Amelia’s Magazine | Sir Philip Green and his Topshop billions get the UK Uncut treatment.


Heart / Target by Patrick Thomas. All images courtesy of Outline Editions.

Outline Editions’ pop-up shop is tucked away behind stalls on Berwick Street Market, prostate healing but the bright shop front is still hard to miss. Decorated by graphics wunderkind Kate Moross, mind inside the shop is a virtual “who’s who” of Britain’s graphic art world. This was part of what founders Camilla Parsons and Bill Tuckey wanted to achieve – having both spent years commissioning art works for music and print, they saw a gap in the market for a place where these artists and illustrators could show their work in a more permanent manner. ‘We have taken the high-end graphic artists and put them under one roof,’ says Camilla Parsons.

And the list of contributors to Outline Editions’ pop-up shop really does demonstrate that these are some very sought-after graphic artists and illustrators. Starting with Kate Moross, whose name is known from Dazed & Confused, Topshop and Vogue – all the way to Anthony Burrill, the so-called godfather of graphic arts. Universally known for his ‘Work Hard and Be Nice to People’ poster, his work has been seen everywhere from Tate Modern to the Underground.


Robin by David Foldvari

The shop on Berwick Street in Soho shows a mixture of works from the newly commissioned love-theme, which was unveiled on 2 December, and works from ‘Into the Forest’, which opened in November. The shop also has prints from last summer’s London-themed show.

‘We have commissioned a range of graphic artists and illustrators who work in music and pop culture,’ says Parsons, as she shows me around the space. ‘Many of these are one-off works that we have commissioned, all signed and in limited edition.’ She shows me the works by by David Foldvari; ‘he’s a very big name, you’ll recognise his style as you open a paper or magazine’, and HelloVon; ‘we chose him as his thing is animals. Look at it – it’s incredibly detailed and realistic, but also a bit spooky.’


Bird by HelloVon

The works commissioned by Outline Editions were themed, but Parsons says the artists appreciated the chance to create works with a large degree of freedom. ‘They do a lot of commercial work and this was unrestricted, so they found it exciting.’

Also on the wall is works by Supermundane; ‘he’s very prolific’, Kate Moross; ‘the girl of the graphic art scene’, and Klaus Haapaniemi; ‘he does very high end work.’ We stop a while next to Takayo Akiyama’s nautical chart of London, an intriguing little piece which shows the detail of London planet set on a globe, as if it were the only thing in the world. For those of us who live here it feels like that sometimes, doesn’t it.

London Nautical Chart by Takayo Akiyama

While initially focused on established names in the graphic world, Parsons doesn’t rule out the possibility of taking on more unknown names. ‘As time goes on we will start to encompass lesser known names. The main thing is to make sure the work is accessible. We cover all forms of graphic arts. The cement is that they all work in music, fashion and pop culture.’ The accessibility also extends to pricing: works start at £15 and go up to £185.


By James Joyce.

The Central London location for the pop-up shop was a deliberate move to bring the graphics genre to a wider audience. ‘There are lots of print collectives in East London. We wanted to bring it out West, to take it to a new audience. … We wanted to incorporate people with a variety of styles as well, to show something to everyone’s taste.’

‘Our premise is to keep it exciting and fresh, and to keep doing new things,’ says Parsons. She already has a few aces up her sleeve for Outline Editions’ next projects. She makes me promise not to say too much, but it’s hard – it sounds excellent and I for one can’t wait to see what comes next.


Pelican by Jamie Portch

‘Love in the Forest’ runs until 31 January at 94 Berwick Street, Soho, London W1. The works are also available on the Outline Editions website. For more information see our listing.

Heart / Target by Patrick Thomas. All images courtesy of Outline Editions.

Outline Editions’ pop-up shop is tucked away behind stalls on Berwick Street Market, viagra 100mg but the bright shop front is still hard to miss. Decorated by graphics wunderkind Kate Moross, viagra inside the shop is a virtual “who’s who” of Britain’s graphic art world. This was part of what founders Camilla Parsons and Bill Tuckey wanted to achieve – having both spent years commissioning art works for music and print, they saw a gap in the market for a place where these artists and illustrators could show their work in a more permanent manner. ‘We have taken the high-end graphic artists and put them under one roof,’ says Camilla Parsons.

And the list of contributors to Outline Editions’ pop-up shop really does demonstrate that these are some very sought-after graphic artists and illustrators. Starting with Kate Moross, whose name is known from Dazed & Confused, Topshop and Vogue – all the way to Anthony Burrill, the so-called godfather of graphic arts. Universally known for his ‘Work Hard and Be Nice to People’ poster, his work has been seen everywhere from Tate Modern to the Underground.


By Kate Moross

The shop on Berwick Street in Soho shows a mixture of works from the newly commissioned love-theme, which was unveiled on 2 December, and works from ‘Into the Forest’, which opened in November. The shop also has prints from last summer’s London-themed show.

‘We have commissioned a range of graphic artists and illustrators who work in music and pop culture,’ says Parsons, as she shows me around the space. ‘Many of these are one-off works that we have commissioned, all signed and in limited edition.’ She shows me the works by by David Foldvari; ‘he’s a very big name, you’ll recognise his style as you open a paper or magazine’, and HelloVon; ‘we chose him as his thing is animals. Look at it – it’s incredibly detailed and realistic, but also a bit spooky.’


Bird by HelloVon

The works commissioned by Outline Editions were themed, but Parsons says the artists appreciated the chance to create works with a large degree of freedom. ‘They do a lot of commercial work and this was unrestricted, so they found it exciting.’

Also on the wall is works by Supermundane; ‘he’s very prolific’, Kate Moross; ‘the girl of the graphic art scene’, and Klaus Haapaniemi; ‘he does very high end work.’ We stop a while next to Takayo Akiyama’s nautical chart of London, an intriguing little piece which shows the detail of London planet set on a globe, as if it were the only thing in the world. For those of us who live here it feels like that sometimes, doesn’t it.


Love Geometry by Anthony Burrill

While initially focused on established names in the graphic world, Parsons doesn’t rule out the possibility of taking on more unknown names. ‘As time goes on we will start to encompass lesser known names. The main thing is to make sure the work is accessible. We cover all forms of graphic arts. The cement is that they all work in music, fashion and pop culture.’ The accessibility also extends to pricing: works start at £15 and go up to £185.


By James Joyce.

The Central London location for the pop-up shop was a deliberate move to bring the graphics genre to a wider audience. ‘There are lots of print collectives in East London. We wanted to bring it out West, to take it to a new audience. … We wanted to incorporate people with a variety of styles as well, to show something to everyone’s taste.’

‘Our premise is to keep it exciting and fresh, and to keep doing new things,’ says Parsons. She already has a few aces up her sleeve for Outline Editions’ next projects. She makes me promise not to say too much, but it’s hard – it sounds excellent and I for one can’t wait to see what comes next.


Pelican by Jamie Portch

‘Love in the Forest’ runs until 31 January at 94 Berwick Street, Soho, London W1. The works are also available on the Outline Editions website. For more information see our listing.
UKuncut Topshop-police amelia gregory
Topshop, viagra 40mg with your welcoming entrance you are spoiling us…

If you are on twitter you will probably have noticed the mutterings of the #UKuncut hashtag – from small beginnings it has grown to become the standard bearer of the cuts demonstrations. And to think it all started only a few weeks back, cialis 40mg when I got a frantic phone call from one of my friends on the first UK Uncut Vodafone demo. “We’ve got a trending hashtag” he exclaimed somewhat maniacally. “but we’ve misspelled Vodaphone, stuff you’ve got to help us!!” I assured him that a quick glance at twitter confirmed that he didn’t need my twittering powers one iota. And frankly I think it’s Vodafone who’ve got their spelling wrong. Now, thousands of people follow the @UKuncut twitter feed and the #UKuncut hashtag stream is used to communicate between anti-cuts protests up and down the country. Makes you dead proud of your mates it does.

UKUncut by Avril Kelly
UKUncut by Avril Kelly.

I didn’t manage to get along to that first demo due to my head being buried in the creation of my new book about fashion illustration and ethical fashion design, but I have been avidly following the progress of the cuts protests. And when I heard about the next major target for UK Uncut I was most excited: the Topshop flagship store in Oxford Circus. Regular readers of this blog will no doubt be able to guess that I am not exactly a big fan of Topshop – I know too many small designers who have been ripped off, they have an atrocious human rights record, and I find the association with Kate Moss frankly tedious. Suffice to say I won’t be covering any Topshop collections in Amelia’s Magazine in the near future.

UK uncut sinister pics
Photograph by Sinister Pictures.

Instead, I hope to be joining more protests. Why? Well, a while ago the papers exposed Sir Philip Green‘s cunning tax avoidance trick that enables him to siphon vast profits out of the country and safely into the hands of his Monaco dwelling wife. There was a surge of interest and then the news disappeared. But the cunning folks at UK Uncut have decided to resurrect the gripe. Why? For the simple reason that this country is in the grip of savage cuts to almost everything imaginable. And yet the very rich are able to take our money out of the country: it is the very reverse of the ethos behind the resurgence of local currencies triumphed by Transition Towns. If you use the Brixton Pound in Brixton it enables local money to stay in a local area, enriching the lives of everyone who partakes in the local economy. If you use your pounds in Topshop they leak straight out of the UK, benefiting none of us at all.

Pay your Taxes Ross McEwan
Illustration by Ross McEwan.

Why is it that the richer people get the more greedy they become? Surely once you’ve earnt your first billion there’s little reason to keep chasing more? But no, the super rich, chums of our millionaire Con-Dem cabinet (Philip Green has the audacity to advise on austerity measures) together avoid £25 billion in tax by removing it from the country. One argument says that if the UK was to make it less amenable for large businesses to run their services here they would simply take them elsewhere. I fail to see the logic in this: Philip Green runs a British company, Topshop. He isn’t about to pack up and ship it over to Dubai never to be seen again, is he?

topshop riot by kellie black
Topshop protest by Kellie Black.

So it was that on a cold Saturday morning I jumped out of bed and sped into the centre of town. I missed the first noisy influx into the store by a few minutes and the main entrance was already blocked by security. However, although I very rarely get sucked into Topshop these days, I know well that there are several entrances so I zipped straight in via the side door.

UK_UncutTopshop2_byAlisonDay
UK Uncut Topshop Protest by Alison Day.

Inside about thirty protestors were already staging a sit in, chanting as bemused shoppers gazed on, uncertain what to do. They were a mix bunch from different movements, including climate activists and peeved students. “Philip’s Green’s taxation could pay for our education” was but one of many clever chants I heard.

UKuncut Topshop-amelia gregory

Within moments I was hustled straight back out the main entrance due to my very large camera, but I just went right back around and came back in with my iphone camera instead. Eventually I heard these magical words over the tanoy system: There has been an incident: please exit the store immediately. And so it was that we were able to close down the main branch of Topshop for well over an hour on a busy Saturday in the run up to Christmas. The sour faces of thwarted shoppers peered down at us as the streets got busier, but most of them seemed fairly content to visit Urban Outfitters next door instead. A gaggle of protestors then spread up and down Oxford Street, shutting Dorothy Perkins and BHS (both also part of Philip Green’s Arcadia empire) and revisiting Vodafone. In fact, just the threat of our arrival was enough to close most stores before we even got to them.

UK Uncut sinister pictures
Outside BHS. Photograph by Sinister Pictures.

As I was twittering through the protest I received a reply from a small fashion brand that has a concession in Topshop – But what about the independent labels that are losing business? – she said. I do think that if you get into bed with a corporate brand you can expect to experience the pitfalls as well as the bonuses, but our quibbles are obviously not with the independent designers who stock Topshop (and at any rate in this case she definitely supported us) or the workers in the store, who may well have lost income if we had blocked the entrances more effectively and they had been told to go home.

Abi Daker - Topshop protest 2010
One Woman Topshop protest 2010 by Abigail Daker.

It is very hard to protest without some unwanted fallout, which is why I so love this inspiring one woman protest: whilst we were causing mayhem at Oxford Circus Bryony went along to her local Wandsworth Topshop equipped only with flyers and chocolate, and on the purchase of a Breton top politely explained that she would not be able to pay the VAT because she didn’t trust Philip Green to give it the HMRC. She handed out information to the other customers and chocolates to the confused employees as they tried to accommodate her request by calling head office. What a clever way to raise awareness in a totally calm and collected manner, but the real success has been in the telling of the story – which has been bouncing around on the #UKuncut hashtag, attracting glowing comments from others who may well be inspired to do the same.

UKuncut Topshop-amelia gregory outside

For naturally this story is far from over: the students are still revolting on the streets and UK Uncut have announced yet another day of action: this time I urge you to join them and protest against the greedy fat cat billionaires who are currently free to move the money we spend on their products out of this country and away from where it might be put to good use. On Saturday 18th December Topshop and Vodafone will be targeted in high streets across the UK. Find out all the details here.

Find out how fashion should be made and sold in my new book, Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration, featuring the very best in ethical fashion design.

Categories ,#UKuncut, ,Abigail Daker, ,Alison Day, ,Arcadia, ,Avril Kelly, ,BHS, ,Billionaire, ,Brixton Pound, ,Con-Dem, ,Dorothy Perkins, ,hashtag, ,HMRC, ,Human Rights, ,Kate Moss, ,Kellie Black, ,My One Woman Topshop Protest, ,Oxford Circus, ,Ross Mcewan, ,Sir Philip Green, ,topshop, ,transition towns, ,twitter, ,UK Uncut, ,Urban Outfitters, ,Vodafone, ,Vodaphone

Similar Posts:






Amelia’s Magazine | Sir Philip Green and his Topshop billions get the UK Uncut treatment.


Heart / Target by Patrick Thomas. All images courtesy of Outline Editions.

Outline Editions’ pop-up shop is tucked away behind stalls on Berwick Street Market, prostate healing but the bright shop front is still hard to miss. Decorated by graphics wunderkind Kate Moross, mind inside the shop is a virtual “who’s who” of Britain’s graphic art world. This was part of what founders Camilla Parsons and Bill Tuckey wanted to achieve – having both spent years commissioning art works for music and print, they saw a gap in the market for a place where these artists and illustrators could show their work in a more permanent manner. ‘We have taken the high-end graphic artists and put them under one roof,’ says Camilla Parsons.

And the list of contributors to Outline Editions’ pop-up shop really does demonstrate that these are some very sought-after graphic artists and illustrators. Starting with Kate Moross, whose name is known from Dazed & Confused, Topshop and Vogue – all the way to Anthony Burrill, the so-called godfather of graphic arts. Universally known for his ‘Work Hard and Be Nice to People’ poster, his work has been seen everywhere from Tate Modern to the Underground.


Robin by David Foldvari

The shop on Berwick Street in Soho shows a mixture of works from the newly commissioned love-theme, which was unveiled on 2 December, and works from ‘Into the Forest’, which opened in November. The shop also has prints from last summer’s London-themed show.

‘We have commissioned a range of graphic artists and illustrators who work in music and pop culture,’ says Parsons, as she shows me around the space. ‘Many of these are one-off works that we have commissioned, all signed and in limited edition.’ She shows me the works by by David Foldvari; ‘he’s a very big name, you’ll recognise his style as you open a paper or magazine’, and HelloVon; ‘we chose him as his thing is animals. Look at it – it’s incredibly detailed and realistic, but also a bit spooky.’


Bird by HelloVon

The works commissioned by Outline Editions were themed, but Parsons says the artists appreciated the chance to create works with a large degree of freedom. ‘They do a lot of commercial work and this was unrestricted, so they found it exciting.’

Also on the wall is works by Supermundane; ‘he’s very prolific’, Kate Moross; ‘the girl of the graphic art scene’, and Klaus Haapaniemi; ‘he does very high end work.’ We stop a while next to Takayo Akiyama’s nautical chart of London, an intriguing little piece which shows the detail of London planet set on a globe, as if it were the only thing in the world. For those of us who live here it feels like that sometimes, doesn’t it.

London Nautical Chart by Takayo Akiyama

While initially focused on established names in the graphic world, Parsons doesn’t rule out the possibility of taking on more unknown names. ‘As time goes on we will start to encompass lesser known names. The main thing is to make sure the work is accessible. We cover all forms of graphic arts. The cement is that they all work in music, fashion and pop culture.’ The accessibility also extends to pricing: works start at £15 and go up to £185.


By James Joyce.

The Central London location for the pop-up shop was a deliberate move to bring the graphics genre to a wider audience. ‘There are lots of print collectives in East London. We wanted to bring it out West, to take it to a new audience. … We wanted to incorporate people with a variety of styles as well, to show something to everyone’s taste.’

‘Our premise is to keep it exciting and fresh, and to keep doing new things,’ says Parsons. She already has a few aces up her sleeve for Outline Editions’ next projects. She makes me promise not to say too much, but it’s hard – it sounds excellent and I for one can’t wait to see what comes next.


Pelican by Jamie Portch

‘Love in the Forest’ runs until 31 January at 94 Berwick Street, Soho, London W1. The works are also available on the Outline Editions website. For more information see our listing.

Heart / Target by Patrick Thomas. All images courtesy of Outline Editions.

Outline Editions’ pop-up shop is tucked away behind stalls on Berwick Street Market, viagra 100mg but the bright shop front is still hard to miss. Decorated by graphics wunderkind Kate Moross, viagra inside the shop is a virtual “who’s who” of Britain’s graphic art world. This was part of what founders Camilla Parsons and Bill Tuckey wanted to achieve – having both spent years commissioning art works for music and print, they saw a gap in the market for a place where these artists and illustrators could show their work in a more permanent manner. ‘We have taken the high-end graphic artists and put them under one roof,’ says Camilla Parsons.

And the list of contributors to Outline Editions’ pop-up shop really does demonstrate that these are some very sought-after graphic artists and illustrators. Starting with Kate Moross, whose name is known from Dazed & Confused, Topshop and Vogue – all the way to Anthony Burrill, the so-called godfather of graphic arts. Universally known for his ‘Work Hard and Be Nice to People’ poster, his work has been seen everywhere from Tate Modern to the Underground.


By Kate Moross

The shop on Berwick Street in Soho shows a mixture of works from the newly commissioned love-theme, which was unveiled on 2 December, and works from ‘Into the Forest’, which opened in November. The shop also has prints from last summer’s London-themed show.

‘We have commissioned a range of graphic artists and illustrators who work in music and pop culture,’ says Parsons, as she shows me around the space. ‘Many of these are one-off works that we have commissioned, all signed and in limited edition.’ She shows me the works by by David Foldvari; ‘he’s a very big name, you’ll recognise his style as you open a paper or magazine’, and HelloVon; ‘we chose him as his thing is animals. Look at it – it’s incredibly detailed and realistic, but also a bit spooky.’


Bird by HelloVon

The works commissioned by Outline Editions were themed, but Parsons says the artists appreciated the chance to create works with a large degree of freedom. ‘They do a lot of commercial work and this was unrestricted, so they found it exciting.’

Also on the wall is works by Supermundane; ‘he’s very prolific’, Kate Moross; ‘the girl of the graphic art scene’, and Klaus Haapaniemi; ‘he does very high end work.’ We stop a while next to Takayo Akiyama’s nautical chart of London, an intriguing little piece which shows the detail of London planet set on a globe, as if it were the only thing in the world. For those of us who live here it feels like that sometimes, doesn’t it.


Love Geometry by Anthony Burrill

While initially focused on established names in the graphic world, Parsons doesn’t rule out the possibility of taking on more unknown names. ‘As time goes on we will start to encompass lesser known names. The main thing is to make sure the work is accessible. We cover all forms of graphic arts. The cement is that they all work in music, fashion and pop culture.’ The accessibility also extends to pricing: works start at £15 and go up to £185.


By James Joyce.

The Central London location for the pop-up shop was a deliberate move to bring the graphics genre to a wider audience. ‘There are lots of print collectives in East London. We wanted to bring it out West, to take it to a new audience. … We wanted to incorporate people with a variety of styles as well, to show something to everyone’s taste.’

‘Our premise is to keep it exciting and fresh, and to keep doing new things,’ says Parsons. She already has a few aces up her sleeve for Outline Editions’ next projects. She makes me promise not to say too much, but it’s hard – it sounds excellent and I for one can’t wait to see what comes next.


Pelican by Jamie Portch

‘Love in the Forest’ runs until 31 January at 94 Berwick Street, Soho, London W1. The works are also available on the Outline Editions website. For more information see our listing.
UKuncut Topshop-police amelia gregory
Topshop, viagra 40mg with your welcoming entrance you are spoiling us…

If you are on twitter you will probably have noticed the mutterings of the #UKuncut hashtag – from small beginnings it has grown to become the standard bearer of the cuts demonstrations. And to think it all started only a few weeks back, cialis 40mg when I got a frantic phone call from one of my friends on the first UK Uncut Vodafone demo. “We’ve got a trending hashtag” he exclaimed somewhat maniacally. “but we’ve misspelled Vodaphone, stuff you’ve got to help us!!” I assured him that a quick glance at twitter confirmed that he didn’t need my twittering powers one iota. And frankly I think it’s Vodafone who’ve got their spelling wrong. Now, thousands of people follow the @UKuncut twitter feed and the #UKuncut hashtag stream is used to communicate between anti-cuts protests up and down the country. Makes you dead proud of your mates it does.

UKUncut by Avril Kelly
UKUncut by Avril Kelly.

I didn’t manage to get along to that first demo due to my head being buried in the creation of my new book about fashion illustration and ethical fashion design, but I have been avidly following the progress of the cuts protests. And when I heard about the next major target for UK Uncut I was most excited: the Topshop flagship store in Oxford Circus. Regular readers of this blog will no doubt be able to guess that I am not exactly a big fan of Topshop – I know too many small designers who have been ripped off, they have an atrocious human rights record, and I find the association with Kate Moss frankly tedious. Suffice to say I won’t be covering any Topshop collections in Amelia’s Magazine in the near future.

UK uncut sinister pics
Photograph by Sinister Pictures.

Instead, I hope to be joining more protests. Why? Well, a while ago the papers exposed Sir Philip Green‘s cunning tax avoidance trick that enables him to siphon vast profits out of the country and safely into the hands of his Monaco dwelling wife. There was a surge of interest and then the news disappeared. But the cunning folks at UK Uncut have decided to resurrect the gripe. Why? For the simple reason that this country is in the grip of savage cuts to almost everything imaginable. And yet the very rich are able to take our money out of the country: it is the very reverse of the ethos behind the resurgence of local currencies triumphed by Transition Towns. If you use the Brixton Pound in Brixton it enables local money to stay in a local area, enriching the lives of everyone who partakes in the local economy. If you use your pounds in Topshop they leak straight out of the UK, benefiting none of us at all.

Pay your Taxes Ross McEwan
Illustration by Ross McEwan.

Why is it that the richer people get the more greedy they become? Surely once you’ve earnt your first billion there’s little reason to keep chasing more? But no, the super rich, chums of our millionaire Con-Dem cabinet (Philip Green has the audacity to advise on austerity measures) together avoid £25 billion in tax by removing it from the country. One argument says that if the UK was to make it less amenable for large businesses to run their services here they would simply take them elsewhere. I fail to see the logic in this: Philip Green runs a British company, Topshop. He isn’t about to pack up and ship it over to Dubai never to be seen again, is he?

topshop riot by kellie black
Topshop protest by Kellie Black.

So it was that on a cold Saturday morning I jumped out of bed and sped into the centre of town. I missed the first noisy influx into the store by a few minutes and the main entrance was already blocked by security. However, although I very rarely get sucked into Topshop these days, I know well that there are several entrances so I zipped straight in via the side door.

UK_UncutTopshop2_byAlisonDay
UK Uncut Topshop Protest by Alison Day.

Inside about thirty protestors were already staging a sit in, chanting as bemused shoppers gazed on, uncertain what to do. They were a mix bunch from different movements, including climate activists and peeved students. “Philip’s Green’s taxation could pay for our education” was but one of many clever chants I heard.

UKuncut Topshop-amelia gregory

Within moments I was hustled straight back out the main entrance due to my very large camera, but I just went right back around and came back in with my iphone camera instead. Eventually I heard these magical words over the tanoy system: There has been an incident: please exit the store immediately. And so it was that we were able to close down the main branch of Topshop for well over an hour on a busy Saturday in the run up to Christmas. The sour faces of thwarted shoppers peered down at us as the streets got busier, but most of them seemed fairly content to visit Urban Outfitters next door instead. A gaggle of protestors then spread up and down Oxford Street, shutting Dorothy Perkins and BHS (both also part of Philip Green’s Arcadia empire) and revisiting Vodafone. In fact, just the threat of our arrival was enough to close most stores before we even got to them.

UK Uncut sinister pictures
Outside BHS. Photograph by Sinister Pictures.

As I was twittering through the protest I received a reply from a small fashion brand that has a concession in Topshop – But what about the independent labels that are losing business? – she said. I do think that if you get into bed with a corporate brand you can expect to experience the pitfalls as well as the bonuses, but our quibbles are obviously not with the independent designers who stock Topshop (and at any rate in this case she definitely supported us) or the workers in the store, who may well have lost income if we had blocked the entrances more effectively and they had been told to go home.

Abi Daker - Topshop protest 2010
One Woman Topshop protest 2010 by Abigail Daker.

It is very hard to protest without some unwanted fallout, which is why I so love this inspiring one woman protest: whilst we were causing mayhem at Oxford Circus Bryony went along to her local Wandsworth Topshop equipped only with flyers and chocolate, and on the purchase of a Breton top politely explained that she would not be able to pay the VAT because she didn’t trust Philip Green to give it the HMRC. She handed out information to the other customers and chocolates to the confused employees as they tried to accommodate her request by calling head office. What a clever way to raise awareness in a totally calm and collected manner, but the real success has been in the telling of the story – which has been bouncing around on the #UKuncut hashtag, attracting glowing comments from others who may well be inspired to do the same.

UKuncut Topshop-amelia gregory outside

For naturally this story is far from over: the students are still revolting on the streets and UK Uncut have announced yet another day of action: this time I urge you to join them and protest against the greedy fat cat billionaires who are currently free to move the money we spend on their products out of this country and away from where it might be put to good use. On Saturday 18th December Topshop and Vodafone will be targeted in high streets across the UK. Find out all the details here.

Find out how fashion should be made and sold in my new book, Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration, featuring the very best in ethical fashion design.

Categories ,#UKuncut, ,Abigail Daker, ,Alison Day, ,Arcadia, ,Avril Kelly, ,BHS, ,Billionaire, ,Brixton Pound, ,Con-Dem, ,Dorothy Perkins, ,hashtag, ,HMRC, ,Human Rights, ,Kate Moss, ,Kellie Black, ,My One Woman Topshop Protest, ,Oxford Circus, ,Ross Mcewan, ,Sir Philip Green, ,topshop, ,transition towns, ,twitter, ,UK Uncut, ,Urban Outfitters, ,Vodafone, ,Vodaphone

Similar Posts:






Amelia’s Magazine | irkafirka illustrated tweets: Nick Hilditch explains

irkafirka manflu goblin

Intrigued by a side project by one of our contributors, I decided to get to the bottom of this irkafirka business…

irkafirka: illustrated tweets. “Anything you say may be taken down and coloured in.” What a great idea, how did the project start?
My old friend Chris challenged me to draw a Twitter-inspired doodle a day and post it. My initial reaction was “I don’t have time for this” but the seed was planted, and I decided it wouldn’t do any harm to try it once. The response was instant and we were both hooked.

irkafirka batman joker

Who is irkafirka and why the name?
irkafirka is Nick Hilditch (illustrator, that’s me) and Chris Bell (curator). The name is a Hungarian word meaning doodle. I lived in Budapest for 7 years and speak Hungarian poorly, but its a beautiful word, and I filed it away years ago for future use. Everything about irkafirka came together very spontaneously – the concept, the name, the little dog logo. Everything about it feels right to us.

How did you two hook up and how long have you been in business?
Chris and I have been friends since school, although our lives took us in different directions. It was only through Twitter that we re-ignited our teenage delusions of grandeur. The business relationship is informal – we didn’t start out to make money from the project, we did it for the sheer fun of it. Now it consumes so much of our time and we have such a big audience, we’d love to take it to the next level, but as yet, the means to monetise our success alludes us. One goal we set was to get an irkafirka book published, but we want to get this right rather than rushing into it. We’d love to talk to any interested publishers.

irkafirka horse

How does the technical side work?
Here’s Chris on the technical side: “It’s a clunky-chunk of social-webbery. The website is built on the Fullscreen template for WordPress. Illustrations are taken from TwitPic and posted along with a picture of the original tweet. The illustrations are automatically cross-posted to our Tumblr page. Each new post updates the RSS feed, which populates the iPhone and Nokia apps automatically. We then add a link to the post on the Facebook page, which also carries other miscellaneous nonsense including a gallery of the 200 most recent illustrations, which are pulled from our Flickr picture stream. We also have various pictures on show in cities around the country using the crazy magic of augmented reality. We use Layar and a back-end system run over in Belgium by our dear friends at Hoppala. Best of all, apart from hosting the website everything we use is totally free. We are a pair of cheapskates…”

irkafirka squirrel

How do you decide what tweets to illustrate?
This is the hardest part. The truth is, the vast majority of tweets are utterly banal. It really is just a case of using any means possible to find great visuals, and when I see a tweet I can illustrate I jump straight on it. We look for recommendations from our audience of over 1700 followers, we browse other people’s lists, we search keywords. We do have rules the most important of which is rule 6, “If we stop enjoying it, we’ll stop.” I believe that when a creator is enjoying their work that will come across in the end product, so I’m really just looking for things that amuse me. We also ask that people recommend vivid tweeters to us using the #firkafursday tag, every Thursday. This way, we’ve built up a watch list which occasionally yields results – it’s no guarantee of getting your tweet illustrated, but it almost certainly improves the odds.

irkafirka swedish moon

If you were to chose anything from my recent tweets to illustrate, what would it be? (go on, do me an illustration… or does that count as a suggestion and will therefore be ignored. pretend I didn’t say anything… it’s all subliminal…)
I had a skim through your recent timeline. As is often the case, most of your tweets are either parts of conversations with little meaning out of context, or links. We’re all for wilfully taking things out of context. To this day, one of my personal favourites is “The oven’s broken. I’ll have to get the bloke out”. A very important part of what we do is the element of surprise – we don’t like the subject to know they’re going to get firked. You can commission an illustration, but technically, a commission wouldn’t be an irkafirka. It would simply be a work by the artists behind irkafirka. And it wouldn’t be free.

You try to post daily but of course real life gets in the way… when is an irkafirka more important – what would prompt you to miss a favourite film in favour of an illustration?
irkafirka has become a compulsion for me. If I miss a day, I feel more pressure to make sure I deliver something the next. On a day when I’m busy and can’t see when I’ll be able to produce something, I’m agitated. Usually we try and let our followers know when it’s a rule 5 day (that’s the rule that let’s us off the hook due to other commitments), but I never like to rule it out. My wife has been incredibly patient. A favourite film is a good example of something I wouldn’t miss, though. I’m a bit of an old school cineaste.

irkafirka unicycle

Nick: you used to live in Hungary. Why on earth did you come back to the UK, and what do you miss most about Hungary?
I loved living in Hungary, and I haven’t ruled out moving back. I miss my friends there, the long hot summers and the bableves (bean soup). I came back because I was finding it increasingly difficult to find relevant work. My wife is Hungarian, so we go back as often as possible. People often say “yours is a job you could do from anywhere” which is true to some extent, but to find the work you usually need to get out there and meet the clients. The dream is that one day my work will be so much in demand, I’ll be able to live where I want. So start demanding, demanders.

You also jacked in a career at a digital agency to become a freelance artist. What prompted this move and has it been a success? What’s the best job you’ve worked on so far, and has Irkafirka got you any jobs?
Working at a digital agency was interesting, and I got to work on a lot of great brands. I even helped them win 2 BAFTAs. However, I was there for over 4 years and the work was beginning to feel repetitious. I also wanted to develop my own IP so that I’d have work would that generate an income for me. I didn’t quit because of irkafirka, but it did give me confidence in my own work and helped me build up a portfolio that wasn’t exclusively comprised of other people’s brands. irkafirkas are drawn quickly, in a single sitting, with little or no advance planning, so they’re frequently full of mistakes, but as with great music, I like to think that this is compensated for by the energy put into them. When showing my portfolio, it is the work that generates the most interest. As irkafirka is a significant part of my portfolio, I like to think it’s played a part in all the work I’ve picked up since I started freelancing. The only paid work that’s resulted directly from irkafirka is a side-project for Nokia where we draw illustrations based on comments from the official Nokia blog. It’s too early to say whether it’s been a success, but I certainly don’t regret it, and it’s very hard to imagine going back.

How can someone get hold of an irkafirka print, and which ones would you recommend as christmas presses for specific members of the family?
Selling prints wasn’t initially part of the plan, but the demand was there, so we set up a shop at Zazzle. They’re most frequently bought by the subject, so the market is fairly limited, but we’re looking for ways to make irkafirka-based products with a broader appeal in the new year. The images that make it into the shop are added on the basis that somebody expressed an interest in buying them, rather than because we necessarily think they’re the best works. However, based on what’s there already, here’s my handy irkafirka shopping list that’s surely better than the tired recommendations you’ll find on Amazon.

For your Mum: @BangsandaBun
For your Dad: @BruceandSimon
For your Grandparent: @Whatleydude
For your dirty uncle: @bennycrime
If you find something on irkafirka that isn’t in the shop, and you’d like to buy a copy, just let us know and we’ll upload it. Happy Christmas!

**************************************************************************
Alas, I broke the rules, so I have yet to inspire my own illustrated tweet… although I’m fairly sure that a quick glance through tweets produced in the 24 hours previous to Nick completing this Q&A could have turned up a few goodies (let’s just gloss over the fact that the best was a retweet, okay?)

Best go put the hob on in the kitchen so I can spread them around a bit. (Hob to keep me warm, bloody arctic down there)

RT @PennyRed I am a tiny protesting icicle. A protesticle.

have not left house for nearly three days. or seen anyone. I am a hermit.

pah! I wouldn’t miss it that much, I just went out for food supplies and my face nearly fell off – staying put now

I live in hope that one day I will be deemed worthy…

Categories ,#firkafursday, ,Apps, ,Budapest, ,Bulgarian, ,Chris Bell, ,Flickr, ,hashtag, ,Hoppala, ,Hungarian, ,illustration, ,iPhone, ,irkafirka, ,Layar, ,Nick Hilditch, ,Nokia, ,Tumblr, ,Twitpic, ,twitter, ,Zazzle

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Amelia’s Magazine | Drawlloween Artist Discovery: Mr. Walters of Nerfect Novelties

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Well, Drawlloween 2016 has come to a close. Here is my “Trick ‘r Treat” piece.

It’s All Hallows’ Day and possibly my last Drawlloween discovery is the art of Mr. Walters of Nerfect Novelties, based out of Illinois in the USA. I can’t find out much about him, and the stuff he sells on Etsy seems quite different in flavour, but I just adore his painterly narrative pictures for Halloween. I think perhaps the stuff he writes to accompany his images describes his personality somewhat, and I love the way he presents them on a sparkly background. Oh, and all his artworks are for sale at just $40 each – contact him via social media to find out how you can buy one. Wonderful!

Follow Mr. Walters on instagram, Facebook and twitter.

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According to the Drawlloween 2016 calendar, today was “Call of C’Thursday.” That of course, is a reference to the ancient one, Cthulhu. Happy C’Thursday, Cthulhu!

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Today’s Mab’s Drawlloween Club assignment was “Cult Costume.” Luckily I’ve been designing the vestments for my new UFO space-love secret society.

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What ho ol’ specter! It’s my “ghosts” piece for Mab’s Drawlloween Club.

mr-walters-drawlloween-1
‘Twas “Skulls & Skeletons” for Drawlloween 2016, so this appeared. I’ve found that I can’t play loosey-goosey with the singularity or plurality of an assignment title, thus the numerous skulls and skeletons.

Categories ,All Hallows’ Day, ,Drawlloween, ,etsy, ,Hallowe’en, ,hashtag, ,illustration, ,instagram, ,Mab’s Drawlloween Club, ,Mr Walters, ,Nerfect Novelties, ,Trick or Treat

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Amelia’s Magazine | Free Range Art & Design Show 2013: Middlesex University Fine Art, Fashion, FDSP & Photography Review

Strange and wonderful prints by Tomas Soltonas. Futuroid
Futuroid by Tomas Soltonas.

Middlesex University took over the upper floors of the Truman Brewery a few weeks ago to display the work of all their graduating creative arts students in one fell swoop, and I went along to discover the best of the crop. Here’s what caught my eye from fine art, fashion and photography.

Esther Evans Middlesex
This Memphis-tastic sculpture is by Esther Evans in Fine Art – I think it’s a commentary on gender stereotypes, but I like it purely from an aesthetic point of view. Call me shallow, but hey, I respond to curvy pink shapes (whoops, there I go following my gender’s supposed predispositions)

Spooky skull teddy installation by Danielle Crawford-Lugay
Spooky skull-faced teddy was part of an installation by Danielle Crawford-Lugay – again, not sure what it meant, but it was certainly eye-catching.

Faces from Haggerston Estate by Rosie Fowler
These backlit faces from a Haggerston Estate were made into an intriguing installation by Rosie Fowler.

Joshua Pageb
There’s always someone being clever with china in a Chapman-stylee at the Free Range Shows – this year fine artist Joshua Page took on the mantle with this traditional icon being afforded a large penis.

Colourful intarsia knitwear by abbie ridler
Knitwear by Abbie Ridler.

I sadly missed the fashion show (wrong time, again) and instead perused a gallery of wooden stands adorned with look book photos of the graduating designer’s collections, some accompanied by samples of fabrics. The photographs were all beautiful and promoted the clothes in an exciting and contemporary way, but there were no clues as to who had created which garments, and no look books on display. What a shame, since for many visitors this would have been the only place they would have seen the student’s work. Here are snapshots of two students’ collections which I know well because I converse with them on instagram – both are knitwear students who are destined for great things.

kirsty anderton
Kirsty Anderton‘s amazing oversized skull jumper will be familiar to those who have read my coverage of the internal Middlesex fashion show, and I was excited to see that she had been inspired by the floral headdress I made a couple of weeks ago (and posted on instagram), adorning some of her catwalk models with similar flowers. (I am not imagining this by the way, she left a comment saying as much!) Her close friend Abbie Ridler (see above) is equally talented, this time creating colourful intarsia knitwear for men who like lairy clothing (an increasingly common sight, I think you’ll agree).

Middlesex Fashion Promotion
Last year FDSP had a great website, but this year I cannot find anything similar to showcase the students’ work – Fashion, Design, Styling and Promotion is a constantly changing discipline, which was reflected in the variety of work that was on display in the Truman Brewery. I was drawn to a few very different projects, including the interesting installation above.

Jessica Easting Middlesex
This #hashtag artwork by Jessica Easting would be ideal for a cool brand of some kind: product, clothing, anything really!

Eleanor Vait
Eleanor Vait has a thing for glasses: displaying this intriguing sculpture alongside photographs of girls, in glasses. No idea what it means but I like it.

Brunswick Centre by Jack Lee
Free Range shows 2013-jack lee
Middlesex photography degree produces some excellent work – these portraits of residents of London’s Brunswick Centre shot by Jack Lee are all posed against the backdrop of the building’s instantly recognisable brutalist windows. Shooting all your portraits in the same position is an idea that never gets old, and in this case serves to highlight the huge differences between each resident’s abode.

Part robot part human with a serious 80s bent. By Tomas Soltonas at #middlesex
Clipboard head, by Tomas Soltonas
My favourite artworks by far were this Futuroid series of strange and wonderful prints by Tomas Soltonas. These collages successfully merge portrait photography with slabs of technology to disturbing effect. One Robert Palmer-esque lady appears part robot part human, and this Clipboard head, looks a bit like a Dr Who baddie in the making, no?

Check out my review of Middlesex University illustration and graphic design graduates here and my review of Middlesex University jewellery BA here. If you are graduating this year don’t forget to check out Amelia’s Award, in collaboration with the Secret Emporium. Enter your details and you could be in with a chance to kick start your creative career by receiving a scholarship worth £495 to sell your wares at Wilderness Festival this summer. Deadline: 2nd July 2013.

Categories ,2013, ,Abbie Ridler, ,Brunswick Centre, ,Chapman, ,Danielle Crawford-Lugay, ,Dr Who, ,Eleanor Vait, ,Esther Evans, ,fashion, ,Fashion Design Styling and Promotion, ,FDSP, ,Fine Art, ,Free Range Art and Design Show, ,Futuroid, ,Haggerston Estate, ,hashtag, ,Jack Lee, ,Jessica Easting, ,Joshua Page, ,Kirsty Anderton, ,Memphis, ,middlesex university, ,review, ,Robert Palmer, ,Rosie Fowler, ,Tomas Soltonas, ,Truman Brewery

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