My name is Miranda. I was born in Peterborough but I managed to escape to London after a 3 year stint studying in the wild terrain of Wales. I was sent away after years of noise abuse on my family, malady reciting poem after poem on very uninterested ears. Now, approved by day, I am an assistant-extraordinaire, helping to keep the retail industry alive. At night, I enjoy scouting out events and secret gigs with my friend Mel, to see how much we can blag. A perfect day would be a festival, with some great bands and cold cider. I like mint tea, vintage playsuits, F. Scott Fitzgerald novels, and hunting for treasure in charity shops around the Fens. I am always late, left-handed and nosey. I recently fell in love with London all over again whilst taking a walk through Kensington Gardens on a warm day and enjoying a perfectly whipped ice cream. One day I plan to write my memoirs in Barcelona, but until then I will continue to build up a collection of vintage clothing, worthy of a wing in the V&A.
Photograph by Hannah Kinver Miles
There is nothing generic about Kirsty Almeida; she was not artificially created from a record labels wish-list, for sale nor manufactured during an X Factor audition. Navigating her own path, she is very much the modern Renaissance Woman: artist, experimenter and a true creative. Before meeting Kirsty to chat about her new album Pure Blue Green – a rich tapestry of blues, folk and jazzy pop – I watched video clips of her performances. Singing live, she is mesmerizing, a powerhouse! Free spirited and alive, at times she is an enigmatic chanteuse, and other times she is a ringleader to a raucous vaudeville troupe. She sings with a passion that leaves us in no doubt that her music come from an honest and heartfelt place. Her voice is tender with sparkles of underlying inquisitiveness and humour and it only takes a minutes listening to see that her life, thoughts and loves are entwined within her lyrics, revealing an existence lived to the full and one that is continuously questioned. So it comes as no surprise that our conversation becomes an all-encompassing discourse that occasionally touches on her album and then soars off in the direction of magic, art, self-development, women’s rights and the dubious ethics of the music industry….
I love how visual your shows are…..
I love the big show thing, I think that people want to be entertained; because music is so accessible, and more downloadable now, people really like going out to live shows. I like to do something thats entertaining, but I also love the little live acoustic shows, those are some of my favourite gigs to do. I’m doing a gig soon that will be just me with a guitar and a girl called Lucinda Bell on harp. I’ve had a six foot bird cage designed and built for me, and we’re going to do a series of exhibitions and art galleries where I will play sat in the cage that will be suspended from the ceiling!
There is a lot of creativity in your performance…
Truthfully I am a visual artist, so I can’t help but look at things and go “well if you just stuck a massive big flower there, and that was attached to an umbrella with a bath chain and then water came out of it…. ” (laughs) and thats just how my mind works; it’s really visual and my work is really visual, I can’t help it!
What do you see first?
When I’m writing a song, I always see colours. I see music in colours and textures. so the first thing that will happen will be that I will be playing guitar and then the colours will come together and at that point I will know that it’s right and then I just have to close my eyes and wait and then the lyrics come.
So the song arrives together?
Always!
Do the visuals come at the same time?
No, when I write, it is just about the song and being a channel of creativity. I try and let the song happen, and then afterwards when it’s on loop I get the visuals.
Photograph by Hannah Kinver Miles
Where does your inspiration come from?
I’m inspired by a day, every day there is a million things that inspire me. I’m inspired by clothes, people, situations, conversations that I hear from other people, situations that I get into, trouble, butterflies, birds, nature, trees….. everything!
Do you paint?
Yeah, I paint a lot. But, (sighs) there is never enough time. I also run a collective called Odbod. I set it up in Manchester where there’s a very strong support network of artists, musicians and composers who work together but because you don’t normally get paid to do original music, you have to call in a lot of favours, and in the Manchester scene there are a LOT of favours, people calling each other all the time and helping each other out on each others projects, but there is no set network so there is no way of getting funding or help and I realised that a lot of the artists needed support and advice and people were coming to me for advice, so I thought if we had a collective, we can all get together and say to each other, ‘what do you need, how can I help?’
It’s a genius idea! Would you consider expanding the Odbod’s collective to London?
I would love to! It’s hard to contain it, there are so many people who want to be involved and to everyone who wants to get involved, I just say, come along, support us and we will support you. Hopefully none of the Odbods will be there in a year, they will have flown the nest and it will be time for the next lot of artists to come in. I’m also managing an Irish singer called Rioghnach Connolly, she’s amazing, that girl blows my mind! I’ve watched her and given her advice along the way; I’m quite good at keeping peoples motivation up and helping them to see where they are messing up, and where they are putting in energy where they don’t need to be putting energy in. The whole psychology of being an artist is quite self destructive and I really recognize that so I’m good at pulling someone out.
Do you have that self destructive side to you?
Yeah, there is an element of that in all of us. To be an artist you have to stare at yourself in the mirror every day and to be a true artist you have to get to a place where you actually see what’s not in the mirror, and then separate that from yourself and that’s really hard. You judge yourself very harshly and artists are especially hard on themselves. I have a lot of issues with balance, so I spend most of my time trying to achieve that balance in my life.
If there are particular issues that are bothering you, do you ever find the answers in your songs ?
Definitely! I usually find out what’s going on in my life when I write a song, I have no idea otherwise! Most of the time I don’t know what day it is!
Are you on the road a lot?
Not as much as I would like to be. I would really like to go around the whole world, that would be great…
You are quite a wondering spirit (born in the UK, brought up in Gibraltar, Kirsty grew up travelling the four corners of the globe) Do you feel like an outsider, or can you fit in anywhere?
I empathize with people, I find it easy to talk to anyone or any culture; I’m just fascinated by people. I never felt like I didn’t fit in, it was only as I got older that I thought, I don’t fit in anywhere, I’m the wrong shape for everything! And it took me a long time to work that one out.
How did you reconcile that?
By being really honest with myself. I did a course called The Artists Way. One of the tasks that you have to do is write every morning; first thing you do is write all of your thoughts, and you write out your negativity, all those thoughts that say “I’m not good enough, I’m not happy…” and at the end of that you rip up the paper and throw it away and after a few months you notice that what you write is more creative; you are writing more positive thoughts. You cease the negative voices, and those are the words that say that you don’t fit in. And through that and meditation, I just kind of found out who I was and realised, you know, I am different, and everyone is different, and that is something to be celebrated.
Photograph by Hannah Kinver Miles
I read you saying that the future of women worries you, can you explain that? What specifically concerns you?
We still have so many issues in our sexist world, we still have so many places where men are in charge of things that women should be in charge of, and that concerns me. I am most concerned by the fact that magazines and newspapers are airbrushing us out of existence, and airbrushing us into mental hospitals! I’m really worried about the next generation of girls and how they will deal with this; their idols aren’t real – they are not real human beings! They don’t have curves, they don’t exist… It’s a unreal ideal. I’m really worried about the music industry too – especially what Simon Cowell has done to it! When I go to someone’s house and there is a TV on and they have X Factor or Idol, and I go, “is this what people are watching?” It’s a mind numbing existence for people who should be out living rather than watching.
And the music industry certainly has some interesting ideas about how to market their female artists!
There are a lot of issues and struggles; it is incredibly difficult for women in the record industry; it drives me mad! No matter how good you are, you are solely competing with say, KT Tunstall, Corrine Bailey Rae, Amy Winehouse, Imelda May; the labels always pit us up against each other and say “You have to be the new….” You are not out there and being celebrated as a good musician. If people can’t pigeonhole you, you are seen as a bit of an oddity. Had I been a man in this industry I would have been dealt with differently; I would have been celebrated for the way that I handle myself, but if you are a female, and you have opinions then you are seen as being difficult.
It must be hard to maintain your confidence, and sanity and creativity, whilst these obstacles come your way.
If you realise that creativity, well this is my perception of it; that creativity comes from creation, and that it’s all already there and you just have to become the channel and keep that as your focus and centre. Then none of that other stuff can touch you.
Written by Cari Steel on Wednesday June 30th, 2010 4:09 pm
Can it really be a year since the last Glastonbury? In 2009, try for the first time, for saleClimate Camp was given it’s very own space in the Dragon Field just above the Craft Field as you wend your way down to Shangri La. This year we’re back to once again educate and entertain festival goers at our beautiful site only a few minutes walk from the Old Railway Line.
Workshops, illness at play, and First Aid Kit playing at the Climate Camp Tripod Stage in 2009.
In 2010 Climate Camp is targeting the Royal Bank of Scotland, which has been bailed out with £50 billion of public money that is now being used to finance the extraction of fossil fuels across the world, with no regard for climate change or the destruction of communities that it causes. We will be camping near the RBS global headquarters in Edinburgh, Scotland, between 19th-25th August, but in the meantime to find out more about why we decided to focus on RBS this year come along and take a look at our exhibition at Glastonbury, then pick up a copy of our Never Mind The Bankers newspaper to peruse over a cup of tea or share with friends. We will be running DIY screenprinting workshops where you can learn how to screenprint your clothing with an anti RBS slogan. Simply bring your own or print onto one of our tshirts or bags. A great activity for kids! There will also be a chance to take part in Tripod Training: Tripods are used to blockade and secure a space on a direct action protest; come find out how to put them up and climb them safely. Good fun, and no previous experience or skills required.
Tripod Training.
Then of course there is our fabulous music, poetry and comedy line up, put together by yours truly. Read on to find out who will be gracing our Tripod Stage…. Pyramid Stage eat your heart out, this is where the real talent is.
Green Kite Midnight.
When I wrote up about the Climate Camp presence at Glastonbury in 2009 in my blog I talked about my hope that my band Green Kite Midnight would be able to play as the Climate Camp house band in 2010, so I’m very excited to report that we will be doing daily gigs this year. Five years ago I co-founded the barndance troupe Cutashine out of a desire to make traditional collective dancing more fun: after all, what’s better than a dance where you get to meet other people and really work up a sweat?
With Cutashine I played at gigs all over Glastonbury for several years, then left to start Green Kite Midnight through my contacts in Climate Camp; a band that supports and plays at direct action protests. Our first gig was at the Climate Camp in Bishopsgate during the G20 in April last year, we played to 800 people at the Blackheath Climate Camp in August 2009, and more recently we went on a 10 day solidarity bike ride together to play gigs to support the struggle against the Shell gas pipeline at Rossport in Ireland. With myself as emcee (I’m a gobby shite, so turn your mind away from those boring barn dances you might have attended as a child) we can teach anyone how to barn dance, so please come and join us.
And now for the rest of our fabulous line-up:
Anna Log
My Luminaries, photography by James Dean White.
On Thursday we kick off four days of renewably powered music with a fabulous folky female. Anna Log – singer with pop folk band We Aeronauts – will be doing a solo set accompanied by her trusty uke. After our first ceilidh Glastonbury Emerging Talent winners My Luminaries round the evening off with a special semi-acoustic set of their epic indie rock.
Kirsty Almeida
Danny and the Champions of the World
On Friday Kirsty Almeida opens for us with her bass heavy soulful Bayou blues, then we’re pleased to welcome the epic musical dreamscapes of Newislands, described as Pink Floyd meets Depeche Mode. After that it’s time for some other Climate Camp regulars, Danny Chivers, Claire Fauset and Merrick, to grace the stage with their “triple-headed tag team political poetry extravaganza”. They’re all friends of mine that I’ve seen perform before so I highly recommend their set, which will be repeated on Sunday afternoon. As a closer we have the country-tinged big band folk of Danny and the Champions of the World.
Kyla la Grange
Patch William
The Federals
Dry the River
To kick the day off on Saturday we welcome an exclusive Glastonbury appearance from a talented newcomer with a stunning voice; Kyla La Grange creates soaring melodies and is nearing completion of her debut album. Then comes Patch William – the dreamy lovechild of Nick Drake and Jimi Hendrix, who are followed by the scuzzy rock sound of York boys The Federals, described as a cross between the White Stripes and The Beatles. Then, time for a very special guest. Following my interview with Robin Ince a few weeks he very kindly promised to come by and do us a *special secret set* which will be a must see for all comedy fans at the festival. Tell all your friends! And come on by for a very intimate set from this well known comedian. Dry the River end the day with their beautiful melodic folk, singing songs of religion, history and community to rival those of Fleet Foxes and Mumford & Sons.
Pete the Temp
Pete Lawrie
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly.
Robinson
On Sunday we’ve got another packed day to end the festival. Pete the Temp returns to wow us with his comedic eco-political music and spoken word, then we look forward to hearing the bittersweet gospel blues of latecomer Pete Lawrie, who confirmed just as our flyer had gone to print. I am particularly pleased to welcome Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. the official moniker of singer songwriter Sam Duckworth. He will be showcasing music from his new album due for release later this year, and I’ve got a soft spot for him because he appeared in the print version of Amelia’s Magazine. Robinson will play a gypsy cajun folk set before we round off the festival with our GRAND RAFFLE. If you see our outreach team out and about please give generously to support Climate Camp and come along to our grand prize giving, which will be hosted by the inimitable Danny Chivers.
The Grand Raffle presented by Danny Chivers in 2009.
Don’t forget to follow myself and Climate Camp on twitter to find out how the festival is going; we can always live in hope that 3G reception will be better than it was last year! But most of all, don’t forget to come and visit us… and bring your friends along with you. I will of course write up a full report on my return. For a reminder of what to expect read my blog from last year here.
For a map and full timing information for all bands and workshops see this listings page.
Written by Amelia Gregory on Tuesday June 22nd, 2010 5:47 pm
On Friday we kicked off with Kirsty Almeida, who you can read more about in our interview here. My description of her music as bayou blues meets dub bass might suit her recorded material, but for this small show Kirsty ditched the big band that would later be accompanying her on the Avalon stage and instead took a more stripped back acoustic approach, dressed in a fetching stripy all-in-one pants suit.
A particularly creative course of action was required from all the percussionists who visited the Tripod Stage and, in between rattling and banging a wide variety of objects, Kirsty’s drummer once again stole the show… dancing and gurning in accompaniment to her song about the “wrong Mr Right” in a thoroughly endearing fashion.
cheeky drummer!
One of a breed of strong female musicians who have no desire to fit the normal pliable record label mould, Kirsty was relaxed and chatty during her songs: an absolute delight. Her album Pure Blue Green comes out on Decca on 31st August, and she finished painting the album artwork just last night!
Kirsty on the Tripod Stage: I loved how creative yet peaceful the area was. The stage was so beautifully bonkers it brought our bonkersness out of us and gave us a licence to be cheeky too. Kirsty’s favourite part of Glastonbury: Definitely all the street entertainers. I loved The Dead Weather too but for us as performers the highlight was definitely the chance to entertain and share our music.
Following Kirsty we had a session from Newislands, who despite worries that they would not be able to make a big enough noise managed to wow a small but perfectly formed mid afternoon crowd with their melodic post rock.
It was only after the gig that I discovered they were missing their bassist Bogart…. we are mutual friends of the Mystery Jets and met many years ago at a small festival called Blissfields that we all went to together. Later that night Bogart called on me in my tent with Marina Pepper. I was fast asleep and woke with the fear of God in me…. it wasn’t the best way to be reintroduced but apparently he insisted on seeing me “the nicest person he knows” – I look forward to meeting Bogart again one day when I am wide awake.
Lead singer David’s best bit about playing the Tripod Stage: Well apart from the lovely stage itself, complete with the best speaker system I’ve ever seen, receiving a cup of tea from yourselves midway through the set, was pretty special. David’s Glastonbury highlight: Apart from playing two amazing gigs, (one for you and one for BBC Introducing), seeing Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood on stage together was ace… “For a minute there I lost myself…”
Newislands are playing at Napa Live in Cyprus and then return to the UK to play the Farm Festival. A new single, followed by their debut album, will be released soon. You can watch their other Glastonbury performance here.
We then had our first session from Climate Camp poets Danny Chivers, Claire Fauset and Merrick – all of whom deliver brilliant spoken word commentaries on the state of the world. Danny and Claire have a way of making the environmental/political mess we are in make complete and simple sense, and Merrick takes on the whole system. Why do we work? If you’ve heard Merrick speak you’ll question the sense in ever getting a job.
After a somewhat more subdued ceilidh we were then treated to the most extraordinary live set from Danny and the Champions of the World, who decided to ditch most of the electrical amplification and instead sprawl towards their audience in a great acoustic morass.
This band was made for live gigs…. myself and Dom, the banjo player in Green Kite Midnight, were so enthralled by the set that we dusted ourselves down after dinner and set off to hear them once more at the Croissant Neuf bandstand. Danny is a massively confident and skilled musician who has clearly been playing for years: talents like his ought to be better celebrated.
Danny liked playing the Tripod Stage because: the audience was really great and there was an atmosphere that seemed very ‘other’ to the mad hustle and bustle of the rest of the festival – like a haven of good vibes and togetherness, like a family or maybe like what my minds eye would conjure up when I think of festivals in the 60′s. We really just love playing and it’s always great to pass the instruments around, have fun with friends and sing a bunch of songs, and it felt like the perfect time for that – we could’ve played for hours. The lentil dal [for supper] was a treat too!
Danny’s favourite part of Glastonbury this year: I guess the best part of it was getting to play music with friends to loads of folks. We were lucky enough to play on a bunch of different types of stages so we got a pretty broad experience of it all – we played about seven times which was amazing… but my feet still ache! It’s what we live to do: drink a few ciders and pass the guitar around.
Danny and the Champions of the World on the road: Our band really lives and breathes on the road, meeting good people and having a great time playing tunes. We’re doing… Maverick, Cornbury, Lounge on the Farm, Deershed, Secret Garden Party, Port Elliot, Truck Festival, Summer Sundae and Greenbelt – and maybe a couple more that I’ve forgotten. We’ll probably start to record a new record at the end of the year.
But, it didn’t end there…. like a magic jack-in-the-box, there were more surprises in store. Out of the band popped a duo who’s music I have loved since the very moment their album plopped onto my doormat. Like a butterfly emerging (from a particularly sexy and gorgeous caterpillar) Trevor Moss and Hannah-Lou shed the rest of the musicians to perform a few gorgeous tunes of their own. I was beaming like a motherfucker by this point.
A surprise performance from Trevor Moss & Hannah-Lou.
And then… I discovered that the band line up also features the delightful brothers who run Truck Festival, a great independent music festival near Oxford. They also run the smaller and folkier Wood Festival which takes place at the gorgeous Braziers Park, a sustainable community where I have camped on many an occasion. I really hope I can hook up with them some more. A nicer and more talented bunch of folk I have seldom met.
This man runs Truck Festival.
Moving on, my next blog tackles a very busy Saturday on the Tripod Stage – read it here.
Written by Amelia Gregory on Thursday July 1st, 2010 3:55 pm
The enigmatic Pumajaw are a male/female duo who hail from Scotland, and their new album Demonmeowmeow is a must hear slice of new wave electronica with heart. From the throaty openings of the epic song Mazy Laws, Demonmeowmeow sets out its wares with style: hypnotic vocals from singer Pinkie Maclure set off against the sparsest of musical arrangements by John Wills (formerly of Loop), resulting in a spooky, otherworldly glory: think sleazy synths mashed up with jazz inflected brass buzzing. I promise you that Demonmeowmeow is quite unlike anything else you will have heard in 2011. Buy it now.
Who is Pumajaw? Pinkie Maclure & John Wills, we’ve been working together for eleven years – John was working as an engineer and producer, I was a solo electronic artist. We worked together on a solo album of mine, From Memorial Crossing, which quickly evolved into a mutual project because we had so many ideas in common. After an arts council project called Lumen, we settled on the name Pumajaw, which comes from our initials.
Your new album Demonmeowmeow came out last month, what has been the reception so far? Gideon Coe on 6 Music has been playing Outlands a lot and we’ve had plays by Max Reinhardt on Radio 3′s Late Junction. There’s been some fantastic press, with a big feature in the Herald Scotland and a 4 star review in Uncut. There have been quite extreme reactions, some people love it immediately, but other people seem confused – I like to use 3 or 4 octaves and sing torch songs with great, irresistible melodies, but the arrangements are not just the usual instruments – John creates beautiful atmospheres from unusual sources, such as a page being turned, hinges rattling or the flapping of birdwings. It’s what we’ve always done, so it seems natural to us.
What does Demonmeowmeow mean?
Rebellious, dark and sensuous and a little bit cheeky.
Your sound is a mix of jazz, folk and alt blues, with a healthy dollop of electro on top. How did this come about?
It’s evolved over a long time – the first two Pumajaw albums were built around acoustic guitar loops and my rather minimal concertina playing, because we wanted to create a very simple music that could be performed live without much equipment. But as time went on, we felt restrained by it, we wanted to speed it up and make more noise, I wanted to stretch my vocal chords more. John used to be known as a drummer as well as a producer, so using new technology, he has started programming rhythms and that’s where the electro bit has come in, along with the purchase of some rather exciting synthesizers. I have to admit, we did rebel somewhat against what has started to feel like a tidal wave of bland, twee folk music – living in rural Scotland, you are surrounded by acoustic guitar balladeers and it gets really tiresome after a while. Demonmeowmeow is a bit of a reaction to all that.
Despite so many influences your sound has been described as timeless, which I think can be both a blessing and a curse. How do you think it has come to sound this way?
We are both inspired by what you might call great classic songs. As a teenager I listened to a lot of jazz, French chanson, blues and folk singers. We’ve never tried to be fashionable, just creative, ambitious. I would hate to think our music could lost its appeal over time. Duke Ellington said ‘there are only two types of music – good and bad.’ We’re trying to do the good stuff.
You’ve been busy producing videos. Why is it so important to you to create good visuals and is it quick to produce these videos?
John makes the videos, although we often both direct them. Visual performance has always been an important part of music for me, the imagery in the songs is very strong in my mind. The lyrics are like paintings and the videos are an extension of that. The plan is to film the whole album eventually – next up is the Mazy Laws, our 8 minute, sexy slowburner that has picked up a lot of airplay, despite its length. There’s a famous star-shaped maze near here we’re looking forward to filming and getting lost in.
What is happening in the Outlands video, and were you actually underwater for a great period of time? Outlands was made in a day, because we already had the footage. We went to Pompeii during our Italian tour last January. It was very wet and we noticed bubbles constantly popping up from the puddles, which must have been volcanic gas. It was magical and dreamlike. When John asked me what Outlands was about, I said it’s like a lullabye, about drying your eyes, finding peace, solace, comfort, healing. He overlaid the bubbles over some footage of me, so I didn’t have to be underwater! I think I look like a weird, innocent, adult baby playing with the bubbles, like when tiny babies first discover their hands.
Mask is a similarly simple but eerily evocative video, how was it put together and what was the idea behind it? Mask is about greed, vanity and dishonesty, the way people try and hide the truth with flippancy. At the moment, clever, talented people are being ignored and wasted while the well-connected few appear to be getting away unscathed. Mask is a comment on this.
What can the audience expect when you play the album live?
We love playing live, it’s the reason I became a singer in the first place. Over the years we’ve learned to choose our shows carefully – there’s no point in us playing grungey indie venues, I won’t stand being talked through. I just stop and confront people if that happens. I see us almost as a kind of theatrical performance. The songs are so deep, they need to be listened to, onstage we’re quite intense and demanding, things happen we can’t always predict – although there’s been a fair bit of dancing going on at our recent gigs, so it’s a bit of a party as well. We played at the Cafe Royal in Edinburgh recently, it’s all fairylights and decadent decor – perfect!
You’re off on tour of Italy in early 2012 – why Italy?
We do well in Italy, we’ve toured there a few times now. They’re a bit more open to music as ‘art’. I think our music suits their culture and temperament, they’re not scared of self-expression.
Billy Rose
When can people in the UK see you again? Which smaller festivals are on your hit list to play next year?
We’ll be doing more UK gigs in the spring, but we’re going to choose carefully. We’d like to do some small festivals, we hate the big corporate rock ones. There’s one called Lounge on the Farm we’d like to do, also a Scottish one called Doune the Rabbithole, we played there last year, it has a lovely idealism and positive atmosphere about it, they’re not scared of trying something different.
The Safe Inside (live in Genoa)
Any other exciting plans you can share?
We’re already writing the next album, also we’re about to sign a licensing deal with an American label, so 2012 could be a busy year for us.
Feelin’ hot hot hot… we arrived at the field with a blanket and straw hat, viagrastuff and headed straight to the bar. Queuing for what felt like a life-time in the blistering heat, pricecheap sounds of Johnny Flynn drifted through the air along with the smells of barbecued sausages. Queuing aside, we were happy.
Ciders in hand we weaved through camping chairs and stepped apologetically over blankets, occasionally catching the odd sandaled foot or splashing a little cider over a resting head… all part of the joy of festivalling, we found a spot, lay the blanket on the ground just in time for Laura Marling to take to the stage. ‘Afternoon everyone!’ Laura’s soothing voice echoed over the masses, ‘what a day!’…. people woo’d and clapped and cheered. In two years, Marling’s voice and lyrics have matured from pretty ditties to soulful folk… and her performance this weekend reeled in an eclectic crowd. Folk of all ages stood, eyes fixed and humming and Marling’s voice resonated. Songs from Marling’s latest album I Speak Because I Can mixed with original tracks from My Manic and I had us reminiscing, spinning around and singing-along.
Between sets we ate, drank and lay gazing into the brilliant blue ether… catching a bit of celebrity football, Mumford & Sons giving it their best. Seasick Steve was next up, and took to the stage with crowds-a-roaring. Unfortunately, due to minor sunstroke, we weren’t around for the whole set, but from what we saw, as always Seasick gave a cracking performance.
Mumford & Sons belted out there emotive country-inspired folk, now well-known from their vast radio coverage, and had the audience fixed. Looking and sounding the part, and slotting in perfectly to the Hop Farm scene.
Whilst queuing for a lamb kofta and chatting to a wonderful lady who lives on a pig farm in Cambridgeshire, who told me stories of her days as a festival queen in the 70s… (she was so small she used to crouch on the loo seat, feet on the seat – to avoid sitting on it… little ladies – take note!) Ray Davies performed and it came as pleasant surprise to hear the well-known Kinks records: Lola, You Really Got Me and all the rest. At the age of 66, Ray’s voice carried across fields, still very much in tact.
Last but not least, good old Bob Dylan appeared on stage, his (very) husky tones hooking the expectant field of fans, and taking them on a tumultuous journey through a plethora of songs steeped in sentiment.
Finally, an incredible set from Devendra Banhart ensued; no longer the long-haired folky-dolky guy that once plucked at our heartstrings, Devendra has completely reinvented his style: short-back-and-sides, checked shirt and long yellow cardie buttoned up; the sounds were funky and playful, his voice endearing and still with that jagged edge that made him famous. Even a few Roxy Music covers were thrown in to get us grooving. We danced until the cows came home.
With businesses struggling to survive through the recession armageddon, this site a few innovative individuals are thriving, using their imagination and collaborations with other creatives to succeed. Sarah Bagner, or ‘Supermarket Sarah‘ transformed a wall of her own home into a window dresser’s dream; featuring both vintage finds and handmade creations from the likes of Donna Wilson. Inviting shoppers into her home for tea and cake has gained her such a following that Selfridges even invited her to curate a wall for them.
Her latest collaboration is with the queens of cool, Tatty Devine, whose Brick Lane store has been transformed into an Aladdin’s cave of Sarah’s goodies. Tatty Devine is also famous for pioneering the collaborative spirit, teaming up with the likes of Rob Ryan, Charlie le Mindu and Mrs Jones to make their iconic statement jewellery ranges. Last night fellow creatives Fred Butler and Anna Murray were spinning some tunes on the decks, whilst cupcakes were supplied by Fifi and Lola.
I snapped Sarah wearing her Tatty Devine ‘Supermarket Sarah’ necklace in front of her wall which will soon be online here. The installation will be in store until the 16th August, alongside Tatty Devine’s regular stock which is currently on sale. This is your one stop shop for sorting your festival outfits; grab some neck candy from Tatty Devine and something from Sarah’s vintage dressing up box and you’re set!
Photographs by Katie Antoniou
With businesses struggling to survive through the recession armageddon, site a few innovative individuals are thriving, order using their imagination and collaborations with other creatives to succeed. Sarah Bagner, store or ‘Supermarket Sarah’ transformed a wall of her own home into a window dresser’s dream; featuring both vintage finds and handmade creations from the likes of Donna Wilson. Inviting shoppers into her home for tea and cake has gained her such a following that Selfridges even invited her to curate a wall for them.
Her latest collaboration is with the queens of cool, Tatty Devine, whose Brick Lane store has been transformed into an Aladdin’s cave of Sarah’s goodies. Tatty Devine is also famous for pioneering the collaborative spirit, teaming up with the likes of Rob Ryan, Charlie le Mindu and Mrs Jones to make their iconic statement jewellery ranges. Last night fellow creatives Fred Butler and Anna Murray were spinning some tunes on the decks, whilst cupcakes were supplied by Fifi and Lola. I snapped Sarah wearing her Tatty Devine ‘Supermarket Sarah’ necklace in front of her wall which will soon be online here. The installation will be in store until the 16th August, alongside Tatty Devine’s regular stock which is currently on sale. This is your one stop shop for sorting your festival outfits; grab some neck candy from Tatty Devine and something from Sarah’s vintage dressing up box and you’re set!
Photography by Tim Adey.
Last time I went to Latitude it was a mere toddler of a festival… way back in 2007 it was still possible to roam freely amongst thin crowds and I remember commenting back then that the secret wouldn’t last long. 30, treat 000 people attended the fifth Latitude, drug held in the rolling wooded grounds of Henham Park which belong to an eccentric sheepfarming millionaire known as the Aussie Earl. Every year the sheep are famously dyed various shades of pastel then penned into small enclosures surrounded by signs Do Not Feed The Sheep. There’s something quite ironic in the exoticisation of such a common animal, stomach but then again most middle class urbanites have little cause for close contact with their food. Reading through tweets on my way to the festival I laughed at one suggestion that a bunch of hippies were clogging up the local roads… nothing could be further from the truth. Latitude is famously the home of the well read intellectual classes, a fact which was mentioned on repeat throughout the whole festival.
Despite a lack of line up on Thursday evening most punters had already set up camp by the time we arrived. Like Glastonbury, early crowds baying for entertainment guaranteed a packed audience for the few shows being staged. Our first stop was Nigel Kennedy, playing with The Orchestra of Life and visiting Polish musicians on the Lake Stage: the gig was attended by an all age crowd, a significant feature of the entire festival. Nigel romped through a selection of Duke Ellington jazz standards before crashing into a barndancing favourite that had the crowd hooting in delight. In between he flirted salaciously with a lady in the crowd and swore copiously. As Radio 1 DJ Colin Murray was later overheard saying – it’s a pity Nigel has to open his mouth. It was a bit like Madonna at the Turner Prize trying a bit too hard to be hard. But I liked the ceilidh classic – more of that please. Try as I might I just can’t get into the jazz thing.
Large parts of Henham Park forest have been opened up to accommodate more theatre, and down amongst the towering trees we were ushered into the heaving theatre arena for Les Enfants Terribles: The Vaudevillians. It was certainly terrible. Despite being billed as “a unique and exciting night out” I was only able to watch ten minutes before I was so bored and unexcited out of my brain that we had to leave.
A pretty picture of flags at Latitude. Photography by Tim Adey.
Instead we paid a visit to Robin Ince in the Literary Arena. Robin Ince is the literary high priest of Latitude – he was holding court whenever I went past despite his assertion (in my recent interview with him) that he would be spending less time on stage this year. Joining him were a wide range of comedians and writers over the course of the festival, and it made me smile to hear him delivering more of his climate change material to a packed audience.
Tom Jones sans hair dye was of course the big act to appear on Thursday night – clearly a last minute addition designed to promote his new album Praise & Blame. Even before we approached the lake I realised we might have trouble attending his bijoux gig on the In The Woods stage. Many thousands of people + small stage = frustrated pile up. We took the back route up to the guest area where we listened from behind the fence once they had sorted out screeching feedback, and could just discern a frenzy of enthusiastic front row teenagers screaming Sex Bomb. There was to be no Sex Bomb. One man was overheard commenting that his new bluesy songs sounded “like Johnny Cash on a downer”, but I quite liked them. Security spent the whole gig shining torches at anyone who dared get close the fence. Since I couldn’t see anything I fell asleep on the ground. Thanks for the soothing lullabies Tom.
I’ve reviewed all other days according to genre. Why not get started on my Friday Music Review here?
Written by Amelia Gregory on Tuesday July 20th, 2010 12:24 pm
I arrive by bike as usual to meet the three members of Peggy Sue at Spitalfields Market. Rosa got lost on hers and didn’t make their 6Music interview earlier in the day, more about which handily alerted me to the fact that it is Katy’s 24th birthday today, as well as the official launch of their new album Fossils and Other Phantoms. I wonder if their plan to go bowling in Brick Lane has come off, but it turns out the bowling alley was closed and they had to make do with chucking oranges at Lucozade bottles in the Old Truman Brewery instead. After their launch gig at Rough Trade East the band plan to head over to the Scala to enjoy the scuzzy sounds of Mount Eerie.
Even though Peggy Sue have been around for a few years they were only signed to Wichita at the end of 2009. Despite this, Katy, Rosa and Olly began recording their album over a three week period in New York last year. Producer Alex Newport – who has worked with the likes of Does it Offend You, Yeah? – first discovered the girls a couple of years ago at SXSW and he was joined by John Askew, better known as a producer of trance music, but who has also worked with The Dodos. They worked on the album in the studio at night and it was really intense. “But we wanted to do as much as possible,” says Rosa, “plus we like to work really hard.”
Many of the songs were written in New York, but they came back to the UK to overdub the tracks with friends. Peggy Sue seem quite amused that some of their session musicians belong to bands much more famous than theirs, with a horn section provided by members of Arcade Fire and TV on the Radio.
With the album finished a little over a year ago I wonder if they aren’t perhaps a bit frustrated with the long wait for it to come out officially? Katy: For a little while we were, but then you just realise that you have to work around other people’s schedules. We’ve only been playing a few new songs on tour so we’re not sick of them yet. We haven’t run out of emotion! Rosa: We purposefully held back some songs till the album came out. Olly: And we’ve written some new songs since the album was made. How pushy is your record company? Katy: No one tells us what to do. That I can well believe….
Quite a few reviewers seem to have identified a strong theme of heartbreak running through the album. How would you respond to this? Katy: Some songs are about breaking other people’s hearts Rosa: …or endings in general. They can be morose when taken as a whole body of work, but not when taken individually. Katy: Some people are just ignoring the other themes. We take it in turns to do lead vocals so it’s not like they’re all about just one break up. I don’t know if I want to be known as horribly bruised by love… Rosa: I don’t remember the last time I had my heart broken!
They used to be Peggy Sue and the Pirates. What happened to the Pirates? Katy: When Rosa and I started the band we were both studying at Sussex and it was just for fun. I was doing American Studies and Film. I’m still supposed to go to the US for a year as part of my course, but I keep deferring… Olly: I was studying Popular Music at Goldsmiths, but I didn’t finish either. I prefer to actually make music. Rosa: I was studying English Literature, but I’m the only one who finished my degree. We started getting serious two years ago when Olly joined. It made sense to drop the Pirates bit when we stopped being a duo and our music became less folky.
How did you girls hook up in the first place? Katy: I was offered a gig as a solo artist and I asked Rosa to help out. Rosa: I was so nervous I vomited into my mouth when I went on stage. Katy: It was really nice to do it together. It was how you should start a band – it didn’t work when I tried to find people I didn’t know; a band needs to be built on good relationships.
How did you guys find Olly? Olly: I went to Brighton and saw Peggy Sue playing as part of Brighton Festival – I fell in love with them immediately and became a bit of a groupie. I met them again at SXSW, and saw them play in my hometown of Margate. Rosa: You were one of our favourite fans; we used to give you CDs for free! Katy: We made him come and watch The Dodos so he could see what we wanted with the drum section and he liked it. Olly: To start with I didn’t think it was a good idea for the girls to get a drummer because I preferred them without… but then I kept sending lots of pestering emails… Eventually he organised his own audition in one of the practice rooms at his college, at which point Katy and Rosa realised he could be a great asset. Does he mind being the only man in a band with such strong women? Olly: Not really, I’m half a girl Rosa: …and I’m half a boy.
Olly learnt drums at secondary school, Rosa learnt piano and Katy learnt a bit of piano and some clarinet. But as a band they play whatever they can lay their hands on, with great aplomb. How do they pick up all these different instruments so easily? Katy: There’s something about teaching yourself that means you only play what you can but you play it really well. It’s nice to be self taught as it means there are no rules. Rosa: I understand enough about how to put music together but I can’t read music very well. It means you discover new things. Katy: I understand music in quite a mathematical way but I find it hard to translate that into playing a guitar. They are two separate things in my head Which are your favourite instruments? Katy: I like my electric guitar. Rosa: For me it always goes back to the guitar. But when I try a new instrument I end up writing new melodies as I learn how to play it, which means that every song turns out differently. Olly: I never imagined I would play the guitar but I ended up strumming a few notes on some of the songs, and now I’ve built a bucket base too… Rosa: …it sounded in tune until we started recording…
I loved the video for single Watchman. How did you get that made? Katy: We asked illustrator Betsy Dadd to make the video when she was going out with my best mate. I like the humping angels. What guidance did you give? Katy: I said she could tap into whatever themes she wanted. We don’t often make videos. Rosa: In a perfect world we’d have one for every song Some of the imagery would be great for putting onto merchandise. Katy: I’d like to put some of the stills onto a t-shirt. We’ve got only one design going at the moment. It features a wolf dancing with a skeleton.
At the time of interviewing the band Katy had just been offered a place at Berkeley in California, but fear not she won’t be going unless she can put her heart and soul into it. Which means we’ve lucked out instead. For now you can catch that great big heart and soul at a whole pile of festivals this summer. Including Dot to Dot and the Park Stage at Glastonbury on Saturday morning.
You can read my review of Fossils and Other Phantoms here.
Written by Amelia Gregory on Wednesday May 19th, 2010 5:20 pm
Feelin’ hot hot hot… we arrived at the field with a blanket and straw hat, viagrastuff and headed straight to the bar. Queuing for what felt like a life-time in the blistering heat, pricecheap sounds of Johnny Flynn drifted through the air along with the smells of barbecued sausages. Queuing aside, we were happy.
Ciders in hand we weaved through camping chairs and stepped apologetically over blankets, occasionally catching the odd sandaled foot or splashing a little cider over a resting head… all part of the joy of festivalling, we found a spot, lay the blanket on the ground just in time for Laura Marling to take to the stage. ‘Afternoon everyone!’ Laura’s soothing voice echoed over the masses, ‘what a day!’…. people woo’d and clapped and cheered. In two years, Marling’s voice and lyrics have matured from pretty ditties to soulful folk… and her performance this weekend reeled in an eclectic crowd. Folk of all ages stood, eyes fixed and humming and Marling’s voice resonated. Songs from Marling’s latest album I Speak Because I Can mixed with original tracks from My Manic and I had us reminiscing, spinning around and singing-along.
Between sets we ate, drank and lay gazing into the brilliant blue ether… catching a bit of celebrity football, Mumford & Sons giving it their best. Seasick Steve was next up, and took to the stage with crowds-a-roaring. Unfortunately, due to minor sunstroke, we weren’t around for the whole set, but from what we saw, as always Seasick gave a cracking performance.
Mumford & Sons belted out there emotive country-inspired folk, now well-known from their vast radio coverage, and had the audience fixed. Looking and sounding the part, and slotting in perfectly to the Hop Farm scene.
Whilst queuing for a lamb kofta and chatting to a wonderful lady who lives on a pig farm in Cambridgeshire, who told me stories of her days as a festival queen in the 70s… (she was so small she used to crouch on the loo seat, feet on the seat – to avoid sitting on it… little ladies – take note!) Ray Davies performed and it came as pleasant surprise to hear the well-known Kinks records: Lola, You Really Got Me and all the rest. At the age of 66, Ray’s voice carried across fields, still very much in tact.
Last but not least, good old Bob Dylan appeared on stage, his (very) husky tones hooking the expectant field of fans, and taking them on a tumultuous journey through a plethora of songs steeped in sentiment.
Finally, an incredible set from Devendra Banhart ensued; no longer the long-haired folky-dolky guy that once plucked at our heartstrings, Devendra has completely reinvented his style: short-back-and-sides, checked shirt and long yellow cardie buttoned up; the sounds were funky and playful, his voice endearing and still with that jagged edge that made him famous. Even a few Roxy Music covers were thrown in to get us grooving. We danced until the cows came home.
With businesses struggling to survive through the recession armageddon, this site a few innovative individuals are thriving, using their imagination and collaborations with other creatives to succeed. Sarah Bagner, or ‘Supermarket Sarah‘ transformed a wall of her own home into a window dresser’s dream; featuring both vintage finds and handmade creations from the likes of Donna Wilson. Inviting shoppers into her home for tea and cake has gained her such a following that Selfridges even invited her to curate a wall for them.
Her latest collaboration is with the queens of cool, Tatty Devine, whose Brick Lane store has been transformed into an Aladdin’s cave of Sarah’s goodies. Tatty Devine is also famous for pioneering the collaborative spirit, teaming up with the likes of Rob Ryan, Charlie le Mindu and Mrs Jones to make their iconic statement jewellery ranges. Last night fellow creatives Fred Butler and Anna Murray were spinning some tunes on the decks, whilst cupcakes were supplied by Fifi and Lola.
I snapped Sarah wearing her Tatty Devine ‘Supermarket Sarah’ necklace in front of her wall which will soon be online here. The installation will be in store until the 16th August, alongside Tatty Devine’s regular stock which is currently on sale. This is your one stop shop for sorting your festival outfits; grab some neck candy from Tatty Devine and something from Sarah’s vintage dressing up box and you’re set!
Photographs by Katie Antoniou
With businesses struggling to survive through the recession armageddon, site a few innovative individuals are thriving, order using their imagination and collaborations with other creatives to succeed. Sarah Bagner, store or ‘Supermarket Sarah’ transformed a wall of her own home into a window dresser’s dream; featuring both vintage finds and handmade creations from the likes of Donna Wilson. Inviting shoppers into her home for tea and cake has gained her such a following that Selfridges even invited her to curate a wall for them.
Her latest collaboration is with the queens of cool, Tatty Devine, whose Brick Lane store has been transformed into an Aladdin’s cave of Sarah’s goodies. Tatty Devine is also famous for pioneering the collaborative spirit, teaming up with the likes of Rob Ryan, Charlie le Mindu and Mrs Jones to make their iconic statement jewellery ranges. Last night fellow creatives Fred Butler and Anna Murray were spinning some tunes on the decks, whilst cupcakes were supplied by Fifi and Lola. I snapped Sarah wearing her Tatty Devine ‘Supermarket Sarah’ necklace in front of her wall which will soon be online here. The installation will be in store until the 16th August, alongside Tatty Devine’s regular stock which is currently on sale. This is your one stop shop for sorting your festival outfits; grab some neck candy from Tatty Devine and something from Sarah’s vintage dressing up box and you’re set!
Photography by Tim Adey.
Last time I went to Latitude it was a mere toddler of a festival… way back in 2007 it was still possible to roam freely amongst thin crowds and I remember commenting back then that the secret wouldn’t last long. 30, treat 000 people attended the fifth Latitude, drug held in the rolling wooded grounds of Henham Park which belong to an eccentric sheepfarming millionaire known as the Aussie Earl. Every year the sheep are famously dyed various shades of pastel then penned into small enclosures surrounded by signs Do Not Feed The Sheep. There’s something quite ironic in the exoticisation of such a common animal, stomach but then again most middle class urbanites have little cause for close contact with their food. Reading through tweets on my way to the festival I laughed at one suggestion that a bunch of hippies were clogging up the local roads… nothing could be further from the truth. Latitude is famously the home of the well read intellectual classes, a fact which was mentioned on repeat throughout the whole festival.
Despite a lack of line up on Thursday evening most punters had already set up camp by the time we arrived. Like Glastonbury, early crowds baying for entertainment guaranteed a packed audience for the few shows being staged. Our first stop was Nigel Kennedy, playing with The Orchestra of Life and visiting Polish musicians on the Lake Stage: the gig was attended by an all age crowd, a significant feature of the entire festival. Nigel romped through a selection of Duke Ellington jazz standards before crashing into a barndancing favourite that had the crowd hooting in delight. In between he flirted salaciously with a lady in the crowd and swore copiously. As Radio 1 DJ Colin Murray was later overheard saying – it’s a pity Nigel has to open his mouth. It was a bit like Madonna at the Turner Prize trying a bit too hard to be hard. But I liked the ceilidh classic – more of that please. Try as I might I just can’t get into the jazz thing.
Large parts of Henham Park forest have been opened up to accommodate more theatre, and down amongst the towering trees we were ushered into the heaving theatre arena for Les Enfants Terribles: The Vaudevillians. It was certainly terrible. Despite being billed as “a unique and exciting night out” I was only able to watch ten minutes before I was so bored and unexcited out of my brain that we had to leave.
A pretty picture of flags at Latitude. Photography by Tim Adey.
Instead we paid a visit to Robin Ince in the Literary Arena. Robin Ince is the literary high priest of Latitude – he was holding court whenever I went past despite his assertion (in my recent interview with him) that he would be spending less time on stage this year. Joining him were a wide range of comedians and writers over the course of the festival, and it made me smile to hear him delivering more of his climate change material to a packed audience.
Tom Jones sans hair dye was of course the big act to appear on Thursday night – clearly a last minute addition designed to promote his new album Praise & Blame. Even before we approached the lake I realised we might have trouble attending his bijoux gig on the In The Woods stage. Many thousands of people + small stage = frustrated pile up. We took the back route up to the guest area where we listened from behind the fence once they had sorted out screeching feedback, and could just discern a frenzy of enthusiastic front row teenagers screaming Sex Bomb. There was to be no Sex Bomb. One man was overheard commenting that his new bluesy songs sounded “like Johnny Cash on a downer”, but I quite liked them. Security spent the whole gig shining torches at anyone who dared get close the fence. Since I couldn’t see anything I fell asleep on the ground. Thanks for the soothing lullabies Tom.
I’ve reviewed all other days according to genre. Why not get started on my Friday Music Review here?
Written by Amelia Gregory on Tuesday July 20th, 2010 12:24 pm
The Weather Camera is Kjen Wilkens response to her search for a human presence within this deluge of electronic readings. Instead of taking a photograph to a record a special moment, the user of The Weather Camera can record the atmospheric conditions, weaving these into autobiographical memory. In time encouraging new methods of narration, titled by the designer as “Sensor Poetics.”
Described as “object of empowerment”, Becky Pilditch‘s prothestics showcase how functional pieces of designs can be both a thing of beauty and an extension of the wearer’s personality. Becky worked and developed the project with Holly Franklin .
Hand 8 the final part of the project, played with ideas of gesture and personality by creating numerous arms that related to Holly’s actions as she spoke or moved around a space. A fantastic aspect of the website is the blog, which can be used by other prosthetic limb users to feed back directly to the project.
In the Animation section of the exhibition Lauri Warsta’s Traumdeutung awaited. A wonderful animation baring the hallmarks (whatever that may mean…) of a “documentary,” the calming, not too dissimilar to the 1940′s DONT PANIC! voiceover narrated the data currently available on the subject matter: The Global Reserves of Dreams. The beauty in this short is it bared the possibility that it was itself entirely a dream.
The subtle block coloring of the animation maintained a ‘warmth’ more similar to hand drawn animation, that can sometimes be lost in 3D animation. An outcome of the animator’s experiments in combining ” two extremes (3D and Handmade) clash and merge. For example; bringing the uncontrollable movement of real hand-held footage to an otherwise sterile computer animation”
Adnan Lalani‘s experiment with augmented reality catches the attention, through being something the viewer can interact with. The action of turning the Pop Up Book’s pages is suplimented by additional narration appearing on the screen placed directly behind the book and inline with the viewers eye.
Below is a video documenting the Pop Up Book’s Prototype. Earlier this week Adnan kindly took a few moments to explain the idea behind combining the narrative structure of a Pop Up Book with Augmented reality: “The pop-up book felt like a natural compliment to augmented reality. I was hoping to see how AR could be used in a more tactile, playful context… i.e. take something we already know and play with, and allow it to be enhanced with animation and digital interactivity.”
Eventually Adnan hopes that as we grow more comfortable with the idea of Augmented Reality, ideas like the Pop Up book ” can allow a progression from the magical, novelty nature of AR, into more of a direct tool by which to communicate narratives and story telling”
The eye catching work of Design Interaction Graduate Louise O’Conner; used experimental dance to convey the movement of the smallest particles, for example: Atoms, in an attempt to connect us to movements that are beyond our physical awareness. Visit the exhibition to watch the film!
A particular lovely idea was the mapping out of the distances of the solar system along Kingsland High Street leading up to Stamford Hill. Eight Shopkeepers were asked if their shop would host one of the planets…
Photography by Mark Henderson
You can find the map and information about the project here:
Katrin Baumgarten’s Aesthetics of Disgust explores humans’ relationship and our reactions; both emotional and physical to the things or materials which disgust us. Using inanimate objects all too often taken for granted, (i.e. Light Switches) Kartin added disturbing features such as goo or hair that moved as the light switch is pressed. By ‘touching’ us back, the presence of these inanimate objects is brought back to the forefront of our attention.
In the installation at the Royal College of Art a screen documents the level of the reaction of each user.
Another subject explored by Katrina is Intimate touch or sexual disgust and how these feelings can be created “merely by inappropriate behaviours in society, such as touching another person in an intimate or sexual way in public, even though that might comfort the two persons involved and is a part of our human nature.” The outcome of which is the Intimate Touch Object, an item which enables you to touch another person secretly…
FINALLY on my second trip (yes second, it’s that big and really worth the time) I came across the brilliant work of Sivaprakash Shanmugam’s Expressive Scribble. Children draw onto the projector screen (this could be the kitchen floor, wall etc…) and an bring their drawings to life by clicking the ‘movie’ button. The idea being to “enrich their visual vocabulary,” sense of narrative and most importantly encourage children’s creativity.
Part two of the RCA show continues until 4th July 2010. It’s open from 11-8 daily at the Royal College of Art, Kensington Gore, London SW7 2EU. Admission is free.
Images Courtesy of the Students and addition photographs by Sally Mumby-Croft
A particularly creative course of action was required from all the percussionists who visited the Tripod Stage and, in between rattling and banging a wide variety of objects, Kirsty’s drummer once again stole the show… dancing and gurning in accompaniment to her song about the “wrong Mr Right” in a thoroughly endearing fashion.
cheeky drummer!
One of a breed of strong female musicians who have no desire to fit the normal pliable record label mould, Kirsty was relaxed and chatty during her songs: an absolute delight. Her album Pure Blue Green comes out on Decca on 31st August, and she finished painting the album artwork just last night!
Kirsty on the Tripod Stage: I loved how creative yet peaceful the area was. The stage was so beautifully bonkers it brought our bonkersness out of us and gave us a licence to be cheeky too. Kirsty’s favourite part of Glastonbury: Definitely all the street entertainers. I loved The Dead Weather too but for us as performers the highlight was definitely the chance to entertain and share our music.
Following Kirsty we had a session from Newislands, who despite worries that they would not be able to make a big enough noise managed to wow a small but perfectly formed mid afternoon crowd with their melodic post rock.
It was only after the gig that I discovered they were missing their bassist Bogart…. we are mutual friends of the Mystery Jets and met many years ago at a small festival called Blissfields that we all went to together. Later that night Bogart called on me in my tent with Marina Pepper. I was fast asleep and woke with the fear of God in me…. it wasn’t the best way to be reintroduced but apparently he insisted on seeing me “the nicest person he knows” – I look forward to meeting Bogart again one day when I am wide awake.
Lead singer David’s best bit about playing the Tripod Stage: Well apart from the lovely stage itself, complete with the best speaker system I’ve ever seen, receiving a cup of tea from yourselves midway through the set, was pretty special. David’s Glastonbury highlight: Apart from playing two amazing gigs, (one for you and one for BBC Introducing), seeing Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood on stage together was ace… “For a minute there I lost myself…”
Newislands are playing at Napa Live in Cyprus and then return to the UK to play the Farm Festival. A new single, followed by their debut album, will be released soon. You can watch their other Glastonbury performance here.
We then had our first session from Climate Camp poets Danny Chivers, Claire Fauset and Merrick – all of whom deliver brilliant spoken word commentaries on the state of the world. Danny and Claire have a way of making the environmental/political mess we are in make complete and simple sense, and Merrick takes on the whole system. Why do we work? If you’ve heard Merrick speak you’ll question the sense in ever getting a job.
After a somewhat more subdued ceilidh we were then treated to the most extraordinary live set from Danny and the Champions of the World, who decided to ditch most of the electrical amplification and instead sprawl towards their audience in a great acoustic morass.
This band was made for live gigs…. myself and Dom, the banjo player in Green Kite Midnight, were so enthralled by the set that we dusted ourselves down after dinner and set off to hear them once more at the Croissant Neuf bandstand. Danny is a massively confident and skilled musician who has clearly been playing for years: talents like his ought to be better celebrated.
Danny liked playing the Tripod Stage because: the audience was really great and there was an atmosphere that seemed very ‘other’ to the mad hustle and bustle of the rest of the festival – like a haven of good vibes and togetherness, like a family or maybe like what my minds eye would conjure up when I think of festivals in the 60′s. We really just love playing and it’s always great to pass the instruments around, have fun with friends and sing a bunch of songs, and it felt like the perfect time for that – we could’ve played for hours. The lentil dal [for supper] was a treat too!
Danny’s favourite part of Glastonbury this year: I guess the best part of it was getting to play music with friends to loads of folks. We were lucky enough to play on a bunch of different types of stages so we got a pretty broad experience of it all – we played about seven times which was amazing… but my feet still ache! It’s what we live to do: drink a few ciders and pass the guitar around.
Danny and the Champions of the World on the road: Our band really lives and breathes on the road, meeting good people and having a great time playing tunes. We’re doing… Maverick, Cornbury, Lounge on the Farm, Deershed, Secret Garden Party, Port Elliot, Truck Festival, Summer Sundae and Greenbelt – and maybe a couple more that I’ve forgotten. We’ll probably start to record a new record at the end of the year.
But, it didn’t end there…. like a magic jack-in-the-box, there were more surprises in store. Out of the band popped a duo who’s music I have loved since the very moment their album plopped onto my doormat. Like a butterfly emerging (from a particularly sexy and gorgeous caterpillar) Trevor Moss and Hannah-Lou shed the rest of the musicians to perform a few gorgeous tunes of their own. I was beaming like a motherfucker by this point.
A surprise performance from Trevor Moss & Hannah-Lou.
And then… I discovered that the band line up also features the delightful brothers who run Truck Festival, a great independent music festival near Oxford. They also run the smaller and folkier Wood Festival which takes place at the gorgeous Braziers Park, a sustainable community where I have camped on many an occasion. I really hope I can hook up with them some more. A nicer and more talented bunch of folk I have seldom met.
This man runs Truck Festival.
Moving on, my next blog tackles a very busy Saturday on the Tripod Stage – read it here.
Written by Amelia Gregory on Thursday July 1st, 2010 3:55 pm
The violinist comes on stage. He’s very tall and his tailcoat, ask wide tie and long hair and mostasche are how I consider a more genteel England might be attired. He looks considerate and pensive in a poetic sense. The rest of the band come on stage. Then the two female singers who are Smoke Fairies quietly take their places at the front. They appear a little bashful, malady but they have determined stares as they attach their instruments and look out to the audience. Their small frowns and concentrated expressions make them appear like they have been thrust on stage and are finding themselves dazed by the lights. Starstruck by their situation. But also it feels like reassurance; the two, click dressed in black mini dresses, are focused and aware that they behold the potential to have an audience in the palm of their hand. They look out and they know that a mood can be changed by the unison of their voices. They’re not nervous. Because their music is blinding.
The sound starts and the voices are slow. The guitars are played, fingers flickering on the notes, dancing in small circles. The electric strums are perfectly matched with the violin. The drums are hit and the two voices are joined and that’s the moment. This time it came earlier than expected. Charlie and I look at each other. A translation says; ‘this is good, I’m glad we came to this one’. Then following this is a quizzical eyebrow raise from him; ‘do we have their cd?’, before he spins me round, grabs my waist (bit annoying) and moves to the music. We try and get as lost as possible, which hopefully leads to synchronized swaying. Occasionally I look at him with my eyes wide: ‘This is EPIC’ (over use of this word through eyes/speech, noted). Oh how I love the difference between playing something off the old Mac and seeing the scenes played live. Even though it is of course a joy to sit/wallow/cry/smile/dance to tracks at home, some acts are just SO much more incredible in real life form. Like Smoke Fairies.
I’m telling you when they play together live on stage, it feels, well… I will have to use a simile – here follows: You know that advert for Ireland, when the lady is singing in her Enya (is it her?) voice and the camera is sweeping over the ridiculously green fields and coastlines of Ireland? A bit cringe but you get the image, it feels like you are the sweeper – as in you are sweeping/flying over amazing landscapes. Possibly wearing some tweed, definitely a cape with a hood. The music is more The Cranberries than Enya, but the flying sensation fits.
They also have a hefty 90s twang. Reminding me of Alicia’s Attic and The Shakespeare Sisters (you must know Stay?) – a bit grungy but with a little folk and blues twist. Their name; ‘Smoke Fairies’, fits perfectly with their ethereal, rocky and fantastical sound. From interviews past, I read that it alludes to the summer mist that collects in the hedgerows of Sussex’s narrow lanes. Being a childhood Sussex girl myself, I know this mist well. The old railway tracks by my house are dusty aired heavens; the hours spent walking the lanes, their vision, scent, sound and feel make for ‘home’ in a snapshot. Jessica Davies and Katherine Blamire met at school in the fair county of Sussex. And (wisely) rather than 5ive, Wigfield etc. the pair preferred folk, classic rock and blues. So they got together and created their own sounds, moulding their preferences and harmonies. After school, they lived in New Orleans and Vancouver, before returning to go on tour with Brian Ferry in 2007. They have since received high acclaim from artists such as Richard Hawley and Jack White. The former took them on tour and the latter recording a single with the fairies.
Smoke Fairies live highlights for me were; Summer Fades, Gastown, Hotel Room and Strange Moon Rising. As they played their guitars, their concentration and dedication to each note was mesmerizing. Although they seemed a little distant between tracks at times, their music was confident and heavenly. I highly recommend you listen. Their album, Through Low Light and Trees is out now on V2.
Sea of Bees supported Smoke Fairies. As you may already know, I think Julie Ann Bee is superb. You can see from my review of her album, Song for The Ravens, available on Heavenly Recordings. Seeing her live, she was even more endearing than I had hoped. Somewhat of a contrast to Smoke Fairies’ mysterious mood, Julie broadly smiled and chatted between songs. She seemed really happy to be on stage, declaring her love for the South West’s cider and mentioning that since she was a child, she had in fact deeply wanted to be English. I got the impression that she yearned for this through the sugared lens of Mary Poppins, when she mentioned the singing dreampop, in the same way that we all live in castles and are close friends with Prince Harry. Not that England isn’t splendid. Regardless, when she talked of the Isle she sounded genuine and almost childlike. I get the impression that she has a very vivid imagination and a warm heart, perhaps under appreciated, but certainly obvious tonight. And in all her music of course.
Happily Julie’s singing on stage was as sweet as it is on her album, but with the high notes hitting the rooftops. Hearing her explain each song’s meaning was a delight not often had. And seeing her acting out the songs, her face frowning into the mid distance and then smiling… looking to the imaginary stars – made her album’s preconceived character a reality. Her feelings manifesting themselves in her music, she seems almost vulnerable, but utterly lovable.
She talks and sings of dreams and following them, of saying goodbye to past loves and the joy of friends. All that we can relate to, but that we could never articulate with such beautiful sounds as she does. As sugary as a sugar mouse, as heavenly as a glass of Peach Prosecco on a cloud. Song For The Ravens is out now on Heavenly Recordings.
See:
Written by Helen Martin on Friday February 4th, 2011 6:53 pm
With many universities leaning heavily towards womenswear – in some cases wholly – Epsom pleased many with several of its strongest collections coming from menswear designers. One of the running themes throughout the Epsom show seemed to be an obsession with blood, advicebuy the body and corporal violence (you’ve got to wonder what’s going on down there) with one dress revealing a Westwood-esque red, cialis 40mg jewelled wound-like gape on its back.
Not pandering to this was Antigone Pavlou, viagra buy who opened the show with loud, bold and funky collection for the streetsmart city boy, with bomber jackets, tracksuits and distressed denim (the latter a phrase that struck fear into my heart when I first read it in the notes, only to be pleasantly surprised). With coloured headphones carelessly slung around the models’ necks, the designer plainly had a clear lifestyle in mind and played to its strengths in all the right ways, combining strong block primary colours with clashing graphic prints.
If some previous designers during GFW have shown a tendency to elevate and romanticise the pastoral, I think Pavlou successfully did the same for the city, offering an attractively laid-back vision of urban life where you pull on some comfortable but sharp threads, plug into your walkman and swagger down the street, content to shut the outside world away for a moment, a sentiment I’ve evidently been drawn to in featuring CTRL and Daniel Palillo in recent weeks. Another menswear designer of note was James E Tutton, whose reversible designs (addressing the issue of functionality in contemporary fashion) we’ll be featuring later in the week.
Soozi Welland’s ‘Geeks Know Style’ penultimate menswear collection was best received by the audience, with an endearing ode to all things geeky: spectacles, anoraks, bobbled hats, bow ties, and socks tucked into trousers. The geek has oft been described as the personification of a roll of duct tape, with functional apparel that will always get you out of a sticky situation, and Welland’s designs seem to celebrate this idea, with an abundance of oversized pockets, accessorising her looks with binoculars and cameras.
By the last look, though, this geek had got himself a makeover, and was now spec-free, with the bow tie sexily hanging loose and sporting a satin and velvet playboy jacket. An endearing and humorous collection that I thought was commercially viable too, and that’s no mean feat.
Amongst the womenswear Stephanie Moran gave us a hard-hitting collection about desire, fabulously quoting Mae West ‘s ‘Ten men waiting for me at the door?…send one of them home I’m tired’, and a vision of the glamorous dominatrix. One of the standout pieces was a cream PVC dress with a cinched feather corset around the waist, and for better or worse, one of the most popular trends during GFW was feathers. This was certainly one of the better examples:
Considering Epsom had given us notes on each designer and their collection, I think it was admirable that Moran’s designs needed no explaining whatsoever, with her models bombing down the runway dressed in all manner of things naughty.
A particularly well-crafted collection was April Schmitz’s, who gave us a series of garments with some serious work put into unusual fabrics including hardware, folded leather and metal rings and eyelets. Entitled ‘Visions of the Future’ it gave a throwback to 1930s aviation with leather flight caps, a retro colour palette and the repetition of some swinging circles, with panels ejecting out of the garments providing strange contraption-esque silhouettes that you expected to take off at any moment.
Feathers popped up again, this time from Lucie Vincini with a stunning jacket from an eclectic menswear collection. Mixing embroidered jumpers with carrier bag trousers, basket weave coats with a jacket constructed out of Royal Mail bags, it showed that it is possible to draw from resources across the board and still construct a cohesive collection. A thrifty delight, and with its recycling sensibilities, obviously an Amelia’s Magazine favourite!
Photos: Catwalking.com
Radical Nature: Art and Architecture for a Changing Planet 1969–2009
Barbican Art Gallery Barbican Centre
Silk Street
London EC2Y 8DS
19 June – 18 October
Daily 11am-8pm except Tue & Wed 11am-6pm
Open until 10pm every Thursday
A new season of ecologically focused exhibits, talks, events and screenings is taking place over the Summer at the Barbican. Kicking off the proceedings is this fascinating exhibition which deals with land art, environmental activism, experimental architecture, and inspiring ideas about utopian solutions to the urgent matter of climate change.
See the Barbican website for full details of all events over the next few months.
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Sarah Bridgland: In Place- New Collage Works
Man and Eve Gallery
131 Kennington Park Road
London SE11 4JJ
19th June – 1st August
Thursday – Saturday, 12 – 6pm
Bridging the gap between sculpture and collage, Sarah Bridgland’s intricate paper creations combine her own made printed media with junk shop treasure to form nostalgic pieces of meticulous craftsmenship. Simultaneously dreamlike and miniature while remaining technically genius, Bridgland’s collection of new work will transport you to other colourful, playful worlds.
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Various Artists: Two Degrees 2009
Toynbee Studios
28 Commercial Street
London E1 6AB
16-21 June
The opening night of Two Degrees, Artadmin’s week long programme of politically, socially and environmentally charged events, is this Tuesday. Getting it’s name from last month’s report that a hugely damaging global temperature rise of 2C could be a mere 40 years away, the 20 or so artists involved are putting the issue of climate change at the forefront of our concerns.
The opening night features among other things Daniel Gosling’s video installation ‘I Can Feel the Ice Melting’ and the forward thinking London based group Magnificent Revolution generating music for the evening with a live bicycle-powered DJ set.
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R-art assist BASH@The Sustainable Art Awards 2009
BASH STudios
65-71 Scrutton Street
London EC2A 4PJ
June 16th
“The Sustainable Art Awards are open to any UK artist working within on the themes of sustainability, environmental issues, climate change and ecology. R-art will provide the awards for the SAA, these mini eco sculptures are the oscars of eco art! Sustainable Art Awards are a 2 week showcase of eco talent @ BASH Studios.
The Sustainable Art Awards is part of Respond! who aim to engage arts audiences in discussing and questioning environmental change. Respond! highlights how the arts industries are in a unique position to communicate environmental issues. Featuring exhibitions, talks, programmes, workshops and other activities. Respond! is an initiative co-founded by the Arts and Ecology center at The Royal Society of The Arts and BASH Creations.”
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Swapshop
Camden Arts Centre
Arkwright Road
London NW3 6DG
20th June
12:00 – 5:30pm
Current artist in residence Alexandre da Cunha is putting together a Swapshop, which is becoming an ever increasingly popular means for people to get together and shed some of their unwanted belongings in exchange for new. Anything goes at this particular exchange; buttons, furniture- even art. To book your own stall please contact Ben Roberts on 0207 472 5500.
If the extensive material on show at Brick Lane’s Free Range isn’t enough to satisfy your graduate show cravings, hop along to The Rag Factory to catch Out of Range where work from 29 emerging UK and European photographic artists recently set free from the University for the Creative Arts at Rochester is on display. The work promises to be fresh, innovative, exciting and diverse.
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Dominic Allan: The Irresistible Lure of Fatty Gingo
With what might just be the best title of an exhibition I’ve ever heard, Allan’s work is self described as ‘a world of rotten teeth, bubble and squeak and uncommon sense.’ With an unhealthy interest in British seaside culture and the bizarre link-ins local holiday getaways have with sugar coated junk we feast on, Allan’s work is repelling, alluring, mysterious and addictive all at once.
Monday 15th June
The Freewheeling Yo La Tengo at the Southbank Centre, sales London.
Tonight’s gig is one not to be missed- The Jonas Brothers at Wembley, health only joking of course. If you like your music a little more deflowered and lots more awesome, then I excitedly announce that Yo La Tengo will be playing the Southbank Centre tonight as part of Ornette Coleman’s Meltdown Festival. Yo La Tengo have shaped what is almost the last 20 years with their beautiful music which moves between eerie girl boy woozy vocals and minimal keyboards, to rocking genre bashing highs. Also ‘I’m Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass’ is the best album title ever!
Tuesday 16th June
Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs at Pure Groove, London.
I really love dinosaurs, so imagine my delight when I saw that a band called Totally Enormous Extinct Dinousaurs are playing Pure Groove on Tuesday evening. Being a music editor and planing gig going around loving extinct creatures is never the best idea so I checked their myspace and I can conclude my top 3 favourite things about this band, in descending order are:
3. They dress as dinosaurs a lot!
2. They have the longest list of alphabetised dinosaurs listed as their band members (Alphabetisation being my second favourite thing after fore-mentioned dinsosaurs)
1. Their keyboard tinged synthy-fun electro sounds so fun it makes me want to make up all kinds of dances called things like the ‘Triceratops Jive’ and the ‘Stegosaurus Shake’.
What’s your favourite dinosaur?
Wednesday 17th June
Jolie Holland at Dingwalls, London.
When Tom Waits says he likes something you can pretty much tell it’s going to be good and Jolie Holland doesn’t disappoint. This Texan singer has had Waits’ outspoken support since the very beginning of her career, and her fresh take on traditional folk, country, blues and jazz place her as a definite protegée of Waits, as well as a talented musician in her own right.
Thursday 18th June
A Hawk and a Hacksaw at Cecil Sharp House, London.
A Hawk and Hacksaw have skittered and clattered their way into my heart with their Klezmer- Indie hybrid loveable mess music. It sound like if Neutral Milk Hotel (indeed they share a drummer) got lost in the Baltic States for several decades in the early 20th century, armed only with a full brass band and a trusty band of wolves who were also in their own Mariachi band- and quite frankly how could that not sound amazing?
I was lucky enough to see Clinic play last year and they are terrifying (they wear surgical masks) and brilliant in equal measure- like a melodic nightmare, lots of keyboards, creepy samples, garage-y clatters and wails are a-given, yet they manage to be as enjoyable as they are creepy.
Saturday 20th June Kitsuné Maison Party at La Scala, London.
We reviewed the Kitsune Maison 7 compilation a while back and liked it, they’re having a party at La Scala featuring Delphic (pictured below underwater), Chew Lips, We Have Band and Autokratz to name but a few. I can’t help but compare it to the Strictly Come Dancing tour that happens after the show ends; with everyone’s favourites appearing live, so maybe it’ll be like that but a very hip, French version.
I don’t like camping. Going to bed shivering and waking up sweating doesn’t appeal to me much, mind and claustrophobia in a two-man tent isn’t fun either. Don’t even mention the word ‘porta-loo’…But all this I will get over for Lounge on the Farm.
For the past four years, sickness thousands of people have invaded Merton Farm in Canterbury, with a view to enjoying laid-back choons and getting down to some serious lounging. Despite it’s status as a ’boutique’ festival (one of The Time’s top twelve Boutique festivals, dontchaknow), there’s plenty to muck in with, down on the Farm.
Each of the six stages caters to a different taste, The Cow Shed hosting The Horrors, Edwyn Collins and The King Blues (as well as whoever you want, thanks to the You Say, They Play initiative – just mind the dung), Farm Folk, leaning towards a more acoustic experience and The Bandstand, rockin’ out the opera and punk rock karaoke.
I’ll be spending most of the weekend with Gong, Canterbrerians of the ’60s who sing of teapot taxies, and the Wolf People, hairiest band I’ve ever seen who weren’t actually animals, down at the psychedelic Furthur Tent, and doubtlessly joining Mr. Scruff for an epic six hour afternoon tea mash-up at the Hoedown – blanket and thermos a!
requisite.
Lounge is foremost a local festival (for local people…) and it wouldn’t be, well, right, without Psychotic Reaction, Amber Room, Cocos Lovers, Syd Arthur, Electric River and Zoo For You, to name but a meagre few of the Kentish best performing this year.
It’s not all about the music though, in fact, in the Meadows area it’s not even about the music. New for 2009, the Meadows contains an outdoor theatre, petting zoo (pigs or partay?!) and The Red Tent if you feel in need of some spiritual healing after all the exhausting lounging about. Natural Pathways will be providing bushcraft courses, fulfilling all your wild wo/man fantasies and the Make do and Mend lane focuses on local craftsmen and their skills, with workshops running all weekend.
Whatever tickles your pickle, solar powered cinema or life-drawing class – and music too – Lounge on the Farm is the perfect place to do exactly that.
Lounge on the Farm runs from the 10th to the 12th of July, at Merton Farm, Canterbury. Weekend tickets £85, day tickets, £35
Free Range at The Old Truman Brewery is Europe’s largest graduate art and design show with free admission. Graduates of everything from interior design to fine art who studied outside of London finally get a chance to showcase their talents in the countries capital.
I’ve been to a few Free Range shows this summer already, approved but last Thursday’s exhibition of photography graduates was the one I was most excited about.
In this age art can really be anything, web Kant has been moved to the back seat and nobody thinks art has to be beautiful anymore. That said it’s almost impossible for photographers not to take images that look good. Just by being photographed the most mundane subject is rendered interesting and the most ugly object or person becomes so lovely that you just want to lick their glossy surface.
The best of all the exhibitions on that week had to be Swansea, stuff Farnham and Maidstone. With so many photographers on show it seems pointless to make a reductive comment on whether entire graduate years were good or bad so I’ve decided to create a contact sheet if you will, of the people whose photographs looked that bit extra special.
I spent my first ten minutes in Free Range looking at Jack Davis’ landscape photographs. In them great colour and composition immediately makes the viewer forget that the scenes are completely empty.
In Lauren Eldekvist’s evocative series Landscapes, unmade beds are photographed and shown huge on the Truman Brewery’s walls. For the artist the bed “connotes the human condition; birth, life, sex, sleep, illness and death”. The pieces remind me very much of one of my favourite artists Felix Gonzalez Torres and his billboard photographs of an empty, but obviously slept in, bed.
Also intriguing were James Rugg’s photographs, which aim to capture small instances, chance meetings and gestures. In them the simple act of a girl twirling string around her fingers becomes something we should give our undivided attention to.
James Rugg
Over at Maidstone University College of the Arts there were some strong conceptual works.
Lee Gavin presented an installation of Mapping a project that he undertook after the death of his Grandfather, he decided to cycle to Elvington in Kent, the birthplace of his Grandfather. Lee showed as his work the tent and bike he used for the trip and an interactive google map of the journey (available from his website and well worth a look.)
As a lover of old box televisions and a distruster of 40” LCD monstrosities I almost cheered when I saw Jack Quick’s work. The artist is stepping into Nam June Paik rather large shoes with his television manipulation photographs and sculptures in which he attempts to challenge uses for, sadly, now defunct technologies.
Jack Quick
Cassandra Vervoort questions the role of the photographer and the weight of their influence and command over the photographed. In these “social experiments” she asks subjects to have a five-minute sleep in her bed while she is naked underneath the covers.
Cassandra Vervoort
There were other photographers creating situations for their unwitting volunteers to perform in. Gemma Bringloe was one, “Can you turn around, sit down, stand up and sit down” … “Can you take off as many clothes as possible”.
Gemma Bringloe
And finally Laura Jenkins, who produced my favourite project of the entire show. The Tender Interval is brilliant in it’s simplicity. Actors were called forward in complete darkness and instructed to kiss. The photographs provide a record of the interval immediately before the kiss.
Laura Jenkins
Free Range exhibitions continue until the middle of July. The Private view for the next group of photography shows is 6PM on Thursday. For a full list check out the Free Range website.
Words like ‘buzz’ and ‘hype’ sometimes transpire to be untrustworthy words bandied around by desperate press offices, ed but with the mid-afternoon Ravensbourne show the anticipation is undeniably huge. And rightly so – after rave reviews (two more alarm words) as well as producing the winner for the past two years, search we’re expecting an awful lot, ambulance and luckily we were not disappointed. In fact, far from it – it would be easy to ramble hyperbolically about how consistently brilliant the show was, or to point out how as a university it’s completely isolated in GFW by its galactically high standard, as elitist as that sounds, so I’ll try and keep focused.
If you’ve been following our reports (and you will have done if you know what’s good for you) you’ll have been aware of this years’ output of some truly outstanding menswear. Ravensbourne, of course, was no exception, with menswear designers Calum Harvey and Hannah Taylor opening and closing the show respectively (both of whom I’ll be interviewing in the coming days). Harvey had made a collection constructed from raw materials scavenged from car interiors, attesting to the strengths of the transformative powers of recycled fashion and making something beautiful – and indeed, wearable – out of something normally perceived as solely functional.
A selection of huge knits (the oversized scarf on the opening look was a favourite) were followed by jackets layered with woven and shredded seatbelts worn over sheer shirts and gold pinstripe trousers. Making it no surprise that he later won the http://www.gfw.org.uk/event/winners.aspxTextile Award, Harvey had created a gorgeous paisley pattern on a shirt out of frayed gold zips, while seatbelts also served to layer and tier to help create voluminous silhouettes, in one case a high collar for a knitted jumper, whilst continuously coupling the industrial looking wool with plaid and tweed to neutralise the effect.
The last look – an enormous tulle tiered cape in grey and black – seemed to typify a collection that was eminently wearable whilst staying on the right side of theatrical, and as for the patent leather bag with seatbelt fastener – yes please.
Mehmet Ali’s menswear (which later won the Menswear Award) was a gorgeously sophisticated collection in a neutral palette of pink, cream and wine, layering summer jackets and waistcoats for the occasional Brideshead-lite feel. A series of simple and exquistively crafted designs that was lent a sweet personal touch by the use of Ali’s own suitcase with his initials emblazoned across.
A strong showing for the womenswear came from Hannah Buswell ‘s collection of Missoni-esque knits, combining multi-patterned cardigans with knitted dresses for a beautiful and commercial winter collection.
Laura Yiannakou was girly, quirky and unusual, working with digital prints and synthetic fabrics to create a colourful and seriously modern collection for the fashion forward woman.
Yasmina Siddiqui also impressed with a series of Viktor & Rolf-style illustrated prints tied to ordinary silk dresses; surrealist prints that created unusual silhouettes, attempting to understand and rebrand perceptions of art and fashion:
Hannah Taylor’s knitwear as the closer was easily the evening’s most enjoyable and surprising. Entitled ‘You’ll Grow Into It!’ it was a selection of oversized knits covered in animals ranging from tiny ducks to guinea pigs to foxes, paired with multicoloured balaclavas and enormous pom-pom headpieces (what did I tell you last month?)
It successfully recreated the endearing sense of childlike fun in trying on something too big and it falling around your knees; combining loud designs with mustard-colour Rupert Bear pants, tweed trousers and enormous pom-pom collars. I especially loved the knitted balaclavas (creating an ironic sense of menace that could never be fully realised when you’ve got a massive guinea pig plastered across your body).
Aside from this, irony is something that would elude such a collection that by nature was so ostensibly warm and affectionate, with a strong sense of sentiment that I think appealed to an awful lot of people (including Erin O’Connor who was whooping in the crowd). Hannah was later nominated for the Gold Award, and despite missing out was given a special mention by the judges, and currently has her collection on display in River Island.
A truly fantastic show and a great way to finish Amelia’s Magazine’s stint at Graduate Fashion Week – look out for our interviews with a few of the graduates over the next couple of weeks!
Photos: Catwalking.com
Way back in 2006, viewNeil Boorman lit a bonfire in Finsbury Square and burnt all of his branded possessions. Of course, there was a back story to this, rather than it simply being a case of a pyromaniac getting one over on the City of London council. Neil made this bold statement for two reasons. To protest the all pervasive consumer culture and to address his own issues and addictions to branded and labelled goods. In one fell swoop, £20,000 worth of designer products were incinerated. Since then, Neil has been living his life brand-free, and documenting the results on his blog, and in his book, Bonfire Of The Brands.
While this bonfire took place three years ago, the argument about consumer culture, and the willingness of the general public to spend money that they don’t have on something simply because it ‘looks cool’ is as pertinent now as it was then. Few people in 2006 could have predicted the economic and environmental mess that we are now in. By raising concerns over the irresponsible actions of large corporations who would use every trick in the bag to entice us to buy their products, Neil was already drawing attention to the cracks in the system. As often happens, a prophet is never appreciated in his time, and Neil’s actions were met with a flood of negative responses, many from people who argued that his posessions should have been donated to charity rather than burnt. Exploring the reasons behind the criticism, he suggested that “this reaction has less to do with charity than the overall value that we have come to place on branded things; nowadays, to willingly destroy an expensive bag amounts to the same moral and cultural neglect as burning a book.”
Having seen that Neil was going to be speaking recently at the Arcola Theatre’s Green Sundays event in Dalston, I was interested to hear an update on how his brand-free life is working out, and what he made of the new, paired down version of consumerism that is being peddled to us. While brands are wising up to the facts that a) we don’t have much money to spend on non-essential items and b) we are savvier about how these products are being produced, many labels are going out of their way to champion phrases in their marketing, such as ‘fair trade‘, ‘ethically produced’, ‘locally sourced’ etc, but is this all a white wash? And if we continue buying from the big brands – no matter what placatory words they might throw at us – are we still missing the point?
When you came up with the idea for the book in 2006, consumerism was still king. Now in 2009, the Bonfire of The Brands manifesto has become all the more apparent in the current economic climate and environmental chaos. Do you feel a element of schadenfreude seeing that you were one of the first to voice your concerns?
It does feel like the country’s mood towards shopping has changed in the last few years. Recently someone confessed to me that they used to nip out to buy a new pair of sunglasses whenever they felt down, but now that money was tight, they felt stupid about it all. I get a lot of people confessing their consumer sins to me. I’m not sure how I feel about that – I didn’t write the book to make people feel embarrassed. If anything, I wanted people to feel angry that consumer culture is rammed down our throats so often. I definitely would have sold more copies of the book had it come out this year. But what would I spend the money on? There’s only so many non-branded plimsolls a person can buy.
Are people more responsive to your message now then when your book was first published?
People think I’m slightly less bonkers than before, but they’ve not stuck my poster on the wall in Selfridges just yet. We all got sidetracked by the boom a few years back, and most sensible people have snapped out of it for the time being. It’s the legions of people still flooding into Primark that I can’t work out. So many people buy gear on the never-never that the recession is meaningless to them. People laughed at me when I suggested that we are a nation hooked on shopping, but you can see it for your own eyes on the high street every day. The world might be on meltdown, but there’s still time to buy a pair of deck shoes.
Do you think that the big brands have responded appropriately to the economic crisis and new wave of consumer awareness about where their products are coming from?
Recessions strike at the heart of big brands. Not just at the till, but at the value of the brand. Luxury is based on the principle that more is more – the more you spend, the more luxury you get. As soon as you start to discount your stock, that myth goes out of the window. And all those uber-luxe ads you see in Sunday Supplements look ridiculous next to reports of mass unemployment. Luxury is a house of cards like that. The best they can hope for is that the economy picks up, and consumers forget about all this ‘ethical nonsense’.
Are there any brands that you would consider buying from again?
I’m slightly less militant now than I was after the bonfire. I’d be happy to buy something from a brand that has it’s house in order – a brand that looks after it’s staff and doesn’t needlessly pollute. But there’s no way I’d wear their logo on my chest ever again. Looking back, I was like a human billboard. Back in the 1920′s, companies used to pay people to pin company slogans on their clothes. Now we do it for free – in fact we pay for the privilege. How on earth did we get here?
Amelia’s Magazine are always keen to support ethical designers and products. Do you find that a non-brand generally equals something ethical? I would think that on the one hand you can spot the holes in a large brand, and it is easier to find out information about them, but if you were to pick up, say, a plain t-shirt from a charity shop, you would have no way of knowing if it had potentially come from a sweat shop. What are your thoughts on this?
You’ve found the gaping hole in my argument – brands do help us to identify which product does what, and how it was made. But then there’s so much greenwash about right now its difficult to decide which brand is telling the truth. I mean, American Apparel boasts that it only uses American labour. But as far as I know, they still pay a rock bottom minimum wage and only Mexican immigrants on skid row that can afford to work in their factories. Those kooky young things in the ads – they don’t stitch liquid tights for a living.
The easiest way to cut through all these dilemmas is to concentrate on wants and needs. Every time I’m tempted to buy something new, I ask myself if I really need it. If the answer is no, then I put it back on the shelf and walk out the store a richer man. Life goes on.
Going back a few years ago, you founded the infamous Shoreditch Twat; having experienced many Londoners in perhaps their least appealing and most pretentious forms, do you ever doubt the sincerity of those who are now jumping on the anti consumerism bandwagon? And if so, is this necessarily a bad thing if the outcome of non brand buying is still a positive one?
I don’t know about people in Shoreditch, but I do slightly worry about all the Sloaney fashion journalists that have started banging on about frugal chic. Alarm bells have got to start ringing when people at The Sunday Times call something ‘chic’. They’re terrified of committing to anything meaningful in case it goes out of style. And then where would they be? Trust me, they’ll be back down to Hermes when the economy picks up. But what the hell, I reckon its better to dip in and out of anti-consumerism than not at all.
What is news with your blog now? Will this remain an ongoing issue for you, and will you continue to write about your experiences with anti-consumerism?
I’m writing less but campaigning more. I’ve got a few stunts that I’m going to pull later in the year, and a big push in the run up to the election. Right now, I feel like less talk and more action. When shopping isn’t a Saturday afternoon leisure option, you have to find other things to do.
How important is the relationship between an artist and her aunt? For Miriam Zadik Gold, approved whose latest exhibition ‘Who is Mary Jane’ opens at Prick Your Finger on June 18, online it’s a pretty damn important relationship.
Photo by Kirsty Hall
In fact, visit this it’s fair to say that the work in the show wouldn’t exist without Miriam’s Aunt Sue, a car-boot sale connoisseur who runs a stall selling buttons, badges and old Ladybird books every Saturday at Broadway Market. It was Aunt Sue who found six old ceramic dolls heads in a charity shop and bought them for her niece whom she thought would like them. Miriam did like them, but couldn’t think what to do with them and put them high on a shelf in her studio for a few years.
It wasn’t until she was crocheting a pair of Mary Jane shoes for her own daughter that Miriam began to wonder about Mary Jane – why were the shoes named after her? Who was she? And why did so many musicians name-check her in their songs?
Things began to take shape. Miriam spent hours on the internet, noting down every Mary Jane-related song lyric she could find, from Nick Drake through to John Lennon to Mary J. Blige. Taking the lyrics as her inspiration she created a different Mary Jane persona for each of the dolls’ heads, and began to craft bodies, clothes and backgrounds for each one. When she came across things she couldn’t make, such as a tiny denim jacket, she turned to dolls’ clothes makers on etsy.com and commissioned miniature pieces for her band of tiny muses.
Miriam hopes that by giving these dolls a little more of an identity, she will bestow more of an inner life to the somewhat submissive Mary Janes described in the songs: ‘There was something quite passive about the way the dolls were waiting on the shelf for me to give them a story, to give them a life. For each one, I quickly had a clear sense of a little story of my own that sat behind the lyrics.’
Click here for more information about Prick Your Finger and their upcoming events.
It was Daniel Almeroth’s “The Birth of Feminism” series that formed an entry into Dazed & Confused’s Free Range competition that first caught my eye and drew me in. These sparsely yet beautifully constructed collages are not only visually pleasing but make a bold statement about the feminist movement too. He explains the work as “moments of metaphorical and symbolical events before and after this dramatic political movement. The point of the series is to highlight the tight control Men had over Women throughout our past; through religion, symptoms marriage and general social attitudes.”
Delving deeper into Almeroth’s work, I notice a similar thread of stunning aesthetics teamed with clever insights running through his artistic repertoire. The Injured Body, for example, “tries to highlight the factor of deformities due to accidents and incidents. It comments on the relationship of a figure of heroism and the true reception they may receive.”
The sign of a good artist in my opinion is one who can create work with meaning or a message, yet leave it up to the audience to form their own perspectives, drawing on individual personal references and experiences. Nothing is less attractive then artists who dictate your reactions and responses. Almeroth concurs, saying “I want to leave these images open to interpretation, to challenge the observer to reach a personal conclusion of the images intent.”
It was a pleasure to get to know him a bit better and find out what makes him tick.
When did you first realise you were creative?
I first got into illustration when I was a little’n, I use to draw landscapes of cities being destroyed by dinosaurs, covering it in glitter and dry macaroni. I like to think I’ve changed since then!
Tell me about your school days.
I completed my A’levels at Shenfield High School (where Richard from Richard and Judy, and Des from Diggit went to school!). I then studied my foundation at Thurrock & Basildon College, Essex. Then got into the Arts Institute at Bournemouth studying the Ba Hons Animation Production course, changing to Ba Hons Illustration at the Arts Institute at Bournemouth in my second year.
Which artists or illustrators do you most admire? Klaus Voorman is top notch, Tara Donovan is definitely my artist of the hour and the illustrator Meyoko is particularly phenomenal.
Who or what is Crabwolf and what is your involvement?
Recently I have joined a collective with four other illustrators/designers under the name of CRABWOLF. Crabwolf was born one night over dinner, beers, drawings, some roulette and a scorpion. All consisting of graduates from the illustration course at the Bournemouth Arts Institute. We commonly all collaborate on projects such as our recent Limehouse Magazine front covers, greeting cards, promotional posters/materials, possible exhibitions in London and Dublin are lined up, a zine or two in the pipeline and discussing ideas for t-shirt ranges and hand screen printed posters that are just so good for the environment. Today Bournemouth, tomorrow? …The world.
Tell us something about Daniel Almeroth that we didn’t know already.
I’m an Essex boy, born and raised, at Eastgate shopping centre is where I spent most of my days.
If you could time travel back or forward to any era, where would you go?
I’d go back to the Victorian times, making a couple of stop offs along the way. Firstly the 90′s and don an under cut then the 70′s to acquire a taste for free love, then become the most insanely popular/rich/famous man that ever lived in the Victorian era.
If you weren’t an artist, what would you be doing?
Probably get started on making that time machine.
Which band past or present would provide the soundtrack to your life?
“MODERN ART = I COULD DO THAT + YEAH BUT YOU DIDNT” Craig Damrauer.
What would your pub quiz specialist subject be?
Probably a mixture of Arts, Entertainment, Geography, History, Sports, Nature, Food and Miscellaneous. They call me the quiz meister, a necessity for every team!
Who or what is your nemesis?
Tomato Ketchup & Moths.
What piece of modern technology can you not live without?
My desktop iMac. Her name is Selina.
What is your guilty pleasure?
Having a pint, a rollie and drawing in the garden.
What has been keeping you busy of late?
I’ve recently received briefs for editorial work in a few magazines, promotional posters and flyers for events, I also had my work exhibited in a local exhibition named Ishihara (which is possibly branching out to London in the near future). Me and fellow illustrator Selina Kerley also have produced a three edition Fanzine named Chien Schuanz that promoted ourselves and other local artists, selling them on the internet and local events in Bournemouth. I have also produced a limited stock of screen printed t-shirts and jumpers that are selling like hot cakes that’s keeping me warm from the recession!
What advice would you give up and coming artists?
Shameless self promotion, self initiated projects, collaborating, spending all day on the internet and with a pencil in your hand.
Who would your top five dream dinner guests be? Who would do the washing up?
I think it would have to be in a Come Dine With Me layout with Frieda Kahlo, Jean Claude Van Damme, Ghandi, Sir Alan Sugar and Picasso. I’d make Ghandi and Sir Alan Sugar wrestle, the loser would do the washing up.
What’s next for you then?
At the beginning of July some friends and I are exhibiting and manning a stool at the next D&AD space in Earl’s Court, so pop along for a chat and some freebies! I also plan to help create and brand a Fashion magazine which is currently starting to emerge on the drawing boards.
All hail Daniel Almeroth and The Crabwolf Collective. You heard it here first.
All good superheroes have an alter ego; Peter Parker/ Spiderman, doctor Clark Kent/ Superman, Bruce Wayne/ Batman, and now Randolph J. Shabot/ Deastro. As super-hero names go it’s a pretty good one, and his new album ‘Moondagger’ plays like a soundtrack to an epic sky scraper top battle between ultimate super-powered nemesis, whist retaining a bashful sweetness of a superhero’s geeky quotidian alter-ego.
What’s more Deastro is exactly the same age as me, which on a personal level makes him all the more awesome, whilst I get finger cramps from trying to play my ukulele, he has created an epic synth-driven outer space soundscape; of course it’s not a competition but if it was he’d win.
How did you get into music? My Uncle bought me a guitar when I was 5 and taught me to play ’3 Little Indians’, and I’ve been singing in choirs since about then too, and so I guess I’ve always been into it.
If you had to pick someone as a main influence who would it be? It’s really a tie between Brian Wilson and Steve Reich.
Ok, good choices! Who would provide the soundtrack to your life? I would have to say Starflyer 59, they’re like this Christian shoegaze band and they have these lyrics that are about really simple things. It’s great, I love it.
If you weren’t making music right now what do you think you’d be doing? I’d be a teacher.
What piece of modern technology could you not live without? Probably my laptop, it’s what I make music on so it’d be hard to live without it.
Who or what is your nemesis? (laughs) My guitar player is my nemesis.
Really? Is he a secret nemesis or is it quite an open thing? It’s pretty open, We love each other but we fight all the time.
What is your guilty pleasure? Chocolate ice-cream, you can’t put me in front of a thing of chocolate ice-cream, I’ll eat the whole thing!
If you were making a mixtape for me which 5 songs would you put on it? ‘Come on, Let’s Go’ by Broadcast
If you had a time machine which era in the past or future would you travel to? This is going to sound really lame, but I’d probably go back to the dinosaur era.
That’s not lame at all! Dinosaurs are ah-mazing… Yeah, it would be really interesting to see another evolutionary path, just mind-blowing.
What would be your quiz specialist subject? Bible trivia, I went to school to be a pastor when I was 17, I’m not really a Chrisitan anymore but I was the 10th ranked Bible quizzer for a short minute there when I was a kid.
Wow! Do you have any good Bible trivia for me? Who was the oldest man in the Bible?
Errm…God? (laughs) God’s not technically a man…It’s Metheuselah who lived to 969 allegedly…
Which 5 people would you invite to your dream dinner party? Socrates, Michael Jackson, Jesus…ermm this sounds ridiculous Michael Jackson and Jesus!, Chris Martin just because I’d like to see him in a room with those people and Mahatma Gandhi.
…and who would do the washing up? Chris Martin (laughs) no, I’d probably end up doing it myself actually.
Tell us a secret… A lot of mine are really disgusting, I’m trying to think of one that’s kosher…both my front teeth are fake, I fell of my bike and chipped them as a kid.
After a week of technicolored, malady although not always technical, capsule undergraduate shows, ailment rife with misdirected or altogether unmanned piloting of a laser cutter, and occasionally some superior sparks of creative genius, we come to the much anticipated collections of MA graduates from the Royal College of Art. A troop of fine tailoring, sophisticated textiles and stellar styling, this year’s cadets are ready for the fray. Recurring in various forms were the bow tie a la 1920′s, pom poms which echoed the catwalks overseas, silicone, galaxy prints and leather in more variations than you can shake a needle at.
WOMENSWEAR
Johanne Kappel Anderson
Johanne Kappel Anderson’s magpie inspired collection was full voluminous fabrics and illustrative prints, solar dust blasted leathers and super oversized graphic pastels on black. Digitally printed leotards flashed patterns comprised of jewelry, spoons, bolts and found objects just the kind of shiny thing a magpie might take home to his nest. A few prints and shapes seemed to conjure up another winged creature…moths.
Some earthy prints with contrasty ‘eyes’ fluttered down the catwalk… there was even a cocoon jacket!
Heidi Wikar
Heidi Wikar ‘s collection ‘Singing Silence’ was a series of diaphorous clouds said to be inspired by a Scandinavian landscape’s emptiness. Makes sense…if you were planning to experience it through a window, from the downy comfort of your bed. Puffy duvets appeared trapped in spiderwebs of muted greys, ochres, creams and white. All the shape and volume of modern silhouettes but without the overly structured and cresting shoulders prevalent in so many other collections this year. What resembled a bright orange parachute with clever gathers and seaming became a dress filled with pockets of air and completely weightless. Air itself acted as a material, giving shape and structure to the pieces. Apparently part of a design challenge the entire collection can be packed into one 20 kg rucksack. As if those rosey cheeked fraus needed anymore help looking amazing in the dead of winter.
Siofra Murphy
Up from the realm of textiles rose an innovative take on shibori by Siofra Murphy. What seems to have started as a super large muted floral print soon condensed into a rippled shell of body-con dresses with necklines that rose around from behind the shoulders like neck supports. Paired with stretchy basics the nuanced surface went from bold to muted but remained incredibly intriguing.
Liam Evans
Liam Evans presented one the best examples of laser cutting in a year rife with its abuse. Transcending the weighty characteristics of leather, he exploited the laser cutter for the impossible precision it was made to do. With the aid of sturdy zips Evans jigsawed his garments into a collage of ultrafine leathers. Loose motorcycle jackets were studded with an organic arrangement of thorny spikes and paired with chiffon dresses a la 90′s.
Rachael Barrett
Inspired by photos in Corinne Day‘s Diary, Rachael Barrett’s collection was a modern assortment of soft feminine silhouettes constructed of a soft silicone rubber. Conservative hemlines and generous shaping gave the illusion of transparent shells revealing moments of black chiffon lace. Clever cutting allowed for ease of movement and portrayed the designers interest in the “trapped space between body and dress”.
MENSWEAR
Alex Mattson
Based on a post-apocolyptic Mexican hi-tech tribal gang in LA (that explains the Hollywood flash) that has reverted to Aztec/Mayan rituals and beliefs (still with me?) Alex Mattson’s collection is like a well tailored Malibu super hero’s wardrobe. Full of comic book colors and supple leathers the foam helmets and neckpieces were a cartoony take on the tooth-n-claw talismans of ancient Incans. Only a matter of time before they make their way onto the set of an ‘Empire of the Sun’ video, yes?
Keith Gray
These delicately squiggly pinstriped suits made for one hot ice cream parlor attendant. Keith Gray presented a series of bright and fresh menswear in expertly tailored shirts and snug trousers with tromp l’oeil knits. Dropped crotches and retreating hems kept the whole look impossibly modern 20′s chic.
Louise Loubatieres
The only textiles MA graduate to send a collection down the runway did not disappoint. Louise Loubatieres juggled an exotic mix of bold ikat prints and roomy knits. A rich palette and roomy shapes complete with a 20′s beachsuit. Wonder if Walter Van Beirendonck will be knocking on this one’s door.
Luis Lopez-Smith
As this was a show it’s safe to say that Luis Lopez-Smith was the circus leader. Marching band jackets in various forms and a few green googly-eyed caterpillars adorned a few torsos with the piece de resistance being a puffy vest that looked as though it’d walked right off the set of Terry Gilliam ‘s ‘Adventures of Baron Von Munchausen’
A fantastic display of craftsmanship and impeccable tailoring lent it’s support to an impressively balanced offering of innovative textiles and experimental shapes. All the intelligent risk taking one can continue to expect from such a world class school.
Have you got a favorite of your own?
Browsing old PhD theses, this as you do of the odd grey Sunday evening, you might come across the quiet mindbend that is Stephen Stirling’s ‘Whole Systems Thinking as a Basis for Paradigm Change in Education: Explorations in the Context of Sustainability’. Gosh. Well, you made it past quiet armchair moments (not quite The Foundry of a Friday night) and the obligatory don-speak of Stephen’s title – and somehow you’re still reading, and maybe you’re starting to get the problem I see before us in this article : that, shrouded in the ivory mist of academia, someone has written clearly and thoughtfully about changing the way we think, but a first glance all too easily sees a glut of Greek and runs away. Instead, try putting your head into a mindset quite different:
Everyone tells themselves stories about the world. I’m a student, a writer, a brother. Don’t worry, you’ll not have my life story – not tonight, anyway – but there is one, or several, smoothly edited to my audience’s appetite for imaginary journeys around the world, or encounters with mad professors. But before you pin me down as some grand raconteur, check yourself out, last time you introduced yourself or got chatting to someone new.
Here’s the story-about-the-world jam. We look at the world, then we have a think about it, then we decide what to do.
Mostly, we look at the world bit by bit. Everything has a reason, and we try to find *the* reason. When something needs to be done, the straight way is best. Results delivered, satisfaction guaranteed. Kiss frog, find prince, all shiny.
Thing is, this doesn’t quite do our complex world justice, and imagining the world inadequately means we’ll make wrong decisions. Instead, Stephen suggests we look at everything all together, relations and systems rather than objects and actions. Be much more sensitive to all of the causes and consequences – the stone scudded across a river sends ripples in all directions, cheers me up a moment, and sinks, tickling a snoozing whiskered fish. Turns up a hundred years later, tumbled bumped and rounded to perfection, and stubs a distant relative’s toe on Brighton beach.
This systems approach was pioneered in, amongst other works, Limits to Growth by Dana Meadows, Dennis Meadows and Jorgen Randers – an awesome book, classic of eco-lit, stuffed with graphs from the future that go shwoop-kerbang as people and pollution go up, food and farmland go down, and all the balance of the world’s systems are shown together. There’s a new edition out, a thirty-years-on update, which I haven’t read yet, but is high up on my list, just after ‘The Italian’s Defiant Mistress’.
Stephen Stirling is concerned with getting this kind of joined-up thinking a matter of course, throughout design education, but also throughout education in the more general, lifelong way. There’s a way to go, I can tell you from a wee bit of personal experience. Sat in the back of a GCSE Electronic Products class six or seven years ago, the three marks of my coursework dedicated to sustainability caught my attention for a long three minutes as I knocked off a paragraph to tack on to my project, jumping another hoop. This is about as far as sustainability in design education goes for now.
First off, says Stephen, is changing things we do without changing how we think. So, less waste makes more sense because I’ll save money, whether I care about where it goes or not. Similarly, not growing one single kind of crop year in year out won’t wear out the soil, and helps against pests and disease – good business plan.
Next level is the change in the way of thinking that goes along with this. Understanding our relation with the world not in the straight ‘man conquer forest’ way but ‘man use a bit of forest but is careful before his greed comes back and kicks him in the teeth’. Stephen Stirling calls it the ‘postmodern ecological worldview’ and suggests it as the best way forward from mechanical modernism and text- and sign- obsessed postmodernism. The 2012 imperative Teach-in, which Amelia’s magazine blogged about back in January, puts sustainability right at the centre of design education in this way.
Finally there’s the kind of wondering that Stephen’s thesis looks to – thinking about thinking about thinking, if you’re that way inclined. Wondering about how we tell stories about the world, and how our ways of telling might change, how they might need to change if we are to learn to live many many moons longer under these skies.
‘Whole Systems Thinking’ and ecological literacy are no longer just things to know about. They should certainly not be mere buzzwords tacked on a Corporate Social Responsibility statement or curriculum check-box and forgotten about. They need to start informing our every action. Eventually, they’ll be as mundane as sitting in a quiet armchair of a grey Sunday evening, flicking through a history of the early twenty-first century green-shift. Here’s to that.
For anybody out there who ever got given a jumper that was too big for them by doting aunt or grandparent – Hannah Taylor, order the Ravensbourne graduate whose praises I was singing on Tuesday, there is right there with you. Her collection is a paene to the nostalgia attached to the big old jumper, when things were less complicated, when the hemline fell below your knees and when somebody had to tie your shoelaces for you (velcro was always easier, no?). Sometimes, though, you wouldn’t be caught dead in said jumper. Spare a thought for the Weasley children. Mrs Weasley WISHES she could knit this good.
Tell me about making your collection.
Well, most of them I knitted using my domestic knitting machine, and the two with the ‘balaclava faces’ on them, including the balaclavas themselves are hand knitted. Everything is either oversized somehow or has shrunken sleeves, the collection is called “You’ll Grow Into It!”
Why animals?
As in traditional knitwear which features ‘motifs’ of animals or objects, each animal is a motif to represent ‘Victor’ (my dad) and the North, and kind of tells its own little story. For example, there’s a pigeon because stereotypically everybody up North keeps pigeons in a shed next door to their outside toilet.. The 3 flying ducks are after Hilda Ogden’s living room wall in Coronation Street, and also at home where Victor lives, we had 3 pet ducks. The Fox is a symbol of English Heritage and the sad fact that Victor only now has two ducks because at Christmas one was eaten by, yep, a fox, and the guinea pig is there because i used to keep them when I was younger, and Victor would tell me off for never cleaning them out as much as I should have done. Oops.
What’s your favourite piece?
I love each one you know, they’ve all got their own little stories to tell! However I think it has to be Nigel the Guinea Pig jumper as he is the first one I knitted in the collection.
It was probably one of the best received in the whole of Graduate Fashion Week – why do you think it appealed to people so much?
Aw thank you! I am really glad people enjoyed it, people were probably a bit surprised by it to be honest, and weren’t expecting that to come out on the catwalk! I had fun with my collection, in both the designing and the making, and hope the light-hearted element was was portrayed as I think everyone has an affinity with knitting in some way, shape or form, be it jumpers knitted for them by relatives or someone else they know. I think in the past few decades knitting has become percieved as ‘humorous’ too, so that tends to make people laugh whereas in the past knitters (and knitting) were taken much more seriously.
What was it that drew you to knitwear initially?
I just love knitting! I was shown when I was younger by my mum but I was AWFUL – I lost my patience with it but picked it up again when I got a bit older and taught myself. Before I started at Ravensbourne I used to run knitting groups in my hometown of Warrington! I think there’s alot of potential in men’s knitwear, I like to think of a boy and ‘dress’ him in a certain way or feeling. I am looking forward to continuing with it.
There seemed to be a massive amount of knitwear at GFW – have you noticed an increase too and why do you think it’s becoming more popular?
Knitting is becoming more popular, especially the social aspect of it and I wonder if it’s going to die down again at some point. If more people are learning the techniques and processes then they will use this for constructing a garment. I also wonder if it is because people are wanting something hand-made or hand-finished, one offs.
Apparently Giles Deacon was trying on your stuff afterwards – what did you make of that?
Surprising to say the least! It was quite a fast paced few days going from a bit of last-minute linking an hour before it was due to start(!) to then being put forward for the Gala Shows – I wonder if Giles is reading this? I’m taking orders soon if you want one!
In the aftermath, would you have alterered anything at all?
No I don’t think so – if it’s not broken don’t fix it.
Where next from here? Where could you see yourself working?
I like Walter Van Beirendonck‘s work, I think he’d be great to work for, although there’s a couple of people i’d knit for as it’s the knitting I enjoy the most. I wouldn’t mind my own studio actually, and be able to do all the knitting there. I’ll be starting at the Royal College of Art in September to do my MA in Men’s Knitwear, a 2 year course in which I’m really looking forward to and eventually knitting up another collection!
To keep up with Hannah, make sure to keep checking both her website and her blog.
Waking up at around half 11 the last thing that I expected I would be doing today was going to see a band that up until a few months ago I thought I had missed the boat with. But having checked the blur forums (something which has now become part of my flatmate’s and I morning routines during the last few months) I discover that Blur are playing a gig somewhere in London tonight. I should probably explain here that blur are without doubt my favourite band and have been for some time; 13 was the second album I ever bought. Details about are sketchy; all I know is that there are 170 tickets available, drugs that I have to go to Brixton to get one and that they have already been available for the past three quarters of an hour. Shit. I rush upstairs and begin shouting nonsensically to my two flatmates that we have to get to Brixton and fast, there there will be no time for showers (an unfortunate circumstance for fellow tube users given that I spent the previous day travelling and it is a warm day – apologies). Luckily they are on side so we sprint down to the station and navigate our way to towards Brixton, sprinting between tube changes only stopping when we arrive at Brixton to question someone as to where exactly the academy is from there. They give us directions and inform us that we will definitely get wristbands for tonight’s gig as they have just got some themselves. We continue sprinting never the less.
When we arrive we are given pieces of paper with numbers on them – 68, 69, 70. There is a short wait in line and as we are given our wristbands we are warned that when we are informed of the whereabouts of the gig (by email and text) that we should not reveal it to anyone as if too many people arrive it may jeopardise it taking place. Given that I have only been awake for an hour now this is all rather surreal. We reward our efforts with breakfast in a greasy spoon round the corner.
Five o’clock; showered and shaved now we get the email.
“Blur will be playing a few songs for the lucky few that have passes at Rough Trade East, Dray Walk, 91 Brick Lane, E1 6QL, today, Monday 15th June.
Please get to the venue no earlier than 6.30m otherwise you may jeopardise the gig. The band will be on stage at 7pm sharp.”
This time travelling is a much more relaxing experience, there is no panicking when the train pauses between stations and we arrive in plenty of time. Having queued up and taken our spot (front stage, to the left, in front of Coxon’s mike) I talk to someone who tells me that he has been following Blur live since 1995. He looks slightly taken aback when I tell him that this is my first gig. There is a tangible sense of anticipation in the audience, no doubt increased by the intimate setting – when the band do come on stage even though I am three deep in the crowd I rarely more than three feet away.
The band come on stage Damon strutting, Graham looking slightly awkward, and Alex James once again taking the cool rock star mantle (as opposed to the cool cheese farmer). She’s So High is the first track and in my opinion at least the audience seems unsure of quite how to react, a little awed. Any lingering notions that this will be a quiet gig are soon dismissed though as the band launch into Girls and Boys followed by Advert, the air is thick with the sweat of not just the audience but also Damon as he jumps about the stage much in the same vein as in the mid 90′s and the audience react in kind. Following this we are treated to a version of Beetlebum with an extended muted intro. End of the Century is next, before Graham assumes lead vocals for Coffee and TV. Years of playing solo must have imbued him with an increase in confidence but he still has a tendency to sing into the microphone rather than towards the audience. I would argue that this was more endearing than an annoyance as was a moment later on in the set when Tender was played as neither Graham nor Damon appeared to be entirely sure of who should be singing but simply smiled off the mistake. Out Of time is next up, the only song which is played from Think Tank (the album Blur recorded mostly without Graham). Graham’s new guitar part for me is a welcomed edition personally, though my flatmate disagrees – perhaps it should have been a little lower in the mix. Tender’s sprawling ballad like nature is pushed out even further to include an acoustic only segment near the end before launching back into the full band version. For me this was the best song of the night for a number reasons, not because of the Freudian banter about Alex’s upturned bass functioning as a double bass “It’s anything you want it to be”, yes Damon.
It is the final part of the gig that audience anticipation reaches its climax in though, Popscene turns the crowd into a manic, sweat filled, pulsating machine. The intensity only increases when this is followed immediately by Song 2 and Parklife. The latter of these two is almost certainly an a grade example of how to whip a crowd into a frenzy, threaten to come off the stage but don’t ever quite do it. Finally the band ends with This is a Low, a song which succeeds in leaving the audience wanting more, staying to shout for an encore which unfortunately is not forth coming.
Perhaps the best thing about last night’s gig was pointed out by my friend, Blur played with such intensive energy that it didn’t feel like you were watching a well established act. Rather a new band that was just starting up and had to make a name for themselves.
1 man. 8 weeks. 15 sites. 41 cities. 50 sofas, prostate beds and mattresses.
These are the numbers in the equation of Lithuanian Photographer Paul Paper’s latest project, unhealthy entitled Photodiaries, which took him around the continent in 2008 and make up the content of a travelling exhibition currently taking up residency at the Senko Studios in Viborg, Denmark.
Paul explained to me that the only planning that went into the voyage consisted of printing out an A4 sized map of Europe, on which he made small dots with possible “places to stay”, though was only certain of his destinations one stop in advance. He tells me his spontaneous nature isn’t entirely to blame for this; a combination of offers from hosts coming last minute and the uncontrollable unexpected twists of fate, including rail strikes in France, all contributed to a more freeform journey.
He took all the footage on film rather than by digital means, just how holiday snaps were done in childhood- only processed when back home and removed from the transient content in which they were taken, making one instantly nostalgic to be back on the road. When I asked Paul if travelling alone was a conscious decision he made, he explained “When you are alone you are the most vulnerable and absorbent of the environment. In my case it was really good as instead of chatting I had loads of time to write diary on the train or just reflect on the last couple of days.”
A comfortable solitude is most definitely present in his work; even those images which contain figures still resonate a quiet contemplation of their surroundings. I find his work to so carefully and accurately capture a glimpse of a moment that may otherwise have slipped away out of memory; his photographs are not sensationalist or arrogant, but subtle and melancholic. You can smell, hear and taste them. They are at once personal and open to interpretation.
They chiefly occupy themselves with capturing the miracle within everyday monotony. It may be a familiar practise for artists to hunt down and capitalise the rare and special from amidst the overlooked mundane, but Paper manages to use light and focus rather than say image cropping or careful composition to achieve this, which I find impossibly impressive.
Paul Paper is a man of simple pleasures. He daydreams, he sleeps, he walks and he eats. In winter he reads in bed about faraway places and long ago travellers. He finds company in animals and comfort in books. He also happens to take heartbreaking photographs, the ones of which he took around Europe late last year have been made into a zine by Cafe Royal. He cites his favourite subjects to photograph as people and awkward situations.
Paul Paper already has invitations to stay in homes in South America and Asia if Photodiaries is to be repeated across another continent in the future. I ask him what his future plans are looking like, though I only get a vague response; “Exhibitions, exhibitions, exhibitions. And maybe a book.” This only cements my impression of Paper as someone who is fairly content with what he has; A man who is happy to be a photographic observer to life’s little miracles and common tragedies, there to enjoy the ride and document it the best he can.
And the way he can, and does, is certainly best.
A few weeks ago, stomachAmelia and I attended a conference presented by Resurgence Magazine, what is ed a publication which promotes ecological sustainability, social justice and spiritual values. It was held on a Saturday, and to be honest, it was such a glorious warm sunny day that I wondered how I was going to be able to spend seven hours indoors. I needn’t have worried, because the time flew by, and every moment was spent in the company of wise, witty and informed people. What I discovered on that day was invaluable, and I soon realised that lazying around outdoors could wait, I had some learning to do.
The talk was entitled “Economic and Environmental Recovery: From Downturn to Steady State: Creating A Better World To Recover From The Credit Crunch And The Nature Crunch”, and was chaired by the Editor of Resurgence Magazine, Satish Kumar; alongside was Fritjof Capra, the Director of the Centre for Ecoliteracy in California and Ann Pettifor, the Editor of the Real World Economic Outlook. What seems like a wordy title actually translated as a disarmingly simple message; in order for the worlds economic problems to be solved, we must all switch to a truly sustainable and ecological way of living. As I was soon to discover, far from being two separate entities, the issues of economics and ecology are more closely intertwined than I would ever imagined.
Held in Cecil Sharpe House, Regents Park,home of the English Folk Dance and Song Society. The morning began with a talk from Ann Pettifor. While I have a few holes in my knowledge of how the economic system actually works, I could easily follow the discussion because Ann was extremely engaging and explained the complex system of economics and trade in a way which everyone could understand. Beginning by describing the relationship of commerce and environmentalism; “If we want to help the ecosystem we have to start with finance” and went onto highlight the direct correlation between easy money/consumption and emissions, adding “we have been convinced that the most important things is money, but what is important is our labour and how we exchange it. Money creates activity, it is not the result of it. Banks should not be at the center of the economy, labour and trade should be.”
After a short break, Fritjof Capra explained a few home truths to the audience. Not being familiar with his work, I was unsure of what to expect. It soon was obvious that this prolific author had his finger on the pulse of sustainability and the transdisciplinary world of ecology and economics. Capra was keen to promote the importance of what he deemed as ‘qualitative growth’, and viewed the current economic system as outdated and in dire need of an overhaul so that it can run harmoniously with a brighter ecological age.
Directing his thoughts towards the current economic crisis, he opined “At the basis is an economic system without ethics. To lift people out of poverty, you need redistribution of money, not economic growth. But equally, no growth is not the answer, growth is a characteristic of all life; in nature it is not unlimited. What we need to have is ‘qualitative growth’, not ‘quantitive’ growth. Since what we call growth is largely waste, actual growth is what enhances life. The planet is a living, self regulating system, and evolution is a co-operative dance. The over expansion of financial services is parasitic on the economy, economists only recognise cash flows, but no other form of wealth. Unlimited quantitive growth is unsustainable, whereas qualitative growth can be sustainable if it combines growth and decline. ”
“We need to distinguish between good and bad growth. Bad growth degrades ecosystems, while good growth involves zero emissions and renewables. The projects which would qualify as ‘good’ growth tend to be small scale projects, community orientated and create local jobs.”
After lunch; we listened to a dialogue between Satish and Fritjof . Speaking about how we can learn from nature, instead of taking from it, Satish explained “In nature, there is always decay, death and rebirth. Businesses are petrified by these concepts. In society we fear death, we equal it with failure. Our economic system isn’t resilient. ”
Capra added to this assertion. “The economy is in the hands of half educated people. Every lesson on economy has to be balanced with ecology. Right now, everything is about the economy. When you put this first you put human interest above the rest of the world. When you look at forests, seas, lands, it is as a resource for us. We have to change our world view, and see that natural resource is our friend, our community. But right now, we all suffer from ‘speciesism’. The holistic world view says that we are ‘nature’, in that we are as much nature as the trees, flowers and mountains. So by this definition, we need to think differently. Our world view needs to be more biocentric, and needs to be driven by hope and by love. The meaning of life is in the living. The things that give us most pleasure cost us very little money.”
Discussing the issues of how our food, clothes and general accruements of life are flown in from other countries, to a detrimental cost to our environment, Satish and Fritjof both advocated a radical change. “60% of our living should be local, 20% should be regional, and the rest should come from other countries. The problem is not consumerism, but waste”
Later on, we sat outside in the gardens of Cecil House. By chance, a group of banjo players were strumming not far from our patch, which made for an enchanting experience as Satish guided us though a conversation which took in life, love and the universe. Quoting Ghandi‘s words “Be the change”, he advocated that personal transformation needs to be first before we can transform the world. “The past, present and future exist simultaneously” he said, and our every thought should be beautiful, creative, warm and positive. Not exactly your stereotypical economics lecture, which is probably why I enjoyed it so much. Resurgence Magazine runs several workshops throughout the year at various locations, if they are half as insightful as this conference then I am signing myself up for many more, and urge you all to do the same.
Illustration by Sachiko
The second Ravensbourne wunderkind I managed to have a few words with was another menswear designer Calum Harvey, help whose standout collection, cheapest constructed from mostly unwanted materials, search won him the Textiles Award and showed us innovation in recycled fashion at its most potent. It was futuristic fashion that was actually – steady yourself- forward-thinking.
At fashion shows designers are falling over themselves to give us visions of the future pulled forth from the realms of their imaginations: modern lines, silver shellsuits and sci-fi accessories. Stylistic interpretations that are otherwise meaningless and often completely disconnected from a more earthy reality. It would almost be too earth-shatteringly avant-garde to imply that sustainable fashion is the real future, and it’s a problem I wondered about when I covered TRAID a couple of weeks ago. Right on cue, Calum (with a little help from his mother) is really using his imagination and beating down that path.
First of congratulations on your win – how do you feel?
Thank you very much! Well I’m ecstatic. As a menswear designer, to be nominated alongside dedicated textile designers is overwhelming. It”s been really exciting.
Tell me about your collection – how did it come about?
Well the project first started when my Fiat Cinquecento was scrapped, and as a reminder of her I decided to keep the seat belts. I began to research the partnership of recycling and fashion for my dissertation, and it was the scrapping of my car that started the process. Usually scrapped cars get sent to Africa or Russia to create landfill, and I found out that 95% of a car can be recycled. Over the Christmas break I realised that, when de-constructed, seat belts completely change and look so different – really delicate and fragile. It’s amazing. They are all different, made in different ways, using different yarns, resulting in different colours. So it’s all unraveled (a-hem) to dictate this 9 outfit collection.
Do you plan to continue working with recycled materials? Where do you think you could go from here?
From a young age working with unwanted materials always excited me, and this has stuck. I created a small clothing and accessories label, LONG LIFE, that dealt with ideas of recycling and re-using. These issues are both environmentally and economically important for everyone. I love the idea of altering purpose and function of materials, and I love making something new from something old. So yes, I will continue working with ideas of recycling!
How would you desribe your design signature?
I’m a bit of an OAP WANNABE. I love classic menswear with an element of risk/irony and humor.
There was a strong showing of both craft and knitwear at GFW too, wasn’t there?
Yes, and I think there will be more of that to come. People are falling back in love with old craft techniques, perhaps as a reaction to fast/mass produced fashion. There is so much you can do with knit, and it can act as such a spring board for design. You are self sufficient as well, no more trips to Shepherds Bush!
What was your inspiration for the collection? Who are your influences?
I went to the library and got loads of books out on South Polynesia. I was amazed at their scarification techniques, raw and abstract wood carvings and ceremony costume. I think this reference was an easy relation to the material I was working with. And obviously working with shredded seatbelts was a major influence on how I wanted the collection to look.
Which piece are you most proud of, and which caused you the most grief?
My favourite piece is the chunky knitted jumper that my mum flew over to knit. It’s a monster. It was a good chance to show Mum a week in a fashion student’s life! The most evil piece was the final fluffy coat. It took me and four friends three days to comb over three hundred shredded belt pieces. Because each belt is different some of them don’t go fluffy, and as a result I ran out and then I had to get more…it was tough!
How did you think the show went?
I was really overwhelmed when the show happened, hearing my music (Crawl by Kings of Leon) and seeing it all go out was amazing. I was running around hemming trousers and stitching on buttons minutes before they all went out and that was stressful, but it was the best moment of my life.
What are you plans for the next 12 months?
Over this summer time I want to spend more time concentrating on the LONG LIFE brand and making a more diverse range of bags and other accessories. I’m going to start an MA in menswear at the Royal College of Art as of September, so lots of sleepless nights I’m guessing!
In the run up to UCA Epsom‘s show at Graduate Fashion Week, approved James E Tutton was burning the edges of a brushed silk shirt from his first collection – ‘Oil on Water’. When asked why he simply claims; “the material melts and finishes itself.”
James’s designs are dark, advice sharp and are a new age approach to tailored menswear. Biker jackets and trench coats with one regular sleeve, page and one raglan sleeve are just one of the quirky details found in his collection. He explains “When designing my graduate collection I had in mind what John Keats would have worn, when he penned his famous poem, ‘Ode on Melancholy’ – but in this day and age.”
Mood reflective, the clothes are black with an emphasis on melancholy; reversible shirts demonstrate the highs and lows of a manic depressive’s state of mind. In an interview James says, “melancholy; a high or low mentality – it is the main plot. It seems to go hand in hand along the pathway of creativity.” Although interestingly, Keats’s preoccupation with “Beauty that must die” seems to be countered by James’s ability to recycle and remake beauty.
A mac made of Burberry Prorsum is a key piece in his collection; the inside lining is traditional Burberry beige – representing a higher mood, whilst the outer colour remains black. It’s not an easy job to pair conventional tailoring with melancholy – but this collection is far from bleak.
James’s design, pictured alongside Petra Taoujni’s
James focuses on androgyny in his designs; hard seams with no curves are combined with feminine fabrics – producing slim, angular silhouettes. “It’s about, how far can you push the conformity of menswear – without breaking all the rules?” He says. All of the seams have sharp edges and corners – to put forth the notion of harshness; at the same time the material is fluid and soft – the juxtaposition is edgy yet chic. James adds, “I tried to keep things simple while blurring the boundaries by having two things together that you wouldn’t necessarily expect.” I think his complex and contradictory mix of ideas have a dark yet beautiful outcome – that makes perfect sense aesthetically.
In the midst of a recession, second hand or vintage are less of an option and more of a must. Many find the balance of old and new a difficult struggle, and stick to either or. It’s refreshing to see a designer whose collection includes a jacket made entirely from old seventies leather, while the burnt edges of the shirts and tops add to the deconstructive dimension.
The accessories are made from recycled film reels; James says this was inspired by the underground film maker Arthur Lipsett – whose work is regarded avant-garde and innovative. He describes each look in the collection, “as a combination of the previous looks, getting bigger and madder each time – like a Russian doll.” ‘Oil and Water’ is a reflection of James himself; contradictory in thought, yet smooth and cohesive – in its final form. He states, “Oil and water don’t mix – but look as if they do. It’s a dirty rainbow in a puddle.”
When world leaders negotiate a new climate agreement this December, they will promote one solution above all others: carbon trading. The EU already has its own carbon trading system; in the US, Obama is working hard to push a ‘cap-and-trade’ system through Congress. But what is carbon trading? What is the theory behind it? How does it work in practice? Kevin Smith will give a critical perspective on market-based solutions to climate change.
Please email london(at)climatecamp.org.uk to book a place.
19.00 – 21.00
(£3 suggested donation)
BASH studio
65-71 Scrutton Street
London EC2
Tuesday 23rd June
Out of the Wasteland: Hope for a greener world
A talk with Dr Richard Chartres, part of a series in association with the City of London Festival. Looking at what hope there is for London to turn itself into an environmentally friendly city. Gresham College is an independent institution, founded by Sir Thomas Gresham in 1597, of eight professors who give free public lectures.
6.15pm, St Paul’s Cathedral, OBE chabel.
Info: Gresham College lecture list.
Crude
A screening of this new documentary with director Joe Berlinger present to discuss the making of the film. Crude has been shortlisted for the International Documentary Award at the upcoming One World Media Awards. It is the inside story of the infamous Amazon Chernobyl case, which pitted 30,000 indigenous and colonial rainforest dwellers against the U.S. oil giant Chevron.
At the Flea Pit, 49 Columbia Road, London E2 7RG
7.30pm (nearest Tubes – Old Street/Bethnal Green)
Space for this screening is limited – but we’d love you to come (and there are spaces left as this blog post is going to print)! Please email contact(at)oneworldmedia.org.uk if you would like to come.
Calais No Borders Camp
This Tuesday sees the beginning of the Calais No Borders Camp, planned to continue until the 29th June. Protesting an end to borders and freedom of movement for all, building links with migrant communities, challenge the authorities on the ground, and protest against increased repression of migrants and local activists alike.
The camp will take place in the park in rue Normandie-Niemen, East Calais, France.
Cape Farewell – Andes Expedition, Peru
Working with the Environmental Change Institute, Cape Farewell are setting off on an expedition with artists and scientists to visit shrinking glaciers, cloud forests, lower forests, areas of deforestation & the Amazon. Follow them online where the crew will be sending back live updates from the trek.
Photo by scientist John Fisher, from a previous Cape Farewell expedition.
Wednesday 24th June
Seeing Myself See
The Royal Society of Arts joins Radical Nature to present neuroscientist R. Beau Lotto performing a series of experiments involving the sky, music and bumblebees. He will demonstrate how colour, vision and seeing-ourselves-see can contribute to a more empathetic view of the environment and each other.
The Royal Society of Arts
6 John Adam Street
London WC2N
Thursday 25th June
Guerilla Gardening
Part of the Radical Nature season at the Barbican. Have you thought of the horticultural potential of neglected spaces? How can we resist urbanisation using nature? For well-rehearsed tactics, strategies and instructions join South London based guerrilla gardener Richard Reynolds, as he explores the colourful world of this illegal yet flourishing gardening movement.
Barbican Art Gallery, Redgrave Suite, Level 4
7.30pm, tickets £5, book here.
Age of Stupid
Another chance to catch the Age of Stupid, directed by Franny Armstrong (McLibel, Drowned Out), with Pete Postlethwaite as the last guy alive in a climate-fried world.
At the Haringey Independent Cinema (map), 7pm
Friday 26th June
Eco-Design Summer Fair
Eco-Design Fair over the weekend presenting many contemporary designer-makers focussing on sustainable design processes.
Friday evening Recycling party special: multi-media event with design, fashion, music, DJ’s and more. Organic drinks and food, an eco street chic styling area, eco and vegan fashion and beauty.
Times: Friday 5pm – 9pm; Sat & Sun 10am – 6pm
Free entry with a donation of an old mobile phone
Dray Walk Gallery, Dray Walk, The Old Truman Brewery, off 91 Brick Lane, London
Contact – Louise Kamara – info(at)ecodesignfair.co.uk
After Darwin: Contemporary Expressions
Turner Prize-winning artist Jeremy Deller and Darwin’s great-great-granddaughter, the poet Ruth Padel, are two of four artists and writers who have created new works for the Natural History Museum’s summer arts exhibition After Darwin: Contemporary Expressions.
The exhibition will feature new film and installation commissions from Jeremy Deller and Matthew Killip in collaboration with Professor Richard Wiseman and Diana Thater, alongside existing video work by Bill Viola. New literature, commissioned from award winning authors Mark Haddon and Ruth Padel, will also form part of the exhibition, which explores Darwin’s book ‘The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals’.
Opens 26 June
Natural History Museum
Cromwell Road
London SW7 5BD
Saturday 27th June
Sheep and Wool Day at Vauxhall City Farm Dyework is a workshop dedicated to traditional textiles. Come and see our sheep being shorn and then the fleece being spun into yarn. Lots of woolly craft activities and woolly items to buy. Fun for all ages. Relax with a cup of tea and a slice of cake
11.00 – 16.00
Vauxhall City Farm, 165 Tyers Street, London
Contact – Penny Walsh – 020 8692 2958 – pennywalsh(at)dyework.co.uk
Sunday 28th June
Insider London’s Cutting-Edge Green Tour
Insider London tours take you round hidden corners of London’s flowering sustainable community. Browse through gorgeous shops, witness futuristic architecture and connect with inspiring communities.
A maximum of 8 spaces are available, letting the group get to know each other and to foster networking.
The green tour leaves from the Bishopsgate entrance of Liverpool Street station, finishing at the Oxo Tower around 3 hours later. Halfway through, there’s a fairtrade coffee break at one of London’s stunning green venues.
To book, email bookings@insider-london.co.uk, mentioning the London Sustainability Weeks special tour and stating the date you would like to attend, at least 48 hours in advance.
2pm (meet from 1.45pm)
£25 (Special rate for the Festival)
Meet at Bishopsgate entrance of Liverpool Street
Contact – Cate Trotter – 0844 504 8080 – catetrotter(at)gmail.com
Small Words Novas Contemporary Urban Centre
73-81 Southwark Bridge Road
London SE1 0NQ
Until 3rd July
Mon – Sat 10:00am – 5.00pm
Free Entry
A truly unique exhibition in that all exhibiting artists are under the age of 10. Galactica Hilton ( age of 9), cure Benjamin McGowan (age of 7) and Marguerite Fox (age of 8) present Small Worlds, this site a fascinating exploration into a child’s world “with the incredible sense of adventure and knowledge that only exists within the minds of children; wonder still intact, sildenafil with emotion etched on their faces.”
25th June – 30th August
Tues-Friday 10am-6pm, Thursday 10am-9pm, Saturday midday-6pm
Closed Sunday & Monday
Free Entry
Exploring the ties as well as the tensions between form and function, craft and fine art, the Louise T Blouin Foundation is featuring a series of educational events, discussions, lectures and workshops as well as an exhibition in collaboration with the Carpenters Workshop Gallery. Artists include Marc Quinn, Pablo Reinoso, Thierry Dreyfus, Vincent Dubourg and Sebastian Brajkovic.
A well loved spot on the London craft event circuit, The Old Queen’s Head is having an afternoon of handmade craft and ethical products from designer clothing to jewellery to dolls and everything in between. There promises to be homemade treats to gobble, booze to glug and music to tap your feet to. And the best part of it all? It’s completely free!
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Make Your Own Damn Festival! The Sun & Doves
61 – 63 Coldharbour Lane
London SE5 9NS
25th June
7 – 10pm
FREE
As part of Camberwell’s Art Festival this week the lovely folk at Stitch and Bitch London are taking over South London’s artsy pub The Sun & Doves and running a ‘Make Your Own Damn Festival!’ workshop with a knitted theme for all those interested, from beginners to old maestros. Wool and needles provided but feel free to bring your own.
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Situationisn’t: Works Inspired by a Society of Spectacles The DegreeArt.com Gallery
30 Vyner Street
London, E2 9DQ
23rd June to 28th June
12:00 – 18:00
“Joe Upton presents an eclectic range of works using 3D Film and Mixed-Media. In this week long exhibition Upton invites the audience to engage in ‘pseudo-activities’ which break the conventional roles of spectatorship through an immersive 3D Film installation and participatory Paint-By-Numbers.Inspired by the avant-garde movement of Situationism, Upton transposes the theory of The Society of the Spectacle to the modern day. He questions our role as producers and consumers of culture and explores themes of novelty value, pop culture and commodity fetishism.”
As a prologue to the upcoming Channel 4 broadcast this July in which the nation will be taught the skills and techniques of life drawing, a series of free classes are being held across the city and throughout the country, led by John Berger, Judy Purbeck, Maggi Hambling, Gary Hume and Humphrey Ocean. In a different location every lunch-time, the first-come first-served classes are free but there is no advance booking. For full details click here.
Curated by Melanie Warner, after whose own biodegradeable sculpture, standing 3 metres tall and made from corn and starch based bioplastic, the show is named; this diverse collection of media from emerging British Artists aims to inspire and provoke debate around issues of sustainability and the environment.
Under, viagra 40mg over, pharmacy under, website like this over… who would have thought a spot of weaving could help me feel better? These past few weeks have been some of the most stressful of my life as a designer living in London. Worries about my degree work, money and job hunting have caused huge amounts of stress and, as I’m sure many would agree, we all need a bit of escape once in while.
Perhaps unusually, I’ve turned to crafting. I’m using a weaving loom brooch I made, to relieve my current feelings of anguish. I’ve always been a crafter and I’ve always turned to creative expression as an antedote to life’s pressures. I chose my graduating year as a design student at Goldsmiths to explore my relationship with craft further. After all, craft’s recent resurgence in popularity can be identified as a reaction to current circumstances. The craft trend highlights the importance of homemaking in people’s lives.
During this time of recession it seems logical to ‘make’ more. If you’re strapped for cash but want a new outfit why not try and make one? For me, the perfect alternative to a days shopping with the girls is a crafty party. Offering situations for discussion, laughter, relaxation and production, the beauty of these parties is no one has to be an expert; everyone can learn off each other and inspire each other.
The parties celebrate our natural instinct to make with our hands, and we gain a sense of achievement from the production of a handmade object. There’s something hugely satisfying in wearing something you made and you’re proud of. Hosting crafty parties led me to the realisation that craft could be powerful. Now I just needed to convince more people!
I designed to encourage the crafter in everyone. I made a series of ‘craft in transit’ garments allowing the wearer to be creative whenever and wherever the mood takes them. The crafty dress holds a variety of tools, and when worn and used forms a space and opportunity for creation. These portable tools for creative expression allow the wearer to make use of times of unproductivity. Using a portable weaving loom whilst the bus you’re sitting on is stuck in traffic is a rewarding experience. Although there might be a few strange looks, the ability to be creative avoids the feelings of frustration usually given when using public transport. Equally, wearing your crafty ring to the pub to meet your mates makes crafting both recreational and fashionably different.
By reclaiming craft we leave behind its traditional past and we celebrate its contemporary relevance. Craft offers a cheap and creative alternative to our over-consumption, and I believe by turning to craft during these stressful times we can celebrate ourselves as creative individuals, as makers, as designers. So why not host a crafty party this weekend, go ahead, make stuff – I’ll soon be doing a how-to guide right here at Amelia’s Magazine if you need some ideas!
Check out my website for more information and to buy my crafty jewellery, www.esterkneen.com.
Not going to Glastonbury? Don’t be sad, try turn that frown upside down and come to these!
Monday 22nd June
Wavves at the Luminaire, London.
Wavves are playing The Luminaire tonight, ride the wave of their reverb-y surfer noise fun!
Also keep you eyes peeled this week for our interview with San Diego’s strangest, we talked about murder, Arrested Development and crypto-zoology.
Tuesday 23rd June
The Thermals at Cargo, London.
The Thermals are heating things up at Cargo with their catchy simple punky indie rock. Short, snappy and fun.
Jamie T, the third best thing to come out of Wimbledon after Wombles and myself, has made something of a turn around with his come back, more noisy, angry and punk that before Jamie T proves he’s not a one-trick pony.
Thursday 25th June
Groanbox at the Luminaire, London
Groanbox bring their rootsy American folk to the Luminaire.
Friday 26th June
White Light/ Daft Drunk at the Lexington, London
Dance your woes away at White Light/ Daft Drunk at the lovely Lexington; it’s free so you can gloat about saving all that money by not going to Glastonbury!
Saturday 27th June
Neil Young in Hyde Park, London
Is there a more magical way to spend a Saturday evening than watching Neil Young perform in Hyde Park? A gig that is not to be missed.
Sunday 28th June
Upset the Rhythm at Barden’s Boudoir, London
Johanne Kappel Anderson
Heidi Wikar
Siofra Murphy
Liam Evans
Rachael Barrett
Alex Mattson
Keith Gray
Louise Loubatieres
Luis Lopez-Smith
