The Swelle Life

Nick Knight Explores Illustration with Karlie Kloss

"Karlie Kloss dies an elegant death in Nick Knight and Edward Enninful's arresting couture editorial for W magazine. The pair draw inspiration from the kind of macabre, nightmarish illustrations that litter childhood fiction, offering up a vision which is part Grimm's fairy tale part mature Parisian opulence. The final images - which see Kloss clad in the best haute couture from A/W 2012, including pieces by Dior, Givenchy, Chanel and Iris Van Herpen - straddle dark and light, combining symbolism that is both sweet and sinister.

"Continuing his exploration of contrasts, Knight juxtaposes the delicate vintage-look images with pithy modern 'death app' films that see Kloss suffer various violent deaths, all while clad in couture. The striking images in this editorial mark of the start of Knight's investigation into fashion illustration."

The story behind this extraordinary collection of images was summed up so succinctly on the Showstudio site, I just quoted it. Nick Knight never ceases to amaze, constanty exploring new ways to create stunning and compelling imagery, using high fashion garments and fashion's most inrtiguing muses to deliver his aesthetic message - this time blending photography with illustration and yet again achieving something new and exciting. As always, I am in awe!

There's also a bizarre accompaniment to the images. You can see it here

 

 

 

Click either  image to watch the Livestream on the Showstudio site of the photoshoot with Karlie Kloss. You get to see every detail that went into creating the images - well worth a look!

Images from Showstudio

My Latest Shoot: Judith Frankland

 

I wanted to share a few photos from a shoot I did recently for a magazine feature I'm doing on Judith Frankland - you may know this outrageously fun designer from her column of fashion fairytales here at The Swelle Life,  Frankly Frankland.

I'm showing mostly head shots as the issue isn't out until fall and I have to keep the full-lengths for the spread. I really love the hair. It was done by Joanne Lodge of Tickety Boo salon in Whitley Bay and is the perfect complement to Judith's boldy feminine and vivid designs.

And big thanks to my lovely model Sophie who nailed it in all her 5'11" glory!

 
 

 

Photos © Denise Grayson at The Swelle Life
Clothes and styling by Judith Frankland
Hair by Joanne Lodge at Tickety Boo
Model: Sophie
Makeup by Denise Grayson

Interview with Trine Marie Skauen: Making Up the Male Model

Last year I interviewed the fantastically talented makeup artist and art director Trine Marie Skauen (read it here). We saw her candy-spackled eyes, fresh glossy looks and avant-garde creations - but what about the men? Making the male models camera-ready is a bit more of a mystery, and one that you likely won't mind me exploring further!

The Norwegian all-round creative works in tandem with her fashion photograher fiance Marco DiFilippo, and together they travel the world creating extraodinary and beautiful images for magazines, advertising campaigns, video and an array of projects. (I think we've found two nominees for the 'coolest life' award.)

Here Trine answers some questions and gives up a glimpse into what's involved in making up and grooming male models, and what she thinks of it:

How do you approach making up men when you don't want them to look 'made up'?

I would say I work more or less in the same way when approaching ideas for men as I do  girl models. I do research and make mood boards if necessary. If the client wants him to look "natural" then it is more about the skin, making it look fresh, lips not dry, and covering acne and red spots. Then a "messy" styled hair.

Are there many opportunities to do more creative looks on men, especially when the target audience is men? Do men want to see the avant garde in their fashion magazines?

No, I don't think so, the majority of clients want "good looking" men in their campaigns. The differences are mostly if he should be slick, smooth or the urban, messy, cool guy. Like the cool Diesel / Levis guy or the slick Armani guy.

When it comes to magazines, I cannot speak for the men out there, but I believe most men probably like the cool, handsome "normal" guy; they can relate to that type. They probably read GQ, Vanity Fair etc. When it come to the more avant garde magazines like Numero Homme, which I love, the target group is more narrow.

This photo of the 'boy in the bow-tie' prompts the question 'How far do you go with the grooming for a shot where clothes are not the focal point?'

Sometimes I use foundation, creams or also oil, and we go as far as it takes us! It depends on the look. This image is from a test shoot and we just used a some normal cream, if I remember it correctly.

Ok, I'll come right out and ask - did you have to do his armpits?!

This guy actually had his armpits as you see, I did not do any cutting or shaving. We usually ask the agency to tell the models about the body hair. But the request is usually more along the lines of "don't shave for three days."

Or we shave him on set if it's a clean look. I've been lucky with the body hair until now - no clients have asked for shaving or cutting other places then the head! I sometimes have to cut the hair a little bit, but I don't really like that since I am not a hairdresser you know, I don't want to butcher the poor guy!

 
 


Reader Lauren wants to know "How receptive are the guys to having makeup done?"

When it comes to my job and putting makeup on models, they are used to it. They know they have to come to a shoot and just let us do what we want.

But I also see more and more boys using cosmetic products, they just want to look good. If they have acne or red spots they can use some foundation or concealer, some use balm on a dry lip, some use a little powder. Ok, it is not so many of them...yet. The trick is to make it look as "natural" as possible. I also like when men take care of their nails and hands.

Do you have a preference for working with guys or girls in terms of the makeup? And also the behaviour, is one generally more pleasant to work with or is it an individual thing?

The behaviour is individual, but I must say the most fun guys we work with are Brazilian, they are so easy going and fun. Overall, all the boys we have worked with were great, we've never had a problem. Some are just more stiff then others.

As for preference, it depends on the client and the model and project. I like both.

Thanks, Trine! You can learn more about Trine Marie Skauen and Marco DiFilippo's production company and view their work at their website www.tmstudio.me

 

 

All photos by Marco Di Filippo. Makeup and art direction by Trine Marie Skauen

Karen Elson Can Sing

 

It took me a while to get up to speed on Karen Elson's recording debut. I recall hearing quite a while back that she had made an album and I guess I figured it would filter its way down to me. Well, it didn't, not until yesterday when I was reminiscing on YouTube. For once one of their suggestions was for a video I would actually watch (I guess they haven't clued in yet that I am always up for a 'hits to the crotch' or 'barfing babies' montage.)

I had no doubt she would have musical talents, for to be Jack White's wife you would have to be good to put it out there. And that's what she thought, too, with regards to her songwriting. He already knew she sang 'like angel, had a gorgeous voice' (awww!) but she hid the songs she'd written until she was sure she wouldn't get divorced could impress her beloved, and impress him she did and they got to work and we now have an album called The Ghost Who Walks and some videos. White calls her style 'folk-country-goth', which fits. She plays guitar, sings beautifully, delivers hauntingly catchy songs and of course looks incredible while doing it. And she uses a lot of peach. We could use more peach in the world. (Don't laugh, it's a good colour!)

'Who is this Karen Elson' you ask? She's best known as the British model with vibrant red hair and transluscent skin, who had no eyebrows for awhile and that became her signature look. She was referred to as 'alien' and all kinds of ridiculous names for her unique looks by people in the industry who obviously forgot that she was paid to be memorable. And now everyone is shaving off their eyebrows. Fickle industry!

(Creepy) Model Scouting in Rural Brazil

 

I came across this NY Times short doc from the summer which follows a young male model scout looking for new faces in rural south Brazil. There were lots of things that were interesting about it: getting a glimpse of what life is like in a part of the world I'll likely never see, observing who the scout chooses to single out as having potential, hearing what the girls have to say when they're approached, and wondering if any of the parents told this guy 'Get your damn hands off my daughter!' in Portuguese. At one point the scout is with a 16 year-old girl named Michele at her parents' farm, stroking her hair while looking at her adoringly. Being an optimist I thought 'Wow, her boyfriend really looks like the scout. Hmmm...he's even wearing the same shirt!' I preferred to believe that until I watched again and realised it was indeed the scout. He also strayed from professionalism when he stopped a 13 year-old girl in the street with her hoodie up, framing her small face which displayed a fresh hormonal breakout and metal dental braces, and told her, 'You are so cute' while appearing to stifle nervous giggles. He came off looking like your friend's creepy uncle. She told him she didn't like modelling but seemed to be nervously flattered by the attention, naturally.

Maybe it's a cultural thing where close physical promiximity and affection is more accepted in casual social situations. But I still think this guy's methods are inappropriate, especially in a situation where the young girl has no power over what happens once she agrees to leave her family behind and travel to the big city of São Paulo, where all of the new girls sleep in one room in bunkbeds. Gisele Bünchen was scouted in the same area at age 13, as was Alessandra Ambrosio, at age 11. Geez. Most of these girls are desperate to be like their hometown heroines while others, like Michele, are equally determined to give their parents a better life. She tears up just talking about it. Her mother says with an innocent laugh, 'I dream of flying on an airplane one day and maybe I will.'

Part of the scout's strategy for finding new faces - and he's just one of dozens working in the area - is to hang out at the local schools and inspect the young girls as they walk by, which he has permission from the female principal to do. She says 'The scouts have always been allowed to observe freely.' Where do I even start on that one...

LFW: Backstage Beauty at Hannah Marshall

I mentioned yesterday that I encountered some 'delights and surprises' at London Fashion Week, and one of them was tickets to Hannah Marshall and Felder Felder, two very in-demand shows, courtesy of sponsor Vitamin Water via We Are Social, a PR company that I actually like working with.

Amongst the tickets was a backstage pass for Hannah Marshall. Now, I'm not sure what I did to deserve all of this, and it would have been more typical of me to have discovered this little gold nugget after the show had begun, but I had it and went immediately to the backstage door, flashed my pass and a smile to the nice security man and was welcomed right in. I was one of the first there which was good because it got packed too packed to move later. I saw camera contraptions that looked as if they could receive radio signals from outer space. I saw one model eat. I saw Hannah Marshall who looked incredible and was cool-headed and smiling - despite going on one hour of sleep! - and wearing the most killer shoes. See:

That's not a blur, these shoes were so hot they were pulsating! (Ok, it's a blur. I hate blurry photos of cool things.)

I wound up taking many shots of two models in particular who were having their hair styled. The girl in the header photo was the first face, and I've been trying to figure out if she's Austria Alcantara, so many models look alike. The redhead below, however, has the most unusual face I've ever seen on a model, and I loved that she stared intensely into her own eyes in the mirror the entire time her hair was being done. Make of that what you will but it made for some great shots. The look for the show was long hair, back off the face, and crimped then brushed out to give it volume and subtle texture. The eye makeup was done in grey tones and I overhead someone saying that it faded to grey as the outfits did.

 

Getting nails painted

 

I believe she was in charge of the looks. Nice job on herself!

This woman was AWESOME. She had the face of Pam Grier and the hair of the First Lady of Cameroon.

 

 
 

 

   

 

Photos by Denise Grayson @ The Swelle Life 

New Model is 'Equal Parts Björk and Snow White'

That's the description WWD gave Beth Chase, a newly discovered model from Utah, and it's spot on. We're more than ready for a face like hers. As exquisite as the angel-alien Russians may be, they've had their time. This girl is a breath of fresh mountain air. I wonder if she can sing Some Day My Prince Will Come in raspy, broken (Bjorken?) English?

You can read about how this 5'10, 19-year-old has a thing for Sylvester Stallone (I hope for her sake he doesn't find out about this) and "respects" Karlie Kloss for getting into modelling at 13, here. Ah, youth.

These two Polaroids drive home the point that aspiring models should be able to pull it off in a white T-shirt and clean face. I once saw a girl go into a modelling agency with her mother, she had an updo straight from the salon and enough makeup to spackle four faces. I won't even get into her outfit but let's just say it was tight and it sparkled.

 

 

Toronto Art: Shaun Downey Finds Fame with 'Blue Coco'

Blue Coco. Shaun Downey

Carrying on with all things Toronto during my stay that is just about *sniff* up - an event that links my former home with my current one - I introduce you to Toronto artist Shaun Downey. The name may ring a bell, however, as may the painting above. Shaun's portrait Blue Coco was recently selected for exhibition in this year's Portrait Award competition at the National Portrait Gallery in London, England. Out of the 58 chosen from 2,177 entries, Shaun's work was singled out to be the 'face' of the gallery's advertising campaign, including a 9-metre-high banner at the museum's entrance on Trafalgar Square to mark the exhibition's opening in June.

It's an intriguing portrait worth a long stare or two, don't you think?

So who's 'Coco'? She's 20 year-old model Dearbhail Bracken-Roche who goes by the fashionable nickname when working. She sat for Shaun at age 17 when the friend of a friend introduced the two, and the rest is now blue-tinged history. Interestingly, she's now living and working in London and has found fame in the city, often being recognised in the street. I suppose that happens when your giant, unusually beautiful face is plastered over one of London's most famous and popular landmarks, as well as the tube stations. (How would you feel? Honoured and thrilled or completely freaked out?)

The artist and muse at the National Portrait Gallery in London. From Shaun's blog.  

As you may have guessed, Shaun prefers to paint portraits. The work featured on his site is exclusively portraiture dating back to 2004, and all of his subjects are women, though they are not always captured in the formal pose. There's a quiet calm about these pictures, as if the seemingly ordinary moment is being held not just within the frame but is occupying a pensive dimension in which we're being granted a peak. The background colours are soft yet often vibrant which make his work, in my mind, 'happy' pictures, something I'd like to look at everyday. His paintings are gorgeous.

Congratulations, Shaun!

The Doorway. Shaun Downey, 2007 

 

Green Mug. Shaun Downey, 2009

 

Holly in Yellow. Shaun Downey, 2009.

 

The Reception. Shaun Downey, 2005

 

The Old Apartment. Shaun Downey, 2006

 

Ossie Clark and Alice Pollock Fashion Show at Revolution, 1968

Ossie Clark and Alice Pollock, the 'pioneers of colossal cleavage and startling see-throughs" (that's how the narrator hilariously described them) liked to show their collections at London's Revolution club in the late 60s. For such a hipster venue and considering the coolness of the people behind the show, much of the audience just didn't match up with what was on display; many looked as if they'd wandered in for some appetizers and instead found themselves stunned, watching floaty polyester whirl around. However, there were exceptions of course: John and Yoko were there as you'll see below. If you want to see how the models got groovy on the dancefloor/catwalk you can watch here.

 

John and Yoko "managed to restrain their enthusiasm" (yes, the narrator said that). That's one way of looking at it. Another way is to say that John was three seconds away from punching the camera guy in the face.

See?

(Um, is that a young Keith Richards behind Yoko?)

 

Like the other models, she was dancing around quite lively and judging by the looks on the faces of some of the women in the audience, they were not so comfortable with the looseness of her top. And here I thought J-Lo started that whole thing. 

At another show, also in 1968, I guess this one being spring, we've got Patti Boyd modelling. At the time she was married to George Harrison who was there with some buds including John Lennon who looked a little more relaxed (well, compared to the last one, anyway).

 

George with 70s 'stache (above) and Patti:

 

 

A Peek at Vanessa Paradis' Chanel Commercial

If you've been reading The Swelle Life for a while you know that I adore Vanessa Paradis (yes, she has her own category here) and have for about 20 years, so I jump all over any news, even if it's just a peek at an upcoming commercial. Last year she signed on with Chanel to be the face of Coco Rouge, a new lipstick collection from everyone's dream fashion house. And it may not be the most exciting imagery, but it's Vanessa and she looks fanatstic and that's good enough for me. And can I have that top, please?

The whistling is an homage to her songbird in a gilded cage advert for Coco in 1992 (which many people had a problem with. Please.):

Images from Grazia and Vogue UK

Noughties Retrospective: The Best of Haute Couture, Pt. 1 - Chanel 2001

It only dawned on me a few weeks ago that we're coming to the end of a decade, those consecutive 10 years that are supposed to be marked by some common thread and fascinating highs and lows. Seems like such an obvious thing but sometimes I don't see the big picture, I'm too busy dissecting the minutiae of the things around me. What that common thread may be, I have no idea yet. Well, actually I did come up with something about how the internet/blogging/social media has revolutionised communication and created previously unattainable opportunities for us keyboard jockeys, but after a long paragraph on the subject I bored myself nearly to tears and so deleted it. I can see you nodding your head in agreement. And anyway, you can read that kind of thing a million other places and it will be a far better read.

Besides, what I really wanted to look at from the past decade - the 'noughties' - is the haute couture collections. The expert craftsmanship from the ateliers of Lesage, Lemarie, Michel, Desrues and Massaro - and the independent designers whose contributions go uncredited - are instrumental in making the creations of our biggest and best fashion houses the exquisite and extraordinary works of art that get our hearts all a flutter. It's the details that I live for and nothing gives the goods like haute couture.

Since documentation of the shows from 2000 are proving to be elusive I'm starting with 2001. And the first is Chanel. Throughout the past decade the beloved Paris fashion house continued to operate as a private entity owned by the Wertheimer family which means they warded off LVMH, Gucci Group, Richemont and Prada (though whether there was actually movement on that front I have no idea). Good for them, good for us.

I took screencaps from grainy video for both the winter and summer collections, it really was all I could find, and the summer is far better looking than the winter. The caps are far from crisp but I think it worked in the summer show with its dusty blue background - the images look rather painterly. I concentrated on the details such as the lushness of the textures all mixed together and of course, the accessories. And it was fun seeing the faces from 2001, the models who are mostly retired now except for Carmen Kass who has found a rare longevity in her runway career - or maybe it's mostly a willingness to get out there again and again?

The hair for winter was very Desperately Seeking Susan with the scrunchy bobs and bow hairbands, though I'm quite certain it wasn't a direct reference to the Madonna movie. I mean, come on.

 

At first I thought the summer show was held in one of the oval rooms of Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris where many of Monet's water lilies paintings are displayed - this was before the Grand Palais became the Chanel venue of choice - but the pillars that appear behind the seats don't exist, at least not in the renovated version I visited earlier this year. Anyone?

 

 

 

 

 

Killer Face, Killer Body...Deadly Job?

Daul Kim

I wrote this piece for Models and Moguls where I am a weekly contributor, and have decided to share it here. The cause of Daul Kim’s death has not been confirmed at the time of publication; however, for the purpose of exploring issues within the modelling industry (as much as I can in 750 words) and due to lack of evidence to the contrary, I am basing this article on the assumption of suicide.

Last week the fashion world was stunned by the news that top model Daul Kim was found dead in her Paris apartment in an apparent suicide. The 20 year-old South Korean beauty and Karl Lagerfeld muse had written on several occasions on her blog 'I Like to Fork Myself' - which is now restricted to invited readers only - how she was feeling lonely and depressed, then came back to assure her fans she was fine. In fact she was far from fine. Kim hung herself on November 20.

The pressures of the high fashion modelling industry are no secret; girls in their teens and early 20s fly alone from location to location, working long hours catering to the, at times impossible, demands of their agencies and photographers while their family and friends are left behind, and struggling to make sense of and adapt to foreign cultures. On October 30 Kim wrote “Mad depressed and overworked, the more I gain the more lonely it is. I know I’m like a ghost.”

Kim is the second model on the rise to end her own life in 18 months. In June 2008, Ruslana Korshunova, also just 20 years old, jumped to her death from her 9th floor Manhattan apartment. While her friends have said there were no signs she would do such a thing - one claiming “she was always happy” - like Kim she also expressed despair online. In March she had written on a Russian networking site “I’m so lost, will I ever find myself?” While not yet a household name, the Russian model known for her feline looks and Rapunzel hair had been named as a 'face to watch' by British Vogue, with several covers and high profile campaigns under her belt including a perfume commercial for Paris fashion house Nina Ricci.

Ruslana Korshunova

And in March of this year a model turned actress whose film career was taking off took her own life in circumstances eerily similar to those surrounding Kim’s death. Lucy Gordon, a 28 year-old Briton was found hanged in her Paris apartment located in the city’s trendy Right Bank in the 10th arrondissement, the same neighbourhood where Kim had lived. Gordon had played reporter Jennifer Dugan in Spiderman 3 after making the transition from modelling to acting; she had been the face of U.S. make-up giant Cover Girl. However, it appears a row with her cinematographer boyfriend the night before prompted her desperate act. She left two suicide notes, one detailing her last wishes regarding her estate and a letter addressed to her parents.

Lucy Gordon

While many models go on to flourish within the industry and forge successful post-modelling careers – Cindy Crawford and Elle Macpherson, for example – there are many others who succumb to the pressures, most of whom we don’t hear about unless they’re considered a rising star, the ones who will be missed. Young teen girls who have the opportunity to work as a model typically leave school, their families, and their cultures, to pursue their dream career which has a relatively short shelf-life compared to more traditional paths; do it now or the chance may pass you by. Yet, a 16 year-old is hardly equipped to deal with the unaccommodating and unforgiving adult world she’s been thrust into with only her perfect bone structure and long legs on which to rely. Pitfalls can include eating disorders, drugs and alcohol abuse and falling prey to unscrupulous older men – it’s not uncommon for models to be used as prostitutes.

Former model Louise Gagnon worked in Paris in the 80s and went on to become an editor of a French fashion magazine, after barely escaping the industry with her life. "I was raped regularly. Sometimes multiple times per week. I was depressed all the time and the only thing that made me feel better was the heroin. It didn't stop when I stopped modelling either," Gagnon recalls. "I was in some bad relationships with the photographers who I had met years earlier and I was involved with them professionally so I had to ignore my feelings. It was complicated and I became more and more disgusted at myself everyday. I finally decided I needed to quit before I killed myself."

In a video Kim made during New York fashion week for New York magazine's series Model Diaries, she recounts how she was once asked by another model what she was reading. She replied “Tolstoy” which prompted the witless model to correct her pronunciation of ‘Toy Story’. One could blame Kim's Korean accent for the misunderstanding but once cleared up it became apparent that the girl didn’t know who Tolstoy was, and this astounded and frustrated Kim, an accomplished painter who once had a solo show of her art in Seoul. A model seeking intellectual stimulation in the fashion industry is like a goldfish trying to survive in a bowl of porridge.

One can only speculate as to the reasons for the loss of these young lives. But it would appear that in these tragic cases the modelling industry took far more than it gave.

Prolonged, unrelenting stress can lead to depression. If you think you may be suffering from depression, you need to get help. Here are some online resources to consult, in addition to talking to your doctor:

http://helpguide.org/mental/depression_tips.htm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/conditions/mental_health/disorders_depression.shtml

http://www.depressionalliance.org/

The Softer Side of Lara Stone

This post is dedicated to Birthday Girl Deanne at Dream Sequins, who adores tulle. It's also an act of contrition for (accidentally) sending her my photo for her virtual tea party 24 hours late. D'oh.

When I received my December issue of British Vogue the other week, it took me a few seconds to recognise the delicate flower of a cover girl - Lara Stone. And that's because Lara Stone usually looks nothing near delicate - moody, intense and sometimes almost succubus-like:

 

The girl is definitely high fashion. Mario Testino shot the cover and editorial for the issue and its fairytale princess quality with the soft pink header makes up for a few earlier covers that made my eyes sore, like this one.

So here's what we found out about our Lara:

• She went to rehab for alcoholism earlier this year. "I am a complete alcoholic," she says. Hmm...we didn't know, but then again it's not exactly shocking that a model may require the services of rehab at some point.
  
• She's "shy". I've seen her body without clothes more times than my own. So she's obviously dealing with it.
  
• Lives in London, been there done that with Paris, and "hate, hate hates" New York (ouch).
• Modelling since the age of 15 (discovered at 12 on the streets of Paris), she quit the business seven years later. On the advice of an ex-boyfriend two years ago she switched to IMG and moved to New York. She was a hit. Carine Roitfeld dedicated an entire issue of French Vogue to her.
  
• About being a bit bigger than the other models: "I'm different because I am fat." I'll show you fat, Lara. 
• "Men don't like me. I haven't been on a date in six months." The pity party just isn't happening. Sorry. "I figure out what they hate most and then I do lots and lots of that." Hmm...it's not really a mystery then, is it Lara?
  
• Forget alchololism, here's the real shocker: David Walliams (of Little Britain and previous title holder of Shagger of the Year) was waiting to take her out after the interview. 
• Don't get in her way, especially near stairs: "This Belgian girl was in my way, posing for the cameras. I kept saying 'Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me' because I had to get to the catwalk, but she just kept posing. So I pushed her. It was only a few stairs." It was only a few stairs!

When I saw Lara after the Chanel haute couture show in July she looked like a different Lara then we're used to seeing; she wasn't either of these extremes. It's really quite a show she's putting on for us when she's in front of the camera. I think I like her.

In Nina Ricci. She reminds me of a young Vanessa Paradis here

In Dior haute couture

Scans by McQueezy @ tFS from Models.com

Don't Miss Natalia Vodianova's Live Shoot on Showstudio - It's Wrapping Up!

More about the dresses she's modelling later, there's only a few more hours at most to watch Natalia Vodianova's shoot for British Vogue, photographed by Nick Knight on Showstudio. She's is utterly amazing to watch, both for her natural beauty - she's so luminous - and the way she engages the camera. ANTM wannabees need to watch this.

 

 

 
 

Watch the Natalia Vodianova British Vogue Shoot with Nick Knight Live!

Today (right now!) and tomorrow Showstudio is livestreaming Nick Knight's shoot for British Vogue with the stunning Natalia Vodianova, a woman who must have grown her three babies inside a zip-off pouch and simply removed it once they were ready to come out.

I love Showstudio's livestreams - hearing the conversation as Nick Knight et all stand around holding their chins, contemplating options; seeing the hair and make-up artists (in this case, Sam McKnight and Val Garland) doing touch-ups between shots and the stylist (British Vogue's fashion director Lucinda Chambers) perfecting the look, taking in the set from all angles like this dark and beautiful winter scene; and of course watching the models get into position and doing their thing. Natalia is amazing to watch. In case you didn't already know. 

Click any of the images to watch Natalia posing while exquisitely entangled in this tree-like prop.

 

 

Natalia is modelling outfits customised by some of fashions leading designers, which will then be sold at auction with the proceeds going to ‘The Naked Heart Foundation’, a charitable trust which builds and runs playgrounds for disadvantaged children.

I Hated This, Now I Kind of Like it: Libertine's S/S 2010 Video

I watched this video from the newly reconfigured Libertine Friday night. With the sound off, for some reason. And I hated it. It looked to me like one of those hipster self-loving things where they tell the beautiful people to look all model-ly and do their dancing and jumping around and laughing thing which I usually find super annoying.

And I didn't want to think that, I love Libertine. Look - I said so here. I wondered if recent events were responsible. Cindy Greene left Johnson Hartig to continue the label on his own and he made the decision to return to their vintage roots, when Libertine was about reworking unwanted clothes into something 'covetable'.

But then I watched the film again, for some reason. With the sound on. And suddenly I came around, and I actually enjoyed it. It endeared itself to me. Why now? I wondered. And I deduced that it was the music that made sense of it. It's this catchy riff that is played over and over by the band in the film which is fronted by Hartig himself. He's making up the appropriately monotone, cool vocals as he goes along. With its repetitiveness the music is like a non-objective painting as are the orb prints which could be likened to the op art of the 1960s. No, I'm not on drugs right now. Have I thought about this too much? Obviously.

So, Libertine's spring 2010 collection and therefore this little film called Orbs and Philosphers was inspired by a book on the history of philosophers and also from a road trip to Death Valley with the Mulleavy sisters (yes, as in Rodarte), during which they stayed in a haunted hotel and Hartig became a believer in orbs. Does that mean he saw something? Why no pictures? (One day I'll tell you about the ghost family that appeared in a photo my friends took at their house. I saw it and it was chilling. I even took it home to show my family and one of my brothers was too scared to look at it; it's something you had to see for yourself to believe.)

Anyway, they recruited some Newport Beach surf kids to wear Libertine Speedo-like briefs which I just find gross, maybe because I'm not European. Or it offends my tender sensibilities. One guy has an orb right on his...cylinder?

I think some of these people got in on after the shoot.

 

I did love the tea scene. That one saucer is quite wee for that massive cup. It's not dainty but her extended pinky makes up for that. And I do like the clothes. Probably should mention that.

 

 

 

Amazing Grace Coddington

Photo: Patrick Lichfield, 1964

Obvious headlines aside, U.S. Vogue creative director Grace Coddington, the one who is said to be 'the real star' of The September Issue, is getting major press and we're being treated to some gorgeous modelling shots from her days in front of the camera. Well, they were already out there in online portfolios of the photographers who shot them, but who knew until now? (Other than you, Ms. Diehard.)

The hugely influential Welsh fashion editor/stylist is quite intriguing in that she's as stubborn as Anna Wintour and even more private. And I already adore her not just for her dreamy fairytale editorial but for having said this in 2003:

"There are no models on covers anymore. They're all actors because they're what sells. An actor often dictates what you're going to get. I find that annoying. And I'm incredibly shy, so they scare the pants off me. But I feel perfectly comfortable with the models. They're like my kids."

I loathe actors on the covers of my fashion magazines. Do designers send actors down the runways? No. Only as occasional novelty. So why then are models bumped for them almost every time? To keep the Photoshop people in business?

The September Issue opens in the UK on September 11. Who's coming with me?

Photo: John French, 1965. Grace wearing Nina Ricci

 

Photo: Chris Moore. Grace in the front row at Pierre Balmain, Paris Haute Couture, A/W 1977

 

 

 

Grace and Karl: 'You're fabulous!' 'No, it is you who is fabulous! It is not possible!'

Milla Marries in her Own Creation

Correction: The original title of this post was 'Milla Marries in Vintage.' But as it turns out my source was wrong. Bah! Milla actually designed her wedding dress herself, which make sense as she designed for her own label Jovovich-Hawk until last year at which time she and fellow former model and partner Carmen Hawk made the decision to shut it down. The label was a success but grew too big for the two of them to keep it up. It's too bad, the clothes were gorgeous and very in line with the vintage-y, soft and feminine boho look of her dress. You can still find some items from their last collection at The Outnet

Milla Jovovich married director and Geordie lad Paul W.S. Anderson in a vintage gown accessorized as a flower child goddess. I have to say I'm happy to see the old glam hair back from when Milla was transitioning from model to serious actor. Not all of it may be hers but I love the look nonetheless. And how about her bouquet? Are these some kind of divine camelias?

 

Photos: Splash

Supermodels Sans Fards

 

Last April we saw Eva Herzigova, Monica Bellucci and Sophie Marceau on the cover of French Elle without make-up, or 'sans fards' as it was en français (and far more fun to say). And now Peter Lindbergh has reunited with his supermodel muses for Bazaar and for once it's their faces that are bare naked. We get to see Cindy, Shalom, Nadja (love the smile), Amber, Helena, Tatjana (never did get her), Claudia and Kristen. Kristen! Remember Kristen McMenamy? That's her above, sans fards and eyebrows! That one was a shocker. She's got the typical pretty model hair now but still no brows. Conventional and extreme all at once. Neat.

But where are Linda and Christy? I can't see them not being asked. And I can't see Christy saying no, she's the one known for embracing all things natural. But Linda...not so sure. Naomi we've seen without make-up in her mug shots so that took care of that.

Since I'm writing this from Linda Evangelista's hometown of St. Catharines, Ontario (I must get a scan of her high school yearbook photos - you would not believe it) and we're reminiscing about Kristen McMenamy, here's a most awesome shot of the two from back in the day by Arthur Elgort, wearing lots of fards:

And here's the rest. What do you think? Is the black and white a bit of a cop-out as it creates definition (Cindy?) and erases the ruddiness that makes going without slap so unappealing?

 

 

(I think someone has had her lips done)

Source: Models.com

Vagaries of Fashion: Harmless Fun or...Gasp!

Okay. This controversial editorial from Vogue Italia seems to have been getting a bit of attention in the past few months. A link to a site talking about The Vagaries of Fashion editorial, shot by Miles Aldridge, was recently sent to me by Other Half who is always trying to help with a blog idea when he can (thanks, Sweet) and I recognised it immediately. It's from the September 2007 issue of Vogue Italia and I know that because I was in Torino at the time and brought a copy home with me.

I liked the editorial a lot because of the aesthetics. Never mind the glamorous dresses and how great Anja Rubik looks; there's just something about that opulent hotel suite and its yellowed decor that could really use an update. I'm not exactly joyous when I see an image of a mother smoking and drinking around her children; in fact I see mothers and fathers smoking around their children every day where I live in England and I want to put those fags out on their foreheads. But then do we look to fashion for social discourse? Should fashion be taken so seriously and does it wield any real power? (That sound you hear is a can of worms opening. See here.) However, I must admit that as a mother I feel my tear ducts erupt when I see this:

 

I mean you just want to pick up that baby and cuddle it and love it. Neglect is the most disturbing idea for me when it comes to the imagery with the children. But still it's fashion, and an editorial spread wasn't going to keep me up at night. The reality is this is staged.

But not so fast. Look at this:

This one doesn't slide off the brain so easily. Because oppression and racism are more serious issues than child welfare? No, each are equally critical. The comments sections of the originating post was filled with outraged readers who raised all kinds of concerns about the content of the photo. But for me, it goes back to the staging of this shoot.

It's a compelling shot, visually. The focal point is the black maid whose dark skin is starkly contrasted by the nearly translucent white baby she's holding. Anja almost blends into the wallpaper with her gaudy-bodiced dress. Strong compositional elements aside, the immediate perception is that this is wrong. The white mother takes a domineering pose over the maid who looks on for approval/next order, etc. So back to the staging of this shoot, I feel for the woman who is playing the maid. How must she have felt being dressed up this way to convey this type of image? I know that if I were asked to be the subserviant secretary sitting at a desk looking up admiringly at my smug and vacant male boss standing over me my first reaction would be "Screw you, Bud-day." We've come too far and we've still got a long way to go.

Those are my thoughts (condensed - otherwise this could go off on tangents for an eternity.) So, what do you think of these pictures?

 

 

 

Is the rich mommy not such a bad mommy after all? Was it just a misunderstanding?

Thanks for the scans

Geeking Out at Chanel

Sasha Pivovarova with Karmen Pedaru

Earlier this week I was in Paris to attend what was supposed to be two couture shows: Xuan-Thu Nguyen and Alexandre Matthieu. Then I was bumped from the latter by Vogue Italia! I was one of the last confirmed and they made requests after the list was closed and therefore I became the sacrificial lamb. I was disappointed because I really admire the beautiful work of Alexandre Morgando and Matthieu Bureau and this was the first time they were invited to show during haute couture week. However, their people were very apologetic and asked for my understanding. And uh, yeah, I think I can understand why Vogue might have won out there. Turns out I wouldn't have made the show anyway, I got in to Paris too late, so I was saved the frustration of missing it.

Xuan-Thu Nguyen's superb collection deserves a post of its own so this one is about what I saw afterward, outside the Chanel show at Grand Palais. And this is where the geekery comes in. I couldn't care less about celebrities (although I'd love to see Vanessa Paradis who really is more than a celebrity). Haute couture favours the socialites who are the ones who buy from the collection and fashion editors and other big players in the industry, and it's those influential people I'm most interested in. Socialites slide right off my brain, however, but I was looking forward to seeing Daphne Guinness who must have been there but I didn't see her (and she's so much more than a socialite, it must be noted). Her cousin Jasmine was and she looked fantastic with her red lips, red belt and red seamed stockings (she never goes out without something red). And she paused for a photo when she saw me light up at noticing her but the shot blurred. (Ed note: this was before I had my beloved Nikon D-7000.)

It rained while sunny and we got a rainbow over the Petit Palais across the street!

 

Before that, the same thing happened but with Mario Testino. I nearly died. He saw me gasp (I couldn't help it) and stood right in front of me, looked me in the eye and smiled. My heart was racing and my fingers were so shaky that the photo came out completely blurred. But I'm keeping it because you can still see that he was smiling. And what a smile it was. He's quite tall, too. He has a very charismatic presence.

And then it was like my fairy godmother granted all my wishes at once with a parade of style icons, editors, the models from the show and the most gorgeous Chanel haute couture dresses. One young socialite who couldn't have been more than 17 years old was wearing the most exquisitely detailed dress with lace and tulle and camelias which I believe is from the current collection.

The Queen of fashion journalism: Suzy Menkes and her famous quiff.

I was so excited to see Suzy Menkes, then I turned around and Carine Roitfeld, Editor in Chief of French Vogue was right in front of me in a stunningly tailored black jacket with silk satin lapels, and I happened to catch the split second where she smiled. I was expecting Balmain shoulders but she's already done that. Next.

Carine Roitfeld

And to top it off, there was Anna Piaggi looking as no one but Anna Piaggi could. And no one was taking her photo but me! How can you not photograph Anna Piaggi? She was whisked away in a waiting car, which was a Vogue car. Yes, it had 'Vogue' painted on the side. Speaking of Vogue, Vogue Italia's editor-in-chief Franca Sozzani went unnoticed as well. I didn't take a photo because silly me didn't want to appear ravenous like some others out of respect (I must have confused a major fashion event with a funeral). But then the subjects became far too tempting and I remembered that I do write a fashion blog. And they are surely used to being photographed by now!

78 year-old Anna Piaggi. A legend.

And this woman below was something else, she was wearing a sheer dress with nothing underneath on top and had a much younger and very dapper man on her arm. She hammed it up, flashing some leg and dancing around and then she changd her shoes with the help of her date who replaced her heels with ratty flip flops! Awesome.

And now, the models. When Sasha Pivovarova appeared, my favourite of the last few years and the one who filled the void Gemma Ward left but in her own way - people went absolutely apeshit. Imagine this, gasped in the most over-the-top male 'fashion' voice: "She's FANTASTIC!" Gasp. Moan. Gasp. "She's THE BEST!" More gasping and shaking of the head with mouth agape. And a little bit of drool. She was in FULL model mode and with that Chanel cap (see the header photo), the hip-skimming multi-strands a la Coco and her attitude ,she gave everyone exactly what they wanted. Her intensity is really quite surreal. Her signature 'psychotic episode' stare is a force of nature, yet for that brief moment I wasn't sure what was in front of me was actually human. Here's an example if Sasha is new to you:

More girls who just can't help being 'modelly' when off the clock:

She whipped out the cigarette and began smoking in one
fluid, overly-dramatic motion. She still reeked of tobacco, though.


I love this photo, they are still in model mode from the show and every movement seems camera-worthy. Yulia, Tara Jean and I can't tell who is on the left (many do look the same!). Just about everyone but Yulia and Elsa walked out in their wingy eyeliner, the look from the show.


Lara Stone. Her gift bag was bigger than that of a lot of the other models.

Remember, she's considered the 'normal-sized' girl':

Baptiste Giabiconi, who appears in every Chanel show and is Karl Lagerfeld's longtime muse. Apologies to him for the laser eyes.


Elsa Sylvan. She walked out eating a sandwich, likely in response to rumours about her weight.


Magdalena. Stunning.


Shu Pei Qin. I cannot begin to describe just how gorgeous she is in person. Especially when she smiles. She's so tall and she presented as the most impressive out of all the models.

Oh, and I finally got to sit in Ladurée's dreamy bar and have my macaron cocktail. I went for the cassis. And it was only 22 euros! Seriously, it was, but I had to do it once. It was strong, as in alcohol, and that cream at the top while at first seems more fresh and milky than rich and creamy, is deceptive. I got so full that halfway through I had to stop. Maybe I should have had it before I had lunch upstairs. I didn't know how I was going to finish it, but despite feeling very uncomfortable I persevered - it cost 22 euros after all!

I finished all but a couple of sips. As I ventured out on Champs Elysees I thought at one moment I might throw up right there on the street. And if I had, do you know what my next words would have been? "I REGRET NOTHING!"

Rossy de Palma and the All-American Girl

Last night I was reading a post by Wendy Brandes on her new blog collaboration with designer Christian Francis Roth (get to know it!). It started out as a show-and-tell of her cute-as-a-Wendy undone bow-tie dress from Francis and finished with a mention of Spanish actress Rossy de Palma - the connection being the title of the post Tie Me Up, Tie Me down is also the name of a Pedro Almodovar film, and the filmmaker happens to be responsible for launching the acting career of de Palma by casting her in his films in the 1980s.

This mention of the extraordinary looking de Palma unlocked a memory from 1992. I was sitting in my bedroom flipping through the latest US Vogue and found myself fascinated by an editorial called Gypsy Soul that featured Claudia Mason, the guys from Extreme (yes, as in More than Words - I apologise if you spend the next two days with that song playing in your head) and this strangely exotic creature, the likes of whom I had never seen before. She had the most unusual nose, and it was played up in profile shots like that above where she's kissing the donkey head. This was my introduction to Rossy de Palma.

 

I stared. And I stared. I had never seen anyone like this in Vogue before or any other fashion magazine for that matter (not hard to believe as I was also still reading YM and Seventeen) and to be honest, I was confused. How was I supposed to feel about her inclusion alongside Claudia Mason and the other models with perfect profiles - was Vogue playing a trick on me? Before you yell at your monitor 'What the heck was the matter with you?' let me remind or describe what 'diversity' meant back then. 

'Diversity' was Cindy Crawford. No, I haven't forgotten Iman or Yasmeen Ghauri or any of the other richly-featured beauties who broke the mould. But they didn't have commercial success back then, and unless you were able - or allowed as it were - to transform your name and image into a brand you were essentially a non-entity at the end of the day.

 

Cindy Crawford has brown eyes and brown hair. And a mole. She arrived on the scene at the tail end of an era that still considered Christie Brinkley, Kim Alexis and Cheryl Tiegs to be the epitome of American beauty - all blonde, blue-eyed with the kind of Stepford Wife smile any star quarterback would be proud to bring home to mom. I have brown hair and brown eyes. While I never disliked what I was born with, I was aware it was not the popular 'ideal' and had wished I'd gotten my dad's hazel green eyes instead as my brown held no cache. Case in point - who was prettier in Charlie's Angels? Farrah Fawcett or Jacklyn Smith? Jacklyn Smith of course. But who was the nation going mental over? Farrah. Not that she didn't deserve it but she had more competition than was ever acknowledged. And this continued until America was ready to accept a Cindy as their girl (after a few years of airbrushing out the mole).

Poor Kate Jackson, she wasn't even allowed to have cleavage

As with all cultural transitions, there can be bumps. Some people take a while to get up to speed. One day I found myself having lunch with a guy and a girl at my new high school (I left my old high school in the last year to attend a more artsy school - without uniforms - to get the credits I needed for university, and I was tired of getting detention at 18 years old for having a tiny part of my shirt not tucked into my scratchy kilt). They were a couple and although it was a bit awkward to be invited to eat with a couple I didn't know I appreciated the welcoming gesture and put the idea that they might be pervs out of my head. Turns out they weren't pervs but one of them, the girl, was a real jerk. Somehow the topic of Cindy Crawford came up and the girl - a blue-eyed blonde - exclaimed loudly 'How comes she's so popular? She has BROWN EYES AND BROWN HAIR!" And her face was so contorted with disgust it was as if someone had just farted in her face (if only). The boyfriend quietly chastised her for being so insensitive which I appreciated, but I did wonder if he agreed with the sentiment.

Just a note, I'm not forgetting Janice Dickinson, the first model to call herself the first supermodel. (Hee.) Yes, she was a good model and a big model and she shared the spotlight with dark beauty Gia Carrangi. But did she have commercial success? Did the corporations want her face to represent them in big campaigns? No, their money was on the blue-eyed blondes. Like Jerry Hall.

 

So, coming back to Rossy de Palma - seeing her non-perfectness celebrated in Vogue all those years ago was a real awakening for me. It went against everything I'd been told about what was beautiful (except for my parents who thought I was the greatest. And of course they were right). It may still be an extreme exception to the 'perfection' rule society is now rigidly adhering to (and ironically so in light of the latest phenomenon - the 'pillow face' which is hardly perfection unless you think alcohol bloat is sublime), but just when we think the world is completely ass-backwards, we can look to the rare beauty of Rossy de Palma.

Thanks to Ready Set Fashion for archiving all of these old issues, I can't believe I found that editorial.

Miss Dahl's Unnatural Acts and Autumn Breakfasts

It's safe to say you don't expect a story about a pet rabbit buggering a guinea pig to death to figure in the introduction of your new cookbook, but this is no ordinary cookbook - it's Sophie Dahl's. While that particular item might sound like a most odd inclusion, it actually does fit. That pet rabbit was named 'Pancake' and the poor guinea pig whose heart exploded from the interspecies violation was called 'Maple Syrup.' (Isn't maple syrup supposed to go on top of the pancake? Maybe that was the problem.) The point is, food, as is storytelling, has always been a significant facet of Sophie Dahl's life, from her own fondness for it from childhood to her cherished family rituals.

(To be honest, I'm not even sure whether that recollection was real, from one of her dreams, or if Pancake and Maple Syrup were little figurines that Miss Dahl imagined a story around that would make her grandfather Raold proud, but it doesn't matter.)

I mentioned Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights the other day in a post but now that I have it and can see how wonderful it is I feel compelled to say so. The pages even feel beautiful - the paper stock is thick and lightly textured and the photographs, as you can see here, are as tantalising as cinnamon roast peaches with vanilla yogurt (serves 2 greedy people). The recipes aren't peripheral to the aesthetics of the book - they are creative yet homey and simple and are things you will actually want to make, and eat.

Try not to consume it all in one sitting.

 

Guess Who is This English Rose?

Just a little fun for a Monday. Who did this bespectacled little girl from London grow up to be? For the answer, see here

Nick Knight Shoots Mariacarla for Wallpaper - Livestream!

British fashion photographer (in case you didn't know) Nick Knight's website Showstudio is NOW! showing livestreaming of his shoot for Wallpaper* magazine's July issue editorial featuring Peter Saville's 'Erotic House'. Mariacarla Boscono is on deck at the moment, it's fascinating (and a bit tiring) to watch a photo shoot of this calibre.

Click either of the images to watch.

Update: Alana Zimmer has joined Mariacarla.
Update 2: They're back today with a different set. You must take a look! Fashion is happening!

Backstage at Talbot Runhof

 

One thing that I didn't mention about the Talbot Runhof show was the gorgeous make-up by Nadine Luc. Working with MAC she created the perfect 1930s face: flawless, porcelain skin with nude eyes and wine-stained lips:

Johnny Talbot and Adrian Runhof looking on (they are so cute!)












Franco Gobbi created the hair - an updated version of the Veronica Lake
long and sleek style with one distinct wave just past the shoulders




Love the military cap with the distorted houndstooth print

Model's Eyeballs Say 'Enough'!

                                                                                    AP Photo

The big story from Milan fashion week isn't about models falling all over the runway (Miuccia saw to it that the shoes were walkable this time around), but rather a young Lithuanian named Auguste Abeliunaite who had tears streaming down her face during both of her walks for Jil Sander.

Some in attendance thought it was a make-up effect until they realised the rest of the girls had dry eyes. And so the speculation began. A break-up via text just before the show? Fear of falling wearing the high, tight heels as an alleged helper backstage summised? Faked tears? Hunger? 

Well, Heard on the Runway posted the story and received the following comment:

There wasnt any small shoes or my emocional problems!!!! The lights was very strong and cameras was flashing all the time. My eyes are very sensitive thats why i was crying.

Comment by Auguste :) - March 2, 2009 at 5:52 pm

The comment seems legit and explains why she's not all puffy and red as you'd get with emotional crying (reps claimed not to know anything about it). Many commenters have been downright awful even when the assumption was that she'd likely received bad news just before the show. Either way, have a heart!

And how beautiful was she?

Had that been me, those two delicate streams would have been accompanied by two thick ones flowing from my nose.

Photo source: The Frisky

Would These Photos Change Fashion?

Rankin. Homage to Cecil Beaton - Hat Box, 1934

Tonight BBC Four ran Seven Photographs That Changed Fashion in which fashion photographer Rankin seeks to re-create his favourite iconic photographs. David Bailey made an appearance (the only one of the respective group of greats who is still alive) to witness Rankin's attempt at reproducing the magic of his portrait with Jean Shrimpton (and taunt him a bit as well), as did Lillian Bassman and the original model from Helmut Newton's Le Smoking photo - taken more than 30 years earlier - who was around to share her reminiscings about that night in the backstreets of Paris.

The re-creation models included Erin O'Connor, singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor (who looks best without make-up), Jade Parfitt, and Daphne Guinness, who got right into her sexy shoot. The one that least hit the mark was the re-staging of Bailey's Jean Shrimpton portrait with Rankin's girlfriend posing - a blonde with arms that were just too long to get the shape right. And there's nothing like the Shrimpton nose. Bailey even joked "You might as well have brought in Naomi!"

Rankin. Homage to Richard Avedon - Dovima With Elephants, 1955

 

Richard Avedon - Divina With Elephants, 1955

Erin O'Connor is a fantastic model but Dovima's body was amazing, she moved with those elephants. It's like a glamorous version of the Hellenistic pose - strong footed but with just a bit of tension as opposed to an all-out struggle.

Rankin. Homage to Helmut Newton - Rue Abriot, Vogue. 1975


Helmut Newton. Rue Abriot, Vogue. 1975

It's supposed to be about the Yves St. Laurent jacket, right? Le smoking? In the re-stage you don't think about the jacket - you notice Jade's forward left leg, the stiff, bent arm. Her pants were too tight to fit a hand into a side pocket comfortably. I can't recall the name of Newton's model - she nailed the chic and confident Parisian woman. And she's still a stunner 30 years later.

Rankin. Homage to Guy Bordin - Untitled

Guy Bordin. Untitled.

The original model is more unrestrained and seems to saying "'Come and take me". Daphne looks like she's saying the same but would kick you in the junk if you actually tried it.

Erwin Blumenfeld. Vogue. January, 1950.

 

Rankin. Homage to Erwin Blumenfeld - Vogue, 1950

Rankin used Heidi Klum for The Doe Eye, whom he described as one of the best supermodels today (and I could just imagine what Karl Lagerfeld would say to that! "Claudia Schiffer doesn't even know who she is." What a guy.) Heidi got the tongue out and it worked better than those where she tried to duplicate the original. This is the portrait of Jean Patchett that was manipulated for that most famous of covers:

Erwin Blumenfeld. Jean Patchett. 1950

Rankin photos from Telegraph

Daisy and Pixie Give Pringle a Boost, Lose Their Noses

Pringle of Scotland wanted to reinvigorate the image of their Pringle 1815 line and make it "feel young, fresh, and very British," so they recruited Daisy Lowe, Pixie Geldof and uh, American Lydia Hearst for the campaign, shot by Steven Meisel.

Update: I'm kind of embarrassed about the next paragraph. I do like Daisy's look, but am re-thinking the 'real model' thing. She's done some good spreads but I realised I've only seen her as Daisy, in print. I do like her on the catwalk. I leave that one open. Pixie, she's not her sister. And for that I am hugely grateful.

I'm used to seeing Daisy look amazing, I think she's a great model, and has proven to be a real model. But Pixie, while she has great style and is far and above the only most interesting of the Geldof sisters was a real shocker: That's, uh, not her. This is her at, for Agent Provocateur, also current:

Pringle gave her a serious nosejob courtesy of the Photoshop surgeons and seemed to slim Daisy's as well. I guess youthful noses don't go with knits. But how in the world did they make Pixie appear so skinny, in clothes? She hasn't been snapped looking that micro at any time and she's always being snapped. Funny how her real body was good enough for modelling lingerie but not for Pringle!

Speaking of Agent Provocateur, the big fashion issue of Elle UK came with a poster/catalogue for their 'Virgins' collection (um, right) which features Pixie who is the most modestly dressed out of the hoard. It essentially looks like a cupid orgy. I mean, a virgin cupid orgy. If you want it, be the first to say so in the comments of this blog and I'll send it to you. They're being sold on Ebay! Ha. Free at Swelle.

Here's Daisy and Pixie with a male model who looks like he could be their little brother and got to keep all of his nose:

 

Let There Be Lily

Showstudio's Let There Be Light project has culminated with a film homage to its star Lily Donaldson, called Lily's, which showcases spring 2009 designs by Martin Margiela, Alexander McQueen, and Balenciaga among others, and uses the model and the clothes to explore the theme of light.

It's a brief but lush, quirky and beautiful film from renowned photographer Nick Knight and filmmaker Ruth Hogben, with a soundtrack by Philip Sheppard. I didn't quite get it at first, but then found myself watching it for a seventh time in a row and knew it had something over me. The scenes are like collage with paint strokes and peonies of all kinds adorning the frames throughout, and the screen captures I got from it make for some of the most beautiful images I've ever seen - Lily has that delicate, innocent quality, and in black and white she complements the washed-out creams and pastels of the flowers in a way that's truly breathtaking.

Will someone please send me some double peonies?

Of particular note with reference to the clothing, Lily wears Martin Margiela's plaster cast of the first jacket he ever produced, for S/S 1989. You can watch interviews and video of various looks from the shoot and film, including Nick Knight discussing the concept, Lily Donaldson musing about how her technique has changed (her legs are so long and her platforms so high that she resembles a newborn colt on the comparatively tiny wooden chair she's forced to sit on), as well as the Margiela plaster jacket and other pieces, which she wears in this scene:

These are collages I put together using photos from the shoot (I wouldn't want to tarnish the good reputation of Showstudio by chancing that anyone thought they had made them):

Zhu Lin, I'm Wearing What You're Wearing

Going through the Pre-fall 09 collections I came across Rachel Roy, and while the clothes are fab, I'd typically not linger long on these looks - too much black and some, but not enough 'pretty' details, I must admit.

But look at her model, Zhu Lin. She's incredible. The opposite of many of the models used to show off-runway collections (they can be a bit Plain Jane), she sells ALL of the outfits. Her poses are simple as they should be for showing a collection, but with her whisper of a (very long) body, that bold, black hair, confidence and exquisite facial features, the impact is closer to that of editorial.

A new girl on the scene, the Chinese 5'11 model is slowly making her way in the industry with the help of her agency, IMG. Let's hope we see more of her...

Above Photos: Don Ashby

More Zhu Lin:

Photos: Chen Man via Asian Models

Insensate

Best described by the filmmakers themselves:

"Conjuring a macabre phantasmagoria that unfurls before your eyes like a sinister but beautiful bloom, Insensate showcases the brutal geometry and raw creative fire of Gareth Pugh's A/W 2008 collection to truly bewitching effect. Set to a thundering, atmospheric soundtrack specially devised by artist Matthew Stone and utilising Pugh's twin cinematic inspirations of Predator and The Wizard of Oz as an aesthetic starting-point, this film takes us on a mesmerising, monochrome whirlwind ride, creating a chilling yet compelling world of complex reflection, refraction and glittering incandescence melting in and out of inky black."

First, I highly recommend you watch it directly from Showstudio - the quality of the original is superior to the YouTube below, as is the atmosphere of the web page for viewing it (be sure to click the play button).

I'm not typically drawn to dark visuals (can you tell by my blog?) but this film is absolutely captivating, and hypnotic at times, not to mention the perfect visual and aural extension of Gareth Pugh's mindblowing designs. It's not so much about darkness as it is light, which is used to illuminate and create movement and shapes in such a way that it gets under your skin. Brilliant work from renowned fashion photographer Nick Knight and filmmaker Ruth Hogben. Love the soundtrack. This has to be the coolest job model Abbey Lee Kershaw has ever had. Lucky girl.

Fashion Photographs: The 1930s to the Supermodels

Irving Penn. Mouth, for L'Oreal. NY, 1986

I was wanting some inspiration and a bit of a daydream moment, and found myself going back into two pasts - that which existed before me, and my own past, to the heyday of the supermodels. It  never gets old - they were larger than life, and so was their hair. Here are some captivating images from recent and current auctions at Christie's:

Cecil Beaton. Fashion Study with Painting by Jackson Pollock, 1951


Albert Watson. Christy Turlington, 1990


Richard Avedon. Elilse Daniels, Paris. 1948

Sante d'Orazio. Kate Moss, 1992


David Bailey. Jean Shrimpton, 1963


Helmut Newton. Cindy Crawford, Admired. Miami, 1991


Norman Parkinson. After Kees van Dongen, 1959


Arthur Elgort. Kate Moss, Paris. 1993

 
Peter Lindbergh. Estelle, Karen, Rachel, Linda, Tatjana, Christy, US Vogue. 1988


Norman Parksinson. US Vogue cover, 1949


Norman Parkinson. Golf, Le Touqet. 1939

Philippe Halsman. Untitled (Models jumping on beach), 1940s


Ellen von Unwerth. Kate Moss, 1995

 
Irving Penn. Woman with Umbrella (Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn), 1950


Peter Lindbergh. Christy Turlington, 1991

 

Not from Christie's, but a fantastic photo of the supermodels. Peter Lindbergh.
Naomi, Linda, Tatjana, Christy and Cindy.
 British Vogue, 1989

And, another from Peter Lindbergh, which he based the Lady Dior handbag ad with Marion Cotillard upon. She got to keep her shirt on (or rather, her John Galliano dress):

Mathilde, Tour Eiffel, Paris. For Rolling Stone, 1989

Sweet, Scary Success

As the Spring 09 fashion week blitz was beginning I posted a few videos from Vogue's Model.Live series. The 'documentary' followed three aspiring models as they hoped to launch their careers by booking shows and making a name for themselves in New York, London, Milan and finally, Paris. This episode is a wrap-up of how the three distinctly different girls fared.

After watching the Model.Live series, reading Fashion Babylon, hearing tales from friends in the industry and what other tawdry bits I've picked up here and there, I'd be hardpressed to support my daughter should she one day decide to pursue modelling, or be scouted by a legit agency (a big 'what if' - she's only three). Aside from all the drugs, creeps, and modelling-crossing-over-into-prostitution scenarios, it's an emotionally taxing gig, even at the best of times. We see Austria, who at 16 (or 15 or 14 as some say is her actual age) doesn't seem quite 'ready' and after booking just a few shows across all four fashion weeks can't bear the idea of going back home to Dominican Republic and doing 'nothing'. Then there's Madeleine, who had marginal success with the shows and picked up a few editorial jobs, but with her short hair doesn't tickle the fancy of the major designers who already have the cropped-cut girl in Agyness Deyn. And she's bitter - "Everyone wants Cato!" That's Dutch Cato van Ee, the success story. And not just the winner out of the three. In a few short weeks she went from complete unknown to the top of the new wave of girls. Her look mimics that which is ruling the runways and editorial right now - sublimely homogeneous. She booked dozens of shows including one of the most coveted spots a model can dream about - the Prada show. And now she's EVERYWHERE. Just today I saw her in a Dolce & Gabbana commercial. And where does that leave her? Stressing about maintaining her new-found stardom.

Austria at Cynthia Rowley. Photo: Marcio Madeira

 
Cato van Ee gets her first covers

Cato at Prada. Photo: Marcio Madeira

This 'Gingerism' Thing Is Not Funny and it Needs to Go

We're all well aware of the ugliness of racism, ageism, sexism and homophobia, but did you know that so-called 'gingers' - people with red, orange, or strawberry blond hair, are victims of 'gingerism' and being targeted by bullies for something so benign as their hair colour?

Likely all of us have heard the jokes at one time or another, it's the one 'ism' that seems to be widely accepted as okay to indulge in, as if those with flame-tinted hair are somehow intrinsically different and therefore deficient and deserving of ridicule. But lately things have taken a more grievous turn: Facebook groups initiated and joined by thousands of mouth-breathers and booger-eaters (it's a good guess) organised 'Kick a Ginger Day', which attracted police attention and as Canada's The Globe and Mail reported, resulted in one child being kicked 18 times at school before being allowed to go home, and terrified some red-haired children who had stumbled upon the groups on the social networking site so much they were afraid to go to school. No doubt, especially if they were already being bullied.

Even New York magazine is guilty of perpetuating the stereotype that redheads are in some way 'bad' or even evil. Shockingly, they ran a cover story for their February 10th issue entitled Why Children Lie and used three red-haired children (out of four), photographed looking shameful, as the face of the naughty, deceitful child:

And in the UK it's okay for major television networks to promote the hatred of gingers. Not surprising as the historically self-loathing Britain is home to what must be the densest population of redheads in the world. Here 'PC' still mostly means personal computer. (No offense is meant toward my British friends who are decent, evolved human beings, as this is a generalised cultural truth, as compared to more progressive countries, who in fairness may not be as reformed as we'd thought). I caught a show on SKY called Biggest Celebrity Mingers (minger is Brit slang for an ugly person) and the number one spot went to Prince Harry. The no-name commentator's face contorted into a hideous, gargoylesque mask rendering him worthy of the show's title (if he weren't some anonymous wastrel) when he gave the reason, spitting:  'WELL, HE'S GINGER!!'

Just recently Prince Harry was quoted as saying "I'm not ginger. I'm auburn, that's what I've been told." Don't be such a wuss, Harry, OWN IT! Stand up for yourself and your fellow gingers, or auburns or whatever, and be proud! Honestly. If a prince who has fought on the front lines can't handle it, imagine how an eight year-old kid in Flin Flon, Manitoba feels. Geez.

And for the record, Prince Harry seems to be widely viewed as the more attractive prince stateside (sorry Wills) and is considered to be one of the hottest men in the world by some very popular gossip bloggers (both male and female).

Renowned fashion photographer Tim Walker (my favourite) regularly demonstrates a clear preference for redheads in his choice of models. Hopefully little girls who think they might be at a disadvantage will see themselves in these breathtakingly beautiful shots:

Lily Cole


Sophie Drake

Karen Elson (first photo) is also a favourite of Tim Walker's, as well as other photogs and can boast a rare, enduring modelling career thanks to her unique looks. And his Irish colouring has only added to the endearing charm of one of the funniest men we have today, Conan O'Brien:

Note to the bullies, young and old alike: It's just a hair colour. GET OVER IT.

Lydia Hearst Poses for the 'Classy' French Playboy

Speaking of gifts for men (see previous post), model, heiress to the Hearst newspaper fortune and daughter of kidnap victim-turned-collaborator Patricia Hearst Shaw, Lydia Hearst is the latest to bare all in the French version of Playboy. Last month it was Lily Cole, whose shoot was inspired by a pervy Serge Gainsbourg album cover that crossed all sorts of boundaries. At least I can show this one.

I looked into her modelling credentials, knowing she was trying to make it as a model but having not really seen her anywhere, and found that she's actually included in Style.com's model directory. But while she's done some high profile shows (Fendi, Anna Sui, Betsey Johnson, though nothing since 2007), most of her photos were as party guest. Tough life.

However, I think the reason I posted about this in the first place, is to share what I read in the NY Daily News article about Lydia's cover, and that is the fact that before posing for French Playboy, she did a racy spread for another French 'gents' magazine called Self Service. Eeeeeuuuwwww......

The 24 year-old Hearst explains her decision to the Daily News: "I'm not a teenager anymore and this is the transition of going into adulthood." And there I thought the rite of passage was being approved for my first credit card.

Here's an unlikely couple - Lydia with SNL's Rachel Dratch (love her) at an Imitation of Christ Party:

 

And Lydia in 2004, who makes a good Charles Anastase model for his spring 2005 RTW show:

Marc Jacobs Names "Adorable" Daisy Lowe as Face of Campaign

Marc Jacobs has named the new faces of his signature campaigns. The first honour goes to runway queen Raquel Zimmerman for the women's collection, and for Marc by Marc Jacobs he's chosen Daisy Lowe, whose huge eyes and youthful looks prompted the designer to confess "I think she looks adorable."

A while back when I included a photo of 19 year-old Daisy in a post about tights, Viktor, a reader, asked "This Daisy, who is she?" Well, I'll tell you Viktor, and anyone else who wants to know.

Let's start with her lineage. Her mum is Pearl Lowe, a former indie band singer and current textile and fashion designer. (There is some juicy stuff if you want to explore further.) Her dad is Gavin Rossdale (remember that paternity thingy a few years back? Gwen Stefani must have imploded. I bet she sought solace in a thorough bleaching and an angry application of ruby lipstick). It was a one-night stand between Pearl and Gavin. Oops. But look what beauty came of it. The paternity test was simply to establish facts - dad and daughter currently have no relationship.

So Daisy grows up and up and becomes a model, a fashion icon around the UK and a fixture on "the scene." I have to say, she's out there, but it's not to the point of "ugh, not her again". I think it's due to her not making more of herself than what she is (take note, Peaches.) She recently broke up with Mark Ronson after a 6-month relationship and has done some risquè photo shoots as the face (or rather, 'parts'?) of Agent Provocateur lingerie (their stuff is kind of icky, eh? I was looking at their website one day and my husband glanced over and asked "What are you looking at???" It seems everyone poses for them eventually, right now they've got Helena Christensen and Alice Dellal, and Maggie Gyllenhaal even kitted up in garder belts for their site. I know, weird. AP is cofounded by Joseph Corrè, son of Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm Maclaren. Imagine that childhood!)

To what does she owe her appeal? I think it's as Marc Jacobs put it: she looks adorable.

 

 

Lily Cole in Video For M&S, and She's Dressed

My previous post on Lily Cole doing French Playboy has proven to be a very popular one (not evident if you look at the comments - must have something to do with needing two hands to type - but the hits are through the roof). I debated whether to post the cover photo but knew in the end there was no way, it is WAY too pedo - she looks 9 - I just couldn't. I did link to it, however. Some say it's art, including Lily.

If you do indeed have a keen interest in Lily Cole, enough so that you'll click a few times to see her clothed and don't mind that she does in fact speak, then you might like the video above. As a new face joining the other model faces of M&S for their women's fashion campaigns, she talks about the British retailer as an ethical corporation and how she supports that way of living as an individual. (Or, you can listen to a few words to hear her lovely English accent then turn the volume off.) M&S is standing behind Lily and her decision to pose for the men's magazine. As long as you're not caught hoovering Bolivian marching powder, endorsement deals here can usually bear the fleshier controversies.

Oh, and I mentioned earlier that the French edition of Playboy is more 'sophisticated and artistic' - no, not based on my own comparisons, how would I know? - that's what 'they' say. Well, I went to the website to see if it reflected a higher level of men's 'entertainment' and, uh, it didn't look too suave and refined to me. Jordan is in the banner. As are the words 'Busty Babes'. Cliquez-ici. Need I say more? Because I'd rather not!

These however, are definitely art - photographs by Tim Walker with Lily Cole:

Lily Cole Poses for Playboy, the 'Classy' One

British model Lily Cole has posed for Playboy. Sound like an odd move for the doll-faced, flame-haired twenty year-old? Well, according to Marie Claire UK it's the French edition, which is supposed to be more artistic and sophisticated than the U.S. version. How that is possible, I don't know.

The 60s-inspired cover photo - in which Cole is wearing nothing but white socks, hair in pig tails and ribbons and clutching a large white teddy bear - is said to be influenced by French musician Serge Gainsbourg's Melody Nelson album. That cover depicts what looks like a young teenage girl, standing there in jeans and nothing else holding a doll against her chest. Kind of crossing a line, there was a lot of that in music in France in the 60s. And it's a theme that will likely be repeated until men cease to exist or they all become gay. (FYI, in case you didn't know - Gainsbourg was married to English singer/actress Jane Birkin, who Hermès named their famed bag after. And, Birkin's daughter Lou Doillon - father is director Jacques Doillon - also did the cover of French Playboy).

Anyway, a 14-page editorial entitled Sweet Lily follows (is this grossing you out, too?), including interviews with Jean Paul Gaultier and film director Terry Gilliam, among other industry colleagues and friends - who I trust are not clutching teddies.

As for other ventures, Lily Cole gets more exposure yet as a new face of Rimmel, along with singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Kate Moss stays on to feature in the Rimmel London campaign. For now. And...Mossy also did a famous knickers-only, stuffed animal-hugging shot back in the early 90s when she was barely out of her teens. I would have included photos of each of these undressed teddy-clutchers, but I'm trying to keep the eeeuuw factor low on my site. Urinary tracts are okay. However, you can see Lily here

Good Times, Strange Sights at London Fashion Week

 

London Fashion Week wrapped up tonight and what a week it was. Alongside stunning, inspired clothes that could be considered works of art, there were some truly bizarre concoctions. But fashion wouldn't be fashion without them, everything needs balance, right? And like people, someone, somewhere, loves them. It wasn't just the clothes that drew strange looks, however. The celeb element was out in full force for the shows and the celebrations, and while some were on their best behaviour, out to support their favourite designers, others were a bit of a spectacle. Again, it wouldn't be fashion without it, right?

Above, an out-of-place Pamela Anderson sits the front row for the Vivienne Westwood Red Label show, and yes, that's a real person beside her. Rumour has it it's her new pal Michael Jackson. If so, I'm guessing his whole head finally fell off and this was the best he could do at short notice.

Next is Kate Moss, who had a good time as always at the parties and had to be held up as she made her way to a waiting taxi, accompanied by a relatively more conscious Allegra Versace (I'm sorry, for some reason I just had to include this):

Photo: Dlisted

Agyness Deyn and Daisy Lowe grabbed some attention at Aggy's best mate Henry Holland's House of Holland after-party. She wore a sheer dress from his collection with strategically placed dots that just covered her naughty bits (the girl just can't look full-on skanky, can she?), and Daisy in the leopard print bodysuit she wore down the catwalk for Naomi Campbell's Fashion Relief show:

So, of the major London fashion scene players we've got Kate, Aggy, Daisy, ...which leaves Alice Delal and a Geldof or two, also at the House of Holland party. Here's Pixie (second), whose massive (Linda Farrow? NHS?) glasses give her a very Anastase look. Loving the smile, I didn't know she could do it:

Photos: Style.com

 Finally, a truly gorgeous Dita von Teese at the Vivienne Westwood Red Label show, looking not just a touch more elegant than Pam who was sitting nearby - although that cleavage is some serious competition for the blonde. But the milky white skin saves her from looking cheap, giving her that 18th century French aristocracy look and allowing her to get away with showing off the goods while remaining a lady. That, and she doesn't wear lucite platform heels with fluffy pompoms on them.

This is a really long photo and I've got some space to fill, so I'll just say that there are more shows to cover from London, coming soon. Then Milan begins Saturday. It's all a whirlwind, but there have been some exceptional collections that make it all worth it. And I'm still trying to think of ways I can make large amounts of cash quickly (preferably legally), so I can get my hands on some of these clothes. Unfortunately, they all seem to involve not wearing any clothes. Figures.

These Models are No Tyra Meal Ticket

VogueTV brings us Models.Live, a broadband video series following three IMG models as they work toward a hopeful debut at New York Fashion Week. Cato from Amsterdam, Madeline from North Carolina and Austria from Dominican Republic provide a most welcomed departure from the wannabe posers of reality TV. Sure, ANTM and the other shows can be good, harmless fun (for the viewer, anyway), but we all know that the most these poor girls can hope for is an exploitive guest spot on Tyra's nauseating talk show. (Honestly, I can consume a lot of crap TV, but I cannot handle that show. Even alone, in secret, it makes me want to vomit with rage.)

There's not much else to say about Models.Live. The reality of modelling isn't all that interesting (of what they can show us, anyway), but if you're keen on the fashion world, which you likely are if you're reading this, then take a peak at the first three. Episodes are short. That happens when you don't stage panty tickle fights and screaming matches over stolen Red Bulls.

For the dirt on modelling and how the fashion industry really works, read Fashion Babylon by Imogen Edwards-Jones. Afterward, you will forbid your daughters to ever become models!

Do You Match Your Chiselled Cheekbones to Your Jacket?

I noticed something interesting in the September British Vogue (had to rush to get this post in, the October issue arrived this morning - yes, there is Saturday postal service on Saturdays). One of their editorial spreads was all about using the latest in-demand models to present autumn's sharply cut and geometric designs. So what's different about that? The models in this spread weren't just clothes horses but were named, and their features matched to the clothes they were wearing. Above: "A jewelled collar illuminates Ukrainian-born Natalia Chabanenko's flawless skin, and adds nobility to Fendi's sharp-shouldered Persian-shearling dress".

And so on:

"Corners and curves: Anna Jagodzinska's chiselled cheekbones and Rick Owens's sculpted leather jacket create an alien beauty"

"Anna Jagodzinka plays up Givenchy's couture workmanship with a twist of gobstopper pearls". Okay, this look had nothing really to do with her, I'm sure she didn't choose the pearls. This dress stands on its own; the wearer does it justice by providing a blank slate. I'm drooling my face off over this incredible, anachronistic piece:

See Me, Touch Me, Love Me

If you are drawn to surfaces that compel you to run your hands all over them to the point of momentarily forgetting where you are and what you were doing - you're in luck. There is some serious A/W 2008 eye-candy begging to be felt-up.

On my last day at the cottage, I sat down in front of the large bedroom windows overlooking the lake, and began flipping through the current issue of British Vogue. Some complain about all the ads but I love them, I'm beginning to think they're the best part of some of the fashion rags out there. A few pages in I see that Gucci is doing fur as a key element of their Hysteria Collection (aptly named, considering?)...okay, not really into that.

But wait - what's this? Ooh! Wow! Bottega Veneta has done the most incredible coats of fabric loops upon fabric loops that look like they were produced in the most fabulous craft class (above). I haven't yet had a peek at their Fall 2008 RTW so I took the opportunity to see what other goodies were on offer (see how the ads come in handy?). I was delighted to find that Tomas Maier's collection is full of delicious texture (see the dress below - it's like a well-manicured garden of charcoal grey petals), though most of it is quite understated in comparison.

Turning the page I come across Dolce & Gabbana's latest, who I have to admit I'm really loving as of late. With Spring's to-die-for, handpainted, floral dresses and their expertise in smartly layering knits - accessorising them with caps, scarves and boots in a way that takes the look eons beyond the typical approach to cool weather dressing - I'd have to say they make it to the top of my Fall 2008 wish list. Here, the texture is an illusion, with fabrics appearing to  be painted with visible brushstrokes that resemble fur (far less 'hysteria' inducing than Gucci's real thing):

 

Oh wait, I think this is fur here: transparent and gauzy is paired with a lush, curly-textured...fur?:

 

The examples certainly don't end here, but for this post, the final look is a tribute to Linda Evangelista, who is making somewhat of a comeback (she never really went away but she's 'hot' again) as the face for Germaine de Capuccini, L'Oreal Paris and most excitingly, the current Prada ad campaigns (rumour has it Sasha Pivovarova's contract was cancelled). Prada is responsible for bringing back lace in a BIG way this year and naturally it stars in the ad campaign along with our favourite Canadian supermodel (can I mention again that she went to my high school??):

Prada ads from levangelista.net

Other photos from Style.com

A Most Wonderful Introduction to Synaesthesia

Synaeth - what? Most people haven't heard the word, much less know what it means. Despite the fact that many of them have it.

Synaesthesia is a joining together of the senses that are normally experienced separately. I have it myself, thinking until I was thirty years old (not so long ago!) that it's normal to see music (I still have a very hard time believing that others see nothing when hearing music or particular sounds). Experts say this is an especially rare form, though I don't know life any other way so it doesn't seem particularly special to me, other than comparatively.

What does music look like to me? Well, it depends on the music itself. I see it a few feet in front of me, and it's a fairly large composition consisting of colours, patterns and shapes. If the music is composed of many layers or tracks, I see those individual elements. I've seen everything from a bright transparent green background with diagonally moving red opaque spheres of varying size, to a smooth, light-coloured wood grain texture moving slowly and horizontally along the bottom of a very pale yellow background.

I also taste things that are emotionally repulsive to me (it's a wonder I don't carry gum with me at all times as it's so sour I want to spit) and I see some people as colours and shapes, as I do with music. I don't know if that's what people are referring to when they say they see auras; I prefer not to label it as even between synaesthetes experiences can be wildly varied and are quite personal. Quite common is seeing letters and numbers as colours (for me, the number 37 is yellow tinged with orange on the 7 but there's no universal 'colour code' amongst synaesthetes):

Out of my three brothers, one shares a remarkably similar synaesthesia to what I have. We've written music together where he creates an electronica composition using computer software and sometimes live instruments, and I listen, then draw it using coloured pencils. After, we take a look and see where the composition needs something added to create symmetry, in other words - a balanced composition, a successful piece of art. So, if there is an awkward gap between the lines, shapes, or patterns near the bottom of the composition, for example, we know we can add, say, an ice blue bursting shape over the bass and the sound will become more lush and complete. And we keep going until we're happy with what we see.

Oddly, the brother I'm referring to is an identical twin, and his twin doesn't have it. The same has been observed by Dr. Jamie Ward of Sussex University, UK, a leading expert in synaesthesia who has written an excellent booked called The Frog Who Croaked Blue: Synesthesia and the Mixing of the Senses  which argues that the condition is not abnormal as it was once viewed but rather quite normal (though I can tell you that myself and my brother had always felt different growing up but we didn't know why). While it does run in families, many identical twins don't share the neurological phenomenon. 

That was the introduction and here is the 'wonderful' part I promised. By chance, I happened one day to find a website featuring an exhibition from 2005/2006 called The Sound of Clothes: Synaesthesia. Admittedly, I immediately suspected the word was used to superficially 'make cool' some fashion piece by someone who knew little about it. I was thrilled to the point of loudly squealing to discover this was far from the case. From SHOWstudio.com:

During the shoot of a 'Balenciaga special' by Nick Knight for Pop magazine in November '05, digital artist Daniel Brown was invited on set to respond to Nicolas Ghesquiere's Spring/Summer '06 collection. Inspired by its delicately layered, translucent garments, Brown proposed a series of interactives based on the unpublished images from Knight's story (published in January '06). Using the notion of 'pictures for the blind' as a stimulus, a collaboration with synaesthete and sound designer Nick Ryan ensued, aiming to interpret the source garments and images through sound.

Nick Ryan is amazing. When he was shipped the Balenciaga jacket (as modeled by Gemma Ward, who happens to be my favourite model, what a bonus) to complete the score (he realised he needed to see it in person after trying first with photos) he heard 36 distinct sounds upon seeing the exquisite garment. After working with an orchestra to capture exactly the right audio for each fabric or skin tone, Ryan then gave the tracks to Brown, who delicately married each sound with its respective part of the image. Use your mouse to unleash the full cacophony in Brown and Ryan’s extraordinarily beautiful, fashion interactive:

http://www.showstudio.com/projects/synaesthesia/interactive/

Be sure to get your mouse going on the image to begin the interaction. Notice the sounds on the tiny little buttons on her cuffs, and her fingers which are like delicate tinkling on piano keys. Just incredible. Do you find yourself becoming familiar with the sounds and instinctively creating your own composition?

If you have synaesthesia (I prefer to call it my 'thing'), I'd love to hear from you.