Quill Magazine Spring Issue by Quill Magazine

Editor in Chief Charlotte ClĂŠ

Columnists Daniel Evans Richard Blackmoore Valerie Gartner Lauren Sharkey Felicity Taylor Phoebe Amoroso

Graphic Design Kyveli Charalampidou

Fashion Editorials Pia Pereira

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Quill Magazine Spring/Summer Issue 2014. All images within this issue fall within the terms of copyright or are part of the public domain as far as the publisher is aware. See the magazine online at www.quillmagazine.co.uk

CONTENT ART 06 ARTIST Raúl DE NIEVES 14 Notes of Transatlantic Desolation 20

JEWELS BY JAR

Zaria Forman’s Pastel Drawings

36 SOUND OF IKEBANA, NAOKO TOSA 40 THE POWER OF REINVENTION

FASHION 46 MADEMOISELLE LA SAPE 52 IT’S ALL ABOUT IMAGE AND BOLD STATEMENT 62 Inside Jill Rock’s Atelier : OPART 72 THE FUTURE OF TEXTILES: FROM BIO-LACE TO NERVOUS SYSTEMS IN YOUR CLOTHING 82

for the love of MONEY

FOOD 90 TO NEVER EAT AGAIN: HOW TECHNOLOGY IS CHANGING OUR RELATIONSHIP TO FOOD 94 EAT OUT IN LONDON

Publisher Quill Magazine. Printing in whole or in part is expressly forbidden without written permission from the publisher. The publisher declines any responsability for manuscripts and photos sent directly. The views expressed in the magazine are those of the contributors and are not necessarily shared by the magazine. All right reserved.

Artist Raúl de Nieves By D a n i el Eva n s

All images courtesy of Raúl de Nieves

Each pair of his shoes, and even each individual shoe, can be very much its own creation. The best way to engage with these sculptures is in collection – from all the bursts of colour and shape, you will start to find the sense of the intricacy and chaos at work.

ART

When I first saw the sculptures created by Raúl de Nieves, I didn’t know where to start. Each pair of his shoes, and even each individual shoe, can be very much its own creation. The best way to engage with these sculptures is in collection – from all the bursts of colour and shape, you will start to find the sense of the intricacy and chaos at work. Many of them are somehow natural, as if they’ve grown that way, like corals from warm, tropical reef, and yet you will see that they are the product of painstaking attention to detail, like the bright jewels of highest royalty. The most obvious aspect to these sculptures is that they’re shoes. It is also by viewing them in collection that you will most appreciate what this brings to this work. As anyone who has a closet full of shoes will be able to tell you, aside from their practical purpose, shoes also serve an aesthetic one, perhaps none more so than heels, which de Nieves favours. It’s very fitting, then, that these sculptures are

so transformed, to be put on show, and that de Nieves has given us such a collection to peruse. Below Quill Magazine has asked Raúl de Nieves about his work. What is the inspiration behind your shoes? The shoes present new ideas on the practicality of sculpture and installation, as well as the empowering and transformative magnificence of apparel. What do you want people to think when they see them? What are you trying to say or achieve? I want them to imagine birth, psychedelic experiences, life; the idea of bacterial taking over an object. Labour, love, freedom of individuality. How do you make them? What materials do you use? I use my old shoes and give them a new life. Each bead starts to make a form so there’s a great part of the process that becomes meditative. Balance plays a great part in the works. Watching the beads dry in seconds allows for quick repetitive patterns.

ART

Are any of them actually wearable? Yes of course some can be wearable, but I’m trying to surpass the idea of practicality, and letting form become the main focus. What is important to you in artistic creation? Spirituality and culture is very important. Are any of your shoes or other creations exhibited anywhere? Where can people see your work? I show with LOYAL gallery in Malmo, this coming month I will have new works in Los Angeles. I also have a performance residence at ISSUE Project Room for the year of 2014. I will be performing as part of the Whitney biennial this coming year under Robert Ashley and Alex Waterman’s opera Vidas Perfectas (Perfect Lives).

Will you make any more shoes? What are you working on right now? What can weexpect from you in the future? Yes. More shoes are in the works - in the summer I will be creating a pop-up store at Issue Project called “Heel Yourself ”. This instillation will be centred around a conceptual “pop-up shoe store” wherein a variety of shoe sculptures will be arranged. Each piece will be fully wearable and functional affording guests a complete immersion within the lavish atmosphere, and the uncanny experience of existing inside each individual piece. Each shoe will have its own purpose and capability. For example, some will function as actual synthesizers whereby the viewer can improvise musically, creating their own sound composition.

ART

Cats or dogs? Dogs, I want to have a doggy named SHEETO. Tea or Coffee? I love caffeine.

Summer or winter? Summer, I grew up in Mexico so the heat is my best friend. Cowboys or aliens? ALIENS. Truth or dare? Dare.

ART

Notes of Transatlantic Desolation By R i cha r d Bla ckm o o r e Images so u r ced fr o m t he W hi t n ey Mu seu m o f A m er i c a n A r t

An examination of the way in which the American painter Edward Hopper and the English poet Phillip Larkin address the bleakness of everyday life in the United States and Britain during the 20th century. In one instance, the degree of convergence between the two is eerie.

ART

Bl ackhea d , Monhegan by Edward Ho p p er

It is the ability to sublimate bleakness by means of the crucible of their art that conjoins the American painter Edward Hopper and the English poet Phillip Larkin. Working roughly at the same time across the Atlantic and in their respective mediums, both men transform the weighty daily currents of loneliness and alienation into paintings and poems that are as striking for

(and oftentimes wickedly and unforgivingly funny) Larkin produced some of the most haunting verses in English out of the inescapable and distressing daily experiences of dreariness, desolation and monotony.

their subject matter as they are for the force

As research will show, this connection has

of their immediacy. In paintings such as the

previously been noted (the internet, alas, at

famed Nighthawks, where customers gather

times makes one feel that there is no such

in a half-empty diner, or the almost sickly

thing as an original thought), for in The

depictions of a factory amidst the muggy

London Review of Books, Alan Bennett

yellow air in East River, Hopper stunningly

is invited to speculate on what he would

captures the penetrating isolation and anxiety

give Larkin for his sixtieth birthday. He

of American urban life and the objects and

writes: “I would give him, too, any work

buildings that populate it.

by Edward Hopper, whose paintings could

Phillip

Larkin,

who

famously

said,

“deprivation was to him what daffodils were for Wordsworth,” elegiacally, if also snidely and sarcastically, composed poems about gloomy events in English life. Always firmly removed from the orbit of sentimentality

often pass as illustrations to the poems of Larkin.” So although most admirers of both the painter and poet will have most likely already registered this correlation, there is an instance— uncharted to my knowledge— where their visions seem to coincide almost perfectly. In poem XXII of his early collection The North Ship, Larkin writes the following:

ART

East Ri ver b y Edward Ho pper

“ One man walking a deserted platform; Dawn coming, and rain Driving across a darkening autumn; One man restlessly waiting a train While round the streets the wind runs wild, Beating each shuttered house, that seems Folded full of the dark silk of dreams, A shell of sleep cradling a wife or child. ” “One m a n wa lki n g a d eser t ed p la t fo r m ” b y P hi l l i p L a r k i n

Also during his twenties (according to the publication date Larkin would have been 23), albeit a few decades earlier, Edward Hopper at 26 painted The El Station, a bleak and desolate depiction of an amorphous, almost sexless and ghostly figure expecting a train. While dawn has already fallen on Hopperâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s scene, the darkness of the platform against the simple and indeed shell-like pinkish facades of

the neighbouring

houses causes one to shudder. The aggravating rupture from the home, and the senselessness of the journey are apparent in both poem and painting. In the following stanza of the same

T he El S t a t i o n

ART

poem, Larkin writes: “Who can this ambition trace/ To be each dawn

perpetually

While

Larkin

journeying.”

describes

the

“darkening autumn” and blurring rain, the clarity of

Hopper’s

sky is oppressive because of its pristineness, evoking the line in his famous poem Aubade where Larkin writes: “The sky is white as clay, with no sun.” Although a longer study would want to compare

how

differently

the

United States and England emerge under the responses of this similar emotional palette, not more is needed to bask at the genius of artistic alchemy that can render the agonies of despair so delicately, so beautifully. 19

Jewels by JAR By Va ler i e G a r t n er Imag es co u r t esy o f T he Met r o p o li t a n M u seu m o f A r t

JAR, the legendary jewelry brand of Joel A. Rosenthal, is currently exhibited with over 400 pieces, ranging from diamond encrusted Zebra heads to beautiful flower bouquets, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This will be the first retrospective of JAR in the United States as these pieces are normally to be found exclusively in Paris, where Joel A. Rosenthal and his business partner Pierre Jeannet are located. Part of what makes JAR such an iconic jewelry brand is indescribable, but if attempted it would be the sheer

aesthetic, authenticity and devotion with which each piece is crafted. The recurrent themes of JAR, flowers, are not mere copies of living flowers, but rather themselves living, blooming and three-dimensional creations, that rival natureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s subjects in beauty and delicacy. These creations finally appear to transcend the boundaries of stone and precious metals, they become alive and demand attention in their own respect.

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JA R Poppy Br o o ch 1 9 8 2 Diamo nd, to ur mal i nes, a n d g o ld P r i vate co l l ecti o n P ho tograph by Kathar i n a Fa er b er. Cour tesy o f JAR, Par i s

JA R Ger ani um br o o ch 2 0 0 7 Dia mo nds, al umi num, si lver, a n d g o ld P r i vate co l l ecti o n P hotograph by Jozsef Tar i . C o u r t esy o f JAR , Pa r is.

ART

JA R Tu lip Br o o ch 2 0 0 8 R u b ies, di amo nds, pi nk sa p p hi r es, ga r n et s, si lver, g o ld , a n d en a m el P r i vate co l l ecti o n P hotograph by Jozsef Tar i . C o u r t esy o f JAR , Pa r i s.

JA R Ca meo and Ro se Petal Br o o ch 2011 R u b ies, di amo nds, si l v er, g o ld P r i vate co l l ecti o n P hotograph by Jozsef Tar i . C o u r t esy o f JAR , Pa r is.

ART

JA R R a spber r y Br o o ch 2 0 1 1 R u b ies, di amo nds, br o nz e, si lver, go ld , a n d p la t i n u m Collecti o n o f Si en M. C hew P hotograph by Jozsef Tar i . C o u r t esy o f JAR , Pa r i s.

Zaria Formanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pastel Drawings By R i cha r d Bla ckm o o r e Im a g es co u r t esy o f Z a r i a Fo r m a n

The Brooklyn based artist Zaria Forman speaks to Quill about how her art can change peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspective on climate change and the challenges of creating a backdrop for the ballet Giselle.

c redit Fra ncois L e bea u

ART

It comes as no surprise to learn that critics have often labeled Zaria Forman’s work with pastels as photographic. In fact, at a quick glance, her landscapes of glaciers, icebergs, and varied bodies of water are so

don’t really see on the East Coast, where you

realistic that they could easily be mistaken for

can see a storm from really far away. It is very

photographs. While she does sometimes work

rare to find that vast openness. My mother

from a photograph to gather inspiration, her

was very inspired by it and she always wanted

elegant and imposing paintings are the result

to move to New Mexico. That is what I was

of nothing more than her memory being

trying to depict with my paintings in college,

quarried by soft pastel on paper, all created

they reminded me of that. Then we started

in her studio apartment in Park Slope—a

leaving the country for a month every sum-

Brooklyn neighborhood notoriously popular

mer. I was inspired by all these landscapes.”

with artists.

It is interesting to note that while Forman’s

While growing up in Piermont, New York,

work shares the same subject matter as her

Forman travelled to some of the most re-

mother’s, her medium is markedly mandif-

mote parts of the world, accompanying her

ferent. Instead of it being an active choice

mother (a landscape photographer) who

to carve out her own path in painting rather

would capture images of nature at its most

than photography, it is more apt to say that

violent and dramatic. It is clear that these

her gravitation towards pastels was instinctu-

trips cultivated her early artistic impulses, and

al. She says: “There is a chemistry and tech-

she speaks of them with excitement as well

nique with pastel. It’s much more simple, I

as nostalgic fondness: “When I was young

love that stripped down process. It wasn’t

we used to travel to the West of the United

really a choice that I made, to make drawings

States where you get a phenomena that you

instead of photography, it’s just what ended up happening. I was always grateful that I loved pastels because it meant that I wasn’t just copying my mother even though we have the same subject matter.”

ART

In October 2012, ten of Forman’s drawings were used to make up the set of the ballet Giselle, which was performed at the Grand Theatre of Geneva, Switzerland. Working alongside

Pontus

process and was forced to try textures and

Lidberg, her drawings were blown up and

the

choreographer

surfaces I would have never worked with. In

matched to each of the ballet sequences.

turn I grew as an artist. Being there in Geneva

Speaking about this experience, she states:

watching the dancers was so beautiful and

“I have always wanted my work to be part

wonderful to experience.”

of something else, involving other kinds of artwork. It was really exciting to see the work interact with the dancers on the stage. It was a whole new experience to collaborate with the choreographers and choose the images, and decide how that would portray the classic story of Gisele but also the way that he wanted to interpret it as a modern choreographer. That was both wonderful and challenging. I’ve never had someone tell me what to draw. I learnt a lot out of that

Despite the usual difficulties that accompany the life of any young artist, Zaria Forman’s star seems to continue to be on the rise. She has sold plenty of her work to buyers and has secured several shows for 2014. She finds in the social life of Brooklyn the necessary counterbalance to the bleak solitude of the corners of the world that is so beautifully captured in her work. When, however, she feels the need to re-immerse herself in the world of her pastels, she is fortunate to have Prospect Park—what she calls a major refuge—at her doorstep.

www.zariaforman.com These are Zaria Formanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s upcoming shows: Present timeless thythms: sensing change Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD April 4 - May 24 Winter Group Exhibit Mark Murray Gallery, New York, NY Ongoing Polar Light: Greenland Zaria Forman and Rena Bass Forman Look North, Inuit Art Gallery, Brooklyn NY Ongoing Coming up... Space // Squared A group exhibition curated by Sven Davis

White Walls Gallery, San Fransisco, CA May 10 - June 7 Ice to Island Solo Exhibition Winston Wachter Fine Art, Seattle WA Opening Reception June 10, 2014 Environmental Impact - A traveling museum exhibition Erie Art Museum, Erie, PA August 1 - September 30, 2014 Peninsula Fine Arts Center, Newport News, VA, Oct. 25, 2014 - January 4, 2015 Brookgreen Gardens, Murrells Inlet, SC, January 31 - April 26, 2015 The Art Museum, SUNY Potsdam, Potsdam, NY, September 1 - October 31, 2015 Additional Venues Pending

cr ed it Fra n cois Le b eau

ART

Sound of Ikebana, Naoko Tosa By C ha r lo t t e C lé All i m a ges co u r t esy o f N a o ko To sa

“Sound of Ikebana„ is artist Naoko Tosa‘s newest Video Art Project. It consists of liquids mixed with various colour particles

waves, in connection with the colourful ima-

that are then put on a vibrating surface. The

gination of Naoko Tosa leads to an artistic

impact of the vibrations onto the liquids is

expression of the Japanese seasons through

consequently captured by a 2,000 frames per

this modern technique of Ikebana : the bloo-

second high-speed camera, allowing us to ex-

ming cherries in spring, the red autumn leafs

perience the movement in utter stillness. The

fighting against the coming winter, snow and

technique of Ikebana, a traditional technique

camellias in winter and finally the cool sum-

for flower arrangements, is translated rela-

mer mornings. During the full video sessions

tedly into the technological age, by virtue of

Naoko Tosa selects adequate Haiku, Japane-

capturing the phenomenal moments in which

se short poems, that go along with the visual

the coloured liquids arrange themselves natu-

process. This, as well as the modern interpre-

rally with one another to form an exquisite

tation of the Ikebana technique, is Naoko

bouquet of colour. The physicality of this

Tosa‘s nod towards creating an aura of won-

result, which takes its energy from sound

der and nurturing a connection between the current Asia and its long standing culture.

ART

The Power of Reinvention By C ha r lo t t e C lé I m a g es co u r t esy o f Pa i g e Br a d l ey

A lot of people appear to associate their own life stories with your sculptures. Has there been a particularly moving story

that I only create half the circle and it is the

that changed your perspective on one of

collector, or the art appreciator, who finishes

your works?

the circle for me. Now, I always ask people to

“You just took the words right away. That is

write to me or respond when they are moved

exactly what happened to me. I was telling somebody about what the sculpture meant to me at a show and the lady said asked whether I’d like to know what it meant to her. And then, she said that it was her remission from cancer. I was just taking aback and realized at the same time that the lady had now created my sculpture in a way much more powerful than I could have ever done it by myself. It was from that day forward that I realized

by my work because it really adds to it. You know, I am by myself in this studio, I don’t hear a lot of what the people feel about my sculptures unless I go to a show. Some people even retitled the sculptures for themselves. I had one client, who collected about fifteen of my pieces, and every single time he got a new one he would have a new name for it. It was just playful for him and he really enjoyed it. It was part of his creative outlet. He didn’t have to make the pieces but he added to the creative process.“

ART

Expansion is one of your most talked about works, was it’s breaking intentional or did it happen in the heat of the moment? “It was part of moving to New York City. We were talking about going to a new place that was so big and challenging after living in my small hometown. I also came from a place where people were like: “Oh woah you could do that. Oh my gosh you can draw, you can sculpt, that is great.” But in New York you weren’t impressing anybody by doing that. They wanted you to be a visionary, they wanted you to do something that had never been done before and say something meaningful while you were doing it. Whether or not you could make something pretty didn’t matter. That was one of those moments were I said to myself: “This is heavy, I have to rebuild myself.” I had to destroy what I built, I had to start again. So, I made this sculpture that was kind of self-portrait and I started dreaming of what I wanted to do with her. When I was a child I had a little birthday book that had little sayings by everybody’s birthdays and mine happened to be: “Where there is darkness let me bring light”. That always stuck with me. I thought maybe this is a time where I need to bring some light to the darkness, for myself. I was in a place where nobody cared about figurative art. It wasn’t contemporary art, it was old art, it was classical, it didn’t matter. I took this perfectly good sculpture that I created and I said: “Here we go, I am starting over .”I just dropped the sculpture and it cracked into so many pieces on the floor. My first 42

ART feeling was sheer fear of what I had done, and then I slowly put the puzzle back together and let little gaps be there; taped it and did whatever I could to piece it back together. I sent it off to my foundry and they looked at it and opened the box and went:â&#x20AC;&#x153;What is this?â&#x20AC;?. I had to call them and tell them this is what we are going to do with it. We have to build this structure in the inside to hold all those puzzle pieces together and then put a bunch of electricity in it. They thought I was crazy, nobody had ever done anything like this before. I got a special lightening guy to come from New York City into my studio, he was having a good time with the challenge because he had never done anything like this either. Then we put Expansion out into a park that very evening and put this massive light bulb into it. We were able to light this entire place on top of the hillside with Extension right in the middle, you could see her even from the river. I walked up and all of a sudden there were ten photographers taking pictures of Expansion. I told them that I was the artist and an old woman came to me in tears; she said that her mom just came out of cancer and that she was doing really poorly with her health, and that she just feel like this Expansion has been through hell and back. This sculpture has put herself back together and she is so beautiful, the lady said. I had no idea it was going to be so big for so many people, but for me it was reforming what I was as an artist and that is why I had to break her and put her back together again. I had to do it to myself as an artist to become what I am now. You get bigger when you can fraction yourself. You always get a bit bigger every time you do it.â&#x20AC;&#x153; 43

FASHI

ION

MLaademoiselle Sape ART DIRECTION AND STYLING BY PIA PEREIRA PHOTOGRAPHY BY GIOVANNI MARTINS MAKE UP BY SOMI JANG HAIR BY ROMANDA SEVELLE ANNA B @PRM

STYLING ASSISTANT DAHLIA F. SAID

EDITORIAL FASHION

Dr ess b y Eva Lo jo do va, A4 neckla ce b y G eo r gi e Ho w li n g , si lver b r a c el et b y Hu e Ta w n Chan

Dr ess b y Eva Lo jo do va, hea d p iec e b y Geo r gi e H o w lin g , ea r ri ngs by M a ria P ia n a and ri ng by H u e Ta w n C han. O p p osite p a ge: Si l k ju mp su it b y Eva L o jod ova , vest by J H Z a n e, ea r ri ngs by 48 M a ria P ia n a.

FASHION EDITORIAL

Fel t vest a n d si l k t r o u ser s b y Eva L o jod ova , silver jew el ler y b y M ari a P i ana . W hite b u ck le cour ts by K u r t Geiger.

EDITORIAL FASHION

D r ess by Eva L ojo do va, ea r r i n g s b y Ma r ia P i a n a , b ra c elet and ri ng b y H u e Ta w n Chan a n d head p iece b y G eor g i e H ow ling .

It’s all about Image and Bold Statements By La u r en S ha r key Im a g es co u r t esy o f S a b i n e P i e p er

FASHION

The future of fashion journalism is a minefield. Have magazines lost control of what they write and what you read? ‘A picture says a thousand words’ doesn’t ring true anymore. The industry needs to evolve, give more, and accept that fluff doesn’t cut it. An actress stares at you from the cover; ‘100 Hot Buys’ and ‘Spring Essentials’ pop in pink and red tones. Inside, pages after pages of adverts displaying the latest trends bombard you with multi-textured clothing, dangerouslooking shoes and rainbow-bright lips. You occasionally stop the page-turning to peruse

Karl Lagerfeld’s newest Chanel campaign. Words are scarce in these publications. It’s all about image and bold statements. This is ‘fluffy fashion’ - the one phrase the industry tries to avoid. Yet it’s all you can seem to find lurking on newsagent shelves. It’s time to introduce some culture and intelligence. Readers want to be stimulated, not bored to death by ‘10 ways to wear a leather jacket’. Real hard-hitting articles are the missing link. The average person buying these magazines is an educated adult who wants to read designer profiles and see how they can incorporate

FASHION

catwalk trends into their everyday wardrobe. But they also want to read about the ugly side of the fashion industry: the issues that are brushed under the carpet, and the people challenging old-fashioned ideals. Unconventional production methods and the digital world’s fashion impact give more insight into the glitz and glamour business.

radio, and tweets. You’re still not at the 40 million people that read magazines in the UK. “In this environment of Twitter and fast information, magazines are more necessary than ever. They offer considered content

This ‘behind the scenes’ experience is

and space, calm, curated ideas”, said the

well documented but it’s as far as major

Managing Director of Conde Nast. Print

publications will go. No talk of ethics, race,

doesn’t look like it’s a dying breed but it does

or controversy. ‘Silence is golden’ has never

have some competition.

been so appropriate. The perfect readers

Independent and online publications enjoy

are happy to browse through inspirational images and dream of a luxury lifestyle. Others are waking up to this lack of commentary. Add up everyone who reads papers, owns a smartphone, listens to the

freedom of speech. They aren’t bound and gagged by eagle-eyed brand PRs looking for nothing less than a ‘halo effect’. This is where you’ll find topics being discussed that will never grace the pages of Vogue. Honest reviews and in-depth pieces are rarely found in the print titles that are widely seen to epitomise fashion journalism. “A good

journalist has to be able to see much further than only focusing on the garments. A variety of ideas and points of view is always positive”, says Nerea Eguia, blog editor and

and the first picture to pop into your head

social media manager of Fashion156.com.

will undoubtedly be a high-quality, designer

Higher education courses teach students to

advert. An American study asked readers

look at the wider influence and attempt to

to tear out 10 pages that summed up their

promote this.

favourite magazine. A third of those pages

Every Monday, Conde Nast’s fashion college holds a Twitter debate that manages to discuss worthwhile topics such as sexualisation and stereotypes. Just one problem: it’s not picked up by the mainstream media. Conde Nast’s own Vogue only briefly features the debate online. The ensuing thought-provoking articles that we might expect are non-existent.

were adverts. Advertising. It’s an integral part of fashion magazines. They pay for those lavish shoots and everything else that draws you in. There’s clothing, shoes, jewellery, watches, fragrances and beauty products. Not to mention the ads for properties and hotels that have been modified to target a fashion audience by including a dress here and there. This author counted 260 pages of adverts in

Money talks in the business of magazines.

just one issue of a certain magazine. 53 of

And where does that money come from?

those were placed before any sort of writing.

Think of any glossy fashion publication

That’s nothing compared to American Vogue which amassed a grand total of 470 ad pages for its most recent September issue. One editor combated the journalism vs advertising

FASHION

to the winner of 2013’s Special Recognition Award at the British Fashion Awards, Suzy Menkes, along with revered - and recently problem. Glenda Bailey, former editor of US

retired - critic, Cathy Horyn. After leading

Marie Claire, was described by The New York

fashion commentator, Colin McDowell, had

Times as “the only editor who had the nerve

been banned by the likes of Armani, Versace

to put the reader first, and it is not on page 42

and McQueen for simply writing an honest

so that the beauty and cosmetics advertisers

review, he stood his ground and published

can be in front of the contents.”

another opinion piece – albeit online.

Fashion labels hold the cards. Most magazines

“What a silly, childish charade [designers]

wouldn’t survive without advertising revenues

play,” he told The Business of Fashion

and there’s an ongoing dilemma whether

(BoF). Colin went on to describe how certain

we would miss seeing the new campaigns

designers want “journalists to feel ashamed”

displayed in print every few months. The

for having dared to criticise their work. “For

issue is control (or the lack of it).

a designer to try and exclude people because

Who has control of the media and its

they do not find it possible to praise each

coverage? Some might say editors. Others

and every collection is as sterile a move as

might think of the big publishing houses.

it is stupid. A commentator must be allowed

But it’s the huge brands that are fighting

to make a commentary. That commentary

to take over. When a critique is published, that journalist just might face a ban from the named designer’s shows. It’s happened

FASHION

must have substance. And writers of this calibre must be nurtured, not neutered, by the fashion industry.” Is it possible to give a platform to honest writing? Not when print magazines have no choice but to forge a bond with advertisers.

£26,550 is the princely price of a standard single page advert. The crème de la crème of ad placements (four pages inside the front cover) costs a measly £141,110. And

Vogue is considered as The Fashion Bible.

these designers expect to be mentioned in

62% of female glossy magazine readers

each issue. A Guardian journalist witnessed

agree, according to the 2013 Vogue Business

first-hand the “shocking cosiness between

Report. With over a million readers at the

editorial and advertising.” Lynn Barber

average age of 33, editor of the British

visited the eponymous Vogue House in 2008

version, Alexandra Shulman, says that the

and watched both editor and fashion director

magazine “is in a league of its own.” Vogue

search through a Dior look book to find

has one of the strongest relationships with

anything that could fit with their painterly

premium brands.

theme. The best they could come up with was

British Vogue made £32 million from advertising in 2007. Designers pay a huge sum of money to be seen in its shiny pages.

a spotted dress. But this was enough to keep the big guns happy. Editor Alexandra Shulman admitted that content is coloured by designer labels. “Vogue makes most of its money out of advertising

– and it does make an awful lot of money – so we’ve got to have a good relationship with our advertisers. They’re not going to place £100,000 a year and then say ‘Feel free not to use any of our goods’ – life’s not like that.”

22% more considered buying the advertised

She went on to say, “So although there is

product.

this feeling sometimes that creatively it’s not

advertising

pure, well magazines are a business, you’re

changing the foundations these high-end

not sitting there writing poetry.”

publications were built on. Magazines play a

Advertorials are a prime example of ‘fluffy fashion’. They’re the equivalent of a blogger’s sponsored post. Adopting the writing and visual style of the publication, you will read the pages of the advert without even realising. Essie shelled out for a feature spread, showing how their nail varnish

The

solution

altogether.

isn’t It’s

removing not

about

part in escaping reality but they are no longer a fantasy land. With the online world getting stronger, people are exposed to anything and everything. Print has to modernise and face the challenge of working with advertisers while keeping an independent voice. It needs to include, not exclude.

colours matched catwalk designs. Techniques

Include more balanced and questioning

like this work far too well for brands to stop

pieces on thought provoking subjects.

using. 47% more of a study group researched

Include profiles on young designers, writers,

the brand after seeing an advertorial and

and stylists. Include honest opinions on fashion week collections. And for the love of journalism, don’t let brands rule.

FASHION

61 61

i n s i d e j i l l r o c kâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a t e l i e r

OPART Art direction and Styling by Pia Pereira Photographed by Minah Son Make up by Somi Jang Hair by Kristopher Smith Kinga @PRM Styling Assistant Dahlia F. Said

EDITORIAL

63 S k ir t: Ma r ti na Spettl o va To p: Ma r t i n a S p et t lo va Br a celet / Fa n n y p a ck / Ea r r i n g s: Ja n e Bo w l er

EDITORIAL

S ki r t : Ja n e Bo w ler T -S hi r t : Eley K i shi m o t o A 4 N eck l a c e: G eo r g i e H o w l i n g

Sho r ts: Mar ti na S p et lo va Lo n g Vest : Ja n e Bo w ler S ho es: El ey K i shi m o t o P i n k Ba g : W i l b u r & G u ssi e

EDITORIAL

Bla ck Shir t: Ca r ol i na Fer nandez Gold & W hi t e d r ess: Ja n e Bo w ler S ho es: S o f t G r ey R ed H ea d P i ec e: G r a i n n e M aher Ba g: Fior el l i Oppo si te page: G r ey d r ess: C a r o li n a Fer n a n d ez Qa t a r H a t : G r a i n n e M a her S k i r t : S o f t G r ey Br a c el et /N eckla ce: Jane Bo wl er

EDITORIAL

To pp / S kir t: Eley Ki shi mo to A4 Neckla ce: G eo r g i e Ho w li n g Bla z er : M a r c M o r r i s M o k O p p o si t e p a g e: S k i r t / To p : El ey Kishimoto A4 Neckl ace: Geo r g i e Ho w li n g

The Future of Textiles : From Nervous Systems to Bio-Lace By Feli ci t y Ta y lo r

Stea lth- Wear-Ho o di e-Ser gio 1

FASHION

Fashion is endlessly reinventing itself. A dozen

trends are sliced, diced, and

overpriced to make the new season’s styles seem fresh and fierce. What’s the new black? Is this season’s trouser a bootleg or a straight

researchers increasingly work with designers

leg? Which decade is the label referencing

in helping to blow conventionality apart at

in this collection? True innovation is all

the seams. Nowadays, if it can be imagined, it

but impossible when the designer’s creative

can pretty much be done.

resources remain the same year after year. After all, a textile is just a textile. Right? That’s where you’re wrong.

Most of the textile innovators belong to one of two groups. Firstly, the A.V.M.s (Animal, Vegetable, Mineral) whose materials have as

Technology is handing tomorrow’s fashion

their starting point a natural process, but are

leaders a whole Birkin bag full of new toys

then bio-scientifically manipulated to create

to play with. From having limited textile

something unique and with potential as a

options such as: woven or knit, natural or

fashion textile. Secondly, the Networkers.

synthetic, hot pink or pale pink, scientists and

These people develop e-textiles and ‘smart’ fibres which link the wearer with their environment resulting in garments which can be multifunctional and responsive.

For The AVMs sustainability is their watchword and virtually all the textiles developed by this group are easily recycled or biodegradable. First up is the dress by Australian research company Bioalloy in collaboration with artist Donna Franklin made entirely from microbial

cellulose

formed

through the introduction of bacteria into vats of wine. It’s not a thing of beauty (yet); nor is it fully functional (again, yet) as the cellulose’s short-chain structure means it becomes rigid and prone to tearing when dry; however it is a staggering achievement in its own right, and

development

the

process is ongoing. Fashion

designer,

research

fellow at Central Saint Martin’s and founder of the design BioCouture,

Suzanne Lee also works with

Caro le Collet, Biola ce

consultancy

FASHION

microbial cellulose but she feeds hers on sweet green tea. Lee is a fashion designer, which helps, so her pieces are beautifully tailored and dyed so they appeal aesthetically as well as conceptually. Her problem with her microbial textile is one of duration. The fabric is very absorbent and she explains that were it worn in the rain it would probably become waterlogged

and

eventually

collapse under its own weight, leaving

the

fashionable

individual with nothing on their conscience on their body. A slightly less glamorous and soggier version of Cinderella. Carole Collet, founder of the Textile Futures Research Centre at Central Saint Martinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, does research into a similar area, but looks further into the future, imagining a time post 2050 when plants can be genetically 75

re nais s a ncec ha mb a ra

FASHION

engineered to grow textiles without any need for further human intervention. Bio-Lace, her most recent project, is thought provoking, startling in its technological feasibility and stunningly beautiful.Strawberry plants with modified DNA would fruit as normal above ground, whilst below ground their root systems would form lace which could be harvested and used for fashion, all without harming the plant. With less direct dependence on animals and endangered resources, the AVM’s textiles are arguably more ethically sound. A project developed at Symbiotica (a joint science/art research lab in the University of Western Australia) by Oron Catts and Ionat Zurr, proposes that instead of farming animals which are then slaughtered to provide us with leather, you can just farm cells within a laboratory environment. Called: Victimless Leather - A Prototype of a Stitch-less Jacket Grown in a Technoscientific Body, involved the seeding of embryonic mouse stem cells over a miniature jacket shape made of bio-degradable polymers. Created as a speculative and provocative ‘semi-living’ sculpture, Victimless Leather caused much discomfort and criticism due to ethical concerns about the abuse of living matter. Particularly since following its showing at MoMA, it had to be ‘killed’. The mouse stem cells which formed the jacket were no longer supplied with nutrients without which they could not survive. Cue existential anxt from Paola Antonelli, Director at MoMA: “all of a sudden I’m here not sleeping at night about killing a coat”. Now, onto the Networkers. Multifunctionality is at the heart of the Networkers’ approach. You want a dress? Fine. But what if you could have a dress that could light up? What about a dress that has its own mechanized nervous system that reacts to you? One that shields you from surveillance? One that keeps track of your mood and physical state and then communicates these with you via your smartphone? Hussein Chalayan was one of the first designers to embrace the possibilities of technology with his A/W 2007 collection. He showed dresses incorporating LEDs and garments which transformed themselves whilst 77

being worn on the catwalk. Where Chalayan led, others followed :the sparkling dress Katie Perry wore to the MET gala in 2010 and Nicole Scherzinger’s 2012 ‘Twitter Dress’, which displayed in LEDs the tweets she received during the course of the evening. Mere mortals too can now flash with the best of them. CuteCircuit (the label behind Perry’s dress) has a range of illuminated garments on their website. Their new K-Dress will unfortunately set you back a hefty £2,500.00 after which you would presumably have a wallet as light as your new dress.

fibre which can store energy produced by the wearer during the day and then slowly release it causing the garment to change colour and light up. From attention grabbing to attention deflecting, Adam Harvey, a New York based artist, has designed a range of ‘anti-drone’ clothing, part of his larger Stealth collection. Harvey has used metallised fibres which reflect heat and hide the wearer’s thermal

Since then the LED has been dethroned by

signature thus rendering them invisible to

the optical fibre, which can itself be woven

drones watching from above.

into a textile resulting in a much less bulky

Metallised fibres, as well being bang-on

garment. Karma Chameleon, a collaborative research project between XS Labs and Maksim Skorobogatiy, goes even further. They have developed an advanced composite

for the metallics trend, are also being used for their conductivity. Abby Liebman, a student at Cornell University in New York, has designed a dress using a nano-coated conductive cotton textile which can charge an

Je n ny Tillots on

FASHION

iPhone via solar panels. Jenny Tillotson has a somewhat more poetic take on the technotextile concept. She is a Senior Research Fellow in the sensory, aroma and medical

All in all, it’s a pretty good time to be a fashion

field at the Innovation Centre at Central

junkie. Research and technology are allowing

Saint Martin’s, and has designed and created a

designers such freedom with their choice of

multi-sensorial garment called Smart Second

textiles that they can now realise the weirdest

Skin. This organza silk dress, a biomimetic

and most wonderful of concepts. Catwalks

design, is ‘veined’ with a network of medical

are sure to be groaning under the volume of

tubing and has sensors which can detect

brilliance and virtuosity on show. Will any of

changes in the wearer’s emotional state.

this make it to the high street? Who knows.

The dress can then release the best-suited

Maybe our children’s children’s children will

fragrance or combination of fragrances to

be kitted out in ‘Victimless Leather’ jackets

the wearer’s mood at the time.

and perfume bottles will be ancient artefacts. But one thing’s for sure, I will never look at a bacteria laden week-old cup of tea in the same way again.

V ic timle ss Le a ther p ro j ec t deve lop e d by Th e Tis s ue Culture & A rt Pro jec t Vi c t i ml es s Leat her pro jec t devel o ped by The Ti s s ue C u l t u re & Art Proje ct

FASHION

for the love of MONEY Art Direction and Styling by Pia Pereira Photographed by Pia Pereira Make up by Abbie May Hopkins Hair by Kristopher Smith Joe Sanders @D1 Models Styling Assistant Dahlia F. Said

EDITORIAL

Ba b y p ink po l o shi r t by Laco st e, chu n ky kn i t t ed gr ey sw ea t er a nd t r o u ser s b y Ca mi l a Meji a, bel t and sho es vi n t a ge.

EDITORIAL

Shir t a nd head pi ece by Sab r i n a Tr i ckey, t a i lo r ed shi r t a n d t r o user s b y M a r i k a Ja sm i n e G r a sso. O p p osite page: Sui t by Mari ka Ja sm i n e G r a sso, vi n t a g e sca r f .

8 6 Polo shi r t by Laco ste, t r o u ser s b y M a r i ka Ja sm i n e G r a sso, ov er si z ed c o a t b y L i n h T hu y P ha m . O p p osi te page: Sui t by C a m i la Mej i a , sca r f b y Yves S a i n t L a u r en t .

EDITORIAL

FOO

To never eat again: how technology is changing our relationship to food By P ho eb e Am o r o so

The 1973 sci-fi film Soylent Green presents a dystopian future in which much of the population survives off supposedly nutritious food blocks, containing the basics

Rob Rhinehart, the 24 year old American

to keep people alive. The film’s subsequent

entrepreneur and software engineer-turned-

horrific revelations aside, the idea of taking

chemist may have just done that. He is the

food down to its basic nutritional principles

brains behind the tastefully named – pun

– turning it into pure sustenance – has long

fully intended – all-inclusive nutritious drink

fascinated us. What if you could refuel the

Soylent. For Rhinehart, preparing food

body much like refuelling a car?

and eating it was an incredibly boring and tiresome process that weighed heavily on his time. Armed with Soylent, he is the man who may never have to eat properly again.

FOOD

Rhinehart began by turning his kitchen into a chemistry laboratory with all substances that a human body needs on a daily basis laid out in jars. He consumed nothing but Soylent for 30 days and monitored his blood, physical and mental performance. Despite being

one month, Rhinehart had nearly perfected the formula and had reduced his monthly food bill from $500 to $154.

panicked that he would end up in hospital, he

Not alone in his enthusiasm to do away with

found that he lost weight, could run longer

food, a crowdfunding campaign attracted

at the gym, and felt more energetic and alert.

over $2 million from over 20,000 backers.

This was not without hitches: he initially

Soylent is currently in production and will be

struggled to control energy release and

shipped out to US customers in early 2014,

discovered that magnesium poisoning was

expanding internationally later in the year.

rather unpleasant. However, by the end of

So what is the attraction? Arguably, the idea is brilliant when the costs of production, transportation and storage of food are considered: Rhinehart promotes Soylent as

a product that could have a dramatic effect on hunger and malnutrition worldwide. But what with the original idea of solving first world problems, of liberating ourselves from the need to source, prepare and consume food – essentially of emancipation from the human condition? The idea is certainly not revolutionary. Beyond the fact that liquid diets are already deployed in medical contexts, food is hardly the starting point of the separation of an essential part of life and its means of delivery.

sustenance. Undoubtedly though, in our fast-paced lives, there may be times when even the most devoted foodies welcome the liberation of their time from preparing and consuming food. In stark contrast to the Soylent ideology, there is a continuing epicurean school of thought that looks beyond functionality to prioritise enjoyment. Throughout history, there has been a focus

Take sex, for example. It’s an essential

on stripping pleasurable activities of their

part of human life; as a species, we enjoy

detrimental or unwanted consequences.

procreation. But as a species, we also really

Sex, for example, can be a lot more relaxing

enjoy copulating for the sake of it. We rarely hear people lamenting the nuisance caused by the need to reproduce. Although in vitro fertilisation is most commonly used for medical reasons, for those with the funds, it could solve all the hassle – just like a nutrientdrink. Soylent is the IVF of the masses. In his defence, Rhinehart recognises that his concoction is not going to be appealing to people who get more enjoyment from food than he does, which we’re assuming is quite minimal given his drive to isolate

when condoms reduce the risk of unwanted spawn. Furthermore, the pill is often invoked as allowing the sexual liberation of women, and freeing them from the economic constraints tied to pregnancy. Sex is, therefore, freed from reproduction. This notion has permeated into the realm of food. Anyone familiar with the original film adaption of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate factory will recall the wallpaper with the lickable fruit, or perhaps the neverending gobstopper. Just as the proponents of Soylent relish the liberation of their time, the opposing camp are hoping for delicious

FOOD

impaired through chemotherapy treatment. Furthermore, the device could be used by diabetics who like the taste of sugar, yet need food without the negative health impacts. The question is whether this is really possible. Can we do away with the sustenance? Can we keep the flavours without the calories?

to regulate their blood sugar levels. More generally, the device could be used to wean people off, which could potentially benefit wider society, given recent reports of its negative health effects and addictive, drug-

Modern technology may, fortunately, save

like qualities. The taste simulator may be some

us from any desperate binge-and-purge

way off in development but its possibilities

measures. Scientists from Singapore have

are intriguing. What it demonstrates is that

developed a taste simulator that uses electrical

the pleasure we get from food cannot be

and thermal stimulation of the tongue to

rationalised and phased out. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why space

trick the brain into thinking that it is tasting

food includes hamburgers or neopolitan ice-

food. The team from the National University

cream (which incidentally you can buy for a

of Sinapore, led by Nimesha Ranasinghe,

fiver on Amazon).

were able to recreate strong sour, salty and bitter sensations from electrical stimulation, and weak minty, spicy and sweet sensations through thermal stimulation.

We may attempt to reduce our bodies to machines: they are indeed operating systems that

require certain basic inputs. In fact,

itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easy to see Soylent casually slipping into

Although it currently very much resembles

modern life as an item of convenience. Yet

a large clunky box that might be found in

nothing seems to be able to substitute our

a sixties sci-fi movie, Ranasinghe has high

need for enjoyment. However alien the taste

expectations for its applicability, particularly

simulator, the ideas behind it speak to the very

within medical contexts. He believes that the

essence of what it means to be human. We are

device would be used to help cancer patients

defined by our desires. As for which school of

redevelop their sense of taste, which is

thought will drive technological development, imagine a slice of calorie-free chocolate cake and you probably have the answer.

EAT

OUT IN LONDON

Hawksmoor

Air Street/Guildhall/Seven Dials/Spitalfields Describing itself as a British Steak House and Cocktail Bar, this restaurant is a must go to for everyone that enjoys a carefully sourced and excellently prepared piece of meat. Without too much fuss or attire the entire staff dedicates themselves to explain just which part of the animal is exactly to your liking, and which cut right for your hunger – varying from reasonable to a

H a wksm o or

sizing aptly called ‘bigger than your head’.

Koya Bar Soho

Koya Bar is a simple, traditional soup bar. Sitting around the kitchen where you can watch the

cooks

fishing

Udon

Noodles from the boiling water and preparing your soup, the atmosphere is pleasant and calm. The menu offers a variety of soup choices, and with an extra option to add ingredients to

your

soup,

one

very

experimental guest might even consider asking for an English Breakfast soup. Deliciously healthy soup before going out in Soho? Definitely. 94

H a wks mo o r

FOOD

Duck and Waffle Bishops Gate

We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help ourselves but a cocktail bar and restaurant located on the 40th floor of a skyscraper, overlooking London

sounds

already

pretty good. However, what makes Duck and Waffle even greater is that theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re open 24h, 7 days a week. This means that no matter the time, no matter the day, one can always rely on an impressive atmosphere, excellent cocktails and rustic

Duck and Waffle

food at Duck and Waffle.

The Modern Pantry Clerkenwell

Although the The Modern Pantry, also offers exquisite lunch and dining options, we strongly suggest you go ahead and book a table for your next sunday brunch. We promise it will one of he best ones you will ever have had. Right between that perfectly round poached egg with fresh salmon and a Duck and Waffle

chocolate brownie with rasperry and liquorice cream, you too will become an early riser on the weekend. 95

THE END.