TRASHMag Issue 1 by Chekii Harling

TRASH #1 Editor in Chief: Chekii Harling Editor at Large: Chekii Harling Art Director: Chekii Harling Design: Chekii Harling Casting Director: Chekii Harling Staff Writer: Chekii Harling Editorial Assistant: Chekii Harling Senior Fashion Editor: Chekii Harling Fashion Editor at Large: Chekii Harling Fashion Assistant: Chekii Harling Photographic Editor: Chekii Harling Partnerships Director: Chekii Harling Digital Editor: Chekii Harling

CONTRIBUTORS

George Serventi, Matty Pearce, Chloe Coggin, Lily Harling, Bethan Mooney, Oliver Mayhall, Hinson Iu, The Real Hackney Dave, Julio Lock, Alexandros Angelidios, Lydia Hunt, Lesile Minnis, Asai Werbel, Rachel Dray and Chloe Winstanley, Sebastian Pielles, Busha Bailey and Anthony Lycett.

ADVERTISING chekii@trash-magazine.com

DISTRIBUTION & SALES chekii@trash-magazine.com

SUBSCRIPTION & ONLINE SALES

DISTRIBUTION LOGISTICS

chekii@trash-magazine.com

DIGITAL chekii@trash-magazine.com

PRINT PRODUCTION The Sustainable Print Kent, England

WITH THANKS TO

Judith Watt, Sarah Thorpe, Stella Klien, Mum, Dad, Auntie Links, Dayna Tohidi and Olivia Reynolds.

I’ve been asked by numerous people “have you always been interested in this?” And the answer is no. I grew up in the southern English countryside “surrounded by nature” (of course!) with a veg patch in the garden, in a family who had mastered the art of recycling. I’ve always been in love with second-hand clothing, there is something truly beautiful about garments that are unique, don’t break the bank, those that have a story to tell. You may notice that there’s a pattern amongst my interviewees in TRASHMag issue one. Many of them have worked at luxury fashion houses. They’ve witnessed the shitness, the incineration, the excess and returned with a drive to reject disposability. During my placement year, from my degree in BA Fashion Journalism, I was introduced to the hidden equivalent of this in fashion publishing and production. Why on earth are garments used for a single photo shoot being shipped in unrecyclable packaging from New York to London every day? Why are fashion shows that take a week to build but last five minutes still happening? Think of all the crew, the hourly Pret deliveries and the never-ending truckloads of ‘stuff’ in between. Curiosity and a love of faraway cultures led me to visit the Philippines last summer. Many of their beautiful islands are drowning in plastic. Their government’s inability to manage the material that never dies is destroying their landscape and killing their sea life. You may think what on earth do we have to do with this? Yet 2/3rds of the UK’s ‘recycled’ plastic is sent abroad; the Chinese take most of our sloppy seconds. We can’t forget that everybody is connected. I realise I’m talking air miles here, travel Co2 admissions. Yet equally I’m not pretending to be a perfect environmentalist. If I’d have spent every second of my adult life wrapped up in the bubble wrap of Britain, it’s likely that this project wouldn’t exist. Visiting other countries on that side of the planet – particularly Cambodia - has given the labels stitched into our clothes a whole different meaning to me. This five quid t-shirt could’ve been made by somebody who let me stay in their home, cooked me dinner, those who were nothing but kind. But how were they treated? Were they paid? It’s pretty likely that the children I came into contact with may have worked in nearby sweat-shops too. It’s the simplicity of eating sloppy noodles out of a banana leaf with your hands that I love. The developed world should take a leaf out of this book - it’s called zero waste baby! The theme of waste and the wonders that can be worked with it run throughout these pages. Many of my interviewees have begged borrowed and scavenged. Don’t buy new. They’re revamping the lost and found so why can’t you? Big up @therealhackneydave for his TRASHdollar designs – allowing me to make an anti-consumerist statement that sparkles. It’s biodegradable (as is this magazine) so don’t panic. And last but not least feel free to laugh. Humour is what I felt was missing from these conversations, so I hope at least I succeed in not boring you to death. Chekii Harling x

EDITOR’S LETTER

Wowzers! Where is one small person to start with such complex topics? – fashion’s relationship with waste, climate change, rebellion, plastic pollution. In creating this issue there have been times when I’ve felt like a lone she-wolf howling at deaf ears. Yet the individuals I’ve met, many of whom feature here, have helped me to de-scramble my noggin and reassured me that there are many people who care about the future.

Patrick McDowell is reimagining the females in his family as firefighters, while saving fabric from the flames PHOTOS BY: @OLIVERMAYHALL

PATRICK WEARS: Deconstructed yellow silk faille donated by Burberry over his own cotton t-shirt. Patrick used this silk for his graduate collection to make a climbing jacket and re-making it for fire-fighting trousers for his second collection which he will show in Helsinki Fashion Week in July. He aims to highlight that circular design can be achieved 7 on a small scale.

PATRICK WEARS: Scout Jumper by @BOYAGAINSTTHESEA

he first time Patrick McDowell was in the company of Lord Alan Sugar was during his stint on the Young Apprentice in 2012 when he was just 16. In his application video already destined to design clothes he states: “Patrick McDowell the brand is all about designing for the beautiful woman.” The most recent occasion in which Lord Sugar came into Patrick’s life was at Rottingdean Bazaar X Matty Boven’s Fashion Week party at The Ace Hotel this February. You may think what a strange place for a multi-billionaire entrepreneur to be, but Sugar was in fact a cardboard cut-out. While I was busy persuading J-Lo and Graham Norton to become my new flat mates, Patrick had already taken Queen Anne and Lord Sugar under his wing.

In a way, these influential people represent the person Patrick is. Queen Anne, despite her recent depiction by Olivia Colman in The Favourite, was generally remembered as a good queen. Patrick is also a go-getting, business savvy man, who is good at doing his own PR and doesn’t take no for an answer, just like Lord Sugar. His appearance hasn’t changed dramatically in the last seven years; except there is less hair and the suit has been swapped for a woolly jumper, jeans, and walking-boot-trainer hybrids. Patrick, 23, is now working on his second collection, which will be shown at Helsinki Fashion Week in July. The showcase is the brainchild of Finnish sustainability strategist Evelyn Mora, to whom he was introduced to by Vogue Australia’s Sustainability Editor, Clare Press. The week is an eco-fashion follower’s wet dream. It’s a hotbed for innovative designers who use recycled and/or natural materials, while organic vegan food, yoga and a water refilling station are on tap. For this collection, Patrick is remaking some of the pieces from his graduate collection, including the yellow climbing jacket, which was worn by Rita Ora at her in a gig in Manchester, July 2018. Patrick lives with his Californian born boyfriend, Boy Kloves, who studies Fashion Design and Marketing at Central Saint Martins. The sweet crevice behind the bustle of Kingsland Road where the couple lives is quite the change from Patrick’s humble upbringing in the Wirral: a place just outside of Liverpool which he describes is “like an island” be-

cause of the division of wealth. For design inspiration, he often returns to his family roots. His graduate collection titled Climbing Family was based on a holiday to Mont Blanc when he was six years old. Brought to life through oversized silhouettes, chalke bags embellished with Swarovski crystals and silk gaiters fastened with toggles. His work, which can easily be worn by both men and women, is also a fusion of the prominent men and women in his life. For a recent side project, he titled the designs ‘Cinderella Shall Go to The Football.’ In the same vein is the inspiration for

Burberry, I realised I couldn’t afford my graduate collection.” As a self-confessed “fabric geek” it irritated him to witness reels of gorgeous fabric go to waste. Luxury houses have to guess what fabrics they’ll need before the collection has even been designed – fabric production can’t keep up. In the run-up to Fashion Week, Patrick was working at Burberry every day for a month. “I became really good friends with Christopher Bailey’s executive assistant,” he tells me. “She said “write him a letter and see if you can have the fabric we don’t use. The

“EVERYBODY AT

BURBERRY

SAID ‘WE DON’T GIVE FABRIC OUT.” his second collection whereby he’s re-imagining his mother and auntie as firefighters. His Dad is a retired fireman and the women close to him will be providing a generous helping of Liverpool glam. This, is in tune with the shoes that will be designed by Tabitha Haringwood, “I love how subversive her designs are” he explains. During his placement year, mid-way through his BA Womenswear degree at Central Saint Martins, he worked in the mainline Womenswear department at Burberry. “I’ve never had much money,” he says. “At 9

worst he can do is say no.” This was prior to what became known as the viral #burnberry scandal of July 2018. Headlines such as the BBC’s “Burberry burn bags, clothes, and perfume worth millions” was sprawled across every mainstream news channel. Burberry is by no means the only fashion house that operates in this way. These disgraceful, wasteful practices are commonplace throughout the industry. “Everybody at Burberry said we don’t do that here; we don’t give fabric out” yet Patrick persevered and wrote Bailey a

Patrick at home wears: cashere rollneck found in the bin at Burberry, trousers: Patrickâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own.

PATRICK WEARS: Jacket by Kenzo courtesy of @BOYAGAINSTTHESEA

letter. And voila!à his graduate collection was born made entirely out of salvaged materials originally belonging to Burberry and the Kering Group. These luxurious fabrics would have otherwise been sent to landfill or incinerated. It seems to be the case that preventing fires runs in the family. In his second collection, he will again be giving leftovers from luxury houses and unsellable Swarovski’s a second life. Recently, ACS Clothing in Scotland has donated vintage suits that are too worn to hire and Hainsworth will be donating fire-fighting cloth and British wool that is considered the second standard. “To most eyes, these blemishes are undetectable or can simply be avoided in the cutting process,” says Patrick. Also thrown into the mix will be fabrics sourced from London based stores that deal with dead stock – Crescent Trading in Shoreditch, The Cloth House in Soho and Simply Fabrics in Brixton. Patrick is no stranger to rolls of remnant fabrics. From the early age of 13, he would scour fabric shops in Liverpool, stocking rolls that had been rejected by larger suppliers. Then home to his Grandma’s Singer sewing machine (the first model to run on electricity) to make bags that he sold in the school playground. His Grandmother, he describes as “the most hilarious person I’ve ever come across, she’s so blunt.” She gave birth to 8 children, so the good old Singer came in handy when re-clothing season commenced“she’d tell me stories about how she used to sew” he says. These initial years

for Patrick as a maker led to Body Shop style bag parties at his parent’s house. These resourceful, entrepreneurial qualities have never left him. His experience on the Young Apprentice taught him the importance of self-promotion. In his application video for the show that aired in 2012, he states: “I think it’s important to be ruthless in any business. Otherwise, you’ll get left behind and you won’t make any money or a name for yourself.”

tins, the walls and nearby offices are splattered with press cuttings from every major magazine. But what does this mean if you’re returning home to an empty fridge in a student bedsit, with a maxed-out overdraft? Patrick’s mother is a Primary school teacher in the Wirral, and he too has followed in her footsteps. He teaches on the draping and portfolio short courses at Central Saint Martins, bag workshops at The

“CINDERELLA SHALL GO TO THE

FOOTBALL” Quiet ruthlessness is a quality that led him to preview his graduate collection on Instagram before the show whereas most of his peers waited until May. “I realised that there were 120 people who are going to graduate on the same day... how am I going to stand-out?” Instagram contacts he made during this time led to an ELLE UK cover story where Slick Woods wore his climbing shirt for the cover of their September 2018 issue dedicated to sustainability. Yet, he quickly realised that publicity doesn’t always equate to sales. “After the show was a weird time because I was getting all this press, but I didn’t have any money” he says. If you walk through the design studios at Central Saint Mar-

Fashion School in Chelsea and on workshops and in various different primary and secondary schools. One of the aspects that sets Patrick apart from the other resourceful fashion designers knocking about, is his engagement with conversations happening outside the studio. He’s always popping up at talks, events and exhibitions. He also regularly attends the parliamentary committees on art and design education at Houses of Parliament. He’s knowledgeable about fabrics and where they come from, and actually cares about the future of fashion, creative education and the world.

LET’S GET MASHED THE MAN BEHIND THE MASK REVIVING SECOND-HAND SPORTSWEAR

onathan Hudson – the man behind the mask thrives in gritty manic environments – Raves, Warehouse’s Sheds, Pubs, Gardens and Garages. When we meet in his cluttered studio on Brighton beach, he tells me that the video game character the Rouge Trooper is an inspiration of his. JJ and the Rouge Trooper are much more similar than he thinks. Both are stocky, energetic creatures operating in their own worlds while moving from place to place - Kings of customisation. “The Rouge Trooper had a hat, a bag and a gun that he could customize to help him survive, he was a mutant with a talking hat – a hybrid solider.”

GRPA

PHOTO

PIECES

@MJ HS BY:

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While the Rogue Trooper uses his nifty talking hat as a means of communication, Jonathan utilises old clothing, predominantly second-hand sportswear garments, to collage his own story. For his mash-up debut in the early 1980s, he used his mum’s fringed 1960s green suede jacket, similar to the one worn by Kirk Brandon, the lead singer of the British rock band, Spear of Destiny. Benneath the screen-printing, the stitches, the sharpie, and the tape lays something far more personal – JJ’s past

most artists do – through his work, turning ADIDAS into AIDS and NIKEair into NIKE awAIR. He views the way he works as similar to diving into an open scrapyard, taking a bit of this, a whack of that. He’s giving old sportswear casuals a second life, a much more fruitful life than one lived in a landfill. JJ thinks that people aspire to buy brand new because they get a high and feel validated. Yet, his work highlights that making the old, new is just as exciting. “I want to make crack you know, pure,

“NOKI IS AN IDEA, IT’S ABOUT SUBVERSION” experiences. He grew up in Aberdeen, which he describes as both “ridiculous and sublime.” At the age of 14, he became the “school leper.” This was during the 1980s AIDS crisis, just after the actor Rock Hudson was diagnosed. “I was out as gay but NO I did not have HIV Aids but bullying exploded on me. I fought back and broke their noses as they did mine.” He responded as

additive, like OMG!” “NOKI is an idea,” he says, It’s about subversion. DR NOKI, as he has become known comes alive under the mask. I ask him if he has a favourite headpiece and he replies, “as long as I’m wearing one, it’s my favourite, I enjoy being a performer.” He often gravitates to garments by Adidas and FILA, which he transforms into NOKI-isms such as 19

Fadidas and Filthy with his manic touch. Figures from fiction such as Mickey Mouse and Pop-Eye often feature in his textile collages. “Mickey’s visual, lazy inquisitiveness and irresponsible behaviour make me question my own” he explains. His raw, collaged brandalism has been replicated continuously by many luxury fashion houses, sportswear giants and independent fashion designers, who he charmingly nicknames “the sly evil dogs.” Fendi and Fila’s 2018 collaboration, the Vetements DHL t-shirt and Christopher Shannon’s ‘Lover’s Direct’ are just a few examples. A similar aesthetic may be commonplace in sportswear now, however, each and every one of his garments is a one-off. “To be truthful I got a good 10 years of being totally unique and developed the art of mash-up. The ‘fashion designer’ label took that away, it commercialized it,” he says. His big ‘fashion moment’ came with the release of i-D magazine’s December 1998 Cheeky Issue, where Gisele Bundchen wore his Champion T-shirt with a collaged F. Anna Cockburn who styled the story, which was shot by David Sims, found the shirt in Yuko Yabiku’s fashion boutique, The Pineal Eye in Soho. Nicola Formichetti was their buyer at the time and had

JJâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s MatchesFashion capsule collection 2019

commissioned NOKI to make a 20-piece collection including the Champion T-shirt, collaged to be read as “Champion Fucker.” Despite his affinity with the diverse characters in the fashion industry, he hates being called a fashion designer: “I don’t have a pattern, I’ve got a process of customisation and it’s important because I want other kids, not even kids, grannies even, to think they could do it too.” Despite this sentiment, he did a stint at Fashion East in 2008 thanks to Lulu Kennedy, who was

was the first rave pub. that inspired them all into what you know now as ‘WhoreDitch.’” He was also partying at Goldie’s Drum and Bass Club, MetalHeads and FEVEr and Gaybreill’s back in Aberdeen. Gaybreill’s was in an old converted church behind the Wimpy shop. “I had my 18th birthday there in 1989, it played the first Acid House tunes.” FEVEr was “our early rave den. There was no air conditioning, so the place dripped with sweat, our warm bodies hitting the cold Scottish air, We only drank

“IT’S WAS MY ART THERAPY TO COPE WITH THE MONUMENTAL RAVE COMEDOWNS” an old raving pal of his. “She persuaded me; I really didn’t want to… sponsorship helped lol.” His most recent collection was a capsule for Matches Fashion. His designs, as always were injected with a dose of ironic humour. He reinterpreted the e-commerce giant’s name ‘Matches’ using screen-printed flames with smiley faces in the middle – this man is on fire. Neither Fashion East nor Matches Fashion fit with his anti-fashion ethos but it’s encouraging that he’s finally being recognised by globally renowned retailers. In the 1980s, Shoreditch and Aberdeen were Jonathan’s playgrounds. The Bricklayers Arms on Charlotte Road was the place to be at the time. “It 21

water to cope with the euphoria.” When it first opened the bouncers had to be told to let him and his mates in while wearing trainers. “Aberdeen was a shoes and trousers world in the 80s. People were confused by sportswear.” Shoreditch in the 80s was “dead. In the week it had a few suits wandering around.” At the weekends it was “apocalyptic. I’d say as little as 100 folks lived there.” At the time, drugs were the order of the night. “NOKI was my art therapy to cope with the the monumental rave comedowns.” Just like the Rogue Trooper, NOKI is about survival. During this time, Jonathan was hanging out with people like Judy Blame and Princess Julia. “You didn’t go to Princess, you let Princess come to you. You

While the Rouge Trooper uses his nifty talking hat as a means of communication JJ utilizes old clothing, specifically second-hand sportswear garments to collage his own story. His “first big mash-up” was his mum’s fringed 1960s green suede jacket similar to one worn by Kirk Brandon, the leader singer of the British rock band, Spear of Destiny. He views the way he works as similar to diving into an open scrapyard taking a bit of this, a whack of that. He’s giving old sportswear casuals a second life, a much more fruitful life than one lived in a landfill. JJ thinks that people aspire to buy brand new because they get a high and feel validated. Yet, his work highlights that making the old, new is just as exciting “I want to make crack you know, pure additive, like OMG!” JJ is the man, NOKI is the brand “NOKI is an idea” it’s about subversion. DR NOKI, as he has become known comes alive under the mask, I ask him if he has a favorite “as long as I’m wearing one, it’s my favorite, I enjoy being a performer.” JJ mashes up the big-boy sportswear brands such as Adidas and Fila which he transforms to into NOKI-ism’s, such as Fadidas and Filthy with his manic magic touch. Figures from fiction such as Mickey Mouse and Pop-Eye often pop up in his textile collages, just like every aspect of his work there is a reason for this “Mickey’s visual lazy inquisitiveness and irresponsible behavior makes me question my own.” His aesthetic is unmistakably his and one which he probably should’ve copyrighted before many luxury fashion houses, sportswear giants and independent fashion designers (a.k.a “the sly evil dogs”) ripped him off. “To be truthful I

White Bum-bag from KILO in Paris brandalised by NOKI @ his Donlon Books signing 2018. Featuring ollaged motifs from his designs.

would be given a polite handshake and that’s it really.” Julia Fodor, “The High Priestess of Shoreditch”, who hasn’t left the club scene since, was the first to wear a NOKI Billboard dress. These are pieces that comment on the fact that every time we wear a branded piece of clothing, we are essentially a walking, talking advertisement. With climate change out of control, DR NOKI’s got a plan come crunch time. “If we all end up in a bunker with just the clothes you’re wearing, you’d give it over to me to chop up. Imagine the creativity, I love that idea, it’s a film in itself. – Bunker Love.”

“YOU DIDN’T GO TO PRINCESS, YOU LET PRINCESS COME TO YOU .”

Your’s Truly wears a hoodie from JJ’s Matches collection @ his studio in Brighton

Inside Cover of Axel Hoedt Book Titled ‘NOKI’(2018) signed by JJ 25

SPINDLED STORIES

PHOTOGRAPHS” LYDIA HUNT

The Goldsmiths Grad spinning her way through South London’s Barnet’s

ydia Hunt, 22, has always been keen to work with biodegradable materials; matter that “just lives in the world.” After a brief fling with sardine tails in 2017, she decided that human hair was her next conquest. Her big break (in her career) as a spindler of human hair occurred when she discovered that South London’s salons had bucket loads of the stuff!

“WHERE SHE GREETED THE DEAD WITH ‘HELLO’.”

Hairy Bra and Thong by Lydia Hunt. Made from hair scavenged from her friend’s hairbrushes and South London’s hair salon’s (ABOVE)

Hariy tea cosy (above )

Lydia initially became fascinated with hair after reading Emma Tarlow’s Entanglement: The Secret Lives of Hair published in 2016. This book inspired her to research the hair trade and visit hairdressers in Gambia. Upon her return, she interviewed chemotherapy patients for her dissertation, which she titled Hair-itage. “I realised it’s about identity, if somebody on the other side of the world is wearing your hair then it can be traced back to you” she says. Next stop: The Funeral Directors, Edmund & Sons on Stockwell Road where she greeted the dead with “hello” prior to preparing their barnet for the grave. This unusual work experience, motivated her launch the project Spindled Stories: 106 Ways to Celebrate Human Hair. A book made up of 106 answers to to the question: “If you had your lifetime’s hair spun into wool what would you make and why?” The responses were collected from the public, friends and family. The youngest contributor was five and the eldest ninety-five. Her aim was to “craft hair back into an object that reflects oneself.” Each story was accompanied with an illustration drawn by Lydia. A standout spindled story was a woman who wrote: “I would make the wool into a thong. It would go to my toy boy husband, who would still be alive once I’ve died.” Other contributors were more personal to Lydia. “Nan’s object was a crochet teapot because I would always come over for a cup of tea.” To her grandma, however, the hoarding of hair was nothing new. “When I told Nan about Spindled Stories her response was: “I’ve got my hair upstairs. When I was fifteen my mum said I looked like a peasant. So, she came and chopped off my two plaits and they’ve been in the drawer ever since.” Lydia first came across the art of spindling after watching survival videos of a man spinning his dogs’ hair and decided to carve her own spindles. The skills she learned during her design degree at Goldsmiths university came in handy when making her own out of wood, cop29

per, jesmonite and plaster. “At one point I had a medieval one. I wanted to know what it would be like to spindle in different ages.” So...how do you spindle? “You wait until the hair starts to clump, nurse it and then slowly release the hair as you spin.” She went on to make six objects in the book, including pom poms. Her fascination with death seems to have continued far beyond the days at the Funeral Directors. “Those were quite fun” she tells me. “It was about my family cheering me on after I died.” The other objects included a bra and thong, an egg cup, shoe laces and a crochet tea-pot. Her father did not appreciate the latter. “I brought the tea-pot home and he hid it because he didn’t want to look at it. We realised in the car on the way back to London that it was missing. He admitted that he squirreled it away and we had to go back and collect it.” A couple of months later, Lydia was introduced to her original hair idol, Emma Tarlow, a professor of anthropology at Goldsmiths and winner of the 1998 Coomaraswamy Prize. Tarlow connected Lydia with other hair artists and next came the exhibition titled Hair: Human Stories. Which was held at the The Library Space near Battersea Park last June. “I had no idea there was this community of hair artists” she tells me. Next thing you know her work is being displayed alongside garments, sculptures and human size wedding cakes all made from human hair. Lydia is now working as a studio assistant at Bompas and Parr who specialise in creating interactive experiences, specifically for food and drink companies. In her spare time, she is part of the design collective Spag Bol Studios, who came together following a combined love of fruit box design. Lydia bedroom in Peckham is packed with bags of hair she doesn’t want to get rid. She feels especially attached to the hair that comes from people she knows. Maybe some of her hairy objects will one day become family hair-looms, maybe one day we will all be wearing hair. Where does your Barnet go?

ILLUSTRATIONS: @skip din It’s official my friends, globa l warming has officially arr ived! There is no way in he enough to be fashionably lat ll she’s cool e. We’re unsure whether it’s gonna be hot! hot! hot! or ice and it’s sending The Arctic, , ice, baby our minds and our wardrob es into a state of terminal me But have no fear – Chekii’s ltdown. here with her top tips on ho w to look and live stylishly planet withers away like the wh ile the re is no tomorrow.

1. Attempt Washed Up Chic If you’re bopping around Indonesia and happen to spot a dead sperm whale washed up on the shore with plastic spewing out its chops – why not jump inside and find yourself a stunning new pair of flip flops? If you find yourself in an arty mood, have a stab at fashioning yourself a corset out of its bones, grab yourself a partner and have a whale of a time!

2. Rob Em Blind If you’re at a friends gaff and spot something in their wardrobe which is more suited to the colour scheme in yours ABDUCT IT IMMEDIATELY! Life is too short now that mass extinction is in full swing. The likelihood is that they won’t notice anyway, what with hell freezing over and what not. Sharing is caring.

3. Always carry a keep cup Today could be your last day on this godforsaken universe, so it’s more important than ever to stay hydrated. Do this by having your true best friend – the trusty keep cup- by your side at all times. It’ll be super handy come evacuation day as plastic never dies - a true friend for life.

4.Rock the Bikini Bomber The weather has gone skitz! Team a padded puffer jacket (fur hood recommended but optional) over a boobalious bikini. Don’t be scared, be prepared! This trend is catching-on.com.

5. Glue Leaves to your body Everyone will mistake you for mother nature’s greatest gift...THE HUMBLE TREE. Nothing tastes as good as oxygen feels. And what you’ll feel is worshipped and pampered in no time.

7. Purchase a Disguise Earth-lurvers have been protesting about global warming since we first discovered the planet is fucked (ages ago FYI). So why not buy an protester T-shirt? These chaps know everything about the ‘end of the world’ Your canny disguise will make you look like one of the troops, fooling fellow protesters to share their wisdom and end of the world supplies with you. 6. Buy a Fire Resistant Jacket When the wildfires broke out across California, Kimmy K hired her own firemen (coor blimey, multiple men in uniform… The woman can’t help herself). However, not all of us can afford that luxury, so why not purchase a fire resistant hi-vis with sleeves? There’s no harm in looking trendy even if you are burning to death!

8.Take a Trip to the Landfill Run out of nick nacks? Well there are no longer any resources to make new ones - so why not stock up at your local landfillI’m sure you’ll find some raunchy numbers! Alternatively channel your inner David Walliams and swim over to Eastern Europe (no other method now we’ve run out of fossil fuels) where the second hand clothes market is off the richter scale. If all else fails try free the vaj. 33

NAKED ATTRACTION Meet the punks with no trunks COLLAGES BY: @alexandros.angelidis

The making, shipping, selling and washing of clothing is a grossly toxic process, so why not throw in the towel and try out wearing nothing at all? Don’t be rude – just be nude! There is no way you’ll be the only bare bottom knocking about… “The scene is growing in the UK” says Mark Walsh, while enroute to play some disco beats at a mate’s wedding. Mark’s side hustle may be dropping the bangers, but the day job consists of working on the events team for The British Naturism Society. He is also the founder of NKD Festival, a clothes-less, phone-less weekend of sports, crafts and music that is held in Dorset during May. A weekend Mark sums up as “wacky, nuts, an absolute blast.” He personally discovered naturism in 2006 with his “hippie” wife Fran, when stumbling upon a nudist beach in Gran Canaria. Right place, right time, right company. Mark and his wife have brought up their two girls in a naturist household. But just like any movement the naturists have

guys and girls have their own meet ups and events. No old codgers or empty nesters allowed “we are making it cool,” Mark. Mark who’s based in Leicester believes that getting his kit off more often than not has worked wonders for the way he views his own body and has helped his girls to love theirs. “My daughters have grown up with a much more positive attitude to their bodies in comparison to others in their class,” he says. His eldest he describes as “a mini hippie” who ironically dreams of becoming a fashion designer. The YBN’s membership is split 60% men, 40% female, yet more women are joining the brigade. Mark believes that this is partially because of the time that we are in. “The free the nipple campaign and other female-led body-positivity movements are coming through,” he explains. A love of clothing for those who live an un-clothed life is not uncommon. The 2013 documentary ‘Naked Parents’ introduced us to Ian and Barbra

“WE’RE MAKING IT COOL”

their differences. “We have a relaxed attitude to clothes; Fran doesn’t do forced naturism,” Mark explains. “You have the purists and the campaigners; those who think we have the God given right to walk up the high street completely naked.” Fortunately for Mark and his family not wearing any clothes is only illegal in the UK if the police believe you are causing a disturbance. “What is wrong with a few people going to the park and sunbathing naked on a hot day?” He’s got a point; we were born this way, baby. Naturism in Britain is on the rise, the official society is boasting 9,000 members. Naturism in the UK is stereotypically considered “an old person’s sport” yet now there is a separate group for Young British Naturists (YBN) aged between 18 and 35. These 37

Pollard who at the time (they are now divorced) lived in a colossal country house in Marmsbury, Wiltshire. Individuals who were nicknamed ‘The Naked Gardeners’ spent day after day preening the garden at their National Trust home, Abbey House, which continues to be open to the public. These are individuals who never seemed to do anything by halves. When we see them dress up – it’s big, it’s sexy, it’s punk at a price. No surprise then that Vivienne Westwood was their goto for garms, shoes and accessories. But in Ian’s view, being naked is “just another way of dressing. I’m a very visual person,” he says. To you and me they’re a pair of exhibitionists, but

good on them. Mark, the Festival founder, is quite the opposite, considering himself “a typical Abercrombie and Fitch kind of guy” when wearing clothes. His wife Fran grew up in a strictly Catholic family, and Naturism allowed her to “break free” from the rules. At first their friends and family were sceptical and worried about the effect it would have on their children, but soon accepted their personal choice. “Some people have two doorbells, one for clothes on, one for clothes off he tells me.” Ding dong. And with the second NKD festival in the pipeline, DJ sets to play and the British Naturism events team to run, Mark is a busy bunny in the coming weeks. To sum it up, he’s hoping to show people that “naturism is normal and not weird” because “the first time you take your clothes off socially, is the biggest non-event you’ll ever experience.”

FASHION'S FIRST ECO EDITOR Clare Press: VOGUE Austrailia's Sustainability Editor on mindful shopping, reducing plastic and why were all having a wardrobe Crisis ILLUSTRATIONS : CHLOE COGGIN @chloggs

Clare Press in her office (which doubles as her wardrobe.)

Fashion in Australia has always been behind. New York – commercial, Paris – chic, Milan – luxurious and Londondown right bonkers! Australia’s colossal land mass and its distance from its neighbours make it even in this digital age detached from the rest of fashion. Clare Press, the Sustainability Editor at Large of Australia Vogue admits: “I have to travel a lot, to be inspired. The industry in Australia is just quite.... I won’t say that…. we have a lot of incredible design-

ised in this side of the industry. Fashion didn’t wake up for a long time and half of its members are still asleep. Clare is in her forties, has peroxide blonde hair, often spotted in a patterned ensemble with a red lip. Born in Yorkshire, she moved to Sheffield to study Politics, originally, she wanted to be the Political Editor of The Guardian. However, a holibobs in Aus aged twenty-two put a spanner in the works. When way, she called up Rolling

“THE ROBOT ECONOMY WILL MEAN HALF OF THOSE JOBS WILL DISAPPEAR” ers but the actual industry itself is quite small.” Despite the fact a sustainability editor with a penchant for air miles can raise eyebrows, Australian Vogue is the first fashion magazine to have a Sustainability Editor at all. Though behind with most trends, Australia is ahead of the curve with this one. Just watch the years roll by and the other’s follow suit. “The whole concept of fashion and sustainability is a relatively new one, the industry hadn’t thought about it until recently.” Which explains why Clare hasn’t always special-

Stone Australia and said: “I’d like to write a story.” They gave her 200 Aussie dollars for the write up and next thing you know a phone call arrived from the Music Editor she’d landed herself a job. “It was the best job ever, not money wise but I interviewed incredible people like Tom Wates, Nick Cave and Blondie.” Next a spot of bopping across Australia’s media landscape, starting with The Sunday Times Herald where she had a sustainability column, followed by Vogue as Features Director and Marie Claire as 41

Editor-at-Large. In-between roles she dabbled as a designer with her label Mrs Press and bagged herself her first book deal, Dressing the Table: Essays on Style, published in 2011. “That book was actual fluff and it wasn’t the book I wanted to write” Clare says. She wanted to do one on old people, yet at the time her publisher said, “no we’re in a youth moment.” The turning point in her career came when she interviewed Simone Cipriani from the UN Ethical Fashion Initiative for Australian Vogue in 2014. This she describes as an “encounter that seriously changed my working life.” It made her question her role as a fashion journalist and what she wanted to achieve. “He is an absolute powerhouse, a very charismatic individual.” Cipriani motivated Clare to change the way she used her voice. For the next two years she worked on her second book, Wardrobe Crisis: How we went from Sunday Best to Fast Fashion which was published in 2016. The book looks at the human relationship with clothing from craft to couture and explains how the beast that is fast fashion is rose to power. “It’s funny to me that we didn’t talk about the environmental impact of the industry in the past.” Oh, the irony...this is what Clare now spends the majority of her time doing, at events and on her podcast, which has also been Christened Wardrobe Crisis. On the podcast she interviews designers, advocates and figureheads for the move-

ment. Such Baroness Lola of Hornsey, who is a member of the House of Lords and an expert in modern slavery. We discover early on in the episode that she loves to sing Grace Jones in the shower. It’s a light-hearted listen despite the fact that many issues discussed involve the future of people’s lives and the future for our mother that is earth. Other guests include the designer, Bethany Williams, Tim Jarvis (a polar explorer) and Nasir Sobhani A.K.A the Streets Barber, who cuts the hair of the homeless for free. This year, Clare brought out her third book Rise and Resist: How to Change The World. Regardless of the beauty of clothes, we are making far too many. However, if we stop mass production in its tracks garment workers will be out of a job, it’s a double ended sword but something has to give. For Clare it’s the planet over people. “We are making too many clothes. Some jobs are going to be lost.

If you look at the robot economy half of those jobs are going to disappear anyway.” She’s hopeful that large companies will soon start to change the materials they use and how their supply chains operate but “change takes time, energy, direction and money. I am so impressed with what NIKE has done, and G-Star are also brilliant.” So, what is the solution? What can be done? “If nobody is going to write about sustainability in an enticing and accessible way then how are people supposed to know about it? ... I think your generation has the power to change it all.” she says. Perhaps we should take a leaf out of Clare’s book and aim to make our own small personal changes.As soon as she realised the gravity of the plastic problem, for example, she stopped using it, “it’s inconvenient not to have a plastic water bottle but you’re not going to die!”

Clare Pressâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wardrobe / office ft. books she has written: Dressing The Table:Essays on Style (2011) Rise and Resist (2018) and the Sydney Harbour

On Monday 15th April the International Climate Change Rebellion commenced. As I write, there have been over 1000 arrests in London, no reports of injuries to the police and 80 different countries have been mobilised. The London rebellion is now on its 8th day and the occupation of Central London is still going strong; hundreds of brave rebels have not yet returned home. On the first day, a pink boat was erected in Oxford Circus next to the London Underground which read TELL THE TRUTH in bold black letters. A hub for music, workshops and a chance for anybody to take the mic and tell their truth. Marble Arch was occupied as was Parliament Square and Waterloo Bridge. We’ve made the noise, front page press, this is a moment that will go down in history. The group at the forefront is Extinction Rebellion, which amazingly was only founded 6 months ago – October 2018. Since then, its membership has multiplied and

will continue to grow post this week’s fight. Roger Hallam is often cited as the movements brainchild, a 52-year-old beardy bloke who has been an organic farmer for 20 years. Roger helps to devise Extinction Rebellion’s strategy having studied for his PHD in radical campaign design at Kings College London. Yet he’s reiterated that the rebellion was well planned and not down to just one man’s mind. “Extinction Rebellion has come out of a long process, it wasn’t like three mates down the pub, ‘let’s have a rebellion.”’ XR, as they have become known, came from the collective Rising Up which was founded in 2011 during the Occupy Movement (2011-2012), when anti-capitalists demanded real democracy by camping outside the London Stock Exchange. XR were also inspired by other movements – including the suffragettes and the 1960s civil rights activists. The scientists, historians and academics within the group

have studied what has worked in the past, taking a sprinkling of this and a dash of that from past movements and modernised it. At the heart of this is non-violence; roughing people up has never worked in the past so why should it now? ‘What’s the point of getting an education, if nobody is going to listen to the educated’ read a banner I spotted. There is so much truth in this statement. Why is the government not listening to the climate scientists? The facts are clear. On the first Monday at Marble Arch a man took the mic and said, “the people at the top have been playing political football with our future.” For too long our lives have been in the hands of the elite, the bankers, the government, the oil companies, it’s time for change. The rebels are adamant they’re staying put until the government agree to negotiate with them, in answer to their three demands. That carbon admissions are balanced by carbon removal by 2025, that a people’s assembly in government is formed and that the

government declare we are in a state of ecological emergency. A people’s assembly would essentially mean that ordinary citizens would be called to make decisions, just as they would for jury service. On Easter Monday, a week since the rebellion began, XR tried out the idea at the Marble Arch location. Many key XR coordinators took the mic. Their action strategy team established: “Tomorrow, the politicians are coming back to their workplace and we are going to visit them.” Rebels were encouraged to get into groups to answer the following questions: What do we need to let go of? When do we surrender? Where do we need to build resilience? What do we need to restore? What does your dream tell you? What do we need to reconcile with? So far, the success of this rebellion is down to its organisation, and the way in which various forms of media have been utilised. XR’s Instagram has been popping not stopping throughout the week, providing live updates from each 45

location. This has spread the word and enabled them to call for more supporters to hold the space. XR’s well-oiled media team includes press liaisons, content makers, spokespeople and the social media team. A member of the media branch also spoke on Sunday: “We have people willing to tell the truth about the ecological and climate emergency. Every one of us can be one of those people.” Much of the mainstream media has been quick to label the rebels as middle-class champagne-swilling hippies. Regardless of this un-truth it’s amazing the rebellion is getting so much mainstream coverage. A member of the press team also said on Easter Sunday: “I spoke to the BBC in October to tell them the rebellion was happening. They said, ‘extinction what?’ and put down the phone. It’s great to see the BBC here today.” Social media has also enabled the rebels to tell their truths and share their experiences as it happens. Laura Krapup Frandsen for example is a final year MA Fashion Design student the RCA. She has been pro-

Protesters in Central London April 15th -19TH April 2019, XRRebellion business cards, and flyer, iPhone with XR stickers on

viding w her followers with continual updates while she was willingly locked under a lorry at Waterloo bridge, for several days. Saturday was the first time she popped home to shower and rest. Sunday, she spent the night in a cell and now she’s back on the bridge. Laura is not the only individual working in fashion who is supporting the cause – Sara Arnold, the Extinction Rebellion coordinator and founder of Higher Studio has been there consistently, while designers including Patrick McDowell, Mathew Needham, Phoebe English, Cecily C-ley, Alice Ruzavina, Maddie Williams and more have popped down. Also present was the fashion journalist Tamsin Blanchard and the

sustainable fashion stylist and founder of A Novel Approach, Alice Wilby. “People need to remember that we rely on nature, it’s not the other way around” Alice tells me. “Those involved in sustainable fashion are getting involved in Extinction Rebellion but I will be very interested to see how many people hit the streets on Monday and sleep overnight in a tent” she tells me over the phone, prior to the rebellion. Alice became a member through Clare Farrell, who is the most notable crossover between XR and fashion, having been there since the very beginning. “My support of XR has been fractional in comparison to what Clare has sacrificed” Alice explains.

Clare is an XR coordinator who also teaches the sustainable fashion short course at Central Saint Martins with Alice. Clare graduated from the BA Fashion Design course at Middlesex and also has her own sustainable cycle-wear label NoSuchThing. In March, Clare and Sara gave the ‘Heading for Extinction and what to do about it’ talk to a room of students just off the library at Central Saint Martins. The pair presented some shocking statistics which included that by 2050, 140 million people will be displaced in coastal towns because of rising sea levels, that 1 in 5 British mammals could be extinct within a decade and that Co2 levels are 60% higher than in 1990.

ARTWORK BY : LESILE MINNIS There is an rony in the fact that one of the locations is Oxford Circus – a London shopping mecca. Part of the reason we are in this mess is because we, as a society, are buying too much, too often. However, dress and decoration have been utilised as a means of effective communication for the rebels throughout the week. One of the reasons Extinction Rebellion works as an organisation is because it’s decentralised. If individuals or groups willing act follow XR’s 10 principles, then the logo can be used and events can be held in their name. This week, phones, hats, headphones, bodies, bums and bags have all featured their logo – rebels unite! Similarly, Clare Farrell

often holds body politic workshops with Miles Glyn which are all about using the body and the clothing we wear as a form of activism. Those also utilising dress throughout the week are the group of theatrical performers dressed as blood, who have continually popped up at tube stations, The Natural History Museum, each XR location and numerous Instagram feeds near you. The rapidity with which Extinction Rebellion has spread is insane in the membrane; there are now 106 regional groups in the UK. In March the international climate change school strikes took place. There were 2052 separate events in 123 countries – Extinction Rebellion banners reached as far as Delhi; 49

this is a movement that is spreading like wildfire. Also incredible is Greta Thunberg, the Swedish 16-year-old activist who catalysed the school strikes. She joined the London rebels in Marble Arch on Easter Sunday. During her speech, she stated: “It’s an honour for me to be with you today, together we are making a difference. Humanity is now standing at a crossroads, we must decide what path we want to take, what do we want the future living conditions to be like? We are here waiting for the others to follow our example.” Since this article was written all sites have been peacefully handed over on 26/04/2019 (the fight is not over, rebel for life!)

OVERHEARD AT THE REBELLION “IT’S VERY EASY TO POKE THE FINGER AT

GOVERMENTS IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH BUT WHAT HAVE WE DONE?”

“I’VE NEVER SEEN SO MANY REUSEABLE CUPS IN ONE AREA”

“EVERYONE LOOKS QUITE EARTHY” “THIS IS THE CLEANEST PROTEST I’VE EVER SEEN.”

“THERE IS A LOT OF CRAZY BEAUTY GOING ON HERE.”

Perfomers dressed as blood to sysmbolise our dsying planet, Oxford Circus 19/04/2019

“YOU HAVE TO CARE, YOU CAN’T STAY ASLE EP” 51

THE REBELLION in Central London on the 15th of April 2019.

“WE LOOK TOO CLEAN TO BE HERE”

“THE ELITE ARE PLAYING POLITICAL FOOTBALL WITH OUR FUTURE”

“IF PEOPLE THINK IT’S MOVING TODAY. IT’S MOST DEFINATELY NOT”

R.IP BERTA WE ARE THE BOAT!

“ALL THE ORDINARY PEOPLE MUST THINK, ‘WHO ARE THESE HIPPIES?”

“THINK OF THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY DIED AND WHY WE DON’T KNOW THEIR NAMES.” “EBAY IS THE PEOPLE’S PRINCESS SECOND-HAND CLOTHING.”

XR ‘where the fuck is the goverment’ poster

... WHO A H A H S L E U F IL S S O “BAN F GIVES A FUCK?”

“THIS IS VERY LA .”

WARDROBE MISTRESS FOR HIGHER

PHOTOS BY: @OLIVERMAYHALL

The Extinction Rebellion coordinator rethinking the way we shop

hen she was five, Sara Arnold dreamt of being an astronaut, spending her spare time stargazing and reading books about space... “I became obsessed with Mars,” she says, “lying awake at night thinking about how Mars once had life on it and that now it has no atmosphere.”

At home with Rei the poodle, SARA WEARS: Bodice and shorts: Phoebe English. trousers: Ode to Odd, shoes:John Rocha, glasses: Alain Mikli, top and socks: Saraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own

SARA wears: Jumpsuit by Ode to Odd Available to rent @higherstudio

Sara didn’t end up following in Neil Armstrong’s footsteps. Instead, she realised that her calling was to encourage individuals, companies and the UK government to reduce their carbon footprint. She spends half her time working for Extinction Rebellion (XR) as a coordinator and representative for the fashion industry. XR is a group of nonviolent activists who are adamant that government must declare that we are in a state of ecological emergency and that we as a society must pursue necessary action. Simultaneously, Sara runs Higher Studio, a clothing rental company that she founded in 2016, stocking brands such as Comme de Garçons, Patrick McDowell, Phoebe English, Ode to Odd and AGF Hydra. For Sara, the turning point occurred when she was making her final collection on the BA Fashion Design and Marketing course at Central Saint Martins. “The materials I used weren’t sustainable at all. That’s when I realised there was a big problem.” Her collection was bright, bubbly, kooky – much like the person Sara is. Featuring bright pink hearts which were moulded out of foam with gold lamé fabric draped over the top. A collection which she describes as “A Grecian Las Vegas” the collection was as loud as her endearing cackle which joins mine on a trip around Unity Diner where we meet. A Vegan restaurant based in Hoxton Square, Unity’s profits go to funding the animal rights organization, Surge. This establishment is a hop, skip and a jump from her flat in Hoxton where she lives with her boyfriend and her white fluffy poodle Rei (after Kawakubo). What’s great about Sara

is that she isn’t afraid to say what she thinks regardless of who is in the room. At a panel discussion on the future on fashion held at The Curtain in Shoreditch this February, she was joined by the journalist Belle Jacobs, the textile designer Nelly Rose London, Kendall Robbins from the British Council and Susanna Wen from the brand Birdsong. While the rest of the panel skirted around the issues,

member from the beginning and also comes from a fashion background. Clare, who graduated from BA Fashion at Middlesex in 2005, has a small sustainable cycling brand No Such Thing and teaches the sustainable fashion short course at Central Saint Martins alongside sustainable stylist Alice Wilby. Extinction Rebellion’s main tactic is a good old-fashioned roadblock that disrupts busi-

“PEOPLE ARE

WORRIED ABOUT THESE REALLY

IMMEDIATE

PROBLEMS LIKE BEING LATE FOR WORK” Sara made it clear that this is climate crunch time. “People are worried about these really immediate problems like being late for work. I have to constantly balance the problems of now and the problems of the future,” she says. Less immediate problems – more immediate action say Extinction Rebellion. Their main objectives are: to organise a people’s assembly in parliament; to reach zero carbon emissions by 2025; and that the government declare we are in an ecological emergency. Sara became involved in the movement through Clare Farrell, who has been a 59

ness-as-usual for as long as possible with the aim of making the government respond to their demands. The good news is that their technique seems to be slowly working. Bristol council have accepted all their demands and Sadiq Khan and the London assembly have accepted some. However, many citizens have been less than receptive, “one man shouted ‘YOU PEASANT’ at me and then drove off” Sara recalls. Sara was born in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia and moved to the UK at the age of nine. She lived in the bubble that is boarding school, at-

tending Bryanston in Dorset, a public-school costing £13,000 a term. She’s half Singaporean, half British and her parents now spend half the year in Shaftesbury and half in Bali. It’s frustrating to her that the majority of people trying to save the world are both white and privileged just like herself

around my neck…literally the kitchen sink!” These days she lives in her gold-rimmed catseye glasses by Alain Mikli and is rarely spotted without a red lip. Sara’s keen for Higher Studio subscribers to come to her home where all the clothes are displayed. She describes

“WHEN WE ARE STARVING

FOR FOOD WHY WOULD WE HAVE

COTTON FIELDS” – individuals who don’t have to worry so much about the price of fish. Her privilege meant that she was able to do an MBA at Imperial College London in Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Management after graduating from Central Saint Martins. “It was the complete opposite of Saint Martins; the mad people are the sane ones!” During the course, she learned more about the sharing economy, which inspired her to set up Higher Studio. As a Comme de Garçons enthusiast, she gathered up pieces from her own wardrobe and borrowed some bits and bobs off her friends. “Some of them didn’t even know what they had, Higher Studio is making use of clothes that would otherwise be sitting in people’s wardrobes.” Sara has her own unique personal style. While she was studying for her art foundation at Kingston University she was “wearing as many colours as possible, lots of things

her customer as “people who work in creative fields, individuals who are culturally aware, enjoy discovering new brands and appreciate the story behind the piece.” These, she says are often “individuals who work in galleries who are constantly dealing with rich people but aren’t necessarily on a massive wage.” The connection between Extinction Rebellion and Higher Studio is clear; they both offer an alternative to the current system. “What is for sure is that we can’t keep buying clothes, we have to use the resources we have…when we are starving for food, why would we have cotton fields? The soil only has 30 years left.”

THIS PAGE: Lyleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s looks using various found objects, from rasin boxes to a Vetements carrier breakie boxeds and make it fashion!

bag. OPPOSITE PAGE: take your

@lylexox The LA based mixed media artist fabulously repurposing anything he can get his mitts on What did you do before you launched @ lylexox? Is it now your full-time job? I worked for MAC cosmetics for nearly 17 years. I worked in the training department as well as in Artist relations.I now do Lyle XOX as my full time job. It got to the point where I couldn’t juggle both full time commitments, so in the end I needed to follow my dream. How long have you been creating your mixed media self-portraits and what inspired you to start? I’ve been creating my style of self portraits for around 6 years. At MAC we had an incentive within the training department to get artists to step outside their “personal makeup box” and post their experimental looks on IG. I thought if I am asking the

always taking place. I then look at my schedule and decide when I will actually sit down to put the look together and shoot it.Because I never know where things are going to go, it takes many hours of “calculated risks”. It becomes an exercise in trusting your creative intuition and never questioning the source of inspiration or the level of absurdity that enters into the mind.When you follow that energy, that is when you create the most authentic work. After the look has been shot (like hundreds of images to pick just one), I shower it all off and as im showering I think about the character and any random story or characteristic that perhaps could be associated to the image. Then when I get out, I sit down and just write a stream of consciousness and see where it goes.

artists to do it, as their trainer, I should lead by example. As soon as I posted the feedback was so positive that it sparked something within me.I had been creating looks and doing makeup on others for many years, and so all the experimentation culminated into the creation of the mixed media self portraits. What did the first look like? The first image on IG is me in a drag look (that was taken in my shower).I don’t consider what I do to be drag, but it was certainly the first portrait that was put out on social media. What’s Your Process? Every day I am in the studio creating a new piece. Whether it be a facial sculpture, styling a wig, making jewelry etc…. something is

Once I find myself laughing, then I know that things are taking shape. What influenced your decision to use recycled materials? My mother is the Queen of recycling! From childhood we did crafts and various art projects together always using found objects and recycled material. She was all about making something great from something with little to no significance. That value system has deeply effected me. Is protecting the environment something that is important to you? I have never thought of myself as an environmentalist, however, when I step back and actually look at my work space and how I like to tell stories through my work.. it is always linked to the beauty of recycling and utilizing what has already been brought onto the planet. You’ve mentioned that you look to publications such as The National Geographic for inspiration - what is it that you love about the natural world? That particular publication is just one source of inspiration, but what I love is tapping into other cultures, different backgrounds etc and use that as a jumping off point. Also, all the amazing exotic animals and vegetation are just so rich in colour and texture and shape…. You can’t help but be inspired. Inspiration really does come from everywhere around me…. I am most in love with the mundane objects of everyday

life though and finding ways to take them out of their context and breathe new life into them.I use all recycled material/found objects and any type of object with no perceived value that is on it’s way to the landfill.My work gives those pieces an extra leg in their journey before their final resting place. If you were an animal what would you be and why? I would be an elephant.They are all about family and relationships and loyalty… which is what I am all about and value most in life. Do you sketch first or is it predominantly down to 3D experimentation? I never sketch first… unless its for a client or a collaborator and they want to see some initial ideas.I always stress though that what they see in the image is really just a general concept… things can go very off the beaten path quickly and they have to be open to the process. You’ve previously said that you’d love to work with John Galliano what do you admire about him? I love John’s impeccable craftsmanship that is married to this total reckless abandonment to rules and regulations. His current work at Margiela is so fantastic and continues to inspire me.I ran into him one night in Paris on my way back to my hotel and I stopped to chat with him. He was so lovely and open to conversation, and left a very good impression on me. Who else would you love to collaborate with and why? I would love to collaborate with Tim Walker and Shona Heath. I am SUCH a huge fan of their collaborative work. They are such brilliant story tellers and I would love to create multiple characters

in their surreal photographic landscapes.I would also love to work with Solve Sundsbo. I think his photographs are so rich with emotion and depth… certainly on my list of people I would like to shoot with.I also like the concept of collaborating with M/M Paris. Their design work is so expansive and their unique voice has such a wide variety of platforms… I feel like something really magical could happen with them. At what point did the written stories emerge from your portraits? The stories came about very quickly. Probably within the first few months of posting…. First just a line or two, then more complex character snapshots. I found that the added element of humour to the image created more of a dialogue with the viewer. I love that people comment regularly.. “ I come for the images and stay for the stories…”People from all over the globe have sent message speaking about how they have been going through a hard time or dealing with depression or loss… and find that my work lifts their spirts and energizes them to see beyond their own circumstances. That for me is so beautiful… knowing that the work can speak to someone on a far deeper level. Do you view your work as a form of escapism? I have nothing to escape from. My art is my drug of choice and I can’t imagine not being able to create. I love being able to follow through on any and all creative impulses and give those ideas life. Escapism to me feels like you are not comfortable in your own skin and need to seek solace somewhere else. I have worked very hard for many years on embracing who I

am as a person, as a partner as a friend and as an artist…. and do not ever want to escape that reality. I simply want to enrich my daily life and hopefully in turn will enrich the lives of others. What can we expect from your autobiographical book? It is a collection of images (and stories) both seen and unseen work. It is being published by Rizzoli and designed by Fabien Baron (at Baron & Baron) with a foreword from Viktor & Rolf.This book is like my baby and I am so happy to be bringing it into the world and working with amzing individuals. I look forward to signing your copy…..

With big hugs, Lyle XOX xxxxxxxx

STANDFIRST

HELEN KIRKUM

PHOTOS BY: @CHLOEWINSTANLEYPHOTOGRAPHY

SCAVENGE OLD FOOTHOLDERS AND MAKE THEM FASHION When did you become interested in footwear? I grew up in Andover, Hampshire. I was always interested in product, art, textiles and fashion, I love making things. I wanted to study fashion, but discovered University of Northampton’s Footwear course at Graduate Fashion Week, before that I hadn’t even realised footwear was something you could

study. At the point everything made sense to me, footwear combined everything I was interested in into one little pair of objects, it was perfect. How did your work develop during your MA course at the RCA? Construction, texture and layering, are constantly recurring elements in my work, as

well as sportswear influences and an androgynous style. As I journeyed through my MA and still now I realise I have those pillars to fall back on, they give me a structure to base my practice. I think as I developed through my MA I became more sure of these pillars and more confident in my techniques and opinions, although they were unusual and often seen as

the “wrong” way of doing things. In the end my final MA collection could be something very unapologetic and free, because I was more sure of myself. Some of the waste sneaker parts you use come from Traid – How did you first approach them? I visited Traid on a University trip and was

PHOTOS BY: @RACHELDRAY

amazed by the work they do and the amount of waste they collect. At that point I realised that there must be a value in this secondary material and the more I explored it the more I fell in love with it. What qualities do you believe your use of waste materials bring to your work? Waste material brings

intrigued, and empowered.

When and why did it become important to you for your work not to have a negative impact on the planet? I think its always come naturally to me to be concerned for our planet. Growing up in this environment and seeing the impacts of human consumption all around us, it is necessary to care. The older I have got the more I can understand about the issue and the more I feel compelled to send a message to help change it.

What are your thoughts on heels? I don’t wear heels that often and I have never made them. They are beautiful to look at.

Who is the Helen Kirkum customer? And what do they value? Whoever wants a pair. Helen Kirkum own brand shoes are not available for purchase yet but you can find elements of my work through consultancies and collaborations for sale.

character. It has a livelihood, memories embedded within it. It also has a type of mystery, unknown paths travelled, the scars and scrapes in the leather, holes and scuffs, they bring something beautiful and human to the material and that is what I love most about it. What brand of shoe is best to repurpose and

why? Its not really a brand, more a type of shoe. I often look for shoes with lots of pieces, leathers and suedes. I can look at a shoe and understand the construction a lot better now, so I can quickly choose the ones that are best for my practice.

A Helen Kirkum shoe should make you feel?...unique, 67

What footwear do you wear in your day to day life and why? I usually switch between my 500’s, DM’s and converse. They are easy, comfy and practical.

Where would you like to see your brand in 5 years’ time? If I can continue to grow at the speed I am currently, to collaborate, work with and learn from as many people as possible, to get some shoes out there on peoples feet and to deliver a message that goes deeper than one pair of shoes, and to inspire some people to think differently about footwear and consumption, thats all I can ask really.

=IMAGE BY: CHLOE WINSTANLEY

@mw_williamsdesign PHOTOS BY: @KTALLEN0

TAKE ROYAL MAIL SACKS AND MAKE THEM FASHION

ction

olle graduate c s n ig s e d ital Maddie’s in iversity (AW18) n U h g r Edinbu

Could you briefly tell me about your upbringing... I grew up in South East London in a pretty middle class environment, my dad is a taxi driver and mum has worked a mix of jobs from fashion photography to being a Primary School LSA.I went to a grammar school – yes, they do still exist, there’s quite a large pocket of them in the SE London/Kent. My school was fiercely academic and did not encourage the the arts which was incredibly frustrating to me as that was what I was good at and what I wassure I would pursue. So a lot of the creative learning I did was self-led or extracurricular. When did you become interested in clothes? I think I’ve always been very captivated by the female form, I love the way it curves and the way those shapes can exaggerated through clothing. I not sure where this came from – probably from watching Disney films and absorbing those hyper-feminine silhouettes!

I also have very vivid memories of watching my mum’s VHS tapes of Madonna and Kate Bush music videos and really absorbing and being inspired by the style and the sense of narrative that they both created in their videos. Why is it important to you for your work not to have a negative impact on the planet? I think it’s impossible to have grown up in this generation and not be aware of Climate Change and the impact we are having on the planet. I guess my interest grew as I matured and started to think outside of my immediate bubble of experience. It’s a process I’m still going through, I’m still learning and trying accept the true scope and horror of what weare doing to the Earth. It’s incredibly hard and very painful to fully comprehend and take in, and somedays I don’t feel strong enough to confront it. I have to keep encour-

AW18 collection I used a lot of repurposed Royal Mail and rubble sacks that Ideconstructed and re-wove into new tex-

aging myself to be better – it’s not enough to be aware, you have to act on that knowledge too. It is difficult to find the bal-

describe your design aesthetic? I think my work often ends up looking a bit more costume-y than Fashion.

IT’S NOT ENOUGH TO

BE AWARE, YOU HAVE TO ACT ON THAT

KNOWLEDGE

ance between not beating yourself up constantly for not feeling you’re doing enough or doing the right thing, and at the same time not getting complacent.

tiles. These were either sourced from mail depots or off of people’s skips on the street.As well as reclaimed waste materials I am keen to use natural fibres especially fibre sourced andprocessed in Britain. I used a lot of British fleece sourced from a farm in rugby which I washed andthen dyed using plants.

What materials do you work with and where do you source them? I have worked with a variety of materials, usually reclaimed/ recycled materials. For my graduate/

How would you

TOO.” I’d say it’s a mix of bold silhouette with a lot of texture with a rough and ready tactile feel, Art brut –couture maybe? What do you think you do that other designers don’t? I think I really like to go all out on a concept and a narrative. I need to do a lot of research to

narratives and imagine worlds where the work belongs, usually the people wearing the clothes are members of an imaginary community that exist somewhere in the future. Your silhouettes reference fertility figures. When did

I don’t often think about that person. I don’t really design with a customer in mind, the work is always about communicating a concept or a feeling, not about creating a product to sell. I imagine anyone who is brave enough to wear the clothes would be someone who understands the message and

“FASHION

WOULD NOT

DEVOUR NATURAL RESOURCES

DRINK UP OCEANS AND SPEW OUT you come across these inspirations? I have always been intrigued by the pagan traditions of Britain and mythology. Maybe it’s to do with being female and looking back and connecting to a time when femininity was revered and respected. Visiting the British Museum and the Welcome Collection is where I was exposed to fertility figures from around the world. I loved the organic yet graphic forms that were celebrating body shapes that we don’t usually see celebrated in the West now. Who is the Maddie Williams wearer?

FILTH.”

identifies with it. They’d also be someone who knows what they like and are not led by trends. What did you learn from interning at Vivienne Westwood? No comment? What would an ideal fashion industry look like to you? In the world I would like to live in fashion would not devour natural resources drink up oceans and spew out filth. Fashion would be an art form, and a means of self-expression, and a source of joy. Fashion would be available to all

without guilt and free of inequality. Fashion would not exploit its skilled workers’ or its consumers’ insecurities. I do not, however, currently live in the world I would like to. It is an economic giant pursuing ‘limitless growth in a limited world’. Capitalism is... Frankenstein’s monster. When tutoring at Kingston, do you try, to educate the students about the issues that you care about? I only tutored at Kingston for one academic year between 2017-18. I think that the Kingston foundation across disciplines really fosters an attitude of curiosity and self -analysis. Students are encouraged to focus on producing in depth, sincere bodies of research to support their ideas and are challenged to constantly ask themselves why they are doing something. I hope that this allows students to discover the issues they are passionate about, because I don’t think telling people to care about what you personally care about ever really works. They need to find their own way and focus on what they legitimately can channel their passion and energy towards. The Future is… Scary.

Waste plastics turned into textiles

(above) and notes from Maddie’s skecthbook AW18

SILK GAITERS WORN AS TOP & WHITE CLIMBING SHIRT: @patrickmcdowell EARINGS: @sophiecocevelou

TOP: @charliemccosker NECKLACE: @cecilyophelia

DRESS: @aditisahoo NECKLACE: @cecilyophelia

I dreamed the Archangel appeared and whispered into my ear and told me where to find a Glitter TRASHDOLLA…. five lucky bolts of lightning were ready to strike without notice at any point in the pages. Those who find them will not win a big prize, there will be no visit to an edible factory or a chance to meet Johnny Depp (but who cares for the good looking chap when he’s a wife beater anyway?) After this contest is over, you'll be no different from the other 95 who didn’t find one. Cash may be King, but greed and excess is causing our planet to wither away. When the end of the world comes, no amount of dollars could save you. There are a hundred magazines in this establishment and only five of them have a TRASHDOLLA. Do you see before you a legit dollar bill printed by @therealhackneydave and glittered up by the editor of TRASH with the help of eco stardust? Or do you see it’s scanned in sisters? Flatter than the flattest of pancakes. HOLLA FOR THE DOLLA.

Trash dollars by @therealhackneydave Glittered up by Chekii Harling using Eco Stardust

MARIA SZALWINSKA THE BRIGHTON BASED PHOTOGRAPHER COMMENTING ON CONSUMPTION

Can you tell me a bit about your upbringing... Do you remember when you first picked up a camera?Since I was a child, I was always fascinated by capturing moments. Times were rough and I didn’t have my own camera, so I always imagined my eyes could capture the moment by blinking twice and that one day I will be able to look back at all of the memories. idea for the e h t m e h t ld d to when you to t c a e r habits. We nee u ir o e y th d e g n n u a o h r c to se a ryone is trying e How did tho v E . it d e k li y le reall project?Peop for ourselves. t n e m n o ir v n e create a better

waste? g n i s u s rie photo se s titled “Us”. s i h t e t a nt to cre te this serie a a e r w c u o t o e y de ed m W hat ma hange strikes inspir te C The Clima

Does each image represent a topic you wished to address? Every image represents a different type of waste we produce in out day to day life. What do you hope the viewer takes away from the series? I hope they walk away and think about their own and our collective consumption When collecting found objects off friends, how did they react? They were really helpful and I thank every single one of them of making the project come true. One of my friends works in Sainsburys so it was really easy to collect all the receipts. If you were to create 5 more images in this series, what found items would you use and why? Probably something like petrol, plastic straws, coffee cups (the plastic bits you put on the top), clothes (as we buy too many of them) and beer cans.

PHOTOS : @skipdin

EARINGS & BRACELET @sophiecocevelou

Chekii Harlingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s village horticultural show entry, age 10.

TRASH IN THE ATTIC PHOTOS: REGENT’S PLACE DISCO-MAKE ILLUSTRATION: @skipdin

Being ahead of the game, the beauty of disco dancing, knitting and getting drunk at the same time, and why Orsola would get married in Mathew Orsola de Castro, the Creative Director and Co-founder of Fashion Revolution and queen of TRASH has previously said “I don’t want you to think about me when you think about sustainability. I’m just an old granny who knows the story.” The forthcoming state of both the planet and the fashion industry lays in the hands of the youth. Which is why Orsola helps and builds relationships with individuals she sees as the future. Mathew you can see is a favourite of hers; having lived together, worked together, bonded over Trash together. We meet in the shopping mecca that is Selfridges, a haven of excess. Let’s talk solutions and buying less.

TRASH: Orsola when did you first become aware of Mathew’s work? O: I was judging the BA show that year. It wasn’t just his aesthetic, Mathew had something that he didn’t know he had - solutions for upcycling. I could see that he wasn’t aware of it and I just thought well ok…he just doesn’t know and he probably never will. M: Know what?

never done an interview together. O: Well we lived together for six months and I was desperately looking for help at that point because we started this partnership with Greenpeace, and I was coming up with the concept of disco make which was a bit bonkers. I wasn’t feeling very supported by the community at large, I wanted to get people to knit, disco dance and get drunk at the

ly, then you have pressure from your tutors and your peers, all wanting to get into the show, and I didn’t really care. I was just so focused on the collection, it consumed the way I was thinking, eating, everything. When I said it was rushed, it wasn’t rushed at all. It just wasn’t resolved visually because there were so many different aspects. The tutors said you’re going to get a lot of press, people will be interested in this, and I didn’t

FAN GRANNIED!”

“HE CALLED ME...I same time. We did disco make together and then Mathew was looking for somewhere to live so he moved in. Instinctively we get on - I respect his mind and mentality hugely. At the time I was mentoring Kevin and it was absoluteM: It was rushed ly clear that Matthew had… O: I didn’t know Mathew at (phone rings- speaks Italian) the time, but I was looking at his collection thinking this I was worried for you because guy could upcycle the whole you were four years ahead, of fucking Africa. Then he you are very strong, super called me, and I fan Grannied! intelligent and completely focused but you can be fragile. I wanted to protect him, I have TRASH: What did you to save this guy from abancall and say Mathew? doning ship and running off to M: I Facebooked you right? the closest desert Island. This is why I am really happy you O: Yeah Facebooked. M: People had told me about took a year off before doing Orsola before, I just said I’d the MA because I think you love to meet up and have a would have been eaten for breakfast. conversation.

O: That you had solutions. That’s something I’ve always seen in you, but I could tell with the way you presented your collection that you weren’t aware of that.

TRASH: And how has your relationship developed since? M: This is so funny we’ve

TRASH: How did you feel at the time Mathew? M: Oh my God! There was so much pressure internal83

get anything at all…I hit rock bottom. TRASH: When did people start to take interest? M: Last summer when the article came out in i-D’s Earthwise issue - everything has blown up. It’s literally like interviews, interviews, interviews - people are interested to hear about it, not just see it. It’s more about what you have to say. TRASH: You closed the BA show, how did that come about? M: Sarah Gresty, I was honestly so flabagasted! TRASH: How would you both describe Mathew’s design aesthetic? M: I like the spontaneity and I like heavily embellishing, raw but beautiful. O: It’s very immediate, it

speaks a thousand Katherine Hamnett T-shirts. Mathew brings the politics, the social, the arts, the crafts, the design. I mean you could isolate each element of his collection and find something that speaks to you. For me, it’s completely couture. I’d get married in Matthew, that’s what fashion should do, it should tickle every doodle you’ve got. TRASH: Can you speak to me about the materials that you use? O: Trash, trash and trash? M: It’s a mix of dead stock and stuff I find on the street. O: It’s the ‘I’ll take it’ that I love so much. M: I had to make something that spoke visually in a minute on the runway. Now I’m focusing more on the construction, durability and craft, it’s not just a piece of clothing, it’s a memory, a moment in time. O: Nothing that Matthew has said has gone back to sustainability. It’s like, forget that word! If you are a young designer take your own creativity add efficiency, a bit of common sense and humour… and you’re on your way to becoming a sustainable designer. M: Sustainable fashion should be segregated; it should be inherent in everybody’s work. TRASH: What do you think could be a replacement for the word sustainability? O: I don’t think that there is. People tend to think that sustainable fashion is a whole category on its own but it’s not. That’s one of the reasons I love your work. You for so many years, “oh the green design-

er” it’s insulting. I am not an “eco-designer” I am a person who has chosen to use certain materials and techniques. TRASH: Mathew, what would you be doing if you weren’t doing the MA? M: Working in fashion education, I think by now, I’d try to find a studio. I still get emails from PRS. O: Your collection would still

when you see the outrage. Yet we are immune to people’s suffering. In a city like London, you have areas like Notting Hill with Grenfell, it’s the richest and poorest area of London. Some rich people are completely immune to their next-door neighbour’s difficulties so why would they identify with a garment worker in Bangladesh? TRASH: When do you think everyone is going

“I WILL

NEVER BE TOO BUSY FOR THIS”

be difficult to sell but if the collection is right, it will sell no matter how outrageousit may seem. TRASH: Where would you like to see your clothes sold eventually and who do you think the Mathew Needham customer is? M: Anyone who wants to buy it! Dover Street, Selfridges is doing amazing things. But I’ve heard the people who own it own Primark? O: Boohoo has made Primark look like couture. When everyone finds out that Burberry, Primark, H&M burn their unsold, defected stock, that’s

to wake up? M: Orsola said to me before I graduated “You wait and you watch, in the next few years, you’re not relevant now but two- or three-year’s time when you finish MA, it will be everything.” O: I was 25 years ahead, but it was WAY WAY WAY too soon. It’s because the word sustainability feels unobtainable, people are scared of it. We need to stop using it and embracing all the nuances. The big change will happen when we bomb the high street, when the H&M’s and the Primark’s of this world will stop selling. We will always need cheap and democratic fash-

Orsola at Disco-make , October 2018, Regents Place, London

ion but it will need to be more sustainable. They will have an obligation to help the masses of young designers who will refuse to work for them. TRASH: They’re going to run out of talent O: In a few years, the high street will look different. I hope that it doesn’t happen be-

cause of another disaster, and that we get to it on our good will, that you guys will become more heard and louder. TRASH: Which other designers are you admiring at the moment and why? M: Bethany Williams, she’s putting money back into com85

munities when she can barely support herself. How can companies not do that when they have all this money and Bethany can!?O: That’s what I love about Bethany. She is humiliating them all and yet nobody picks up on that. M: She is at the top and Helen Kirkrum, they are people I look

“BOOHOO HAS LOOK LIKE

MADE

PRIMARK

COUTURE”

Mathew at Disco-make , October 2018, Regents Place, London in headpiece by @lukevsmith

Mathew

up to. For Bethany, I am so fucking glad she has almost hit mainstream. She is going to pave the way for the rest of us. O: Bless Bethany she has made my life SOO much easier, but you know, Christopher Raeburn did it before her, but Bethany is on another level because she’s got the technique but also the social aspect, also Katie Jones and Priya. I’m mentoring this guy from Hong Kong who is super promising. He has a double obsession, one is his aunt’s travelling wardrobe and the other is childhood toys, particularly robots. M: It just feels like a family. Kevin, I met through the BFC and she is just amazing. She moulds and drapes, it’s like couture. And Richard Malone, he was final year when I was in 1st year of BA. He doesn’t speak about it and it’s developed slowly…that’s admirable. O: Richard worked with someone who I consider a guru, he is called Mishan Chopra and he is in South India, the son of a big producing family and he is doing things like weaving with recycled from fishing nets and is using pea silk. What is interesting right now is that you’re beginning to see the kids of the producing families saying no. TRASH: How do you find these people? O: I reply to my emails, people think I’m now too busy, but I will never be too busy or too high for this. I met this girl in China from a rich producing family, she took one tour of the factory and said “no, I’m not working here.” 87

Then they said, ‘ok you get married’ and she said, ‘no I’ll work in the factory.” She has made it zero waste, that’s the parallel that needs to be celebrated. it’s industrial but it’s creativity, nevertheless. TRASH: That’s incredible. Can talk to me about disco make? O: We need to do one in Bristol M: The first one we did was with Greenpeace it was a real group effort. After that, it was with Bernardos, and then Port Elliot. O: Port Elliot was the most successful M: OH MY FUCKING GOD, we were there for days and the tents were so dark and the amount of people that came. We had to monitor the door; it was so insane. Every disco make is different, that one was very family oriented. The last one we did was in Athens with the British Council, the culture in Greece around second hand clothes is very strange. The charities wash the clothes and package them and sell them like brand new which is really weird. TRASH: Have you found that in other European countries? O: Different cultures have different relationships with second hand clothes. In Mexico, it’s illegal, for health and safety reasons I’m assuming. In South East Asia, it’s generally considered really bad luck to wear second hand clothing. In Indonesia, they love it because they get the waste directly from Japan,

“THEY WOULD TURN THIS

TABLE INTO A HANDBAG”

Orsola and Mathew at Disco-make , October 2018, Regents Place, London 89

“SHE’S VERY MARIE KONDO”

Disco-make , October 2018, Regents Place, London

the Japanese get rid of stuff in a pristine way so once it gets to Indonesia, it’s perfect. In Africa, Zimbabwe for example, they upcycle,they would turn this table int a handbag. TRASH: Why do you think that is? O: In Zimbabwe it has never been stigmatised, it’s the concept of transformation. M: In Athens, they don’t have fashion schools there so were appreciative, hungry and eager to know what it’s like to be a fashion designer in London. O: I went to Athens shortly after the Disco make, I went charity shopping, they don’t buy anything so you find everything. TRASH: If one of fashion’s problems could be eradicated tomorrow which issue would you both choose? M: Overproduction. O: It’s three - water, waste and wages. TRASH: What does a dream wardrobe look like to you both? O: One wardrobe would never be enough, at least 3. M: she’s very Marie Kondo O: My wardrobe contains fast, slow, mended, inherited, borrowed and stolen

M: Mine is mostly trash, I’m not joking. It’s either stuff I’ve had since I was 17 or stuff I’ve found in bins.

STREET CAST MODEL PHOTOGRAPHS: @ambergracedixon

The Modeling Agency Giving The Homeless a Second Chance

here Is Hope Models has given the term ‘street cast’ a whole different meaning. One which is far more life changing than Jordan Dunn browsing Primarni for some cheap knickers or Gisele scoffing a burger at Maccy D’s. We’re living in a time where fashion bloggers – from The Made in Chelsea set right up to Susie Bubble – are exploiting the street for their own gain. It’s great to see fashion finally giving back to some of the individuals who once called it their home. In 2016, Kris Soloman McAllister, 28, had been sleeping rough on Oxford Street for a year and a half. Whizz on three years and you Tatjana Irina, founder of There is Hope Models at The House of St Barnabas, at 1 Greek Street, Soho, NEXT PAGES: Kris and Alex wearing Bethany Williams

WORKING IN FASHION HAS BEEN AN EYE OPENER ”

“I ALWAYS FOUND VULNERABILITY BEAUTIFUL ”

would find Kris wearing thousands of pounds worth of clothes, strolling down the runway at 180 Strand. It’s no surprise that this was a Bethany Williams’s show, the only designer who is really successfully merging social initiatives with a minimal environmental impact - it’s the Bethany blend. Most of the materials she works with are recycled - from denim to book waste, while every season she works alongside a different charity, donating a whopping 20% to the cause. Working with TIH models is a likely fit - all designers should Be More Bethany. Kris has had a tough life, at the age of 5 he was diagnosed with ADHD and was bullied in foster care from the age of 9 to 11, until he had a mental breakdown aged 24. “When I first started modelling, I was very anxious, but at the last Bethany Williams show I had a right laugh with the other models. I seen Adwoa Aboah a couple of times and she said ‘hello.’ Working in fashion has been an eye-opener. Do you know what I mean?” Kris first met Bethany in 2016 through Tatjana Irina, 26 the German analogue photographer, and now founder of TIH models. “She just kept coming up to me on Oxford Street” he says, “I was a bit sceptical at first, I thought she was taking the piss or summink.” London is the homeless capital of the UK with over three thousand people (predominantly young men) sleeping rough on the streets each night. These individuals are drawn to areas with the greatest footfall - Mayfair, Soho, Tottenham Court Road. As journalist Ed Stafford’s recent Channel 4 documentary 60 Days on the Streets highlights, food is not a big problem, but social interactions are. “I thought why does this person want to know who I am? NORMAL people don’t just come up to homeless people and say, ‘I’ve got an opportunity for you.’” Kris says. Tatjana grew up in Bayreuth,

then later moved to Nürnberg to assist the photographer Jan Schlegel. It was Tatjana’s background in portrait photography which led her to gravitate to those in need. “I always found vulnerability beautiful” she says. For the next few years she was back and forth between Nürnberg and London. She came for a photo fair in August 2016, moving over permanently in October. When she arrived in the capital, she made ends meat by working at a chippy in Oxford Circus called Golden Union, commuting from Croydon every day – the glamour! This point her she describes to me as “completely exhausting.” After finishing late and on her days off she would stroll the city’s streets, speaking to homeless men and women as she wandered. Kris was just around the corner. At this point she had the intension setting up her own business, which would help the homeless, so she enrolled on a Prince’s Trust program; declined a lot of job offers and spoke to as many homeless people as possible. “I used to give them coffee and realised that every story is different, the whole person is often missed.” She started taking portraits and began to question what the pictures were for, something was missing, and clothes were the answer. She began by requesting sample garments from small brands and this led her to Bethany Williams who cast seven of the models who TIH represented at the time for her LFWM presentation, June 2018. The job role that Tatjana has created involves putting herself in danger: “I’ve had negative experiences, there is so much drama all the time, it’s been a rollercoaster.” She’s thought about quitting multiple times but thought “NO, for the models that are here I will always continue.” Kris and Alex are currently the only models on the books “I realised I couldn’t take responsibility for seven people while having another job on the side. It’s such 95

a niche, difficult business.” You can see from how she interacts with Kris that her role is not just the model agent, the way she looks at him is motherly, she’s a dedicated mentor. “When you’re homeless you become a bit lazy. Tatjana gave me the confidence to get off the streets.” Kris explains. He believes that as a child he was “so ugly” but has continually repeated during our interview that modelling has worked wonders for his self-confidence. “I can now interact with people better and I managed to sort out housing.” Tatjana agrees “Kris is now more certain of what he wants.” Kris has moved on from sleeping in the doorways of Oxford Street and now lives in hostel in Camden. The rent is predominantly covered by housing benefits and he pays a top up of 6 pounds every fortnight for food. “There are a lot of drugs going around, coke, heroin so I keep myself to myself. I’ve got an addictive personality and it’s easy to find yourself back on the streets if you fall into the wrong thing.” Kris is keen to stay in modelling and would love to travel with work, he was recently put up for a job’s with some other high fashion labels, yet is still in the process of getting his passport. I met Tatjana and Kris in the members club, The House of St Barnabas, which resides at number 1 Greek Street. A Robin Hood-esque establishment which runs a 10week program for those who are homeless or transitioning from homelessness. Kris has recently enrolled. This programme gives them the opportunity to earn their own money working as bar staff, waiting staff, receptionists, chefs and occasionally in the office. If more institutions operated in this philanthropic way, maybe we’d be on route to solving the homeless crisis, both this establishment and what Tatjana has achieved so far highlights that there is hope.

INTRO

PHOTOGRAPHS: @skipdin

WEARS: DRESS: end of roll satin by @aditisahoo. pistachio necklaces ajoined with recycled silver jump rings by @bellejewellery

“I’ve always been drawn to natural materials; it was never fine jewellery that I was interested in.” She was always that way inclined. “I come from the countryside, it’s instinctive to care about the world when you’re surrounded by nature.” Belle’s first foray into using recycled materials began with recycled paper prior to discovering the potential of the walnut. The oldest tree fruit known to man can also be made into jewellery! “I would break them, mend them, and experiment by sewing into them.” They say never to look at your feet whilst walking, yet one day on her daily walk to One Granary square, her wandering eye noticed a single, lonely pistachio shell discarded on her path and that light bulb moment hit her like a kick in the nuts. In the weeks that followed she began experimenting with pistachios in the jewellery workshops. A ‘nut station’ was installed on the edge of her workspace for teachers, fellow students and friends to donate their empty shells. “I had one teacher that who kept bringing me bags and bags.” Whilst everyone close to her was furiously munching pistachios Belle was fixing the hundreds of shells together with the recycled silver which she purchased from a shop in Hatton Garden. These pieces from a distance look as though they are made purely of pistachios yet up close you realise that each shell has been joined together meticulously with little silver jump rings. She employed the same technique to create her pistachio ball necklace, where joined up nuts hang on each end of the knotted silver wire. These larger, more time-consuming pieces provide a contrast to the dainty vintage looking nut broaches relying on a silver frame. For these, Belle encased pistachio shells between the silver on the end of each branch, an industrial casing protecting the seed from

“THAT MOMENT HIT HER LIKE A KICK IN THE NUTS”

the outside world. The plant inspired shapes were a nod to her upbringing in the countryside, where she lived in a village consisting of three houses, an hour’s walk from the nearest bus stop. Final year jewellery students at Central Saint Martins are required to make fifteen to thirty pieces out of any material they desire. Belle found that she was always comparing herself to people who were making typical fine jewellery: individuals working with gold and diamonds. Yet, in hindsight, she realises that working with simple pistachio shells made her stand out from the crowd and enabled her to challenge what is considered ‘desirable.’ When in the midst of making her graduate collection, Belle was also engaged in the wider conversation of sustainable design. “I would go to talks and discover that there are alternatives, but they are usually much more expensive. Eco leather, cork, recycled silver and Fairtrade gold are great, but they cost loads.” Yet, it reassured her that she wasn’t the only craftswoman thinking about it, that others were as well. Belle views herself as more of a maker than a designer and is realistic about the fact that the act of creating is not sustainable in itself. “All you can do is slightly al99

ter the decisions you make within your craft.” Since graduating she now notices pistachio shells everywhere. “Recently I was in Tufnell Park station waiting for a bus and they were scattered all over the floor. I’ve put them in a little jar in my room labelled ‘Tufnell Park’ and will use them in the near future.” When Belle isn’t scouring the floor like a nutter for stray pistachios, she’s finding other waste materials to use. “Recently I approached a garden centre where they have loads of waste coffee, I’m keen to put it in the oven and see what I can do.” Also on her agenda is expanding the ways in which she can use the pistachios and recycled silver that she worked with in her final collection. “My latest idea is making pistachio lampshades; the shells will be draped over a recycled silver frame and the pistachios will form patterns through the light.” In a time where the government are discouraging homeowners from installing solar by cutting subsidy incentives, it’s great to see young creative individuals, such as Belle, thinking of new, zero-waste ways to decorate the home.

OVERHEARD IN “THESE LOOK A BIT CHEAP.” “I’M OBVIOUSLY GETTING THE BLACK ONE, SHALL I

GET A COLOURED ONE AS WELL?”

“I NEED SOME WET LOOK LEGGINGS THAT SCREAM SHAG ME FOR SATURDAY NIGHT .” “I ACTUALLY WANT TO SMACK YOU ROUND THE FACE” “SHOPPING IS A BAD HABIT.”

“I’M ONLY GUNNA BE 5 MINUTES, I’M NOT LOOKING FOR ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR.”

“THESE ARE GEOREGOUS, BUT THE LINING IS SHIT.” “WE SHOULD GONE TO MARBLE ARCH, THIS ONE ONLY HAS 2 FLOORS.”

“IS THERE ANYTHING WITHOUT DISNEY ON IT.”

Other Fast Fashion Retailers are available ILLUSTRATION: @skipdin

“EVERYTIME I WEAR ONE MUM SAYS I LOOK LIKE VICKY POLLARD, BUT THAT’S THE POINT SHE DOESN’T GET IT.”

“PERSONALLY, I THINK THEY LOOK MORE EXPENSIVE IN GREEN .” “WE ARE DONE THERE AINT NOTHING IN HERE.” 101

There are several components to a Full English breakfast – sausages, bacon, beans, hash browns, toast, eggs and everything in between… ketchup and even a cheeky brown sauce if you so desire. The production of garments is somewhat the same. During her placement year from her degree in BA Knitwear at Central Saint Martins, Phoebe English interned at John Galliano in Paris and The Diana von Furstenberg design studio in New York. In was only in the Big Apple, that she really took stock of the fact that parts of each garment came from different parts of the globe. How many countries, she asked, and pairs of hands could it possibly take to make one garment? This may explain why she runs her own brand, Phoebe English, founded in 2011, in such a different way. “We try to get as many local suppliers as we can, or fabrics that come over from Europe in big groups,” she says. Many of the product descriptions on her website charmingly read: “This piece has been entirely designed, sewn, finished and packaged in London; from initial sketch to final stitch.” Furthermore, many of the materials she used for her MA collection were found rather than bought because she had no money. The collection cost me £250, I had to design around that,” she explains.

Phoebe’s training in knitwear, a precise and often fiddly craft, explains why she sees potential in scraps - bits and pieces which other fashion designers wouldn’t think twice about bunging in the bin. This year, Phoebe was one of the individuals who spoke at the Environmental Audit Committee’s Parliamentary discussion held at the V&A in November, 2018 on the problems in the industry. She believes that climate change

longer want or need. All in a click of a button on your own trusty mobile – how fab! Unfortunately, there is not yet a UK equivalent, which means designers who care about the environment have to invent ways of turning their waste into a resource. Phoebe’s larger off-cuts are made into limited edition pieces, and she regularly donates fabric to ¬both art students and refugees. There’s no doubt about it. She’s a local lady, but also a

“IT’S AN ECOLOGICAL DISASTER THAT WE’RE LITTERALLY SLEEPWALKING THROUGH”

needs to be part of the National Curriculum from primary school age up. How else are we going to prevent the “ecological disaster we are literally sleep-walking through? We all need to educate ourselves as active citizens.” During the session at the V&A Phoebe introduced the room to Fabscraps, a recycling company based in New York who operate from app by the same name, picking up both synthetic and natural off-cuts which designers no

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woman of workshops many of which she holds in her studio in Deptford, where she works with one full time seamstress and a couple of part timers. For this year’s Fashion Revolution Week, Phoebe is holding an evening of drinks, chatting and quilting using black fabrics from previous collections. Those attending will make a patch-worked piece which will become part of a heavily textured quilt to be eventually

Phoebe Englishâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Exhibiton: Inanimate, Animate (Only) Half the Reflection held at105 Morley College, London, February 2019

Phoebe at her Exhibiton: Inanimate, Animate (Only) Half the Reflection held at Morley College, London, February 2019, with 2 minutures made from her scraps

be exhibited. Designers who are the most creative are those who can see the possibilities in materials that would otherwise go to waste. Phoebe grew up in an artistic family – her mum’s an artefact painter, her dad paints conceptual landscapes and all of her aunts on her dad’s side are artists too. Painterly splashes of colour occasionally pop up in her work, amongst the sea of black net and chunky knitted panels. For her 2014 collection, she collaborated with the fashion illustrator Helen Bullock. Black ink was splattered across black and white mesh on several garments, and one eye-catching dress in particular was a white dress resembling an artist’s palette with smudges of colour dotted around the bodice, the skirt and one of the sleeves. The artist’s palette dress was one of the pieces that Phoebe chose to re-create in miniature in her most recent exhibition which she staged at The Morley Gallery in February, titled ‘Intimate, Animate: Only Half the Reflection’. The showcase coincided with the launch of her AW19 collection. Once again, Phoebe put the fabric she didn’t use for her commercial pieces to good use, delving into her archive in order to create 30 miniature puppets that looked soooo last season because they were. She cherry-picked designs from 2011, bringing her chosen ones back from the dead. Adorable, tasteful minis complete with embellishments, pleated segments, hair and a dash of an artist’s paintbrush where necessary. As we speak, fashion houses are burning what they consider ‘dead stock’ in the name of ‘exclusivity.’ Meanwhile, in the time it’s taken you get to the end of this article, around 347 truckloads of textile waste has been dumped in a landfill - SHOCK HORROR. With that in mind, more designers should be taking Phoebe’s approach… Take those scraps, those random bits and pieces and fashion something fab. Tesco were right about one thing – Every little really does help.

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The costume and jewellery designer who scavenges east London’s bins Sophie Cochevelou’s work is not everybody’s cup of tea. Yet, I’ve been rocking bright pink barbie-head earrings for a year now and the boys in the world of digital dating seem to be lapping them up. “You can’t wear those earrings on the first date they scare me to death.” He must not be the one for me! Said boy would probably faint at the sight of the half-decapitated much bigger dolls that Sophie is currently working with in her studio in Stoke Newington. When she’s not hanging out with Matty Bovan’s Mother, Plum (also a jewellery designer), Sophie’s working in her studio which doubles as her home. With her bedroom on the bottom floor and all the crap she collects up top, much of which she finds in the local bins. “When I’m in the street I can’t stop myself, I’ll arrive at a party with objects I’ve picked up on the road people say I’m a tramp, but it’s my treasure.” She takes these bits and bobs and combines them with clothing, fabric and other second-hand nick knacks which she finds in charity shops and car boot sales. It’s maximalism overload, anything but low-key. “I brought this dress in a charity shop, people will say ‘ugh that’s disgusting - what if somebody died in it?’ And I’ll say at least she died sexy!” Her obsession with dolls, trolls and Lego comes from her interest in nostalgia, the surreal and her love of storytelling. She studied for her combined degree in Literature and Drama in Paris which gave her the knowledge to bring her own kooky stories to life on the Performance Design and Practice MA course at Central Saint Martins from which she graduated in 2013. Post graduating, she was on a different type of doll - unemployment benefit, and still dabbles working as an extra on productions such as The Crown and Fantastic Beasts for extra cash. She’s been a part of many ‘eco fashion showcases’ which she says are anything but. “These events sell, it’s a concept, they see it as glamorous - what about the food, the lights, the energy?” She’s even been part of showcases where her work wasn’t deemed to look “sustainable enough.” This is a major problem: good design whether it’s art, fashion or furniture shouldn’t be striving for a ‘sustainable aesthetic.’ People have and continue to associate ‘eco fashion’ with muted colours, a spectrum of beiges and hemp. The fact of the matter is, it’s just so much more. The recycling symbol belongs on bins and not as a print hoodies and T-shirts. Who actually buys that utter naffness?

PHOTOGRAPH: ANTHONY LYCETT

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A Week In The Life of a Vaugen The diary of a green-fingered fur addict PHOTOGRAPHS: @BETHANMOONEY MAKEUP : LILY HARLING

DISCLAIMER: There’s something called a sense of humour which has been ignored by most of the fashionistas trying to save the world. Do take this feature with a pinch of salt, the aim is not to glamorise fur or to take the micky out of vegans, it’s to bring important issues to your attention. The world today is saturated with images, but don’t ignore the words, do read the small print.

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Claudia wears: Organic cotton dress by @ellissellisselliss + Real and Synethic fur gathered from friendâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s floordrobes

Claudia wears: Safari dress by @erika_maish featuring â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;wasteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ultra suede

There’s something called a sense of humour which has been ignored by most of the fashionistas trying to save the world. Do take this feature with a pinch of salt, the aim is not to glamorise fur or to take the micky out of vegans, it’s to bring important issues to your attention. The world today is saturated with images, but don’t ignore the words, do read the small print. Meet Claudia who has kindly invited TRASH-Mag into her life to track the first week of her new-found Veganism. Claudia is 22 with an Instagram bio that reads “raging environmentalist / model / moon-cup mistress / part time sass queen.” She may look like a diva (and believe me she is) but she is a gal who spends most of her evenings inside the recycling bin, digging out bits and bobs that shouldn’t be there – oh, the glamour! Monday to Friday she cycles to work at the PR agency Green Fingers “A bespoke communications agency representing artists, designers and architects who give a fuck about the future.” When not getting off her trolley at the weekends, you’ll find her on the street with a Greenpeace clipboard. She’s passionate about plastic - the banning of - after discovering that plastic bottles take 450 years to decompose. The average UK citizen consumes 200 of these pesky vessels every goddamn year. This week she has been reassuring hungry humans that they can now eat oreos guilt-free because they’ve dropped dirty palm oil from their recipe! The growing of palm oil trees, and therefore the destruction of the rainforest has meant that 100,000 orangutans have died in the last 16 years - There’s no place like home, but human greed (money and munch) means these ginger fellows no longer have a home. To Claudia, a holiday is binge watching Planet Earth with her boyfriend, Flax, who is an environmental influencer, famous in the digital sphere whose life motto is “Yoga is not about touching your toes, it’s about what you learn on the way down.” Despite all her noteworthy achievements there is one environmental tick box that she can’t seem to master - Veganism. As a self-confessed fur addict, partial to a slab of cheese, she’s struggling to join the Vegan brigade. However, people keep telling her livestock agriculture is responsible for 18% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions and that truly nothing tastes as good as veganism feels. She feels embarrassed that mastered the art but has decided to give it another a shot. Then there’s her fur addiction. She’s obsessed by the stuff - the real, the fake - she’s can’t get enough. Yet the tipping point has come, Claudia’s boss - Belle the founder of Greenfingers - has made her sign up for Fur-a-holicsAwareness course. She’s to try out the lifestyle for a week. With her job on the line and London rent skyrocketing, she’s got no choice - jump into Claudia’s world to see how she got on.

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ears: Claudia w lee made lice top by @a cled denim from recy

DEAR DIARY, MONDAY 8th April 8.30am Dear Diary, Today is going to be tough with a capital T, but I have to show Belle I can do my best. It’s dahl for brekkie, which is apparently ‘The Breakfast of champions.” My boss has also said I need to check whether my make-up is Vegan - apparently most brands test on animals, who’d have thought! Oh well, out with the old, in with the new. I haven’t even finished by brekkie and I’m already thinking what on earth am I going to have for lunch…is butter a carb?

C xoxox

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In China, it is compulsory that all cosmteics product manufactured outside the country must be tested on animals.

Across Euro pe, hundreds of animals, s and guinea p uch as rats, igs, are used mice, rabbits to test for ch these tests, c emicals in co hemicals are smetics. In applied to or skin or force in je c te d in to d down their animals’ throats via a tube. (PETA)

STILL GLAM? 117

TUESDAY 12TH MARCH 10AM Dear Diary, New Day, New me. Working from home today as Belle is off on holibobs. I’ve sworn on The Greenfingers handbook that I’d keep up my veganism, so spent the best part of the morning reading Veganism for Dummies - it’s a bestseller. I feel beyond inspired to cook tofu Thai curry - woop woop - and could murder a sweet potato salad, I’m bursting with energy (apparently veganism does this to you). How does Claudia feel?... EPIC!

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You can reduce your foodprint by a quarter ju red meats such st by cutting do as beef and lam wn on b. The carbon fo diet is about hal otprint of a veg f that of a meatetarian lover’s diet.” (G reenEatz) d eat an m g n i utt on that c ual’s carb d n u d fo ivid Oxfor uce an ind dant) f o y rsit red epen Unive diet could t (The Ind e h t at r en chers s from you to 73 per c r a e s p ct Re d by u produ o y o f r i a m d o rint fr footp

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Claudia wears: jacket made from coffee sacks , sourced from a coffee shop in Dalston and recycled denim skirt both @alicelee , boots: vintage

The ‘fur’ industry currently kills around 30 million animals a year (Animal Equality) Approximately 35 animals are killed and skinned to make a single coat. (PETA) Faux fur is made from plastic. Half a million tonnes of plastic microfibers are released from washed clothes annually, the equivalent to more than 50 billion plastic bottles. (VOX)

Claudia wears: fox fur jacket by @_destoryerofworlds_ made from his Granny’s old fox fur , dyed and stitched back toegther

WEDNESDAY 10th April 2PM Dear Diary, Vegan Stan Smiths and Pinatex pineapple leather jacket have not come - poor me :(. FedEx have got an angry Vegan on their hands; I’ve called a billion times and still no chuffing answer! FUMIN. Thank god I can ‘work from home’ today. All this dahl is making me fart like billyo and I’m missing fur like a mad dog on heat. I’ve spent the best part of today trying on my fur and faux fur coats and I’ve got the shame. Can a leopard ever change its spots? C xoxox

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THURSDAY 11TH April 4.30OM Dear Diary, This morning, Flax and I went to hot Yoga so was super zen, finally sweated out all that dahl! Work was fun - we’ve got this client - an emerging designer who is growing fabric out of their own poo - super innovative stuff! So, chatted to them on the phone this morning and spent the afternoon writing the pooey press release – what a day to be alive!

C xoxox

Claudia wears: dress by @emmagluziki trousers model’s own boots: have had a past life, can’t you tell?

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Claudia wears: dress by @emmagluziki made from anti-slip matts made into an textile by weaving with wool

Isinglass is the dried swim bladders of fish, which is used as a refiner in certain beers and wines (BBC) If you lined up all the polystyrene foam cups made in just 1 day they would circle the earth. (Plastic Free UK)

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LATE FRIDAY 12th APRIL

Dear Diary, Thank the lord it’s Friday. Discovered today whilst skiving at work that Miley Cyrus, Beyonce and Ariana Grande are all #vegan if that’s not #inspo I don’t know what is. Went to the pub this evening, only remember half my night apparently, I was tonguing some divine men so must’ve been a great night. I do remember Ellie getting shirty with me about faux fur and the fact that it doesn’t biodegrade. Apparently when synthetic fibres are washed lots of plastic microfibers end up in the ocean…who knew? She said the equivalent of 5 billion plastic bottles a year potter off to the ocean when we wash our clothes. My mind is blown. I thought I was #woke but I’m actually #confused.

“British shopp ers buy far more new clot hes than any nation in E urope” (BBC)

95% of clothing can be recycled (Greenpeace)

â&#x20AC;&#x153;22 per ce nt of wom en admitte worn it a d that the couple of y had pur times and cha consigned it to the w sed a piece of cloth ing in a sa ardrobe.â&#x20AC;? le, (The Daily Mail)

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Dear Diary, SATURDAY (fuck knows what the time I’m wasted) Dear Diary, I’m white girl wasted I will not lie to you. This eve was a blast with a capital B. Hugo brought Vegan Ket along, which he’d brought back from Ibiza the cheeky sod! Ket wasn’t the only thing that was out of this world, I was serving A LOOK. I looked like the fittest sheep in the goddamn farm. I’ve decided I’m not buying any more synthetic clothes unless they are vintage, can’t have Ellie whingeing AGAIN. Right, I’m off my tits so going to bed. Loves ya oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Claudia wears: vegan curlies by @imnotapartygirl dress by @alicelee

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Coca is harvested in South America and its production contributes to deforestation, pollution of natural habitats, rare species extinction and human exploitation. (BBC)

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Netflix and Kill SUNDAY: 4PM Dear Diary, It’s 5pm and I have not moved an inch, last night is a real blur. I keep getting flashbacks of me preaching about Veganism - I’ve really got THE SHAME. All I’ve been doing all day is watching Blue Planet 2. I can’t lie to you I did order a Pepperoni Pizza on Deliveroo. I stormed up the stairs past my flatmates, so they didn’t see me with my meaty accessory. Next I’m going to watch the new Attenborough - ‘Climate Change: The Facts’ Chekii it out on iPlayer bitchez.

It takes 15,500 litres to produce a kilo of beef (The World Counts)

6 million animals are killed for human consumption every hour. In one lifetime, the average American will consume the equivalent of 11 cows, 27 pigs, and 2,400 chickens. (USA Today)

Livestock provides just 18% of calories yet takes up 83% of farmlandâ&#x20AC;? (The Guardian)

Claudia wears: T-shirt by Oatly, socks : modelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own 133

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Miles Johnson, 48 stereotypically looks like the kind of man who would be ‘into’ preserving the planet. Decked out in a green mac fastened with toggles, a bright yellow bumbag fit for an adventure and a woollen jumper bursting with fuzz just like his gristly ginger beard. “I’ve been wearing this beanie for 20 years, people say ‘do you want a new one?’ I say no! this one is still intact, and it’s moulded to my head” He’s rocking this #look on a gloomy day outside the East London hub that is The Truman Brewery, just off his train from Worstershire where the beardy man now lives. Miles’s business in the big smoke is to at-

“WE NEED TO REALISE THE PACE THAT WE ARE

GOBBLING IT UP” tend the corporate trade show that is Premiere Vision Denim, he’s now an expert in the fabric and his goal for the day is “checking their homework.” Wizz back a couple decades and Miles was working at Angels the Costumiers, Styling shoots for i-D, Dazed and The Face while simultaneously working in the costume department on feature films. Soon, the need for a career change hit him like a 007 bullet “one day on a James Bond Movie I realised I didn’t want to be sat on a plastic box fixing bow ties for a living.” These years however gave him a great understanding of clothing, of boning, of whaling, of the technicalities of clothes and textiles - skills which led him to Central Saint Martin’s college of Art. Miles nabbed himself a spot on the MA Fashion Course, with the help of the Paul Smith who paid for his tuition fees. “I wrote to Paul and went to meet him one day in his office on Floral Street, we got on very well, I remember us both doing impressions of animals. I told him I wanted to go to St Martins but didn’t have the money and he offered to help me. For that I am eternally grateful as I don’t think I’d be where I am now if it weren’t for Paul.” After being taught by Louise Wilson, Miles graduated from the MA in 2000 with an indigo denim menswear collection. “I wanted to make clothes for tall men, I found this boy on fine art who modelled, he was STUNNING!” The same year he became the head

“NOBODY WANTS TO SEE FIELDS OF CANNABIS... WELL...I DO.” designer at Levi’s, where he stayed for a wopping 13 years. “Levi’s at the time was dreamy for me, they gave me so much freedom.” Yet as the years rolled on, the company relocated to San Francisco and Miles was finding it “corporate” and “heavy” so he decided to jump ship. His role at Levi’s enabled him to visit denim factories in Europe, Cone Mills in North Carolina and denim producers in Japan and Turkey. He would greet the workers with “hello, how are you?” before realising that “they didn’t give a shit about what they were producing, they’re working their asses off, they wanted to get home to their kids.” Many of these trips he found harrowing, they forced him to become “sharply educated” in the environmental and social problems that come with producing denim. Prior to this, Miles “didn’t have a clue” about how much water was wasted, the amount of cotton used or how “disgustingly chemical” the production process is. Since, he’s made sure to work with the cleanest operations possible, determined to not be associated with this “festering mess.” Post Levi’s he took up the role as Design Director of Patagonia, the go to brand for outdoorsy types which is leading the way for recycling. In 2018, 51% of their materials were recycled, in 2019 they hope to leap to 69% and by 2025 they intend for all fabrics in production to have had a past life. The brand was founded in 2014 by Yvon Chouinard, an American rock climber, surfer, kayaker and falconer who loved a spot of fly fishing in his spare time. “When I arrived at Patagonia they said, ‘we’re going to do this great campaign, it’s called DENIM IS A FILTHY BUSINESS.” In 2015, they launched the Armadillo Truck, a road trip with a twist where repair cafés on wheels toured all over the US and Europe. Patagonia did this solely to spread the message that if your clothes are broken, don’t buy new - Pat can fix it, and so can you. The brand doesn’t produce funky fashions, it’s practical outdoor-wear but there is no doubt of the fact 137

that high fashion brands should be replicating how they use ‘old’ fabric. It’s disgraceful that the majority of big brands are burning and shedding what they don’t use. What about the people who spent hours making the fabric? Those to farmed the raw material? The resources that went into it? Our dying planFor a man on the crusade of saving the world he’s got controversial views on plastic, “I think it’s amazing” he says. His belief is that plastic should be celebrated for its material qualities – the fact that it can be moulded into so many different objects, shapes and sizes. However, he’s aware that now “plastic is enemy number one” because of the fact that it’s so visibly damaging our natural world. There is a reason for the fact that ‘single-use ‘was the word of the year in 2018. Most variations take 1000 years to decompose, plastic is practically immortal! It’s not just drinking vessels, supermarket packaging and carrier bags that will decompose after your grandchildren’s children. “Every single garment that is manufactured is shipped in a Poly plastic bag which can’t be recycled.” Suffocated by plastic before it’s even reached retail, soon to be bunged in a new plastic bag when purchased on the shop floor. Miles these days is employed by various fashion brands including Timberland and Lee Jeans giving them tips and tricks on how to be a better business. “we are so so fortunate to have this amazing beautiful planet for us greedy mother fuckers to chomp our way through, we need to realise the pace that we are gobbling it up.” Having come from a fashion background, he understands that “it’s really hard for us not to get turned on by everything that glitters and sparkles.” Yet is hopeful that many more people are starting to care about the godforsaken earth. “Caring used to be a bit hippy, granola-y but now it’s really rubbing it in the faces of the politicians and using art as a way to express the energy behind it.” It’s not all peace and love, mind-altering drugs and communal living – this is our future.

MAKEUP: LILY HARLING

AT THE GREENWASH Mae wears bra by @ellissellisselliss skirt : vintage

It’s fair to say that greenwashing is a grey area. Murky, muddling, a minefield, a cloak of confusion. The lavish luxury houses are as guilty of greenwashing as the fast fashion meccas, and they aren’t much better at any point in between. Sustainability is a trend, and brands are capitalising on consumer concerns about waste and the environment. However it can be hard to tell whether what you’re buying is truly green as can be or just a ploy for your hard earned dosh! You could argue that releasing a “conscious” capsule collection splattered with recycling symbols, or holding a runway show themed around plastic pollution could help bring these issues to the into the public eye. Yet, what does this really equate to if the clothes themselves are made from plastic? Is this merely a distraction from how these brands are operating elsewhere? Or is any step in the right direction a good thing? Should we be holding people up as hypocrites if they aren’t the lean mean green machines they claim to be or commending them for the small efforts? Or are they merely covering the cracks, to call it a day? What do my interviewees have to say?

“GREENWASHING....You can’t just dip your toe in Sustainability. Greenwashing is when companies do something that’s a bit of effort “ MILES JOHNSON

“Greenwashing is pretending to be ethical and sustainable while carrying out contradictory practices. It comes down to honesty.” –ALICE WILBY

“H o wa w I sh fe po mo ing el ab ing sitiv od. S dep out Gr be e a om end Gre ee ca bou eti s o en nw us e t g me n m kn ashi I thi reen s I fe y jum ow ng nk w el w w a - O ten p on shit. e w ith shRS d t the Peo ou out OL o ge ba ple ldn’ n w t t A DE disc dwa ho CA over gon ST ed” RO

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ake ketm to mar ngs g i n y lyi using g th wa a n y is It’s aki ndl mple g . n m a ie shi good are ly fr d ex ely, a l o u w k a at o o t een lf loo st y men . A g rtun ok r “G rse gge ron are nfo o lo t u U i u yo to s env ually boo. ave ing ore u act bam we h ESS m in n yo se or n us, E PR tha isco s is o AR is v onu - CL ” the per. e de

us its b i inh nd a wa he a try st ing dus block flood those n i e n m ng n th a dam ashi ts fro i s c w e a to tr en ssu al i r way m, gre nd de e r a L e e la s th a simi o syst sense WEL k s n a O c o g m ard. In the e and n MCD n i g h K in as rw on nw ing fo estroy onfusi TRIC e e “Gr mov and d ith c ” - PA . w from ource arket river s e ter ent m n th w r cur her do furt

ion in iting of informat “A deliberate lim ems in a way that se it t en es pr to r orde ble entally responsi more environm is. than it actually EMA -WILSON ORY

“It d not d oes happe isc n. not d ourage a It’s impo rtan oing cul big c enough’ ture of ‘y t to o o on en mpanies because i u’re t put off an cour s aging d too comp c k e a e l n ep eb ie ernm ental s aren’t g ration, bi g ettin incen thing g gov t s i v t h e incin a s erati t are ine . There a xcus on w re ab do.” h PHO ich a lot o le like EBE fl ENG abels LISH

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Illustration by: @hinsengiu

Chasing The Rabbit

ILLUSTRATIONS BY: @hinsengiu

The model who ditched the catwalk to criticise consumption In a not-so-distant past Wilson, born in South London, was modeling for many money-hungry fashion brands including Versace, Maison Margiela and Calvin Klein. However, recently he’s decided to give up it all up and is now focusing on persuading people to think about how and why we consume so much. “I’m turning down jobs all the time. It’s nice money but they have no soul or story – why would I want to work for a brand like that?” He may do one job a year but “doesn’t really model anymore. It’s really conflicting because you’re promoting these brands but also trying to fight against overconsumption.” His interest in the psychological reasons behind why we purchase items and their effect on the world started because of a “selfish desire” to preserve the planet in order to live longer. “Everything we do has an effect somewhere in the world because it drives demand. I wanted to show that this doesn’t end with your engagement,” he says while slowly sipping on green tea in a Louis Vuitton jacket. A few days after our interview he pops up in the ES Magazine’s party pages

wearing the exact same number, true to the principle that we should all be buying less and appreciate what we already have if the shoe fits. He expresses views on consumption through several different media – painting, photography, film and poetry. His latest poetry book Wait has been turned into a podcast titled The Wilson Audio Experience in which he reads a poem per episode and explains to the listener what they’re about. Back in June 2018, he held an exhibition with Harley Weir titled rubbish 1. Wilson provided the words which illustrated Harley’s images of plastic. Harley has been running a separate Instagram handle @rubbish_1.2 since April 2018, a page dedicated to arty shots of the material that never dies and other rubbish she spots on the street. Chasing the Rabbit, a poem also featured in Wait, is a personal favourite of mine which addresses the fact that we dress for social media; that likes have become a currency; and that social media users are constantly craving validation through what they wear. The idea that having the newest 143

shoes, the grooviest garms or a limited-edition t-shirt is sadly a popularity winner, a cycle which thrives on vanity and insecurity. Another addition to Wait is Boxing Day Blues which addresses the excessive over-consumption that is Christmas – tis the season to be greedy. Wilson made a film on this in addition to the poem which features fir trees being cut down, the buying of the toys, the printing/burning of money spliced with blurry shots of children frolicking around. “Christmas in my family was so peaceful, I just had a normal day, no decorations, it just doesn’t relate to me. That’s not me being a Grinch, I just don’t see value in it.” Now he’s spending his time setting up a company which aims to make changes in several areas such as deforestation, fashion production and the dying bees. Wilson, a softly spoken bloke from Brixton, has a calm approach to these massive topics. Maybe we do need a calmer more humorous approach, after all, “Carnage, the Simon Amstell mockumentary has done more for veganism than randomly shouting at people in the street.”

Chasing The Rabbit One more release, one more colorway, Everybody said it was must have, So of course, I brought a pair, My next post should make them salivate, Maybe for a day or two, Until somebody remakes the same old shoe, But this time in blue, So of course, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be ready to upload that too, - Wilson Oreyema

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TAILOR THRIFT

PHOTO by : @busha_bailey

The Berlin-based brand turning scrap metal and old clothes into club wear What fascinated the Mariángeles, the elder of the Aguirre sisters, about Berlin was that the city’s war-torn history paved the way for creativity to flourish. It’s this constant state of need, the hunger, the rebellion and do-it-yourself philosophy of Berliners which attracted Mariángeles to the city that she’s worked in since 2007. Berlin was quite the change from the small, restricting province in Argentina where Mariángeles and her young sister Paula grew up. The pair describe Colorado, Argentina as being “too closed for our curious minds.” Mariángeles, now 38, studied Social Communication at the National University of Córdoba. “My parents wouldn’t allow me to study the arts, they thought that I would end up becoming an art teacher and that I would limit my opportunities in my home country.” From 2007 until 2012, Mariángeles was surviving rather than thriving in Berlin, managing various jobs in tourism and as a freelance writer for magazines and blogs. Yet, while enduring the 9-5 life, she was proactive in promoting the movement for sustainable fashion, volunteering at Fashion Revolution Germany and co-founding ‘Green Fashion Tours Berlin’, a company that offers both customised tours and educational packages. Visitors can attend various workshops - from days spent making upcycled garments to visiting local manufacturers. Therapy- Recyclexorcise-Berlin which “started as an urgent need to recover my creative side and to start using my hands.” Mariángeles says. She contacted her sister Paula who had studied Fashion Design and Advertising at The Roberto Piazza Fashion and Art Institute. She asked her to make her a logo for her new venture. “Therapy was the answer to my identity crisis; at 34 I wanted to reinvent myself, to create a new me. I thought about putting my own ‘touch’ on the items that I already collected.” And- voilà, Therapy- Recyclexorcise-Berlin the brand was born. The pair work from two studios: one in Argentina where 147

Paula lives and one in Berlin where Mariángeles has settled. For six months of the year, they work together; three months during the Argentinian summer and three during the European summer. Mariángeles became besotted with the body-harnesses and headpieces that she discovered in London. “They had a touch of something dark, gothic and sexy.” The harnesses have grown to become the brand’s trademark. “We have always produced items that exist on the border between accessory and clothing.” It’s DIY. The harnesses are made from fabrics that spent their past lives in vintage markets, thrift stores and textile industry basements. The materials that they use can range from discarded metals, to a good friend’s old shoelaces acquired at a clothes swap party. Their brand feels at home in Berlin, a city where it’s okay to wear fetish gear in the day. As Mariángeles puts it: “In Berlin, there are no rules in terms of fashion. Only bad taste as a form of unconscious rebellion against trends and fierce capitalism.” To the Aguirre sisters, their brand is much more than a clothing company making the new out of the old. Their DIY philosophy aims to “reconnect fashion with self-expression and environmental awareness. We want to empower people and help them see themselves not as passive consumers but as active creators. We want to inspire them to do the same at home. To escape from the vicious circle of wanting-buying-wearing-discarding.” To the pair, sustainability to them means honest, a kindness in nature which is also reflected in the charity events they organise. They have recently collaborated with Greenpeace and the Berlin Clean Clothes Campaign. “We prefer to talk about Therapy- Recyclexorcise-Berlin as a project rather than a brand because it’s more than selling clothes and making money. The ‘Exorcise’ part of the name represents opening the doors to others whilst letting negative thoughts, ghosts and fears fly away.”

Photograph by @sebastianpielles Taken at Berlin Fashion week SS19 149

The sisters don’t see what they do as being in isolation from anything else. “When you work with certain values, you have a connection with the people behind the clothes. It’s about empowering everyone behind the whole process.” Therapy- Recyclexorcise- Berlin stands for inclusivity in every shape and form. “For a long time, the fashion industry has made people think that they need to fit a specific mould” they tell me. “We want to help people accept themselves exactly as they are. Individuality comes in many body types and genders - there is no need to adapt yourself.” It’s refreshing to come across headstrong individuals who have such a modern way of approaching dress. Brands, particularly the globally renowned fashion houses, need to become more socially involved. These sisters are an example of how everything starts with the underground. An authentic rejection of fast fashion’s dictatorship.