Pop-Up!

Whilst researching spaces for my outcome in the summative project, I thought of pop-up shops. Personally, I love the exclusivity of the space and the fact that you can miss out lures me in more. They're close and personal and the ones that did really well truly have an immersive setting. Some of my favourites are COS Los Angeles, Kate Spade igloo in NYC Bryant Park, Arnsdorf and Uniqlo boxes. They're like temporary exhibitions or stalls/stands at a Christmas market.

COS Los Angeles 

The Scandinavian design is so minimal and beautiful with the concepts of reflection for their A/W15 collection. Theres an all white environment filled with an offset grid of displays. With silhouettes of the pieces and a mirrored wall as a threshold. I love the idea of having two rooms with different colour schemes. One, monochrome and one pale pink.

Kate Spade NYC

Kate Spade opened up a 3 week pop up shop in Bryant Park during the holiday season in collaboration with an ice rink for a colourful display of gifts. They kept shoppers warm by handing out free cocoa too!

Arnsdorf, Melbourne 

Created for Australian fashion brand Arnsdorf, the temporary store was opened for just three days and featured 154 pairs of tights stretched and wrapped around the space. When walking in it is as if you are in the sculpture. 

Uniqlo, NYC

Uniqlo opened 6 cubes in NYC that were compact and mobile. They use the small space well with integrated shelving structure and dressing rooms. Plus, they glowed in the dark as well. 

Love, 

Shaleen 

xxx

Fashion Together

At London College of Fashion there is an exhibition at the Fashion Space Gallery about collaborations in the industry rather than individuals. It was curated by Lou Stoppard like the North: Fashioning Identity. The collaborations had the likes of Rick Owens and Michèle Lamy with their grungy chic. Nick Knight and Daphne Guinness with their music videos and 36 hour live-stream. Inez Van Lamsiveerde and and Vinoodh Matadin on their 25 years of front covers, advertorials and their own art. Bjork and Lady Gaga music videos and campaigns for Vivienne Westwood. Shaun Leane and Alexander Mcqueen backstage of a fashion show about aluminium coiled corsetry was my favourite as I am most intrigued by the happenings and makings of such exclusive events. Another part of the exhibition I enjoyed particularly was the one where they had an electronic flip book of polaroids. The instant capture is something that can't be changed in a physical picture and thats priceless. I liked the quotes around the garments on the floor as well it its something I haven't seen before in an exhibition. It was one small room so I do wish it had more.

Love,

Shaleen

xxx

'It's great up North'

Recently I went to the North: Fashioning Identity exhibition at Somerset House and it was better than I had expected. I have a fascination with the North and I wish I grew up there. I love the culture, especially in 1990s Manchester such as the Hacienda club scene and indie bands from there. The exhibition was full of photography, fashion and art. It features artists Shirley Baker, Nick Knight, Paul Smith and Corinne Day.

Paul Smith's Manchester-themed pieces 

It was numbered 1-10 and I had my favourites. Number 4 was all about pubs, clubs, bars, stadiums and places of work. The typical British society that I am familiar with and how football unites and shapes communities. 5. i-D magazine is still one of my favourite magazines today and back then they had just started the iconic straight-ups of what people were wearing in real life on the streets. 8. Global Influence. I wasn't aware of the rest of the world connection with the North because of London's presence as a fashion capital. However, people know and have a perception through the music, graphics and style that comes out of the North. These teenage obsessions, heroes of their youth or characters they wanted to be. For example, Antwerp born designer and one of menswear's most respected innovators, Raf Simons took inspiration from an A/W03 for his SS18 collections. 15 years apart and Simons used graphics from an archive by Peter Saville. Saville is known for having his designs on record sleeves and posters for Factory Records such as bands like Joy Division in the late 70s and early 80s. It showcased the casual scenes of the 80s such as the passion for brands and labels from international ones like Lacoste to British luxury Burberry. Although these trends came in and out quickly. Unlike this, Adidas remains consistent today. Also, Samba and ZX running shoes were adopted by clubbers and football fans. They dedicated shoes and garments to key towns and collaborated with popular northern figures. 9. I sat in the comfy home style setting of this room and watched a video about how early influences form favourite songs to adored items of clothing often form starting points for later work of designers and image makers. This was quite humbling to hear.

It was engaging, lively and full of energy. Theres so much attention on London for British fashion and it was refreshing to see it from other cities. I think because I am from London as well I find it boring and repetitive and I want to see something new and different. Like Lou Stoppard said, its "different from regular fantasy fashion exhibitions as its real and simple." That attracts me more.

Love,

Shaleen

xxx

Gender-Identity Photoshoot

Over the past couple of weeks, as a group we have been planning and taken out a photoshoot. It was inspired by a Vogue 2012 photoshoot by Josh Olins in the ideas we came up with it looking dynamic, youthful, intelligent, layered and portraying gender. The concepts were hard to come up with using only 5 words. Originally, we had this idea of a sleek, minimal, classic black & white photoshoot that looked like it was taken in the 40s. However, when it actually came to shoot day we didn't like how boring the images were turning out. As much as you can plan a photoshoot, we found that the outcome was better when we played around and went with a more spontaneous idea. We were stuck for a couple of hours but once the flow started it became fun, enjoyable and interesting. Some behind the scenes shots are below:

A Revolution of Acceptance, December 2017

Our five words are intelligence, layers, youthful, gender-identity and dynamic. In light of the current gender revolution we have created an exposed and raw portrayal of society’s effect and influence on individuals. The ripped up pages of glossy magazines surrounding the models depict the beautiful and idealistic expectations created by elite culture, and the fact that the models have brown paper bags over their heads hides their beauty and identity whilst creating an aura of gender-neutrality. It is suggested that they are both half naked, with the nude bra creating the illusion of toplessness which reflects a lack of layers; the word is also symbolised through magazine layering. The models are youthful and part of a generation most likely to be influenced by body expectations, whilst intelligence is conveyed through the more abstract concept of self-awareness and acceptance rather than the typical look of a smart businesswoman/man. There are visual contrasts of the dynamic colours in the magazines and the simple models. It’s defying cultural and social expectations. 

Love,

Shaleen

xxx

Fashion x Film

Fashion is everywhere, influences and is influenced by everything. Music, culture and film. Viewers are engaged in a gripping story and whilst being emerged into the scene, fashion plays its own part. It gives a place for the clothes and the characters who where them are their own person. It may be fiction but people become involved and aspire to be like certain characters and may like to dress like them. It allows people to experience the concept of the brand that may not have been conveyed before through still image like the HM x Erdem collection by Baz Luhrmann. Even famous directors are doing fashion films. It boosts sales and sticks in your memory better.

Cult films such as 'Rebel Without a Cause' we remember the white shirt and leather jacket worn by James Dean. It is used as a tool to depict culture, hierarchy and era like in 'The Great Gatsby.' Along with the mood that is created with cinematic effects, theres power to clothing.

Not only films but tv shows are known for fashion. 'Gossip Girl' has a variety of fashion through their characters such as the gothic portrayal of Jenny Humphrey and her innocent school girl plaid. Blair Waldorf's headbands are iconic as well as the berets and designer dresses. There were even guest stars from the fashion industry such as Vera Wang, Karlie Kloss and Tyra Banks. I look to Clueless outfits for costume ideas for Halloween because the yellow plaid two piece is something everything knows.

Love, 

Shaleen

xxx 

Miu Miu A/W17

When asked to find interesting and successful outcomes to inspire us for our photoshoots, I came across the ad campaign for Miu Miu for this season. It is called 'Preservation Hall and Other Stories' by Alasdair McLellan, set in New Orleans and brings the culture of the Deep American South. It's a decade piece thats timeless yet innovative. I love the mixture of music and fashion with the incorporation of jazz culture. Its diverse, energetic, glamorous and is following the maximal trend. The stand out pieces were the brightly colour faux furs.

Some images from the ad campaign:

Love, 

Shaleen

xxx

Why Indie Magazines Are The Future Of Print

Indie magazines are becoming more and more popular and its obvious why. They're raw, more thought provoking and intriguing. The photography has deeper meaning and I prefer the style. They discuss issues and ideas that questions society and culture. I won't pick up a copy of mainstream fashion magazines, the likes of Cosmo because they are colourful and have a fake nature to them. Indie magazines also each have their own niche in the fashion world. My favourites are i-D, Heroine, Dazed, Love and Wonderland. I am also excited to find new ones. They push boundaries because they are produced independently like indie films. It's where I look if I am trying to find some inspiration.

In a recent seminar, we looked at layouts of our favourite magazines and I chose Heroine because I have recently found it whilst in flicking through some in Ideas on Paper. It is visually so appealing starting from the cover that is just an image, no text like a photo book. The layout isn't typical with the three columns. However, has a variety of visual contrast that keeps me interested whilst reading. One of my favourites was the column of bold text, another image then another column of regular text.   It definitely gives me inspiration for my own work that I will be doing on InDesign.

Love,

Shaleen

xxx

Marie Zucker.

Marie Zucker is someone who I've admired for a couple of years now, I have also been inspired to take pictures like she her's for photoshoots. I was quite surprised that she had found my art account on Instagram and liked one of my posts. It definitely made my Saturday morning! She has worked for the likes of On the Rocks, Lula, The Last Magazine, Violet Book and Vogue Italia.

I love the introspective moments, that seem taken by chance. They're naturalistic, faded and subtle. The use of a film camera adds a pastel and delicate feel and the colours are definitely more vibrant as well. There's an element of youthful beauty, innocence and fairy tale decadence. It's ethereal and beautiful to leave reality whilst looking at the images. The intimate and cropped, close up pictures are lovely to see the finer details of the photos. They all seem so effortless. Some cool images are below:

http://www.mariezucker.com

Love,

Shaleen

xxx

Helmut Newton.

As a part of our concepts brief we have an individual task to do a visual analysis on a photograph. For prep work we researched a range of famous fashion photographers. This is something I personally enjoy and I was most impressed by Helmut Newton. He's known for his powerful, assertive, sexual and also dominant images of women. He finds the beauty in imperfection. Newton creates more casual and less polished that adds personal touch to the picture. It was interesting to find that he uses a simple set-up, just the camera and a flash on top. Its more about the image than editing as he says himself he finds boring. I think that explains why he rarely does studio work because it isn't real so he shoots in real locations. The photos are nostalgic and retro which I love. We romanticise older photos because things looked so much "more interesting" back then. The idea of keeping photos and not discarding was eye opening. A photo that we may find interesting this year might seem boring next year and vice versa. My favourite images are below:

The intimacy and tight frame allows us to see the details of the skin.

This picture reminds me of grease especially the hair as well as the era. Her expression portrays her confidence and dominance.  

The paleness of the skin represents purity but the cigar is like the opposite and seems rebellious. 

The women is dressed in a suit making her figure seem more masculine and the gritty road looks like a shot from a film noir. 

The seductive quality mixed with the strong and powerful woman on top cradling the man is refreshing. It is unusual to see the man as the weaker sex. The sinister man in the background watching could connote society watching.

I adore all of his photography and can't believe I didn't know of him before. 

Love, 

Shaleen

xxx

'Coach 1941' SS18 Ready To Wear Collection

Coach 1941 SS18 Ready to Wear collection at New York Fashion Week is full of sparkle and glitter representing 80s disco from the set to the clothes. Stuart Vevers presents undone and effortless designs that I want to take off the runway and wear myself. From embellished outerwear, decorative dresses to glittery boots, all are gorgeous. It has been called the millennial brand because is resonates with young Hollywood especially the silk slip dress and lace over mesh combinations. The first look  might have to be favourite because the jacket is so eye-catching and unlike your regular fur coat with the different colours and leather involvement. The leather jacket on Kaia Gerber in runway look 3 is the perfect mix of masculine and feminine attire. The last look is a couture version of the striped trouser trend on the high street. I love the mixture of the decades of the 70s as well as the 80s for a new fresh style.

"All about attitude" – Stuart Vevers 

The beautiful fur coat makes the look

The shoes are western boots but the glitter makes them fancier to be worn on a night out rather than casual

The glittery skirt is all things glamour and glitz 

The embellishment on the dress sets it a part from the other mesh in the outfit

The contrast of the red mesh and silk pink dress is different

The bags in the collection are just as pretty and match 

Love

Shaleen

xxx