Saturday 30 May 2009

_RBPMstudio this week . . .



_4 day week - 4 huge shoots - totally un-necessary for a week that short, from Nylon magazine, to MA collections to fresh brand look books, to me and my photogrpaher just being stupid double shooting in one day. Totally knackering, and by Friday my biggest enemies in the world are Model agencies - They kill me. However, now I've had all the sleep, and managed to look back and the quality and amount of work produced, I can begin to feel very proud. A massive thank you to Pelle - This week you have been my absolute star. And a special thanks to Alexander (above) who was the best model I've shot in a long time - beautiful, on it for every shot, keeps laughing, and to top it off the boy produced some amazing imagery for us. Oh, and one last one to Veronica, who, after knowing the week I'd had came down to the studios at the end of yesterdays shoot to congratulate me with my favourite chocolate and peanut butter milkshake, V, you're adorable, I love you xx

Stay tuned for more updates on this weeks work coming soon.

_My Desktop



_Is currently pretty mental. But everything on it is so glorious I decided to take a screen shot and blog it.

_RBPMstudio Preview



_Another little preview from the current Academe re-brand I'm working on - this is part of a set of cards being designed (still a work in progress) to stock exclusively in Collette in Paris.

_Heart Doug



_Doug Inglish - I first met him when working with one of his best friends 3 years ago, and have followed him since - Everything he does I love, but this shoot for the new 'Out' is quite literally homo heaven. Bruce Weber anyone?

_I think . . .



_I obsessed with everything to do with this genius album - whether it be tour costumes, music videos or fashion/art/sex books.

"Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Scathed on its 1992 release, it is only now, 17 years after its release, that Sex-era Madonna’s Erotica can be appreciated for the entity it was: Iconic. Influential. Visionary. With the approval of Steven Meisel - the photoghraper responsible for Erotica’s artwork - we look back at Madonna’s fifth studio album and discover, despite lack-lustre sales and feedback along the lines of “Ugly porn” (New York Times), it was a bold move that shaped the face of the 90's."

Amen.

_Acid Drop Exhibit



_I want to go to this so so badly.

_Fresh




_An old Alasdair Mclellan shoot from AH+ styled by Alister Mackie. Its just such a nice way to do collections - cute boys, good fashion and fresh flowers - The top shot with the rose pinned to the Lanvin tag is just glorious, infact the Lanvin tag in general - a modern Ray Petri.

_Jonathan Schipper





_'Slow inevitable death of American muscle' - Slow motion car crash




_'Measuring Angst'

_"Jonathan Schipper's current show, Irreversibility at The Boiler, Pierogi (191 N 14th, Greenpoint/ Williamsburg), is great: sad, thoughtful, and more than a little fun. The show is comprised of just two works, The Slow Inevitable Death of American Muscle and Measuring Angst, both of which slow down violent events to make of them poetic ballets.

The main work on view The Slow Inevitable Death of American Muscle pits two cars, one (in this particular match) a beyond totally awesome Firebird, the other a maroon car that I would now be able to identify and probably even appreciate had it not been for the amazingly gorgeous and distracting Firebird, against one another. Schipper has rigged the two cars so that they collide, extremely slowly, over a period of six weeks. At the opening, the cars had just touched and were beginning to collapse into one another. Over the course of the exhibition, the two cars will push farther and farther into one another, usually until one overtakes the other, pushing over the collapsing hood of the other, and destroying both in the process. Of course, the title of the work indicates that the work can be seen as a commentary on the slow death of the American automobile industry, muscle car machismo, or even the capitalistic enterprise in general. In the age of spectacle, it is lovely to see an event take place over such an extended time period, one that defies viewing in a single go and necessitates that the viwer return to the scene. This isn't just a one-time, never-to-be-seen-again piece, it is comprehended over time and can even be restaged (between different cars). It's a high-octane crash at the speed of boredom. And yet, the crash itself, the destruction of the two cars, allows them to become actual anthropomorphic protagonists whose death is almost torturous. The Firebird, whose scent of lived-in-ness necessitated the artist placing an air-freshener inside, came complete (when purchased) with a picture of a young man, inscribed on back (according to someone who had looked at it) with a message to the youth's father (click on image to enlarge). The car is thus the receptacle and the embodiment of lost dreams. The two cars--locked in an embrace, a kiss, a love that leads (of course) to death--prompt an inevitable sense of mourning and loss.

The other work, Measuring Angst, is composed of a mechanism that holds together the pieces of a Corona beer bottle (reminiscent of the spider-like machine that puts together Leeloo in The Fifth Element). The machine slowly catapults the bottle across the space, then slowly pulls the bottle part (as if it had hid the wall), and then pulling it back together again and rewinding/resetting. The repetition could symbolize the desire to undo things done and reassemble that which is broken. Of course, the irony is that the process just repeats itself over and over again, forever breaking, forever reassembling, again like love--this time a love ( tinged by anger and violence) gone completely wrong."

Josh, thank you for introducing this to me xx

Tuesday 26 May 2009

_Miss Rapp



_Thank you.
In a stupidly busy and stressful day, you put a huge smile on my face.
Man, Busta rules.

_Givenchy SS09




_Currently mildly obsessed with the idea of this as fashion advertising - so simple and to the point, yet so strange and ballsy, nothing is half baked - no 'grey tones' - black and white, literally. Committed and simple graphics. The collection speaks for itself. And the faces - really though?! - Amazing. The type of design and advertising I strive to create - I imagine the model of the single shot was totally gutted when the campaign launched. Overall, complete genius.

_I dont like girls



_But this is pretty damn hot, and tasteful at that.

Taken from Patricia Rezai's great little blog - www.thefemalezoo.blogspot.com - Nikola, you look incredible, and to everyone else - go check it out.

Monday 25 May 2009

_Hazy Bank Holiday afternoons



_This Slimane picture opitomizes how the end ofthe weekdend felt for me.

_Will



_Mr Green - Well done, this painting of your behind is glorious, thank you for my Sunday afternoon treat ;)

_Boxer



_Just an ace bit of ballsy graphics - reminds me of tina turner in Mad Max for some reason - it just goes to show how much a mediocre image can be lifted by a great type choice.

_Icon II: Axl





_What a guy - the hair, the cheek bones, the style (note those amazing floral jeans, US flag Biker and customised 'AXL' sneakers), the baby face, the piles of jewellery, the badboy attitude - Shame its al gone now, but we still have the memories.

_Back when magazines had balls . . .





_1970's Esquire covers - Genius conviction in subject and layout.

_Bank Holiday Interiors





_Just something glorious to peruse this Sunday evening - Fresh cut flowers, scattered frames, pastel tones, 25% grey, glass ceilings, plumped cusions, White vases, iMac, Eames, corner windows, desk draws, mustard tweed, knock throughs, ercol, and low lit dining tables.

_Icon I: Tony Ward







_After talking about the Madonna 'Justify My Love' video last night I went on a bit of a Tony Ward hunt, and not only did I totally fall in love, but I also discovered a dark gay porn side to Tony Ward's career (I kid you not) - amazing. Not only was the guy a beautiful young man (with an ass of steel) but he's grown into a incredible looking middle aged man with a blossoming modeling career - total Icon.

Above: Photo by Jack Pierson, stylist Anastasia Barbieri for Vogue Hommes International SS08

Sunday 24 May 2009

_RBPMstudio Preview



_The current re-brand and relaunch I'm working on at the studio for 'The Academe' a 20th Century Couture collection, due to be stocked in Browns in London, Collette in Paris and Bergdorf's in New York AW09. Model: Ulla, wears 1970's Ossie Clark jacket (worn inside out), 1989 Gaultier sunglasses, 1994 YSL heels.

Stay tuned for more.

_Street Syle, Adam



_Since graduating last summer, I seem to have completely stopped taking street style shots (other than when Nylon request it of me), this may have something to do with the fact that recesssion stops people spending the money on 'dressing up' for day to day wear, or (the more likely option) - Im currently just too busy to stop and take notice to how well people dress in our fair city. This changed on wednesday, when it was the 2009 internal Central Saint Martins Graduating collections shows - year from year it brings its old students back to see friends, colleagues and fresh competion coming out into the industry. Evidently, this was the case when I bumped into a load of old classmates who are now scattered across the globe. Adam (above) is currently working with the menswear design team for Ralph Lauren in NYC - Glad to see that the boy has still got totally sick style.

Good to see you boys x

_RIP Luke Smalley







_Luke Smalley, the art photographer famous for his playful images that explored the intersections between fashion and masculinity, died unexpectedly last Sunday at the age of 53. Smalley’s work cultivated an aura of lighthearted manliness by lifting from an array of masculine ideals — 20th-century fitness manuals, vintage school portraits, antique exercise equipment. Although Smalley was not a household name, he was revered among leading men’s-wear image makers, most notably his frequent collaborator and friend, the designer Kim Jones. (In 2004, Smalley teamed up with Jones on a book chronicling American youth culture). Smalley’s work appeared in progressive men’s fashion publications such as Dazed & Confused, V Magazine, Vogue Hommes International, Another Man and Arena Homme Plus. His two books, “Exercise at Home” and “Gymnasium,” were showcases for his tongue-in-cheek take on adolescence. (A final book on his work, “Sunday Drive,” will come out later this year.) While certainly homoerotic, Smalley’s images were never perverse. Instead, through the imaginative use of props, costumes and staging, Smalley helped bridge the gap between whimsy, sensuality and machismo — a viewpoint men all too seldom see reflected in popular culture.

_W



_Some great images by David Sims in the current issue of 'W' magazine of '19 year' old London performance 'artist' Theo Adams AKA The-O (FYI: Theo how long have they been writing that you're 19?!) The decupage aestheric of the piece is just my style, and I especially love the above page of Theo's braced & glittered mouth, it runs opporsite to a screen shot 'credits' page and is just glorious.

Sims and Adams met when casting and shooting 'Londons new creative talents' for the premier issue of Katie Grands LOVE magazine.

_Congratulations




_Marios Schwab, who was announced as the new Creative Director of Halston this week, His debut collection will be for AW10, Scwab plans to relocate to new studios NYC, which believe me, will be a damn sight nicer than his current Dalston based studio! But dont worry, he also plans to carry on his own line.

Here's hoping he can beigin to create something as iconic as the Halston / Bianca / White Horse / 54 aesthetic!

_Video Icon







_One of my favourite music videos ever - 'Justify my Love' by Madonna. Banned on release by MTV, I love videos/fashion shoots shot in hotels for some reason - there's something really dirty about it, a throw away glamorous space designed for you to do what you want - throw in her then boyfriend, Tony Ward, rip off his top, and you got the recipe for an iconic video.

“Justify My Love” was the first single by American singer-songwriter Madonna from her 1990 greatest hits compilation ‘The Immaculate Collection’ and was released on November 6, 1990 by Sire Records. It caused international controversy due to the accompanying music video which was sexually explicit and even banned by MTV. This outraged Madonna and she appeared on ABC’s Nightline to defend it. The single was also released as a Video-single and became the highest selling video single of all-time.[1] When released, the single rose to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and many other worldwide charts. The single made No.2 in the Uk christmas charts selling over 350,000 copies.

“Justify My Love” was written by Lenny Kravitz, Ingrid Chavez and Madonna. Kravitz wrote the song for Madonna, based on a poem written by friend and Prince protégé Ingrid Chavez. Kravitz added the title hook and chorus. Madonna contributed a few lines. Chavez was not credited for the song and later sued Kravitz in 1992. She received an out-of-court settlement, and gained a co-writing credit.

Producer Kravitz sampled the intro found on Public Enemy’s instrumental, “Security of the First World”, and used it as the basis of the song. The song was unique in that Madonna’s vocals are primarily spoken and whispered. This style served as a prelude to her next album Erotica, in which she spoke the lyrics on some of the songs rather than singing them. Kravitz provided background vocals. Rumors of a love affair between Kravitz and Madonna sprang up in the press upon the release of the song. Kravitz has denied these rumors.