Premiere of The September Issue

Hands up if your excited?! The documentary that has got everyone talking premiered last night and the glitterati were out in force to watch it. Are we jealous?! Of course not. Facebook was streaming the red carpet arrival, but here in the UK I think it was in the wee small hours. Here are some pictures of some of the attendees...

Apparently the devil really does wear Prada! Anna Wintour with the cover star of the issue in question - Sienna Miller

Oscar de la Renta with Carolina Herrera

Jessica White - I absolutely love this dress, its a really hard colour to wear yellow, but she carries it off beautifully

Jason Wu with Karlie Kloss - Love the well clashed skirt and top

Georgina Chapman - I love simplicity and no fuss, and this looks great

Chanel Iman looking stunning in a simple white dress

Bee Shaffer, again love the dress. Purple is one of my favourite colours and it looks amazing here

Quirky fashion queen Alexa Chung looking great in this vintage looking dress, the shoes are pretty cool as well!

I'd have thought that with the documentary people would be selling of the issue on ebay to see what they could get for it but surprisingly there wasn't really anything on either the US or UK ebay. Maybe more people will once the documentary has aired. I'm curious to see what was in the issue, apparently it was the largest (in terms of pages) magazine in the world ever. If anyone has the issue available let me know!

Photos: Style.com

Edward Steichen

It seems that whenever inspiration fails you, all you need to do is look back. People often talk of things not being as good today as they were in the past. I don't know how true that is, maybe we are just inclined to put a rose-tinted perspective on the past and things in the past weren't necessarily better, just different. Nevertheless, it is interesting to look at how life, fashion par exemple was compared to now. Before popular culture invaded life in the sixties, people really seemed to know how to dress. Hollywood cinema of the thirties wasn't called the Golden Age for nothing, it was glamour in the true sense of the word and not the page 3 kind that exists now. Anna Wintour reckons fashion is about going forward, and in a sense she is right but that doesn't mean we can't take a little slice of the past with us and mix it up to create something contemporary.

Anyway, all this rambling does have a point. I came across the photographer Edward Steichen, a name I think I've come across before but actually really looked at recently (today!). He began his career in fashion photography in the early 1900's in Paris and became the photographer of Paul Poiret's collection. However he was more interested in fine art photography. It wasn't until the 1920's and a meeting with Frank Crowninshield, editor of Vanity Fair, and Conde Nast that he was offerered job as chief photographer for Vanity Fair and his career as fashion photographer restarted.

His photographs capture that whole glamourous side of life that is often associated with the twenties and thirties. He photographed a number of actresses at the time including Gloria Swanson, Greta Garbo and Joan Crawford. Although clearly placed within their time I think they are as interesting and inspirational as ever...you can see his influence in fashion photography today, and I think setting the style of modern day Vanity Fair fashion editorials.

An example of his fine art photography

Thanks to Smithsonian for some of the images and information

Annie Leibovitz: Alice In Wonderland Editorial

Thanks to Lily at Through The Looking Glass for bringing my attention to this fabulous editorial by Annie Leibovitz based on Alice in Wonderland with a high fashion twist. You can find the full story here.

Fashion Photography

More to remind me for next time really, but to get some of your ideas and comments before I write this post, as its late and I'm beyond shattered (and have had a few tequila sunrises!)...but what would you class as fashion photography?

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Ok, now I'm more awake I'm going to attempt to answer my own question. If this post comes across as a little academic or whatever, my apologies but I think it is interesting to consider. The wonderful resource that is wikipedia defines fashion photography as "a genre of photography devoted to displaying clothing and other fashion items...enhanced by exotic locations or storylines."

Generally our ideas of fashion photography, or maybe just mine, involve glamourous clothing...something that represents a lifestyle just beyond our reach, a fantasy or dream. Yet some photographers, for example Corinne Day have thrown this idea out and redefined that view. Her style is touching on an almost documentary look, which leads us to question whether it could be considered fashion photography at all. One example is a shoot for Vogue in 1993, involving Kate Moss in her own flat.




At the time this style caused quite a stir. The almost voyeuristic feel to these photographs...fly on the wall documentary if you like, takes a step back from the typical photoshoots that people were used. The fact that these were featured in Vogue, usually a traditional magazine that has quite a defined, classic and high end style also adds to the shock factor. I would never have thought that these images were in Vogue, and have the feel of more edgier magazines of the time such as The Face. Would you consider these images to be fashion photography? All Kate Moss is wearing is a vest and underwear, which I don't think were particularly designerish, just plain. The images are simple, everyday, maybe even to the point of mundane. So what makes them fashion photography as much as the image below?


All three images are classed as fashion photography...they show the clothes the model is wearing in one context or another. Although fashion photography was traditionally used as a sales tool, I think fashion photography has moved away from this idea and now its more about selling a lifestyle. I don't think it is just about selling either, but also to do with the meaning created within the image. Fashion isn't just about amazing clothes with a very nice price tag, its about identity and clothes do create or contribute to identity. The Corinne Day photographs tell the story about just an everyday person, and the clothes they way help convey this meaning. If fashion is about clothes then the clothes in this image are key to the meaning produced in this image, just as much as the Vanity Fair (January 07) shoot does.

I think the definition or boundaries of fashion photography are broadening with time. The street style images on lookbook.nu are fashion photography as much as a Mario Testino fashion story for Vogue is fashion photography. Whether you are wearing Primark or Prada, if there is a message being produced in that image it is fashion photography.

What do you think? Also if your into the theoretical side of fashion I highly recommend the book Fashion Spreads: Word and Image in Fashion Photography by Paul Jobling. It is such a good book..check it out on amazon!

Rob Ryan

If you read Elle or Vogue, which I'm figuring is pretty likely then its also likely that you've come across art work by the artist, writer and film maker Rob Ryan and his papercuts. I absolutely adore his work, which comes in the shape of almost fairytale, child like illustrations in the style of cut out pictures. What makes them even more appealing are the words that often accompany them, tapping into human emotion...feelings of love, loneliness and life in general. Some of his work is so intricate in detail, its quite amazing.
























The above image is from his book 'This is For You' which explores the idea of love and finding that soulmate. If you haven't read it, I seriously recommend you get yourself a copy.

Rob Ryan, is a Royal College of Art graduate who started with prints but has lately had work comissioned by Tatty Devine, Paul Smith and Fortnum and Mason. Plus magazines such as Vogue as I mentioned.

Here are more examples of his work.. On the left is a dress he designed for Vogue with designer Gary Page.





















For more information, visit his website, blog and shop at Etsy

The Beginning

Every story has a beginning and this is mine. I've been studying fashion journalism since September 08 and shock horror, don't have a blog. That is, until now. So this is going to be my place for my comments on the fashion world, what I'm up to at uni and anything else that I happen to find vaguely interesting that I want to share with you, the reader. I do hope there are going to be readers of this blog...after all they are there to be read and to have a blog that no one reads is quite sad.

Anyway, about me...well I'm 21 and a student with a student budget unfortunately. Its making shopping for clothes incredibly difficult and aside from various fancy dress items, I haven't actually bought anything new since before Christmas. I didn't even hit the January sales this year which was just awful. I am resigned to window shopping and lusting after clothes I can't afford until I get a job to fund my habit once again. This credit crunch business is not making things any easier and is leaving me wondering how its going to be once I graduate. Anyway, thats a few years away...right now I just need to worry about the next time I'm going to be able to buy a new dress. One of my friends was rather clever and got all creative to make a new skirt from an old one by chopping off the end to make it shorter and then using scissors to distress it. Thing is I'm not sure if I have anything to renew...and even if I did I'm better off staying away. Writing about fashion is one thing but creating it is totally different! Might have to pull out the favours and 'mend and make do' instead....

I'll give the credit crunch this, for fashion it definately makes people more creative. Lets face it, most people can't stand not getting the odd new item now and then, so now its forcing them to get the sewing kit out and personalize. No longer do we have a street of sheep but complete individuality. Its rather exciting! As for high fashion, well looks like its gotten all sober and has finally acknoweledged what the rest of us have known for a good few months now. Even Vogue has brought back an old feature, 'More Dash than Cash' showing readers how they can recreate high fashion looks for cheaper. The April edition also included an article on money saving tips, in its own inimitable style of course...these tips aren't the sort you'd get in an Asda magazine! Still nice to see high fashion not putting its head in the sand...I guess it shows the credit crunch really affects everyone.