Steven Klein

"Portraiture in the past has been regarded as a documentation of a person but for me it is a documentation of the encounter between myself and the subject. It is not meant to reveal them, nor is it meant to subject them to an X-ray; it is a departure from that. I am more interested in the alchemical reaction that occurs when elements are brought together in a space." (Klein S, http://www.stevenkleinstudio.com/www/index.html)

Steven Klein is an amazing photographer!!!! His images are risky, provocative, edgy, modern and innovative. His photographs speak for themselves so enjoy.....

Love and Hate (American Vogue 2008, http://www.stevenkleinstudio.com/www/index.html)

Sleep Investments (American Vogue 2005, http://www.stevenkleinstudio.com/www/index.html)

She's Come Undone (American Vogue 2009, http://www.stevenkleinstudio.com/www/index.html)

A Provocative Elegance (Italian Vogue 2004, http://www.stevenkleinstudio.com/www/index.html)

The Classy Daphne Guiness (Italian Vogue 2009, http://www.stevenkleinstudio.com/www/index.html)

The Fabulous Ann Demeulemeester

http://fashionministry.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/aw19980621_ann_demeulemeester.jpg

Our task for uni this week was to research our mentors that inspire us... so obviously I had to include Ann Demeulemeester.

A brief history:

Demeulemeester was born in Belgium in 1959 and studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, graduating in 1981 along with the other members of the Antwerp Six such as Dries Van Norton. Demeulemeester presented her first ready-to-wear womenswear collection in 1981. Since then her label/brand has grown into an international business that produces men and women's clothing, shoes, bags and other accessories.

What I love about Demeulemeester's design work is her use of both elements of minimalism and deconstruction. She blurs the lines between masculinity and femininity through the combination of structured tailored pieces and loose drape work, and monochromatic colour palettes infused at times with touches of bright colours.

Demeulemeester has a strong sense of self and of her brand story. Her confidence, strength and fearless experimentation in design has helped her succeed within the fashion industry.

Images are from the Autumn/Winter 2010: Collection: http://www.style.com/fashionshows/review/F2010RTW-ADEMEULE

Sean Ellis

http://img19.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=63098_img714_122_773lo.jpg#

Sean Ellis work is simply amazing!!! He has trained as a still life photographer and has worked on editorials with magazines such as i-D, The face, Visionaire, Arena, Vogue, and Harper's Bazaar. His fashion photographs contains elements of still life images, where Ellis has consciously played with lighting to capture the simplistic beauty of his subject. In other editorials his play with shadow greatly captures the complexity of the dark side of fashion, evoking a strong emotional response from viewers. One of my favourite editorials is "The Clinic" in The Face magazine's March 1997 issue, which was styled by Isabella Blow. This editorial looks at the darker side of fashion - it focused on the body in fashion as being a traumatised object, using it within the context of the gothic genre.

http://img247.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=63106_img715_122_524lo.jpg

http://img167.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=63110_img716_122_871lo.jpg

This would have to be my favourite shot - I just love the silhouette in this shot and the story behind it, where the model's body is a puppet, where fashion is the puppeteer determining the formation of the body.

http://img204.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=63131_img720_122_104lo.jpg

Black is the New Black!

Anyone who knows me, knows I am a huge lover of the colour black. Its symbolism heavily influences my design work and so for my first post I thought I would pay homage to the great colour.

What is it about black that has fashion enthusiasts obsessed and wanting more? The colour black has been regarded as a staple colour in both men and women's closests throughout history, dating all the way back to antiquity, where black was associated with death and mourning. Black has been linked to seduction, elegance, death and the macabre genre.

Black and Elegance

Black to this day is generally associated with elegance and sophistication thanks to the iconic fashion designer, Coco Chanel, who popularised "The Little Black Dress". Its dark hue combined with a simplistic cut created a demure look that contrasted the fashions of the time.

http://blog.kristenoreilly.com/wp-content/up

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Black and Seduction and the Macabre

Black has been commonly linked with ideas of seduction and eroticism, popularised by the Gothic subculture through its association with fetishism - evoking images of things such as corsetry and leather.

The goth subculture is involved in all things macabre, which the fashion industry has become entranced with - going back to its roots. It seems that many designers such as the late Alexander McQueen, Ann Demeulemeester, Viktor and Rolf and Gareth Pugh have all created intriguing, dark collections inspired by the eerie and grotesque elements of this genre.

Below is Alexander McQueen's spectacular Merry-go-round Autumn/Winter 2001-2 Collection. Here McQueen showcased the darker side of the circus as models paraded in black and white clown make-up.... if you don't find clowns a little weird and scary, you might after this collection!

http://designmuseum.org/design/alexander-mcqueen

Ann Demeulemeester Spring 2010 Ready-to-Wear caged Bird Collection - a take on the idea of women as caged birds

http://www.style.com/fashionshows/review/S2010RTW-ADEMEULE

Gareth Pugh Fall 2009 Ready-to Wear Collection - sci-fi meets the underground

http://www.style.com/fashionshows/review/F2009RTW-PUGH