It’s About Time : Review
Set in the basement beneath the Rich Mix Studios, It’s About Time exhibits five women artists, all originating from the Arab world and now living in Britain.
“ I want people to see the artists not only as women from the Arab world, but as women who live in a global world.”
Set in the basement beneath the Rich Mix Studios, It’s About Time exhibits five women artists, all originating from the Arab world and now living in Britain. The exhibition’s premier came as part of Arab Women Artists Now, a one day festival that offers a platform to the artistic excellence of an increasing active, increasingly present subsection of British society.
The works on display are diverse, both in terms of subject matter and medium. The first to greet the viewer is a small red screen-print of graffiti daubed by women in the notorious Khiam prison in Lebanon. It sits along from a brazen clash of greens and red, an abstract take on the Arabic symbol for love.
The quality of the exhibition’s works is overt and as much as its cultural foundation is on-topic enough to draw in on-the-fencers, It’s About Time actively attempts to move itself away from its weighty labels. And their potential to obscure its artistic merit.
Wander down into the spacious, white washed Lower Gallery and you will find nine pieces of work. Three are labelled and six not. There is no literature explaining the artistic origins of the pieces and little can be gleamed from the title. The thinking behind this context-less presentation, according to Zina Papageorgiou, the curator, stems from both the intended viewing experience and conceptual foundation of the exhibition.
I didn’t want to do another exhibition on Arab, female art, Zina explains as she moves across the gallery. Sometimes context is helpful when viewing art. It can colour the artwork and allow an understanding deeper than the aesthetic presentation. I think that when it comes to an exhibition with such heavy, thematic underpinning however, the context can distract from the intentions of the artist as an individual.
One of the exhibition’s individuals is Malika Squalli. Malika is an Austrian-Moroccan who has been travelling the world finding the people and locations that capture her thematic focus. A sense of questioned identity is constantly present in Malika’s washed out, grey photography. A women jumps to catch a yellow balloon, stands beneath a wandering cloud or behind the lens, looking out on a coolly brown, hilly tundra. In each the subject is either partially obscured, the result of Photoshop manipulation, or absent.
The sense of displacement present in this work is manifest in Malika, as an emigrant turned perpetual traveller, and the exhibition in general. Walking further round the gallery and this sense of displacement comes forward in a refrain of contrasts; the crisp, geometrically displayed calligraphy of Dia Batal perched next to Ina Halabi’s multi-media exploration into the internal politics of the Druze Community; Malika’s gentle photography alongside Saadeh George’s brutal painted work. It is a testament to the deft touch of Zina that the pieces operate at once individually, standing on their own as manifestations of their artist’s identity and together, congruent parts of the show’s broader cultural label.
There is a complicated sense of identity present with these artists, Zina says, herself a Greek woman working between The Palestine Conservatoire and Britain. I want people to see the artists not only as women from the Arab world, but as women who live in a global world. Sometimes they don’t want to comment on their ethnicity. I don’t think the “us and them” dynamic is applicable anymore.
There is an underlying awareness of the cultural commonality of the pieces that comes across through the Arabic text and a shared middle-Eastern focus. But rather than this emerging as the prevailing thrust of the exhibition, through its universal themes of love, displacement and loss, It’s About Time successfully manages to distance itself from a cumbersome cultural binary able to diminish some truly excellent work.
It’s About Time is part of the Arab Women Artists Now festival organised by Arts Canteen: a non-profit organisation dedicated to supporting emerging artists from the Arab world.
7th – 29th March 2015 | Rich Mix Lower Gallery
KENZO release 2015 spring/summer campaign
By Alyss Bowen
Parisian fashion house KENZO joins forces with the artists from Toilet Paper Magazine on their fourth collaboration for their spring/summer 2015 ultramodern advertising campaign.
Released in three chapters, Toilet Paper created a cityscape scene with a nod to the future through over-saturated vibrant colours and geometric designs.
Captured by the Toilet Paper collective, photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari, artist Maurizio Cattelan and art director Micol Talso. The campaign lends inspiration from the bright and futuristic, showing an optimistic paradise where the models run riot.
The first chapter shows the two ‘hero’, models Mona Matsuoka and Qing He, in their modern, concrete jungle. The simplest of the three chapters we are able to see the real essence of KENZO, with the new collection showcased effortlessly.
The second chapter portrays a magical, mysterious playground. The two heroes stomp through the high-tech city, with their giant like limbs, grabbing buildings and asteroids and imitating puppet shows with KENZO accessories.
The third and final chapter is based upon a child’s fantasy. Toilet Papercreated a 3D origami world in which the KENZO kids play with dinosaurs, skate on planets and explore the waters of a secret island.
The spring/summer campaign is instantly recognizable as a KENZOadvertisement. The consistently modern brand reflects both the bright and the future through their collaboration with Toilet Paper.
It sits perfectly in between being a piece of fashion advertisement, and artist reflection and showcases their men’s, women’s and children’s spring/summer collection in an animated dream.
XIMON LEE : Winner of the H&M Design Award
Recent Parsons graduate Ximon Lee, real name Simon Dongxing Lee, winner of this year’s H&M Design Award is a promising new design talent - and a name to familiarise yourself with in 2015.
The 24-year-old New York based designer that grew up in Hong Kong, China, made history at the end of last month at Stockholm’s annual fashion week as he became the first U.S, and first menswear designer to win the prestigious Design Award, chosen from 400 applicants by an international jury in London.
In a statement the young designer said: "The H&M Award means so much to me at the beginning of my career - I cannot imagine how I'd start my own label without it.” H&M have previously collaborated with international fashion houses including Alexander Wang, Maison Martin Margiela and Isabel Marant.
Pushing the boundaries of menswear with his big cuts, architectural shapes and denim textiles, Lee had previously been noted as one of the New York designers to watch after winning Parsons Menswear Designer of the Year award in 2014. His graduation collection explored the contrast between synthetic and organic textures, inspired by the documentary titled “Children of Leningradsky”.
“Oversized, ill-fitted and layered clothes on these orphans are keys to survive in cold Russian winter. However, the unexpected mixture of materials and the contrast between synthetic and organic textures from these found clothes are pieces of art and love.” Lee said on the collection.
The designer is now concentrating on launching his own menswear label. He takes home the €50,000 prize fund, and gains a period of mentorship which will offer an opportunity to develop select pieces from his line for sale globally at H&M beginning October of this year.
BRIAN CALVIN: The Physiognomy of Comfortable Lethargy
As the decade of “status updates” and “selfies” passes in the name of social-media’s ebullient narcissism, Brian Calvin’s works accentuate the perturbing boredom of a population affected by endemic self-awareness.
Born and raised in California, Calvin is a master of mischievous “pausing-as-an-activity” portraits, his work becoming synonymous with the sun-drenched sands and relaxed lifestyle of Los Angeles. Hyper-exposed, bleary-eyed youths with glossy lips and crooked teeth pose for an unseen observer against the backdrop of what Calvin describes as “generalized glimpses of the California coast”.
Mastering a unique proficiency of composition in his portraits, Calvin assembles scenery, features, and expressions to loiter indecisively between states of abstraction and figuration. Thus, the characters of Calvin’s colourful eye-candy portraiture manage to all but evade narrative traits. What remains, captures centre stage nameless, story-less characters with provocatively parted lips and “dents du Bonheur”, suggestive of playful lasciviousness. Conjuring up images of Brigitte Bardot and Sophia Loren there is something profound and subtly charged about the spirit of melancholia, which permeates the seemingly vain and conceited faces of Calvin’s portraits. Simultaneously an intense sense of innocence and an aura of present-mindedness coat the colourful imagery.
Despite the chronicler’s manifestation in modernist figurative painting, which some might be excused for considering a cynical distortion in the name of narrative content, Calvin’s quietly disconcerting style has a more sincere quality. Rather than a caricature of form and figure, Calvin’s work muses the conundrum of a society, in which, consciously or not, we endeavour to influence the perceptions of others. Whether “stoic or stoned” Calvin’s aloof and emotionally cool characters imply a rampant monotony of selfie-culture and the increasing lack of human relations within it. Yet Calvin’s choice of colour and form covers the gloomy message of his subjects in an icing so delicious, the spectator is at risk of missing it entirely. And despite little or no sign of communication in his portraits, the close-ups display a sense of relaxed comfort within their environment and the unidentified spectator. Despite the grip of a “selfie-self-love-culture”, there is something decidedly comforting, uplifting even, about Brian Calvin’s enchantingly self-aware young subjects.
Colour block: What’s trending for SS15?
1970s revival: Retro tones - warm oranges, reds, yellows and greens.
1970s revival: Retro tones - warm oranges, reds, yellows and greens.
From flared trousers, crochet dresses and beaded detailing, to clashing florals, sheer kaftans, paisley, ethereal, and Balinese flower-inspired print blouses - seventies fashion throwbacks truly dominated the SS15 catwalk. Leading the seventies playback, Tommy Hilfiger bought a nostalgia of Woodstock and Coachella as models walked the runway to The Rolling Stones' “Sympathy for the Devil” and Jimi Hendrix's "All Along The Watchtower” down a path lined with psychedelic flowers. Prada brought back the platform clog, whilst Henry Holland paid tribute to the groupie girl with bold contrasting prints and metallics.
Also See: Emilio Pucci Printed Silk Crepe de Chine Wide-leg Pants.
Florals
“Florals? For Spring? Ground-breaking.” A predictable trend for spring but back for SS15 with 3D floral embellishments leading the way. The catwalk saw an explosion of exaggerated funkadelic florals from vivid cartoonish to retro styles, with ultra-bright floral bouquet prints sported by Chanel, Marni and Michael Kors paid as a homage to summer. Abstract graphic flower print bags are noted as the key trend piece of the season, as seen at the Valentino, Fendi, and Topshop Unique shows.
Victorian Whites: Nudes and neutrals
White is the colour of SS15. Fine white embroidered lace designs rich with artisan workmanship from Erderm, Valentino, Robert Cavalli, Louis Vuitton, Moncler Gamme Rouge and Joseph, boast the most delicate cutwork designs and bring us back to the style of Victoriana dressing.
Cleansing creams and white fuss free silhouettes were also showcased at Victoria Beckham, Jill Stuart, Ralph Lauren, Chloe, Alexander Wang and Chanel. Expect to see head-to-toe white outfits this spring.
Rich Blue Denims
As fashion editor of Vogue Francesca Burns notes: “more is more when it comes to spring/summer denim. Don’t be afraid of layering!” We see tailoring, military jackets, decorative detail and patchwork denim trending from all the fashion power houses, including Burberry, Gucci, Etro, Stella McCartney, Tommy Hilfiger, Dolce & Gabbana, Sonia Rykiel, Roberto Cavalli, and Chloe. It’s all about double, or even triple denim layering this spring.
Pastel Palette
An essence of elegance and femininity is brought to SS15 through the pastel summer hues of lilacs and lavender as showcased by Balenciaga, Missoni, Burberry, D Squared, Cavalli and Alberta Ferretti, which fully embody classic spring tones.
Green & Blue - Menswear
From aqua, vintage greens, and storm blues - the British pastoral and coastal shades of blue and green are the hues of menswear SS15. Combined in various collections including Krisvanassche, Y-3, Michael Kors, Baartmans & Siegel, Pringle of Scotland, Gieves & Hawkes and Hackett, the colours are the most prevalent of the season.
French-Japanese fashion label Maison Kitsuné presents its FW15 collection in Paris
The Maison Kitsuné brand was born out of a very interesting fusion. With an exotic background mix, this French-Japanese label showcased its Fall/Winter 2015 K.I.M collection last week in Paris
The Maison Kitsuné brand was born out of a very interesting fusion. With an exotic background mix, this French-Japanese label showcased its Fall/Winter 2015 K.I.M collection last week in Paris.
Love of fashion and music came together as architect and designer Masaya Kuroki, and ex manager and artistic director of Daft Punk, Gildas Loaëc, founded the brand in 2002. As Maison Kitsuné developed slowly and organically, it now has three stores - Paris, Tokyo and New York.
The K.I.M (Kitsuné Institute of Music) collection exhibited last week drew creative inspiration from South Korea’s pop culture, Moonassi’s drawings and the design of the South Korean flag. By referencing South Korea’s reputation as the “land of the morning calm”, the brand has combined and balanced out workwear and casual wear, together with a selection of different shades of blue. The collection included coats, shirts, bomber jackets, and denim. Blue, was surely the dominating colour in this collection, accompanied subtly by the colours of grey, tan, beige and black. Bold patterns were also visible in their new F/W15 collection such as houndstooth and checkered prints.
Once again, Maison Kitsuné has shown the diverse inspiration from other cultures and brought it together to this latest collection. In the past, the label’s design and ideas were known for it’s Parisian roots and also the 60’s British rock culture.
The timeless luxury leather designer ÚNA BURKE
Designer and Artist, Úna Burke is a multi-award winning leather sculptor in the fashion world. Burke achieved her masters at the prestigious Cordwainer’s College at the London College of Fashion, and her graduate collection won the 2009 Design Awards for ‘Best Static Collection’.
Designer and Artist, Úna Burke is a multi-award winning leather sculptor in the fashion world. Burke achieved her masters at the prestigious Cordwainer’s College at the London College of Fashion, and her graduate collection won the 2009 Design Awards for ‘Best Static Collection’.
In 2010, Burke went on to set up her own luxury fashion label and also won several more national and international awards including ‘Irish Designer of the Year 2011’ and a nomination for the “WGSN Global Fashion Awards”. Her work is now exhibited in over twenty countries worldwide. Over the years Burke has collaborated with both clients and colleagues such as The National Museum of Ireland, Phillip Lim, and Nick Knight’s creative laboratory the ‘SHOWstudio’. She has also produces film and stage costumes, for the film ‘The Hunger Games’, where Jennifer Lawrence wore an arm brace that was made for her.
Burke designs are both seasonal fashion accessories as well as sculptural art.
She uses complex leather-working techniques and her pieces are truly timeless, elegant and sculptural. All designs are hand-made in the Úna Burke atelier in South London, with the best quality vegetable tanned leathers from the UK and Italy.
There is no doubt that the brand is very avant garde and is an inspiration to many celebrities such as Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Madonna and Heidi Klum. Burke’s designer collections regularly appear in high end fashion magazines, such as Vogue, i-D and Numero.
I am Dora x LSFF: ‘Is it Peculiar That She Twerk In The Mirror?’
I am Dora is a curatorial initiative exploring how women interact and identify with one another through film
I am Dora is a curatorial initiative exploring how women interact and identify with one another through film. As a part of London Short Film Festival, Jemma Desai, founder of I am Dora held a panel discussion with Aimee Cliff (freelance music and culture journalist), Emma Dabri (writer and PhD researcher, exploring how mixedness has come to be gendered) and Grace Ladoja (photographer and filmmaker, including work with FKA Twigs) on how women portray themselves through music videos.
The discussion raised important questions about women and the current wave of feminism. With stars such as Beyonce promoting feminism, are young people being introduced to a watered down version of the issues women are fighting against or is the promotion a helpful push to reveal the problem? The complexity of modern feminism makes it harder to define, with some believing anything a woman does as a feminist act. However, any woman having to change herself to please someone or any woman attacking another, for expressing her own identity, is surely anti-feminist.
A large debate throughout was the sexual representation of women and if the sexuality a woman shows is powerful or submissive. An audience member noted that you can sell music and still be remembered without sexualising it. Legendary artists such as Annie Lennox are still remembered and applauded without having to conform to the music industry image expectations. However, nudity and sex can be used as a representation of their art, enhancing their work.
Nudity should be optional but not used as a selling point. Many young artists are being sexualised for record sales, with many people putting their image before their art. Sia’s recent decision, to not show her face and let dancers such as Maddie Ziegler express her identity, is a radical choice within the music industry, taking the focus away from image and truly showing her artistic ability. Her personal choice is bold and powerful and this anonymity being a popular choice for many wanting to avoid fame and be appreciated for their work. FKA Twigs was originally rarely pictured, with her first video Hide showing nude hips with a ‘boy flower’ covering her. Many people originally thought this was a male body and the nudity is used artistically, the image, as expressed by Ladoja, is not sexy, despite being sexual. Her confidence has grown across her career and she represents herself as being in control, always the focus of her own videos, such as Papi Pacify, the sexuality isn’t as highlighted as Twigs herself. There is a feeling of confidence and ownership when artists choose themselves as the focus. Aimee Cliff chose to show Nicki Minaj’s Lookin Ass music video, which she stated shows her ‘shooting an AK-47 at the male gaze’. Minaj’s general distaste towards the camera and self-love is emancipating , and women acting proudly showing off for themselves is empowering for any self-conscious woman to see.
The panel discussion took many turns and through watching the videos many issues of gender, race and feminism came up. I feel it would have been interesting to include male music videos and explore the comparison to see if it’s the industry sexualisation or the treatment of women encouraging this conversation. The discussion will be an ongoing one and will sprout many more topics and issues, however, it’s hard to judge a woman through her music videos. Self-expression is personal but how much control do you have when becoming successful?
Check out I am Dora for information on future film screenings
Spooky Black aka Corbin feat. Psymun at Birthdays, Dalston
An hour and a half before the show, I overhear the crowd queuing for Spooky Black and Psymun in front of Birthdays in Dalston, discussing how fast the tickets to his show sold out back in December – in a mere two hours, my friend tells me, as the entire line of casual yet cool people await in the cold to see Soundcloud sensation Spooky Black, now known by his real name Corbin. Some people have even come up all the way from Brighton and even Germany, and the excitement is palpable in the air, as this is one of Corbin’s only dates in Europe.
Corbin, an American teenager whose music video Without U went viral back in 2014, is, to put it simply, impressive on the stage. Rather than make use of superficial sounds and take detours in his music, he delves deep into the songs of his latest album, Black Silk, and his EP Leaving. Covering also Radiohead’s Weird Fishes/Arpeggi, Corbin delivers everything that his online presence promises – a bizarre, yet sensuous show that doesn’t care what you think. It is too busy being good to care.
Paired with the exceptional Psymun on the guitar, the atmosphere quickly shifts from warm and impatient to a haze of dancing bodies slowly entering a trance. Corbin also sings a song which he will ‘never release’, a mixture of a funky, groovy tune and chilled R’n’B – not exactly a departure from his dreamy, sleepy-like songs, but still quite different. It’s touching, gentle, fresh, new and probably one of the most promising sounds of the year.
This is an artist who leaves you thinking ‘this is what music should be about’ after every track: restless young people changing the face of music without artifices, bringing us back to the days of the dark’n’dirty gigs in the basements of dubious venues. A small and dark room of sweaty, scantily-clad bodies chanting desolate tunes and jumping up and down when hearing their favourite song come up (the crowd responded amazingly to every song, and the climax came when he finally performed Without U).
Corbin’s stage presence was perfect, and although unpretentious it came off as shy – he remained simple on stage, with no dramatic lighting or smoke, which turned out to be a smooth decision since it allowed him to deliver everything in his songs. At his peak, his performance was ethereal, anxious, perfect, thrilling, gentle and ferocious at the same time – it’s not Spooky anymore, it’s Corbin and we’re glad he’s owning up to his talent. His voice suddenly enriches all the possibilities of R’n’B and makes you wonder why he isn’t a much bigger deal – because he should.
Corbin’s gig was a haunting siren’s call for the deepest parts of us –the longing, the yearning, and the beautiful. Atmospheric, and slightly erotic (as all good music is), his ghost-like voice is complimented by the excellent Psymun, who, although always there, is sometimes not given enough credit. Corbin takes his music seriously –just the way he languorously clutches at the microphone, eyes half closed and pushing himself to deliver on certain parts of a song.
The show was definitely a must-see and one that remained flawless, and we cannot wait to follow his next steps – Corbin is heading in the right direction.