Unheard Magazine NO.02 by unheardmag.com

NO. 02

2021

UNHEARDMAG.COM

PATRICIO POMARES

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GLAM OBSERVER

Figueroa Studio How do you make the most out of a bad situation? Starting your own fashion brand, and this is exactly how Figueroa Studio started.

Ryan in Paris We have all seen Emily in Paris on Netflix, but this is the real life of a fashion student in Paris.

Living like Devil Wears Prada? While everyone thinks that working in Vogue is like Devil Wears Prada, Alexandre Marain tells us what it really is like.

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Mike Winchester From Virginia to Paris, Mike Winchester moved to the epicenter of fashion to become a model.

Patricio Pomares Becoming a fashion photographer. Patricio Pomares explains how this industry works.

The Truth about the Makeup Industry Tricia Field gives us an inside into the makeup industry.

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EDITORâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S LETTER UNHEARD

As we welcome a new year and we say goodbye to 2020, we reflect on everything that has happened this last year and make new resolutions for the upcoming one. While it has been a difficult year for everyone, there have also been moments of great sense of community, love and support from one another; and this is what we, in Unheard, want to bring with us to the new year. Unheard Magazine was created to help young creatives, to change the judgements and stereotypes that society has about the fashion industry, so we are proud to bring you the second issue with hope and advice from this community. We are being part of a historical moment, not only the pandemic; but the Black Lives Matter movement, Save the Arts, and many more moments in which people have come together to help each other. Small businesses have never been more supported than now, and we can not leave all of this behind. Because of it, we have brought more young creatives into the second issue; from a Fashion Design student who started her own brand during the pandemic, to an American studying fashion in Paris. You will be able to read how they got to where they are, and all the advice they have to offer. Between our printed issues and the new website we hope to bring awareness to the younger generation of this community and small businesses that have no platform to showcase their work and tell their stories. Carla Garcia - Editor in chief

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Images by Fiueroa Studio

HOW ARE THEY MAKING THE MOST OUT OF A BAD SITUATION?

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How did Figueroa Studio start? How did your interest in fashion start? It is something that I have seen since I was a kid because of my parents, they both work in the industry; my mum is a fashion stylist and my dad a fashion photographer. So, when I was younger I saw it everyday in my house, I used to see how my mum got packages and bags of clothes for her to style them for different photoshoots and productions. She had binders from different designers all over the table, so when I was around 14 or 15 years old I already knew I wanted to be a fashion designer. However, my mum, working in the industry, was not very sure because when she studied Fashion Design it was not even a degree in university and she wanted me to go more for communication or marketing so I had some convincing to do. Do you feel more pressure having both parents working in the industry? Yes, specially now that I have started to working with them, some times I do not want people to know I am their daughter, I do not want people to see me as someone who is just there because of her parents. I mean, in the end a lot of people start like this, it is all about networking and contacts, and specially in this industry. On the other hand, they often ask for my help, because they see me with a fresh vision and there are a lot of things that they might not know how to use but I do; from social media, to new designers. My mum does not know all these new designers so I keep her upto-date with all of this. I think we help each other, so there can be a bit of pressure but it is pretty good to have them as well.

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I had already thought about it before the lockdown, I had talked about it with my mum; she works as a freelance and she had always said that if she was going to do a more serious project tat she wanted to do it with me. We work really well together and we have the same style so it makes everything easier. We do not argue about the designs or anything, we pretty much have the same ideas and during the lockdown in March, basically because of the spare time, I thought it was the right time to start it. How is it to work with your mum in a project like this? Right now I am doing almost everything, but she is always there. There are a lot of things from the business side that she might not think about and that I have learnt at university, so she is there more to advice me and help me with design decisions. Everything having to do with inspiration and design is her thing. She knows a lot about fashion history and references, a lot more than me so she helps me a lot with that. Everything I do, I run it passed her first and wait for her approval. You are studying and working on this project, how do you make it work? I have just started to think about the second collection for winter and it has been quite hard. Right now, I do not have the same amount of time I had in March, so I cannot be 100% focused on the project. I am in my third year at university and have my dissertation and final collection so I have to learn how to manage my time. In the end, I try to make time for Figueroa when I can, and if that means having to stay up late looking for fabrics or sending e-mails and talking to suppliers then I do it. 12

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“I WANT FIGUEROA STUDIO TO BE A CONCEPT RATHER THAN JUST A FASHION BRAND.” BRAND. ”

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How do you manage the brand from the United Kingdom being based in Spain?

Are you thinking of taking Figueroa Studio full time after you graduate?

I stay in contact with my suppliers and try to look for everything online, see if they have the textiles that I want, because they know what I am looking for. A part from that I also have a seamstress, who I usually work with, and she is staying in contact with me all the time and sending me pictures of everything. Then, my mum get the fabrics and takes them to the seamstress, she makes sure everything is running smoothly back in Madrid.

I have thought about focusing more on it but without letting it stop me from doing other things. I want to do a Masters Degree, I want to work in the industry for different brands, designers and even magazines. I love this project but as an addition to my career rather than a full time job. I want to keep growing and educating myself in the industry and not closing other opportunities because of the project.

Do you feel more pressure having both parents working in the industry?

Do you think that influencers advantage of small brands?

Yes, specially now that I have started to working with them, some times I do not want people to know I am their daughter, I do not want people to see me as someone who is just there because of her parents. I mean, in the end a lot of people start like this, it is all about networking and contacts, and specially in this industry. On the other hand, they often ask for my help, because they see me with a fresh vision and there are a lot of things that they might not know how to use but I do; from social media, to new designers. My mum does not know all these new designers so I keep her up-to-date with all of this. I think we help each other, so there can be a bit of pressure but it is pretty good to have them as well.

Yes, for sure. I have had some bad experiences, influencers following the brand but not buying anything or saying anything until I mention a collaboration, they do not even think for a second about buying a product. Then, there are other girls who just sent me a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hello, do you wanna collab?â&#x20AC;? without even following the brand. I do not have enough stock to start giving pieces of the collection to that many influencers, because in the end I am giving it for free and some of them do not even care to post on social media or even tag us. These influencers say that being an influencer is a job but then they do not even do it right or sometimes they just do not do it at all.

Are you thinking of doing anything different in the future? Yes, I have been looking at furniture. It is something that I have in my mind because I love interior design. I want Figueroa Studio to be a concept rather than just a fashion brand. I would like to buy vintage furniture and transform it but that needs time and a lot of storage, and right now I do not have any of it.

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In which way do you think the pandemic has affected small brands like yours? I started the brand during the pandemic so I have not really had any problems, I have been quite lucky; but I know a lot of people who have struggled a lot because of the situation. People have had to lower their prices, making less profit because otherwise people would not buy it. My products though, are sustainable and made in Spain, so people with this same ideal do not mind paying a bit more or waiting for the next drop. 17

An American living in Paris, sounds like a familiar story, but this is not Emily in Paris, this is Ryan in Paris, the reality of studying fashion in the epicentre of the industry. Everyone imagines living in Paris being like a dream and it really is like this. Ryan Lambright talks all about it, from his daily life to how the Netflix show “Emily in Paris” portrays Americans the wrong way. Moving away from home for university is hard for everyone but specially if it’s in a foreign country and you don’t speak their language. Living in Paris is like a dream come true, the gorgeous streets, the fancy cafes in front of the Eiffel Tower. and the amazing views from Montmartre. But, how is it in real life? Is it as elegant as we imagine it to be? “I have not met one American here that acts like that and we’re all ashamed of her in that representation.” Ryan tells me when chatting about the Netflix show Emily in Paris. Even though the way Americans are represented in the show is not accurate, everything else is, the feeling of not believing you are there, the wine culture, the inspiration, everything. This is why, when I asked why he chose this city to study, he didn’t hesitate to answer that it was because of all those things. “There is something beautiful about it, I think, like just the elegance and like the aesthetic of the city. It’s so beautiful. And then, the whole idea that creatives come here and it’s very good for creativity because it’s so inspiring. It’s gorgeous. The way of life is very laid back. You can be in a class and having a glass of wine during the lecture.” However, the cultural shock can be difficult to manage at first for someone at such a young age.

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Images by Ryan Lambright

‘RYAN IN PARIS’

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“EVERYTHING YOU DO HERE, IT JUST FEELS FASHIONABLE. I CAN’T DESCRIBE IT. IT’S SO AMAZING. IT’S JUST THE CITY AS A WHOLE.” “There’s a huge, huge culture shock, we are a warmer culture and they are a more closed off culture. It was really difficult. But I’m finally getting into the city, so it’s nice.” However, being in the epicentre of the fashion industry makes up for it. The leading fashion houses are there, haute couture was invented there, so everyone who is studying anything related to the industry in that city has plenty of opportunities for internships and work experience. For everyone not living in Paris and even for some people there, this is a hard industry to get into, but having professors with contacts in the biggest brands makes the struggle of being away from home worth it. However, there can be quite a lot of pressure to be the best one. “Everyone goes to Paris to do that. Like people won’t go to Paris to study anything, they go for the fashion. So you have to stand out in some way proving a point to all of these really pretentious people like you belong there.” Ryan comments about how he feels at university.

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Even with the challenges one might encounter in a city this big, Ryan describes Paris as elegant and the perfect place to enjoy life. “It’s almost like a focus on the finer things in life. People don’t focus on their work as much as they focus on the pleasures in life. They work to live, not live to work.” From having a glass of wine during an art class or going to the Louvre after a long day of lectures, Paris offers plenty of activities for art and fashion lovers. However, not everything is perfect. So, what advice would Ryan give to someone who wants to move to the city? “I recommend, first and foremost, learn your damn French. That’s an obvious one, but if you were to move to Paris, I would say don’t get cooped up in your apartment too much, because when you’re in school, there is a tendency to stay home and work all the time. Don’t do that, take your work to the cafe, do your online lecture there, really try to submerge yourself in the culture so you can start making friends. Because when you start making friends who’ve lived in France forever, that’s really when you get into everything. You start finding the catacomb parties or the soirees. So you can finally get into the culture and you find like the spots that everyone goes to.”

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“THE YOUNG CREATIVES” IS ALL ABOUT GIVING THE YOUNGER GENERATION A VOICE IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY . ALEJANDRA MUÑIZ, A BA(HONS) FASHION JOURNALISM GRADUATE, IS OPTING FOR A CAREER AS A FASHION STYLIST.

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Photography: Maria Antunez. Creative Direction, Styling and Model: Alejandra MuĂąiz.

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Photography: Filipa Lisboa. Creative Direction and Styling: Alejandra MuĂąiz. Makeup Artist: Adele Lynch. Model: Ema Staraite. Rings and Jewellery: Shiran Salem.

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Photography: Mariana Almeida. Creative Direction and Styling: Alejandra Muñiz. Model: Alejandra Muñiz.

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Photography: Alejandra Muñiz. Creative Direction and Styling: Alejandra Muñiz.

Photography: Mariana Almeida. Creative Direction and Styling: Alejandra MuĂąiz. Model: Alejandra MuĂąiz.

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LIVING LIKE DEVIL WEARS PRADA? ALEXANDRE MARAIN, DIGITAL EDITOR OF VOGUE HOMMES, GIVES US THE REAL INSIDE OF WHAT IT IS LIKE TO WORK AT THE SO CALLED ‘FASHION BIBLE’.

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Illustration by Beatriz Angulo

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Image by Alexandre Marain

How did you start as a fashion journalist? I started studying Fashion Design for around 2 or 3 years in Lyon, and then I decided to check for universities that offered journalism because I really enjoyed writing and I love fashion so I wanted to combine both things. I started Fashion Journalism and I had a bit of help from one of my teachers there, she was the former culture editor of Vogue Paris for the print magazine. We had to find an internship, so I gave her my CV and asked her if there was anything in Vogue. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how I started an internship at Vogue Hommes for 2 months, I basically helped the former editor during Fashion Week. After I finished Fashion Journalism I had another internship with the fashion editor of the website for six months, and at the end of it they decided to keep me as a freelance for a year and later I signed a long term contract with them. I was lucky enough to get a job from my first internship, specially in a place like Vogue, and now I am the digital editor of Vogue Hommes. Did you feel a lot of pressure when your started to work for a publication as big as Vogue? Yes, of course, when you start as an intern you feel a lot of pressure, you want to be the best you can, specially for a publication like this, which was my dream job since I was a kid. So, when I first went there, I was a bit stressed, and you have this idea of Devil Wears Prada, but it is not like that at all. There are loads of cliche ideas of the industry but it is not like that. It is a lot of work, specially when you are an intern because you have to prove them that you belong there but I have enjoyed every second of working there, and I have learnt a lot.

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Would you say that freelancing is a good way to start a career in fashion journalism? It depends, you need a lot of contacts and have a large network to work as a freelance journalist. You need to have your name in the industry already and have publications know you a bit. Of course, you can pitch to magazines and have the chance to get your work published but it is a lot harder. They have to trust you, they want to know that you are good at what you do. I do not know, I guess people have had different experiences working freelance. Where do you get ideas for articles, having to write around 4 articles a day? It depends on the news of the day, we have a meeting every morning where we talk about what is on the news, what is trending, what we have seen. We write about all kind of news and stuff that we think might be interesting to the audience. We also write shopping lists and other things like that, so it is really hard to run out of ideas, we always have something to talk about. Why is it that Vogue Paris translates some articles to English? Does it have an english audience? Yes, we have an english team that translates most of the articles on the website. We have people from the U.S. and from England that read our articles, so it helps us reach to a larger audience.

What would you say are the best and worst parts of the job? The best part for me is writing, because it is something that I have always loved since I was a kid. I love writing and I love fashion, so to be able to have a job that gives me the opportunity to combine these two things it makes me very happy. The worst part, it is hard to think of something. I mean as a journalist the worst part is the salary, I think journalism is a really bad paid job. Everyone who is a journalist chooses this job because they are passionate because we know that the pay is not going to be the best, but it is definitely worth it. How important is is to have a network of contacts as a journalist? You need to meet as much people as possible and make them trust you. For example with brands, if you write something good about a brand, they will come to you for other projects and know that they can trust you in a way. I have been lucky because having Vogue in the CV makes it a lot easier to make people listen to you. But it is important to get contacts as an intern, if not earlier. Do you think that work experience is more important than having a degree in this industry? Yes, definitely. I mean in France you need a degree to get a job in the first place any way, but I do think that having a job is a lot more important. I learnt more in the first six months as an intern at Vogue than I did in all my years of university. Working in the industry directly you learn the way things are done, how to write properly for the specific publication.

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What are two things that a degree does not teach you but that are very important for the industry? Firstly, I think knowing the line between friendship and work colleagues. You meet so many people who are very friendly, but you need to know your place. Obviously, I am very good friends with some people I work with, but you have to learn when to say no even when you consider that person your friend. Personally, I also learnt how to work as a digital journalist because my course focused on print magazines so I learnt everything when I started working there, which was a challenge. Right now, everything is digital an online so it is very important to make sure you know how to use the programs. How do you make sure your article is good? We check each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s articles some times. As an intern you have to have all your articles proofread by your boss before publishing but for journalists we only read longer, more important articles. If itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just a short news article we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really do that. Working in the digital section is good for that because we can edit any mistakes that we might see late on but we still have to be really careful and make sure there are no typos. Do you have any advice for someone who want to get into this industry? Do not come in too confident and do not come in with your Dior bag and Saint Laurent shoes, specially in Vogue. Just do not be too much, people think that because it is Vogue they have to dress like in Devil Wears Prada and it is nothing like that, we do not look for that, we just want you to be yourself and be good at what you do and very hard working. 40

Image from Unsplash

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MIKE WINCHESTER

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Images by Mike Winchester

FROM VIRGINIA TO PARIS, HE MOVED TO THE CITY OF FASHION WITHOUT KNOWING ANYTHING ABOUT THE INDUSTRY. What happens when someone is scouted through Instagram and sent from Virginia to Paris during spring break to become a model? It sounds like a movie, and that is exactly what Mike Winchester thought when this happened to him. Although most people would think that becoming a model is not as easy as it looks, it was for Mike. He became a model without knowing anything about the industry and booked Balenciaga without knowing what it was. “I didn’t even know how to spell the name of the brand, let alone pronounce it. I was so happy but I was freaking out because my agent was like ‘What? You don’t know Balenciaga?’ and then gave me a whole rundown of fashion and history of it.”

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When models achieve all these amazing campaigns and shows, they think they are invincible. However, they have to keep in mind that brands can get rid of them even seconds before the show. This industry is all about the looks obviously, but personality is very important as well. “You can be booked for a show but they have a last minute decision and they only want people with brown eyes but yours are blue, they will drop you from the show. But, there’s other jobs, like photoshoots or showrooms, so if you have a good personality they will remember you and book you for the other things.” So, while modelling can seem like an easy career, there is more pressure than people might think.

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“IF YOU HAVE A GOOD PERSONALITY THEY WILL REMEMBER YOU AND BOOK YOU FOR THE OTHER THINGS.” UNHEARD

Even with the pressure of getting booked for shows, Mike explains lots of anecdotes that make it sound like modelling is a very entertaining job. From almost missing the a show in London Fashion Week because he was held at the train station, to running around Paris soaking wet to get from one casting to the other. “I didn’t even know what I had done and I was freaking out because the woman at the train station was treating me like a criminal and I missed all my castings.” While this job can be exhausting most of the times due to soo much travelling and as mentioned by Mike even some trouble, he talks about how he met Tom Ford after the train incident. “The agency was like ‘Tom is very particular about handshakes. Don’t think it’s offensive or anything like that. He’s just very OCD and germs and all that kind of stuff. So you just give him this book, and just be yourself, go for it.’ and Tom freaking Ford was there on the table with this big candle and an orchid worth more than my life next to all that stuff. Later when they told me I had booked it I cried like a baby.” Moving from Fashion Week to Fashion Week and going to so many events can be stressful, specially when you try to meet people to make contacts. As you want to have fun but make a good impression to everyone from the fashion industry present at these parties you have to be careful with managing both at the same time. “You go on to have fun, but don’t be too drunk. No one wants to be that drunk. All right. Don’t be that drunk. Get drunk, girl. And believe me, I’ve had a bunch of parties. You can be buzzed, but, you know, don’t be that girl at the end of the night who has had so much Moet. She’s literally in the bathroom.”

Being invited to these exclusive events can be intimidating to everyone, specially if the celebrity kids that have grown up in that environment are there.

While influencers might be taking smaller campaigns on social media, models have been a crucial part in the fashion industry and will continue to be.

“You also have the people who are like the celebrities, kids who are models. Kind of like the Gerbers and all those people like that. I mean, obviously, you look at them and you’re like. Well, they do deserve to be there because they’re gorgeous and so beautiful and I wish it was like them, but it’s crazy how it’s all connected. It’s all through networking.”

“I think photo shoots are my favorite part because I get to be creative as well, and I get to see someone else’s vision come to life and see all that hard work getting together and whether it be like part of a test shoot to like a campaign and that kind of thing, like I just like dealing with different people and just seeing how someone can take something and turn it into art.”

The fashion industry being so exclusive in that way can make it harder for models to be recognized or booked for shows and campaigns.

For him being a model is more than the fancy events and the cool clothes, which explained by him, they don’t even get to keep. He likes to be a part of something bigger and be a part of someone else’s vision and while the life of a model sounds like a movie like he mentioned, it has its ups and downs like every other career.

If we add influencers to the equation some people might think that models are not necessary any more, however, Mike thinks otherwise. “It’s like a very fine line of stepping over and not doing enough or in doing too much, you walk a very, very thin line of that. I think in the one sense, it’s amazing for the marketing aspect or whatever; but they are doing something completely different. I can only think of one time when influencers actually did the models job and that was Dolce & Gabbana with Cameron Dallas, Lele Pons and all that group in the runway.”

However, he does recommend to anyone wanting to become a model to learn about fashion and know what each brand looks for. “My tip for you is if you ever see something that you don’t know, whatever, just do a little research, when you get your castings, run down your things and if you don’t know the brand, just look it up a little bit.”

Images by Jose Jurado

CHATTING WITH A GRAPHIC DESIGNER CHATTING WITH JOSE JURADO ABOUT WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE A FASHION GRAPHICS STUDENT AND WORK AS A GRAPHIC DESIGNER AT THE SAME TIME.

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How and when did you start designing graphics and working in this industry? This question has a few answers. The first one is; I started at school in technology class when I was 9 years old, with the first version of Photoshop trying to change the face of Spider-man for Hulk’s face. The second answer is; it was at the age of 13 when I was already designing things for the music world with my cousin who was a DJ and his friends. From there I started to grow in the industry, designing graphics for blogs and projects that I would release because I always liked doing things on my own. The third one is; until I was 18 years old I did not start taking it seriously and like a job so I started to educate myself a bit more about it. Now it is different, I am more focused on improving and learning everything that I can, but before I just did it because I liked it… I was always that one friend that knew a lot about computers and used to draw with them. How would you describe you style when it comes to graphic design? I think my style is quite urban, streetstyle. I have grown up in an urban area and I have a lot of inspiration from hiphop, but I also like techno music, and that is where the bright and neon colours come from… I also really like to play with the textures and kind of destroy a bit the design. In what type of project do you enjoy the most working? Right now I would say that I like a lot to design clothes, but I have my moments… I am usually always designing covers for music artists, clothes or editorials. These are the three areas that I like the most.

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What inspires you to do your job? What inspires me the most is music, no doubt about it. I do not know if everyone is like this but when I listen to music, I see things, I imagine the music videos, the designs, the colours… and it inspires me. How do you think this industry has changed since you started? To be honest, I have not been in the fashion industry for a long time, but I am very involved in the music industry which loads of times go together and I can say that I do see a change in the way of working. Right now it is all about contacts and if you have them you can get very far, but if you do not have them it is really difficult to get there. Sometimes it is not about talent, or apart from talent they look at other things. It is enough to be good any more. You have to be profitable and if you are a relative or friend better. There’s a clear relation between fashion design and graphic design, do you think is important that a fashion designer learns about graphic design? I do not think it is totally necessary, but having some knowledge is always good and can help you to see things from a different perspective. The graphic designers are the ones that solve problems and promote brands, but if a fashion designer also knows how to do these things it is very helpful as well.

What do you like the most and the least about your job? What I like the most is the possibility of starting a project from scratch and that out of nowhere you get loads of graphic material, going from 0 to an actual product is incredible. When someone sees it and they mention it or you see it is a great feeling and that only makes you want to keep going. What I do not like though, is the uncertainty, the short deadlines and that we are not valued enough. It is not always like this, but when it happens I feel pretty bad. What made you start studying Fashion Graphics after working in the industry for so many years? All these years I have been in the music industry but I wanted more and more and in Spain they did not give me the opportunity to work with agencies and stuff so after some time trying to do it and not getting it I thought of stepping away from that sector and focus more on the fashion industry. So I decided to get some more education and put more effort into learning new things. I needed something that would force me to improve and push me to be better and here I am. When I saw Fashion Graphics I saw that it was everything that I needed, I had never seen a career that would put together fashion and graphics so I could not resist it.

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What has been the biggest project you have been a part of? I would probably say that the biggest because of the reach, when I worked with Adidas for an event that they had for some new shoes, I designed them graphics for Instagram and I also designed a few screens for a video for a football tournament. But, if we talk about biggest as in, amount of work, then I think it is a project that I have been working with a group of friends from Valencia and Madrid, SUPRMODE, it is a project that has different things, a music record, a production school and a esports team. We have been working on this for three years and right now it is in its best moment. What advice would you give to someone who want to be a graphic designer that you would have liked to know when you started? Make a lot of friends, loads, everywhere, even if they are close friends or not, you never know whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gonna get far and take you with them. Another piece of advice is, never stop getting inspiration, absorb everything you see, from artists, from photographers, designers of all kinds,

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PATRICIO POMARES: BECOMING A FASHION PHOTOGRAPHER How would you describe your photography style and how has it changed since you started? How did you start in the world of photography? When I was little, I was more interested in video than photography. When my house bought the first video camera, I was the one who used it the most and in the end, it was always my job to record and take care of all that. I always liked to be inside the view finder. Then I started to study economy and I had photography as a hobby, but in the third year I realized that it was not for me and I left it to sign up for the university of Buenos Aires in the film degree. I made many years of videos but my passion has always been photography, especially the analogical one, I have never been very hooked on the digital one.

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My style has varied a lot, at the beginning it was a question of observation, it was more documenting than anything else, documenting moments with my friends or family. It was something much more naive and it was about portraying what was going on around me. When I started my film degree I began to see a lot of different concepts that began to change that, I started to pay more attention to the frames, the details and things that I didn’t pay so much attention to. Now that I’m more focused on fashion photography, I notice that my style still has that documentary look that I had at the beginning. I’m not one of those who prepares everything to perfection, I let everything flow and I see. With each person I photograph I try to see what kind of connection there is and capture that connection through my camera. My style is very spontaneous, but I do prepare for shoots when it is needed.

Images by Patricio Pomares

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“THIS INDUSTRY ALLOWS YOU TO EXPRESS YOURSELF ARTISTICALLY WITH A LOT OF FREEDOM.” UNHEARD

How did you end up in the fashion world? I came to Barcelona to be part of a fashion photography school, to be in charge of the management of the school rather than the photography itself. One of the teachers at the school had already been working in the fashion world for many years and I became very close to him, from him I started to get into that world a little bit. At the beginning I had a lot of prejudices about the industry, but in the end, in all creative areas there are things I don’t like. I started to investigate a little bit and I loved it because this industry allows you to express yourself artistically with a lot of freedom. Does the fact that many influencers use your studio benefit you with younger people? Yes, there are many people who come to the studios because they see it in some influencer’s story or the influencers recommend it. I don’t know if the students in the school come because of the influencers, but there are some students who have told me that they have seen me on their accounts and you can see the reach they have with young people and in the end that benefits us, of course. What are the biggest challenges you face in your work? The first big challenge or difficulty I have is time. When I worked in Argentina I had my hours of work, I went in and out at the same time every day. Here, as it is my business, I don’t disconnect. By managing so many things at once there are many interruptions from the other things in the psyche which makes it difficult to manage time and also mentally. The second thing that was hard for me

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when I started was to break down these prejudices and stereotypes that I had about the fashion world in my head. Those prejudices were based on something, you hear many things or see many things that I don’t agree with and it was a bit complicated. The fashion industry has always been very masculine in the sense of work, be it photographers, designers, etc. In recent years it has evolved and changed a lot but there is still much more to change. I can see it in the studios in some questions that clients have, they ask me instead of my partner, or they enter the studio and automatically assume that I am her boss, this is something that we continue to fight against day by day. What makes a photographer good? It is very complicated to answer this, I don’t know what makes a good photographer. I can tell you what works best for me. I think it’s super important to be inspired, as you fill yourself up with research every day and constantly. When you are shooting sometimes there is very little time, a lot of pressure and a lot of people giving their opinion and it seems that your body is doing everything alone. I think that when that happens, if what you’ve been consuming is good, it’s artistic and creative, it all comes out on its own. This is fundamental, and not just fashion, but any artistic area, anything that can trigger creativity, from cinema to music or books. The next thing is to plan everything you are going to do but without letting that planning prevent you from seeing the little details that come out as you photograph and that in the end are impossible to foresee. If you are able to have everything planned and know where you are going without that does not let you see what you’re getting on the road, I think that is a very good skill.

Where do you get inspiration from day to day?

How has the pandemic affected an industry as social as photography?

I get a lot of inspiration from cinema, I like David Lynch very much and in these years I have been looking at Ryan McGinley, Harley Weir, although she doesn’t do the same type of photography as me, it’s a totally different style but I am very inspired by the creative freedom with which she does photography. I love that she started with a completely different style to what was done in the fashion world and it seems like fashion is adapting to her more than she is to fashion. Currently, I am in love with Jamie Hawkesworth I love it, but there are a lot more artists.

I think we are still waiting to see how it is affecting us. I think it’s going to be difficult to go back to the same old thing, but companies have really adapted and adjusted to everything that has happened. Obviously, when they locked us up in March, there was a lot of rethinking to see what was going to happen, but human beings forget things very quickly and have a huge need to work. Surely there won’t be shoots with thirty people anymore and it’s possible that photography will decrease a little in terms of production, but I don’t think the essence of one person with the camera and another person in front of it is going to change. The problem in the fashion world is that we work months away, and right now the world depends on a bit of a leap of faith. Not knowing what’s going to happen in six months’ time makes sense for brands to shrink their budgets a bit and this affects us photographers too.

Would you say that to be a photographer you really need an education in this field or that the experience is better? I think that you can become a great photographer without education. What happens in schools, at least what I try to do in mine, is to reduce those first years when it is more difficult to enter the market and you learn a little bit at a time. The whole process of learning is much shorter when you have someone to teach you, the school has produced great photographers who would have been very good without the school, but the school has helped by providing them with many means and contacts that would have been difficult to access. What we try to do at the school is also to focus on creativity, through exercises and different classes we want to make students see how they can become more creative. When you are in this sector many people think that everyone has creativity in itself but in reality most of the world attempts against creativity many times, then many students arrive in a state where they are very closed without creativity and you have to put them back on track in that sense.

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What do you tell your students when they are starting out? What advice would you give to someone starting out as a photographer? One of the things I always say is that if they have found something that they are passionate about, that they should take it as a job, if they have to stay eight hours a day then it’s eight hours a day. What you can’t do is achieve professional success without sacrificing and working hard. For something to work you have to put in a lot of hours and you have to make a lot of mistakes to improve. As Cartier-Bresson said, “Your first 10,000 photos will be your worst photos,” so it’s important to always have your camera with you and take as many as you possibly can.

THE JOURNALISM INDUSTRY IN CONVERSATION WITH ISABELLA SILVERS, LEADING MEMBER OF HEARSTâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S DIVERSITY & INCLUSIVITY STEERING GROUP AND CO-CHAIR OF HEARST HERITAGE NETWORK.

Images from Unsplash

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How did your career start and led you to where you are right now? I have been interning since I was around 16 years old, always looking for opportunities to get experience and contacts within fashion and media. I started with school media, always writing for the school paper and started my own blog, before getting involved in local media and fashion events. At university, again I got involved in student media and local fashion events (I went from volunteer to Digital Editor of the Brighton Fashion Week site!), and was old enough to intern at the likes of Love, more!, The Guardian, The Debrief and more. It was at The Debrief where I was offered my first paid work, before I was offered a features internship at InStyle. From there, I moved over to the website and became a digital writer. After 18 months, InStyle shut down and I moved to Hearst, where I am now! Did you always know you wanted to be a journalist? Yes, I was lucky to know from a very young age so I could focus my efforts! When I was a lot younger, I thought I wanted to be a fashion designer. Turns out, words were much more my forte… What advice would you give to someone who wants to be a journalist in a fashion publication? Get writing! It’s important to show that you have passion, so get involved in every opportunity you can. That could be local media, student/ school media, local fashion weeks, or just writing your own blog. But don’t be scared to start pitching – it’s never too early to start getting your work out there! Lots of sites have guidelines on how they want to be pitched to, so Google these to tailor your pitch.

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Be proactive. One of my mottos is “don’t ask, don’t get”, so always send the e-mail, ask the question, try your luck and apply for the job! Especially as women, and as a woman of colour, you can feel like you should tick all of the boxes to apply for a role. But don’t ask, don’t get! Think like a white man and go for it – they would! I also live by “ask forgiveness not permission”, but I’m not sure if that’ll get you into trouble… My last piece of advice would be, get paid! Don’t feel uncomfortable talking about money. Ask what a company’s rates are before offering yours, as you might be surprised at how much they can afford. If they push you to offer yours, times what you think by 2, maybe even 4! They’ll probably meet you in the middle rather than taking advantage of your low opening offer. Also, always fight for a pay rise. You deserve it. How does it feel to be a multi awardwinning working for so many titles at such a young age? Do you feel more pressure because of it? You know, I put a lot of pressure on myself to achieve my career goals so it’s funny that you say that – I always tend to focus on what’s next and what I haven’t achieved rather than all the things I have done. You’ve given me an important reminder to stop, slow down and be proud of everything I’ve done. To answer your question, I don’t feel pressure based on what I have achieved, but more from what I feel I want to achieve. And yes, I need to remind myself that I’m still young and have time to meet all of my goals!

Would you say that the pandemic has affected the fashion media industry in any way? Yes, hugely. Advertising revenue dropped significantly, as did sales of physical magazines. Luckily, we saw subscriptions shoot up and now sales are getting back to what they were before. The pandemic also pushed us all to work from home from March, forcing us to figure out new ways of working. From looking at issue flatplans to doing photo and video shoots over Zoom, we made it work. I’m hoping we keep some of these new practices going into 2021! What is something that you have learnt from working in the industry that has taught you more than classes at university? Erm, everything! I didn’t study journalism at university, so I learned pretty much everything I know through doing internships, attending talks, watching shows like The City (genuinely, I learned so much from watching all these fashion dramas!), reading fashion memoirs, guide books and more. University taught me how to research, use sources and more, which were vital transferrable skills, but the intricacies of industry were all learned on the job. What mistakes do you think people make when starting in the industry? Not asking, and therefore not getting! I think people can be so grateful for any opportunity that they don’t ask for pay or to meet that editor. Always go for it. I think people can underestimate how hard you need to work as well. While you don’t need the likes of ELLE on your CV to get ahead, you do need to show passion and enthusiasm. UNHEARD

As a leading member of Hearst’s Diversity & Inclusivity Steering Group and CoChair of Hearst Heritage network, do you think there is still a huge lack of diversity in this industry? Yes, undoubtedly. Anyone who tries to deny it can’t have the facts in front of them! But hopefully things are changing. There are lots of new initiatives to lift up marginalised voices and help those groups break into the industry, and this summer seems to have seen a mindset shift in why representation is vital. Given the situation, it is harder to get internships, what advice would you give to a graduate looking for an internship right now or in the following months? A lot of internship programmes have shut down, but others have moved online. In fact, I’d say that it’s potentially easier to get an internship now, as you’re not as bound to pay lots of money to travel and stay in London. Always ask the question of whether places could offer virtual advice and work experience – you never know! If you’re applying for longer term internships, again this may be a chance for you to take opportunities that previously would have been unavailable to you by being based in London. It’s tough, and I can only imagine 2021 is going to be tougher, but continue pitching. Again, don’t wait until you have internships under your belt to make you feel like you have a right to pitch. You have that right, right now! Make your mark without waiting for permission from others.

“ESPECIALLY AS WOMEN, AND AS A WOMAN OF COLOUR, YOU CAN FEEL LIKE YOU SHOULD TICK ALL OF THE BOXES TO APPLY FOR A ROLE. BUT DON’T ASK, DON’T GET! THINK LIKE A WHITE MAN AND GO FOR IT – THEY WOULD!” UNHEARD

COMING SOON

THE TRUTH ABOUT THE MAKEUP INDUSTRY BEING A MAKEUP ARTISTS IS NOT AS EASY AS IT SOUNDS AND TRICIA FIELD TELLS US ALL ABOUT IT.

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Images from triciafield.com

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What does beauty mean to you? It’s all about trends. Ten years ago makeup was much more than now, it was to cover, like a mask. The concept of beauty was like a canon of beauty, now it is not, now this has changed and it is respected much but, there is but variety, although this does not stop being a fashion, perhaps soon the tendency returns to change. For me, personally beauty, right now we are in a moment in which I feel very comfortable because everything is much more natural and in the end that is what beauty is for me, it is like one is. It is very important to accept oneself. Beauty is everything. Beauty is feeling good about yourself. How did you start as a makeup artist? I didn’t really look for it, because I used to work in a completely different world. I didn’t know what to do with my life and I’ve always loved cinema so a friend told me that there was a degree for special effects. I made a radical change, I stopped what I was doing, I moved to the city and got into it, I started from scratch. From special effects I gradually changed my career, due to different situations and the lack of work in Spain in this sector, I gradually specialised more in fashion. What kind of makeup do you like more? A glowy skin, everything very simple. That the minimum highlights your physical traces. The fresh skin, that it is not noticed like masked. Would you say that makeup is an art? Yes, definitively it is an art. One thing is that you make a glowy skin, that in fact seems easy but it is not, and then there are the

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much more creative makeups that are absolutely art. What is the best thing about your job and what difficulties can you find? The best is the result. After working so hard on your professional career, to see that it is giving results and that people value your work, that they have good criticism and that is very gratifying because it is not easy at all. In the end, this is a very closed sector in which to work and dedicate yourself full time to it, and on top of that, the fact that you are paid well means that there are very few of us who are lucky enough to do so. The bad thing I would say is the pressure that there is. The pressure represented by that face, which you can not forget, as you do not renew, as you are not there or simply because they need to change airs no longer count on you for projects. You have to be mentally prepared for this, understand that it’s not you, it’s not your style or anything, that they simply want a change. Would you say that the industry of the makeup is superficial considering that it is everything about the physicist? It’s really like a love-hate relationship for me. I love my profession, but at the same time it’s like I reject all of that because all of that mask, all of that superficiality, the masquerade behind teenagers and notso-teenagers, the beauty canon that big companies want to impose on you, I’m not at all in favour of all of that, but I love what I do, I’m passionate about my work. I think that if you don’t focus so much on the exploitation of the image and you want to bring out more natural beauty then it’s something I like very much.

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Each makeup artist has his own style that differentiates him from the others? I believe that each makeup artist should have their style. In my area there are we are twenty makeup artists, each one differs from the others with their style, one maybe is better at the natural makeup, I go for retro style, brands know who to hire depending on what they look for. Throughout our career we are being typecast a little, although we can all do everything. Is it a talent that you have or can you learn? I believe that you can learnanything in this life. It’s true that there are people who have a skill and that touch that someone else doesn’t. But everything with effort, time, motivation and desire can be achieved. Something different is that you want to live from that because that depends on you being in the right place, that you make contacts, if these are not presented to you because you are not there or because you have not made enough effort to meet people you won’t make it. How do you think the industry has changed in recent years? A lot, because before there were five of us and now you lift a stone and you get a thousand. Everything has changed a lot, the work before was all paper and now it’s all online and digital. I believe that the moment of campaigns is dying, the great campaigns that were made and now it is all much more day by day, much smaller campaigns because there are many more collections. This means that there is more work and instead of working 4 days a month, now you work 20, even though the rates are lower and you earn a little less.

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What do you think of these little girls with social media that have makeup accounts? I think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really bad, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not normal for a little girl to be using social media, obviously we have to understand that we are in an era where technologies have evolved a lot and all this has changed but I think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s horrible that they are online doing makeup tutorials and painting their faces. What are we teaching our children in the end? That they need make-up to feel good?

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What advice would you give to someone who is starting out as a make-up artist? That does hair, because right now there are few that dominate the hair the same as the makeup and to dominate both is what is going to him to take up. To the make-up artists that have not studied hairdressing salon it gives fear them to touch it because it is much but difficult that the make-up and to know to do it well opens you many but doors.

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Images from Unsplash

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INFLUENCERS HAVE BEEN USED FOR MARKETING PURPOSES FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS. THE FAST EVOLUTION OF SOCIAL MEDIA HAS MADE BRANDS CHANGE FROM MORE TRADITIONAL MARKETING TO NEW AND DIGITAL MARKETING. LAURA NELSON, FOUNDER OF LAURA RONNIE MANAGEMENT, EXPLAINS EVERYTHING ABOUT INFLUENCER MARKETING; FROM WHAT IT IS, TO HOW IT WORKS, AND HOW IT IS AFFECTING BRANDS. What exactly is influencer marketing? I would say it is like a hybrid of traditional marketing and digital marketing. Essentially is it more focused in celebrity endorsement, we have been using celebrity endorsement for years now, probably about 60 or 70 years. So, influencer marketing works on the bases of celebrity endorsement but it sort of marries traditional marketing techniques and partnerships with modern day digital media. The way influencers work is that, because they have a big following and are trusted, people want to align themselves with them much like a celebrity; you might be a fan of their music or what they wear, and influencers work in a similar way. Celebrities were used as influencers in a way to promote brands so, how has social media actually changed marketing? Well celebrities have never been like us, they have always been sort of God-like and we admire them because they live in big houses, they wear designer clothes and they go to the most exclusive events; the reason influencers are different and the reason they have changed the way marketing has evolved is that they usually are like us, they live in houses like us, they shop in shops like us. UNHEARD

That honesty and that authenticity, that sort of inside into somebodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s real life is what connects us to them and what has drawn us to them, that connection and bond is how the trust is build. Do you think influencers benefit small businesses or just bigger ones because they are in it for the free clothes? Influencers are key to small businesses, I do not know how small businesses would advertise their brand without the use of social media and without the use of influencers. Traditional marketing is expensive and small brands cannot effort to get a print ad or a TV ad or place traditional digital ads, but what social media has allowed them to create adverts. I personally think that influencers have the ability to have a much wider audience than a magazine would. I do believe that there are a lot of nano and micro influencers out there asking for free products but do I think brands have the ability to reach their audiences in a more efficient way than influencers? Probably not, to be honest. Influencers are crucial for these businesses but it is important that the brands learn how to identify the right influencers for their products.

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How could brands change that? What brands need to do is ask more questions, ask the influencers questions. If a brand is contacted by an influencer saying they want a collaboration, ask them who their audience is, how much they engage with them, how many people view their stories, how people swipe up when they post a story. I just think brands need to be bolder and braver, that is when genuine partnerships are born and work really well. How has the pandemic affected the influencer’s job? Initially the industry went into a bit of a panic and budgets were completely smashed which meant that influencers were not getting as many of those lovely paid partnerships that they were getting before. But influencers shifted what they did, how they did it. The thing that didn’t really change was affiliate marketing, this is when the influencer will put a specific affiliate in when they do a slip up or when they put a link, you never know. Then when their followers shops using that link, they will get a commission back from the brand. So what I do think happened is we got an awful lot more organic content because influences were featuring stuff that they didn’t really have any financial incentive for, but they were hoping that you liked it. And if you like, it gets more commission, right? So influences were doing much more of that. When life does go back to some normality and social distancing relaxes, I do think there’ll be more events. I do think that they’ll be travelling to parties, but a lot less than we had beforehand because we’ve just learned to work in a different way.

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Can people aspire to be an influencer or is it just luck? I think it works in both ways. I think a lot of people become accidental influencers just because they might create nice content or their content is engaging. They might have an engaging personality and then they just naturally collect an audience and grow it because what they’re doing resonates with a lot of people. But on the flip, I do think you could, it’s possible to become an influencer. I think that as time has gone on, we can see what works and what does not. Your agency works with older influencers, is there an emerging market for moms and all that kind of influencer. Is it a growing market? I think like any technology, the young people discover it fast and utilize it and show us how it works. And then it kind of passes upwards through generations. I mean, I used Facebook a long time before my parents did, and I used Instagram a long time before my parents did. I think that if a new platform was developed that became the new cool platform to be on, a bit like Instagram was, then young people will move to that. And then more people, older people will join Instagram because it’s sort of a trickle in effect. Moms and the over 40s and the 50s, are now the huge growing markets and audiences on Instagram because Instagram, particularly, is developing more and more technology to sell. Gen X loves to shop and buy products.

Do you think that younger influencers, the ones are around 20 are more independent in terms or managing than older influencers? I mean, it depends what kind of influencer, if we’re talking about influencers who are 19 and 20 and wearing Pretty Little Thing, I Saw It First and that sort of thing, I can tell you that there isn’t that much money behind it so it is easy to do it on your own. I think it’s much more a personality thing. Being an influence isn’t as easy as it looks. The reason people have agencies is because the agency will pitch for them. It’s very difficult to pitch yourself unless you have that very good, competent personality. It’s very difficult to negotiate yourself unless you’ve got a very forward, forthcoming personality. You also need to be very good at reading contracts and breaks. Younger generations have trouble trusting social media because they were born with it, do you think it affects influencers? Yeah, completely. I think that’s right. That’s why the advertising standard authority is working really hard to make sure that transparency is improved, because like you say, not everybody that uses social media understands yhat. And if the kids don’t understand what a partnership is, they won’t have any concept. It isn’t the audience’s job to get to understand or be more knowledgeable of the industry and the platform. It is the influencer’s job to make sure they’re being honest and transparent.

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How do you think the new Instagram regultations affect influencers in the long term? Because most of the times you don’t even see here content any more. The algorithm will always favor organic content wise and that’s fair because if it doesn’t do that, Instagram just becomes an entire feed of effort and thoughts and nobody knows how the algorithm works. The nature of the algorithm is that it’s been built and it develops itself. But what influences do is use lots of tricks to try and beat the algorithm. And ultimately, if your audience likes your content and likes what you do, they will come and look. So the more you engage with somebody’s channel, the more you’ll get it, because that’s how it works. I do think it’ll be harder for people to reach their audiences. But all it means is that job is going to be harder. They’ve got to work harder to create better content, stronger relationships with their followers and create something that’s different and unique. Instagram likes content that people want to see. The whole nature of Instagram is that they want everybody’s eyes to be on it so they don’t really care what the content is. But again, the algorithm changes all the time. Nobody knows how it works. It’s like a complete mystery and good influencer is not going to be affected by that because people will want to see their content and will look for it.

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