presented work at the Crypt Gallery and they'd said it hadn't really cost them at all. So is it more that the work being exhibited, gaining it press, gaining the artists press, do the smaller galleries have this more in mind?

I think personally smaller galleries are brilliant I mean the Tate or V&A are great if they're presenting something you really want to see but most of the time they're really tourist based. I've seen various exhibitions at both including David Bowie Is and Yayoi Kusama and I'm not saying both weren't brilliant and excellently curated. But there's something else to these smaller venues.

The Cyrpt will most likely become a regular favourite now I've been, generally because they've started with a building with character and history rather than some collection of purpose built white walls. I'ts punk in a sense of wanting to break away from that and I think it's brilliant. 

I think something I really want to look out for is smaller art groups and exhibitions, especially not just in London only, I think they're so much more interesting than the majority of work around in big galleries.

Philip Treacy // Fascinator

For a photoshoot for our magazine project we're really starting to think about the idea of doing a photoshoot based around headpieces, after looking at the idea of Baz Lurhmann's women it's been given a renaissance feel to it too, as I was reading I found this // Article // all about Phillip Treacy declaring that fascinators are dead. 

As we know the genius that is Phillip Treacy has brought hats into the public eye time and time again designing headwear for everyone. He talks about how cheap production killed the fascinator and really moved it away from being a piece of millinery genius, so maybe this is something to think about when we do our shoot. Maybe try and think about the return of real hats, grand hats.

Personally I think I have to agree with him, to me I think headwear can really add to a general look and improve on it especially on a catwalk, helping raise pieces and clothing to another level. Plus with their importance in costume and with their links to class and class dressing I really do see his point, but again is this just not the same for every part of fashion now?

We all want what we deem as glamourous and we want it cheap. I mean look at clothing in Primark you can get basic clothing for so cheaply you have to think about how much money the people making these garments get? I think millinery is something we don't see enough of and from seeing various pieces of Phillip Treacy's work at various exhibitions I have to agree that "...now they are no more than headbands with a feather stuck on with a glue gun" 

 I think with Ascot looking to tackle their dress codes in 2012 with more enforcement on headwear really adds to the idea of fascinators are considered unfashionable and have been so overdun they're now just a total faux pas. It's really clear that what everyone is dying to see is something to do with hats, proper hats styled to add to an outfit rather.

I think all of this is going to be something really interesting to think about when doing our photoshoot, with regards to styling choices and also shooting. Do we aim more concentration to the hats or do we have a mix of beauty, focus of the hats and also focus on the outfits?

Graduate//Fashion Week

So something to look forward to is graduate fashion week!

With less than a month until graduate fashion week now we've got something to look forward to from 2nd - 5th June there's going to universities from all over the UK presenting their degree shows. 

Heres the line up for whats happening:

Sunday 2nd June - Bournemouth, UCLAN, Edinburgh, Northumbria, Northbrook & Wiltshire College Salisbury and Istituo Marangoni London.

Monday 3rd June - Liverpool John Moores, UCA Rochester, Ravensbourne, Nottingham Trent, De Montfort Contour (Swimwear & Intimate Apparel), UCA Epsom.

Tuesday 4th June - East London, Bath Spa & Northampton, De Montfort, Birmingham, Manchester School of Art, Salford, Kingston. 

Wednesday 5th June - Best of GFW, GFW Gala and Awards Show.

Personally I'm most excited to see Ravensbournes show, obviously im bias but I think we're heading to actually going and see it after this projects hand in which is exciting! 

I can't wait to see what comes out of graduate fashion week none the less, there's something to me which I prefer about graduate shows. I think it's the fact that rather than working with just money as their target like most brands they're working to show their art, their creative flare. I think it really allows them to be more conceptual and take more risks than most designers do, this is something which I hate about design now it just seems to be based on money.

But ANYWAY away from that rant if anyone wants to check out any information for GFW then 

// CLICK HERE //