NO CIGAR
PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS
EDITOR IN CHIEF: NAT EXECUTIVE EDITOR: SUNIT WWW.NOCIGARMAGAZINE.COM COVER PHOTO: DRESSEDUNDRESSED
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS JAMES HARLE, SAM BRIGGS
CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS KENT ANDREASEN WWW.KENTANDREASEN.COM
PAUL JOHN NELSON WWW.PAULJOHNNELSON.COM
MIZENSCEN WWW.FLICKR.COM/PHOTOS/MIZENSCEN
NOIR ET BLANC WWW.NOIRETBLANC.SE
OSCAR DELMAR WWW.OSCARDELMAR.COM
SHENAZ ENGINEER WWW.NOTJUSTALABEL.COM/ENGINEER
PRISCILLA AINHOA DRESSEDUNDRESSED WWW.DRESSEDUNDRESSED.COM
TIFFANY LE WWW.WIX.COM/TLEPHOTOGRAPHY/PHOTOS
FLORA REILLY WWW.WIX.COM/FLORAREILLY/PHOTOGRAPHY
EDITORIAL OFFICE: SUITE 128, RON COOKE HUB, YORK, UNITED KINGDOM, YO10 5GE COPYRIGHT © 2011-2012 NO CIGAR LIMITED. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THE MATERIAL IN THIS MAGAZINE MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED, OR OTHERWISE USED, EXCEPT WITH WRITTEN PERMISSION OF NO CIGAR LIMITED. ALL ENQUIRIES SHOULD BE MADE TO CONTACT@NOCIGARMAGAZINE.COM.
CONTENTS
OSCAR DELMAR 68 MUSIC
STORY
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30 FLORA REILLY
THE RUBENS DUELLUM
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PAUL JOHN NELSON
FASHION NOIR ET BLANC
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40 DRESSEDUNDRESSED ENGINEER 76 ART
MIZENSCEN
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PRISCILLA AINHOA
68 OSCAR DELMAR
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PHOTOGRAPHY
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KENT ANDREASEN
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TIFFANY LE
LIFESTYLE THINGS TO LOOK FOR IN A 74 FIVE MECHANICAL TIMEPIECE
NO CIGAR
2 INFORMATION
EDITOR’S LETTER
7 CONTRIBUTORS NEXT ISSUE 92
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DRESSEDUNDRESSED
LIFE IS AS DEAR TO THE MUTE CREATURE AS IT IS TO MAN. JUST AS ONE WANTS HAPPINESS AND FEARS PAIN, JUST AS ONE WANTS TO LIVE AND NOT TO DIE, SO DO OTHER CREATURES. RESPECT LIFE AND ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR RIGHT TO LIVE WITH DIGNITY. Sponsored by an animal lover
CONTRIBUTORS
SAM BRIGGS
JAMES HARLE
Sam is one of those people who has a way with words that everyone can appreciate and a unique style that is unmatched at No Cigar. He can be brutally honest, but youll take a liking to him instantly. An english literature student at heart, Sam spends his free time obsessing over music and theatre. We’re really proud to be able to show him off at No Cigar.
We are thrilled to have James on board. He is truely one of the best interviewers and writers that we have ever met. Always looking for his next challenge, this issue has took a look at mechanical watches and what makes them worth their value. He is also a radio man, one third of ‘Three Men in a Shed’. Apparently it’s the only thing worth looking forward to on a Monday.
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NOIR ET BLANC What inspired you to start the company in the spring of 2007? We felt that there was a lack in the market for detailed, tailored clothes with modern cuts. We then decided to start Noir&Blanc to be able to create interesting printed clothes. Every season we make a new signature print to represent the brand. Who is involved in the brand? Noir&Blanc consists of two people, Petra Thoms and Linnea Carlgren. We have recently also involved other people from different fields like economy, graphic design etc.
What are your each individual roles? We do basically the same: design, sales, production. We have tried to divide the work, but everything is always so connected. Talk us through the steps of how you create a collection from the initial mood board to the finished collection. We always start out with a theme, it can be anything from space to ink splatter and then we try to build the collection around that. Often our inspiration is displayed in the prints. Our significant style is always shown in the clothes not depending on season and inspiration. We try to create strong silhouettes and sharp cuts each season. Feminine clothes with
a lot of inspiration from men´s fashion. Fun and creative. Looking at a lot of your past collections you seem very inspired by geometry. What is it about geometry that draws you to it? It´s very inspiring to take some geometric forms and place them together to create a unique shape. We love the opportunity to combine a variety of geometric shapes, to search for new forms and silhouettes. Talk us through the latest collection. What were the inspirations? Paradise Revisited s/s 2012 Wild animals and nature were the starting points for the collection. The inspiration source has lead to the inclusion of material mix and bright floral colours that now exist within the collection as a uniformed aesthetic, allowing the overall look to be an opposing mix clean white, sharp black and neon colours creates the perfect summer colour palette. Orange treads that looks like visible seams holding the garments together. Positive vibes, animal embroideries and pierced leather makes this collection feel like a playful jungle as always combined with a lot of masculine influences both in material and cuts. This collection is a very wide and attractive source of creative experiments. It was essential to emphasize the importance of contrariety - vibrant prints inspired by coral reefs, space and colour explosions, together with traditional techniques, undersized shapes versus lightness. Craft is centre in this collection where we have put a lot of focus on quality and traditional techniques. For the first time introducing Handmade embroidery as part of the collection to make it more outstanding and exclusive. Which was the most difficult piece to make in your latest collection? Why? It was the dress with the orange ribbons in front, it consists of around 30 different pieces to stitch together and then add all the eyelets etc. It doesn’t look so complicated but it is a very detailed dress. What is your favourite material to work with? We always work a lot with viscose because it is quite heavy but still thin and that makes it drape very nice. Heavy stretch fabrics is also a favourite, easy to “mould” into cool shapes. What’s your favourite piece that you have ever made? I just love the Space coral print in our latest
collection for s/s 2012. So I would have to say any of those items. We also did a underwear set for a company called Twilfit with hundreds of handmade brass triangles all over that is one of my favourites. If you had to collaborate with another brand who would it be and why? It´s hard to tell one, but I believe the most fun is to make unexpected collaborations in another field. Right now we are doing furniture with our prints. Collaborations like that is always more interesting when you get to learn from each other. What is your greatest achievement to date? Winning the best Newcomer at the ELLEawards is definitely a great achievement for us, that meant a lot being new in the business. Having a show at Shanghai fashion week last year is also one of our most delightful events. What is next for Noir et Blanc? Now we are excited to expand into new markets, So keep your eyes open for Noir&Blanc.
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KENT ANDREASEN
Andreasen’s life revolves around creation and unique experiences. Despite being a film student he clearly is talented at the still image. Unique is the word many would use to describe his photography. Hailing from Cape Town, South Africa, No Cigar eagerly awaits his next move. Tell us a bit about yourself. You are from South Africa, what do you normally get up to? What’s a normal day for you? I’m a twenty one year old film student from Cape Town, South africa. My life consists of exploring my surroundings and enjoying the diverse city that I lIve in. I enjoy spending time in the ocean and the outdoors. A normal day for me consists of attending college and trying to take something away from that each day. If I’m lucky enough, I can sneak in a surf at the end of the day to unwind which also allows me to spend time with friends doing something we all enjoy.
How did you get into taking photographs? Why? It all began one year on a family holiday to a game reserve . I took my camera along that I hardly ever used and decided to snap away some photos of the animals and surroundings I came into contact with. I found it exciting and it sparked a passion in me that then evolved into what my photography is today . From my first photography set , I feel I have grown, and still get that feeling of excitement when I capture a photo of interest or intrigue. Which photographers out there inspire you? Pieter Hugo, Sam Haskins , Andrew Bass , Misha Taylor and Narius Rius, but I think I’m more inspired by everyday exposure to various images and surroundings than by anything else. How would you describe your style of photography? I don’t limit myself to just doing one type of photography and get different satisfaction out of taking photos of different subjects using film and digital. It’s all completely different and this I feel helps me grow and develop my skills and eye for different experiences. Therefore I think my photography style is one that is free and is open to new interactions and interesting experiences. It has no limits and I let it grow and change as my perspective on life changes as I get older.
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What do you look for when you are about to shoot a photograph? I tend to see the photo I want to take before i have put the viewfinder to my eye . So when I’m about to take the photo I just look for the framing and composition that appealed to me before I even picked up my camera. When I shoot my fashion work I interact with the model until the pose that appeals to me is achieved and then I frame and shoot.  I have trust in my eye and that first initial recognition of a subject I find interesting and from there I shoot accordingly to achieve what I feel to be the best result. What the most fun you have ever had on a shoot? What happened? Well recently I was shooting a conceptual fashion piece titled black sands on a snow white beach in amongst the dunes. I had fun on this shoot because it was the perfect setting and the shots I got were exactly how I saw them when my stylist and I were planning the shoot . We had the model holding machetes and making her drink warm milk that we had accidentally left in the sun and then let it pour out of her mouth all over herself. She was not happy with us but we had a good laugh about how absurd it may have looked if bystanders saw what we were doing.
Who would you love to sit for you in a photograph? Without a doubt I would like to take a photo of David Attenborough because not only does he narrate some of my favourite nature documentaries but he also is a pioneer when it comes to exploring the world with a camera and documenting his travels. Someone offers you a free ticket to anywhere, where would you go? I would love to go to the Galapagos islands or the Mentawai islands because these places offer beautiful landscapes and unique interactions with the ocean. The blogpost titled Isle show cases very different photography from what you normally do, what was the theme there? The isle series came about while I was on holiday in a seaside town. I had been shooting film my entire trip. I needed some instant gratification so I went and took some very simple photos with no significance. I used these to make collages and edited them strangely just to make them more interesting. They were produced because I was bored and impatient.
Someone asks you to do a series of photographs where one object is always present in every photo. Which picture would that be? The one object I would choose is something that you can travel on water with. So I would shoot various people around the world and how they use this object to interact with water they interact with everyday. Someone asks you to convey ‘love’ in a photograph, what would you take a picture of? I would take a black and white photo of someone swimming underwater in the ocean. Where do you hope photography will take you? What do you plan to do in the future as a job? I would love to make a living from photography that allows me to travel to unique parts of the world and meet various people with varied perspectives . My ultimate job would be to work as an all round creative, merging my film degree with my photography . I would love to have the freedom to work freelance and be able to shoot various fashion,surf and lifestyle pieces. Is there anything else you would like to add? Thanks No Cigar Magazine for showing interest in my work and sharing it with your readers.
It’s monday morning, you are...? On my way to college Digital or analog? Analog A skill you have that no one knows about is? Umm.. I have a dive master certificate Song that gets you moving is? Black Flies - Ben Howard Picture that you’ve taken that you most treasure is? A photo of three palm trees I took in thailand. They symbolise freedom and island life.
THE THING ABOUT MIZENSCEN One of your big inspirations is early cinema, what is it that draws you to it? Film in general inspires me, but the root of my cinephilia can be condensed to one filmic term “mise-en-scène” - which essentially means a film’s visual theme/aesthetic or more specifically, the aspects of a film’s visual style (set design, lighting, editing, costumes, etc.). When it comes to silent films, I’m fascinated by images that are visual striking particularly ethereal or gritty, but that also evoke a sense of melancholia. I also love German Expressionist films that display a darker, abstract stylization. Musicals are also an inspiration for their whimsicality and gaiety, particularly those in Technicolor. A lot of early cinema was silent with live music. What would be your soundtrack? Coincidentally, I have a playlist of eight tracks in which I describe it as “my life as a silent film.” It’s a small selection of minimalist and classical artists such as: Philip Glass, Erik Satie, Grieg Peer Gynt, Chopin, Beethoven and Kjartan Sveinsson just to
name a few. Generally, my go-to music is traditional Jazz and Jazz vocalists, but my real life soundtrack is all over the place. This is just a sample off of my last.fm: Keely Smith, Ólafur Arnalds, Salem, Blossom Dearie, The Sounds. What artistic background do you have? The majority of my “artistic” background is in photography and film production. As a matter of fact, it’s my profession. When it comes to my illustrations and collages, I’ve always had a penchant for drawing and everything mixed media, but it has always been a pastime until recently. I’ve been venturing to work on my artwork full-time, but as of right now, you could say I’m not an artist by trade. How would describe your style? The style of my work emerges through the fusion of gleaned vintage engravings, photography and illustrations. Simply put – surrealist digital collage.
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Our favourites are the B&R, H&R, S&R, what’s the inspiration behind them? Well the Anatomy and Roses series is more or less an exploration between the juxtapositions of beauty and horror. Or I should say, how beauty and horror are one of the same and exist simultaneously. The way I represent that is by juxtaposing anatomical parts (what some may consider horrific) with roses (what most consider beautiful). By combining the two pieces of imagery, the spectator will be inclined to see the overall image as simply being beautiful, overlooking anything horrific about the image. If you could deliver one message through your art, what would it be? I leave that open to the viewer. I believe that it’s essential for a spectator to conclude his or her own interpretation of the piece. While the purpose of my work is solely to express my love of the macabre and whimsy, I do continue to explore some of the juxtapositions as I described before, but I simply want my images – my “mise-en- scène” – to grasp the spectator’s eye and evoke a feeling. What is your favourite early cinema film? For the cinephile there is never just one favourite, so here are a few: Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (1920), The Red Shoes (1948), Metropolis (1927), Blackmail (1929), The Boy With The Green Hair (1948), Un Chein Andalou (1929), The Blue Bird (1918), Moonland (1926), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1909), J’accuse (1909), and Peter Pan (1924). This is just a small list! What is your greatest achievement to date? My greatest achievement is a personal one - to have found/known the greatest love that one will ever know.
WELL SUITED
PHOTOGRAHER: FLORA REILLY
D.
PRISC AINH
CILLA HOA
DRES UNDRE
SSED ESSED
“KIMONO, HAKAMA, ORIGAMI AND TRADITIONAL JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE ALL INFLUENCE OUR DESIGNS.”
How did you come up with the name dressedundressed, what does it mean? As a collection created by a man and a woman, it is an open-ended combination of different elements. Men and woman have different styles and thoughts. We want to cross the border between them, and as a result we chose the contradictive words to be our brand name. We want to be able to freely create items without any restrictions or boundaries and that is exactly what dressedundressed stands for. How did you guys meet? We met when Takeshi was working as a store director. Takeshi was looking for a partner to work with, and knew me, Emiko at the same time. His instinct told him to ask me to work with him. What is your fashion background? We do not have any specific fashion background. Our inspiration comes from music, movies, art and other cultural interests. To me, this is our background and it means a lot to me.
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You are a DJ duo as well as fashion designers, how do you think fashion and music link? To us, music and fashion are closely intertwined. We love to get a feel for the atmosphere and not just the visual and auditory sensations that music and fashion contain. Visual and auditory matter, but the ambiance, which includes space and situation is the most important. Without space and context, the visual and auditory senses do not make a great impact. We share the same sense of values as designers and DJs and this shows in our work. For 2012-2013 AW, we are making a fashion movie with a London based artist named Malcolm Pate. He is a cutting-edge artist, who’s name is on SHOW studio’s contributor list. The soundtrack to our fashion movie is composed by Tokyo based artist, NOOS. We believe that the movie is going to be brilliant because of the way it will play with all the senses and elements of fashion and music. You started the label in 2009, how has it grown or changed since? We started with a small 5 item collection 3 years ago. Now, thanks to the efforts from my friends at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo we are going to have our first runway show. We really appreciate the support that we have got to get us to where we are now. You once said ‘by designing, we think that we can express our message more directly.’ What is that message? We want to highlight people’s original likeable characteristics. We feel that we can do this through fashion and design our clothes to show them off. How do you ensure that your clothes are high quality? (e.g. using only certain materials etc.) We ensure it through the quality of Japanese sewing techniques and fabrics. We are very proud of them. Your latest collection features a lot of leather straps used in different ways. What was the inspiration behind that? Our latest collection is themed after continuous, uninterrupted circular motion. We express these words through the use of leather belts. One of your pieces from the new collection resembles a thinner version of a Hakama, does japanese culture play a role with the brand and the designs? How? Yes, we are very proud of Japanese culture. For example, Kimono, Hakama, Origami and traditional Japanese architecture all influence our designs. We like to express Japanese minimalism through our work, and this has been increasingly prominent in the new collections. What would you be doing if you weren’t DJing or designing clothes? Anything we can do to create a feeling of happiness within people. What’s next for the brand? We want our creation to communicate with more people. We are constantly thinking of our brand and ways to improve it and make it better.
On a saturday night you are...? We often go to parties. But recently we’ve been too busy to go. Where would you suggest to visit in Tokyo? TRUMP ROOM You are doing a DJ set, what are you wearing? Our own brand of clothes. We wear them most of the time, not only when we’re DJing.
THE RUBENS LAY IT DOWN
“THE TRACKS SHOULD SUGGEST THAT THIS RISE IS MORE THAN JUST THE ‘LUCK BREAK’” ALL MUSIC REVIEWS BY SAM BRIGGS
It’s probably ignorant, insolent and just a little bit insulting to admit that one of the most influential Australian musical exports, to my mind, is the wobble board. Not many artists can command the attention of tens of thousands of people at 11am on a Glastonbury morning, let alone attempt to sustain it by covering a series of established guitar classics using merely a 2 foot by 3 piece of hardboard. Respect where it’s due, Rolf, but I doubt Led Zeppelin will be covering “Tie Your Kangaroo Down, Sport” on their next reunion tour. It is, however, possibly telling of the lack of any real defining “Australian” sound that global audiences can instantly identify with. For all their exploits, any line of development drawn between AC/DC, Nick Cave and Kylie can be seen to be both tenuous, and not nationally self-sufficient. For up-and-coming band The Rubens, this appears to cause little difficulty. Formed in Menangle, a tiny village near New South Wales, previously the infamous namesake of a virus infecting strangely humans, pigs, and bats, their sound is much more reminiscent of American blues, and harks back to 60s soul. For a town registering only 327 in a census five years ago, the band consists of, possibly unsurprisingly, 3 brothers and a long-term childhood friend. Not many bands can claim to collectively account for over 1% of their hometown’s inhabitants. Recently landing a spot at number 57 on the Australian “Triple J Hottest 100”, representing a purely listenerbased vote conducted by the national radio station, The Rubens are defying their small town origins. On the strength of just a handful of internet-only tracks, they are currently holed up in New York with producer David Kahne recording their debut album, and indeed, release. With Kahne’s roster of previous clients including Paul McCartney and the Strokes, expectations are mounting. For a band formed under a year ago, with seemingly little label or financial backing, their growing rise is impressive. The tracks should suggest that this rise is more than just the “lucky break” the Margin brothers and drum-
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continued
mer Scott Baldwin describe it as. On the whole, their soul drenched smooth take on American blues deserves recognition. Despite the band professing their greatest influence to be the Black Keys, their more relaxed feel results in a more tender pace, which lets the strong melodies of tracks such as “Lay it Down” and “My Gun” shine. Although not ragged enough to merit comparison to the drive of early Kings of Leon, The Rubens are rough enough around the edges to sound more like a guitar-based Cold War Kids. Originality is not their strongest suit, but the band resist becoming derivative by infusing their brand of the blues with a sultry feel, rather than the whisky soaked atmosphere of their primary influences.
DUELLUM
As of five minutes ago, I’ve just become their 5,000th facebook fan. If 2012 holds the same for the Rubens as last year did, this number is sure to multiply.
There’s one thing I will say for Duellum – they all have brilliant names. Weirdly, the soundbite they promote themselves with is “four frenchmen with English sounding names”. Perhaps it’s my group of friends, but it’s not often I casually run into a Frédéric Demaison, Hugo Cosnard or Jonathan Dupriez. And pick of the bunch Arthur De Rohan-Chabot sounds more like the name of an aristocratic French robot than your average English Joe. The quartet’s first EP came out at the tail-end of last year, entitled “For Some Reasons I Want to Talk”, through Ouich-Eaters, a “French collective born from the will to gather the talents of each one of its members, around original and creative projects focused on the
music and audiovisual environment”. Unfortunately, the music itself often lacks the innovation required to contextualise such mission statements as much more than delusions of grandeur. Whilst not unpleasant listening, Duellum’s first EP falls short of being an “original and creative” project. The four piece tap into a tried and tested formula that has long become old hat, right from the strained Courteneers-esque lead vocal to the danceable simple melodies of Two Door Cinema Club. It’s never bad, just never more than derivative. Occasionally, the songs present a more engaging musical section, usually driven
by an off-kilter drum beat. The opening of the first two tracks suggests the jittery attraction of more math-rock influenced bands. You could easily mistake the first bars of “Nancy’s the Queen” for the chiming guitars and challenging rhythms of Foals’ first album, and the start of “The Penny Dropped” echoes the pulsing beat of “Hummer” closely. However, the introduction of the frontman’s bland angst consistently brings Duellum back to the level of “indie-bynumbers”. The video for the aforementioned track follows a similar arc – with the opening combining great cinematography with moody atmosphere, until a weird purple Furbie enters the equation. However, the instrumental “All
Work and No Play” does work to create an effective atmosphere. It is unfair to criticise a French band writing in English on their lyrics, but even those quoted on their bandcamp page aren’t too thought provoking. Not that everything should be judged on its philosophical integrity, but lines like “she taught me to spit out my life in an empty bin!” and “No laughter, no candles, no bruises, no kisses!” don’t help raise Duellum’s EP out of mediocrity. Nor does the endlessly repeated “Why” undermine any stereotypical portrait of twentysomething male angst. Though the trouble with Duellum’s first
EP is hinted at in the slightly relevant soundbite at the speech’s end – “Signifying nothing”, it would be snobbery to deny them their catchy melodies, and their danceable rhythms have potential to infiltrate many a teenage indie dancefloor. For the moment, though, they and fall short of reaching the canon they quote – literary or otherwise. I can only hope they realise the potential that parts of their tracks show, and that following releases play up more to their strengths.
THERE’S A FOX IN THE SINK.
PHOTOGRAPHER: PAUL JOHN NELSON
“AND THAT WAS WHEN I FELT LIKE I HAD BEEN SHOT DOWN.”
“I’M WALKING OUT THAT DOOR AGAIN.”
STAINS OF COLOURS
AN INTERVIEW WITH THE ARTIST OSCAR DELMAR What would you say makes a good artist? Work, mistakes, experimentation and trust. Those are the things that will enrich your work and make a good artist. What did you learn from studying at the faculty of fine arts that is most precious to you? When I studied at the faculty of fine arts, I didn’t consider myself an artist. I just wanted to learn the whole range of possible techniques, artistic styles, materials and thoughts etc to avoid limiting myself and restricting my vision. At the end of it, I felt I had the knowledge of many different techniques which gave me the freedom to express what I wanted or needed in every moment. Maybe that is the most precious thing. You do everything from design, sculptures, installation and street art. Which is your favourite media and why? Each one has its moment, but I would say that illustration and graphic design in many ways I find most appealing. I portray my own emotions and experiences when painting with water colours. The speed with which the colour and brush flow, and the delicacy of playing with the white of the paper.
that person or ask a friend to pose for a photograph. I want the portraits to be based on someone real, to help the process of isolating the expression. I paint the parts of the face that interest me with water colours, then I separately work on the colour stains and then combine the two digitally. This method is mainly for the portraits, but it doesn’t apply to all the art that I do. Where would you like art to take you? I just want it to help me to continue expressing myself, as well as answer existing questions but also make me new questions.
What inspired the portraits collection? Minimalism has a strong influence on how I view things, and a lot of the time I look for the most basic sensations or feelings in them. This is one of the reasons why I do not define the shape of the face in my portraits collection. It draws the focus to the facial expressions and what they are evok-
“The mistakes teaches you, and you have to believe and trust in how you do everything.”
Which artistic skill would you want to develop more of? I currently concentrate on everything that I discover through water colour illustrations. But I also like to constantly experiment and there is no particular artistic skill I would like to develop more of, it could be anything. If you could do something you’ve done differently, what would it be? Nothing. The mistakes teache you, and you have to believe and trust in how you do everything.
ing. With the ‘stains of colour,’ I am showing the make up; which is a way of hiding. A way of changing or moulding ourselves. Just one of the very many masks we have. What was the process used in the portraits collection? (e.g. did you draw from real life or a picture, what media was used in the portraits etc.) I start with a picture of a specific expression, I think about what kind of gesture or emotion would interest me, what I need the image to portray. I then do a search on several websites and contact
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FIVE THINGS TO LOOK FOR IN A MECHANICAL TIMEPIECE
A proper mechanical watch- or timepiece, or even chronometer, if you’re willing to pay that much- is a thing of beauty. If you’re interested in getting one then you’re probably already aware that there are many easier ways to keep track of actual minutes and seconds , but where’s the fun in that? No, the mechanical watch is much more popular today as a fashion itemand with good reason; a fine piece shows the skill and intricacy of its craftsmanship, and is in fact one of the most complex and beautiful articles of jewellery one could buy.
WORDS BY JAMES HARLE
Of course, along with that attraction can come a considerable price tag- so you need to know in advance what to look for. We all know the feeling of arriving home with something different to what the attendant showed you at the store, and the best way to avoid that is to ask the right questions in the first place. So, without further delay, here are five things to look for in a good mechanical watch.
Mechanism The mechanism itself- i.e. the entire system of cogs and wheels which keep the hands moving- is very important when selecting a mechanical watch. The clue, after all, is in the name. Luckily, many watches keep the mechanism visible nowadays, since watching the system at work gives a good idea of how complex the piece is to craft, and adds to the aesthetic appeal; if the one you’re looking at doesn’t, ask the attendant if it’s possible to see inside. The next problem is actually working out what’s what amongst all those wheels and cogs. Don’t be intimidated! There is only one vital part to spot to determine the quality of the watch: the balance wheel. The balance wheel is a small wheel which twists backwards and forwards as the cogs turn. It’s like the pendulum of a grandfather clock: it should move exactly regularly backwards and forwards, which makes it quite easy to identify. If it doesn’t, the mechanism is faulty. Winder Mechanical watches work using energy from the mainspring- which means, in layman’s terms, you gotta wind ‘em. Usually. Some watches are self-winding, and in this case it is usually the movement of your wrist which keeps the hands moving, if you see what I mean. Be sure you know which type you want, because it has a big impact on the price- but speaking as someone who owns a number of mechanical watches, I can tell you that it’s a big time-saver. Some pieces must be wound every other day to keep regular time, and no matter how awesome it looks on your wrist, if you get sick of winding it you might as well wear a quartz.
Brand I know it sounds crass, but when it comes to mechanical watches the brand makes a big difference. This doesn’t mean you’ve got to stick with Rolex, though, so don’t worry about breaking the bank- but try and find a manufacturing company which is well established, and has a good reputation. Mechanical watches are a traditional item, so the older the company the better. Jewel Bearings Jewel Bearings are added to a watch to increase the accuracy and efficiency of the balance wheel and increase the life of the watch. Whether the piece has them or not is difficult to tell at a glance, so it’s best to ask. They are real jewels- usually ruby or sapphire in a modern watch, but some manufacturers use diamond; the type of jewel makes almost no difference to the functionality. They are difficult to see, so don’t expect sparklers you can show off to your friends- but jewel bearings are a more subtle indication of the quality of a piece. You will also find that some items will be listed as ’13 jewel watches’, for example, or anything up to 27 jewel. This is purely for show; 17 jewel is considered a fullyjewelled watch, adding more has no real effect.
to hold out for perfection when purchasing. Also remember that, unlike modern watches, a mechanical watch will more than likely be built to lastso consider the long term as well as the short term when you make your choice. So there you have it, a spotter’s guide to mechanical watches. As with many important purchases, you’ll probably want to buy your mechanical watch in a physical shop rather than online; don’t underestimate yourself. Just by handling an item, most people can get a good feel for its quality- and when you shop online, you lose the opportunity. Also, as I said, don’t hesitate to ask questions. If the attendant has no answers, or responds anything other than politely, that’s a good sign that you should take your business elsewhere. There’s a lot to think about, but a fine mechanical watch is as artistic and pleasing to the eye as it is meticulously functional, and there are few more sophisticated accessories on the market today.
Face The most basic, and yet the most important aspect of any watch is the face. It’s the part you’ll look at, the part other people will see, and probably the part of the watch which will require most care from you. Check the quality, thickness and clarity of the glass (again, don’t be afraid to ask) and ask yourself whether the aesthetic quality of the face itself is what you’re looking for. A quality mechanical watch is a real investment, so this is one item where you will really want
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ENGINEER
Shenaz Engineer is the brains behind Engineer. Hailing from Brisbane, she had a change of heart whilst studying Science at university and decided to follow her artistic vision instead. Having now done an internship in Alexander McQueen and a successful graduation show there is no looking back now. You changed from biomedical science to fashion, what caused you to make the change? Throughout my studies, I had always envisioned myself becoming a Pediatrician, as I was fascinated by the mystery and intrigue of the realm of scientific behaviour. However, I found myself craving a field in which I could express myself creatively, entering a world in which imagination, creative adventure and self expression take flight. At times, I crave the connection to science, and the ability to help/ connect with people on an intimate level; but this can be achieved through a number of ways. I think it is important to dabble in a wide array of projects to remain grounded and in sync with the world. Has your earlier studies in biomedical science affected or influenced your designs in any way? There are definitely strong scientific links seen within the designs. For example my graduate collection, ‘A Kaleidoscopic Perspective’, heavily involved research into the anatomy of the human body, in a bid to digitally contour the prints to the landscape of the body and give an illusion of transparency. What is the core value for your designs? I value design that’s based on a point of view, an inspiring background that can ignite thought and action.
Which designers do you look up to? Yohji Yamamoto, Hussein Chalayan, Alexander McQueen, Issey Miyake What was the most important thing that learnt whilst you interned at Alexander McQueen? I think more than anything the internship gave me the confidence to realise that one can achieve anything with hard work and determination. It was an incredible environment, working alongside a talented team of people from all around the world. Your graduation collection was a massive hit. What was the hardest part of designing and putting together the collection? I guess as a designer, you are your harshest critic, so naturally you have moments of doubt – which can be hard. It was a long, challenging process that involved much experimentation, but nothing beats the reward of seeing your vision slowly materialize before you. It makes the sleepless nights all worth it! Where do you get the inspiration for the prints used in your graduation collection? The digital engineered prints were a large conceptual and aesthetic component of the collection. My graduate collection ‘A Kaleidoscopic Perspective’ invites the voyeur to experience the worldview perspective through the conceptual lens of a kaleidoscope. Representative of a diametrically opposed perspective, this collection systematically seeks to deconstruct this intriguing object. It seeks to lure the viewer into a world full of miraculous structural formations, distortions and illusions, whilst highlighting the notion of impermanence and continual change, bringing people to question reality itself.
The idea of bizarre jumbled images in disarray, as a sign of fragmentation of modern life and or the loss of reality is a familiar metaphoric conception to us all. Hence, a strong series of my own images were carefully dissected and digitally engineered to the body in a bid to portray the concept of the collection to the voyeur, creating a transparent illusion of the human body and distorting one of the most complex organic forms. If you were to open your own shop tomorrow, describe what it would be like? It would be a concept store with the state of the art technology, which would house intriguing collaborations from a range of disciplines - embodying the ENGINEER brand identity. If you could work with any brand or designer who would it be? It would be a dream of mine to be mentored and work with designers like Hussein Chalayan and Yohji Yamamoto who stay true to their visions. A dream collaboration of mine would also be to make a collection for Adidas, delving into the latest fabric technologies and forming a totally new luxury sportswear interpretation. What is your greatest achievement so far? Well I will admit my career is still very young so there are still many things I would like to achieve. However, since graduating it has been a very exciting time for me and the brand ENGINEER, I have had the opportunity to travel around the world with my collection for various international design awards, collaborations and exhibitions, enjoying every unique experience.
THE PHOTOGRAPHER WHO ISN’T AFRAID TO GO AFTER WHAT SHE WANTS. PHOTOGRAPHER: TIFFANY LE
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