A new permanent gallery has just opened up in Hackney Downs Studios - home to the newest cluster of artists and fashion designers emigrating to Shacklewell Lane. The space opened on Friday evening with a group show of four Hackney based artists including a WProject contributor Josephine Chime. Here are some details shots of her mark-making illustration which makes up the larger "Supreme Being" relief. Head over to TheWProject site to start reading the artist's interviews connected to this year's project and keep an eye out for Josephine's appearing ........
Today marks two special occasions - both interrelated and connected. Firstly its Grace Ladoja's birthday and secondly, its the first day the NIKE+ Fuel Band goes on sale in the UK. Grace and I went to the launch of the new energy measuring product in New York in January and have both been road-testing our own device ahead of general release. You can see Grace's black wooden gift box here with her post-it note apple at her studio which is brimming with all of her photography paraphernalia. Grace is never without a camera to always catch the moments, times and faces surrounding her - some exposed to film and some uploaded to her Tumblr. There you will see her snaps from the different exhibitions she's been to recently - as indicated by the flyers on her pinboard - Jeremy Deller, Yayoi Kusama, TheWProject. I visited Grace to discuss making a special piece for a musician she is shooting a new video for, so watch this space to find out who it is and the incredible wardrobe coming together for the promo.................. If you've been following our NIKE+ Fuel adventure and fancy trying one out for yourself - head down to the NikeFuel Station at Boxpark, 2-4 Bethnal Green Rd, London, E1 6GY TODAY, where a very limited number of Nike+ FuelBands went on sale at 11am this morning - 1st come, 1st serve ................. and #makeitcount
Here is a little expose into the studio of the artist who has illustrated the Ella Dror PR Press Day invitation which I posted a few days ago. Margot joined the rosta last season showing some of her hand-painted collection in addition to interior designs like this "M" cushion. Above are examples of some of her recent projects including artwork for Kiehls, a Commes De Garcons cartoon for AnOther Magazine, sketches for her new collection and a detail shot of the final pieces. Here is also one of her screens for printing down at Print Club where her studio is based with other artists sharing a communal open-air space next to the print room. Check out the programme for the Print Club pop-up residency at Pick Me Up graphics fair to see when Margot will be moonlighting pulling some prints in a demo. Also keep your eyes peeled if you have the opportunity to visit Shoreditch House as she has just completed a painted mural on the walls between the 8th and 9th floors. If thats not enough info to take in, Margot is also known to take to the decks in her additional alias guise as a dj........... listen to her house party mix for MONKIherefeaturing; Clipse, Snoop, Livin' Joy, TLC, Vybz Cartel, R Kelly ....... AND one final musical mention, look out for her bespoke garms for Rita Ora ...........
Ever since I heard about a Bill Cunningham documentary I have been following the official Twitter feed for news of its release............ and I'm so happy that it has finally landed in London! Its a rare occurrence that fashion hits the big screen in this town and always a highlight in my calender e.g Bruce Webber at The Screen On The Green, Diana Vreeland at The Mayfair Hotel. This release is currently on show at The Curzon on Cuzon Street - a lovely big space perfect for the indulgence of enjoying this picture. Its a real pleasure to get to know a little about this iconic character who paved the way for the Scott Schuman and Tommy Ton's of the industry. He has spent his life fascinated with fashion from the hats he saw at church on a Sunday as a child thru to being a milliner before he even picked up a camera. When Anna Wintour talks about him in the film it runs a slideshow of the snaps he took of her as a fledgling fashionista (see above) and she explains that everyone dresses for Bill. She also divulges that if he is on the front row of a catwalk show he only lifts his camera for something exceptional and often a detail the main editors may have missed................. and this will be the trend that surfaces later down the line.
There are many brilliant interviews with his extended network of New York work family who each give their own insight into his private and peculiar world. By the end of the story you just want to lunge into the screen and give him a big hug. He has managed to be intrinsic and crucial to the industry without becoming effected or tainted but retained his pure and excitable passion for clothes. Reassuringly he identifies that the one off oddballs of the scene excite him more than the celebrity infatuation and he celebrates these ladies in preference - shooting Anna Piaggi is a particular favourite.
The best quote in the whole thing for me is his explanation for rejecting payment from CondeNast or any other employers............. he vouches that the cheapest thing is desiring money and the most expensive, priceless thing is freedom. Therefore he has been able to do exactly what he wants because noone has owned the rights to his work or service. He lives on the bare minimum of necessities in place of spending his life working round the clock and still cycling around Manhattan at the age of 84! He wants for nothing and exists on the energy of thriving off his job which is incidentally his life......... the ultimate sacrifice and dedication to your art. Its such an inspiring story, I recommend everyone to go and see it!
One of the London creatives I met on the Nike Fuel trip to NYC was Joel from the duo Hellicar and Lewis. It turns out we must have both interned at DAZED at the same time in 2001 when he helped set up the magazine's onlilne presence.......... in the days of when fashion requests were made with a fax!!! Over the last 10 years, Joel has been expanding his pioneering technological prowess and now has his own company with Pete Hellicar dealing with all things digital. Their main focus is devising interactive experiences that combine art and design with a hi-tec spin. On Saturday I went to the Tate Modern to see their latest project "The Hello Cube" for the day of immersive and hallucinatory events programmed in conjunction with the Yayoi Kusama show.
"The Hello Cube" is a mirrored box that projects patterns and effects governed by orders sent to it via Twitter. Visitors were encouraged to send over directions and start a dialogue with the character who responded in visuals and a reply mention on Twitter. Teo from the WProject was even successful to strike up a stream of chats with the machine!! The process was also available remotely for anyone to have a go and see their own pattern uploaded to an image hosting page.
For those on site on Saturday, the lights dimmed in the Turbine Hall and UV black light illuminated the bridge platform for a silent disco. Actress took to the decks and we were given a headset to listen to his Yayoi inspired bleeps and morse-code style beats. Alongside this en-masse dot-to-dot experience were accessories / textile sculpture / film & music making workshops. There was even a Kusama pattern nail bar with Boom Nails which you can check out on thier Tumblr.
If you missed the Infinite Kusama weekend, make sure you go and see the Yayoi Kusama exhibition before it ends on the 5th of June ............. details here.
Keep up to date with all of Hellicar & Lewis projects here.
I love collecting friend's prints to decorate my home and I unexpectedly had the chance to make my own on Saturday. I returned to PickMeUp to take a second look as there was too much to see at the private view - it's a visual overload. Whilst I was there, PeepShowCollective were holding a print workshop as part of their studio residency at the fair. The "Bare Bones" theme activity had lots of perspex skeleton pieces for you to position in your own arrangement. I got totally caught up in concentration in creating these two totem pole structures. I'm so chuffed to have made my own monograph!!! It was so much fun I can highly recommend finding out when you can get involved in a class at their website here. Have a look at their beautiful aprons whilst you are there too.......
Print Club has once again packed up some of its equipment from Millers Terrace in Dalston and shipped it down to the Thames for a pop-up print shop at Pick Me Up. Here you can watch masters at work as the resident artists take slots to demonstrate their process......including Margot Bowman - the illustrator responsible for the Ella Dror PR press day poster in a previous post. If you fancy having a go yourself, Print Club are running a scheme of "Pull Your Own Print" classes so head over to their facebook to check the list of timings............. here.
