Last week Rick Owens created a stir during Paris Fashion Week, a well needed one and a very appreciated one, as he sent out “warriors” on the catwalk for his spring summer 2014 show. A group of female hip-hop dancers invaded the stage and preformed a dance whiled they showed the collection, an asymmetric collection with lots of leather in a fairly strict colour palette of black to grey to white.

Owens dancers fit the general dimensions of real women, and the show got reviews of being revolutionary and something different to the otherwise rather banal and commercial shows with usual silent, bored-looking models.

Style blogger Susie Bubble was among many to respond positively, suggesting Owens had made “the most powerful and provocative statement this season” while Harper’s Bazaar UK described it as the “show everyone’s talking about”.

Tags: Paris Fashion Week, Rick Ownes

Alexandra Mann started in the fashion industry as a costume designer, working with the likes of Naomie Harris, Zoe Wanamaker, Derek Jacobi and Noel Fielding.

After having caught the eye of the powers that be at Liberty in 2011 with her brightly coloured and vivid cosmetic cases, Mann has gone from strength to strength. Designing her cool and covetable accessories from her Hackney based studio, fabrics are sourced everywhere from car boot sales to waxed cloth dealers. Each washbag is completely unique and can even be personalised with names and initials through the Alexandra Mann website, we love the Skull Monogram bag.

Alexandra Mann accessories are available from alexandramann.com as well as in store and online at liberty.co.uk

Tags: Alexandra Mann

Yesterday the advanced ticket sale for the forthcoming exhibition Hello My Name is Paul Smith opened.

The exhibition will take visitors on a journey through Paul Smith’s world. The exhibition will showcase and celebrate the brand through collections selected by Paul. The different stages of design and production will be explored, offering a rich insight into his design process and highlighting how the principles of traditional craftsmanship of tailoring and techniques are retained but given a contemporary edge.

The exhibition draws on Paul Smith’s personal archive, from the company’s beginnings in Nottingham to its international prominence today.

The exhibition will be on display at the Design Museum in London from November 15 2013 – March 9 2014 and tickets can be booked at ticketweb.co.uk

Tags: paul smith

Last week, during London Fashion Week, Twin went to see the private view of Dressing the Screen: The Rise of Fashion Film at Somerset House.

It was a screening exploring the role of female film makers in contemporary fashion film. Ground-breaking, subversive and sometimes playful female filmmakers are challenging stereotypes, shooting the female form in ways that are at odds with traditional representations of femininity and glamour and are questioning the relationship between garment and wearer.

It was a selection of 9 short fashion films, from an exhibition that will be on display in Singapore supported by ICAS and LASALLE, with over 20 films exploring the origins, history and pioneering role UK filmmakers and designers have played in the development of fashion film. An official fringe event of Digital Fashion Week Singapore 2013 will open to the public on September 28 and run for four weeks in the lead up to Digital Fashion Week Singapore. Curated by filmmaker Kathryn Ferguson and designed by System Sovereign X Fuur.

Kathryn Ferguson said: “Fashion film has become one of the main tools for showcasing new work and giving immediate access to fashion in an exciting and dramatic way. Digital Fashion Week Singapore is a truly pioneering event that demonstrates the hunger for innovation in the fashion industry in Singapore so it feels like an appropriate place to exhibit this work.”

digitalfashioweek.com

Footage from the screening at Somerset house will be available at showstudio.com

Tags: Digital Fashion Week Singapore, Dressing the Screen, Kathryn Ferguson, london fashion week

Fashion East is a pioneering non-profit initiative established by Lulu Kennedy and the Old Truman Brewery in 2000. The scheme champions emerging designers, showcasing them on the catwalk at London Fashion Week. Designers are selected by Fashion East’s panel of industry experts who offer guidance and mentoring support. As part of the scheme designers receive a bursary, a fully produced runway show and are taken to Paris to hold sales appointments with international stores. Fashion East has has kick started the careers of many of the UK’s most prolific design talent including Gareth Pugh, Jonathan Saunders, House of Holland, Louise Gray, Marios Schwab, Meadham Kirchhoff, Richard Nicoll, Roksanda Ilincic and Simone Rocha.

For the spring/summer 2014 the Fashion East show featured Ashley Williams, Claire Barrow and Ryan Lo.

Twin’s Trinity Eliis went backstage before the show and got some photos of Ryan Lo’s and Ashley William’s creations.

fashioneast.co.uk

Tags: Ashley Williams, Claire Barrow, Fashion East, london fashion week, Ryan Lo

Twin has had an exclusive insight into the Fratelli Rossetti SS14 collection. As inspired by Asian geometric designs, the luxe Italian footwear brand has put a spin on their classic designs combining with Japanese manga.

SS14 sees just one Derby shoe style, (a style that is apart of the Rossetti DNA) but in 21 colour ways. The white lug-sole can be seen throughout, being a key characteristic to the design and the range of vibrant colours represent the fun, surreal atmosphere of the celebrated Japanese comic strips.

www.fratellirossetti.com

Tags: Fratelli Rosetti

With fashion weeks taking place in all major capitals at the moment, it’s easy to get caught up in the beauty of the clothes and accessories being shown whilst failing to notice the girls modelling them. Iman and Naomi Campbell have teamed up with former model agent Bethann Hardison to campaign against the current ‘white out’ we are witnessing on our catwalks, and tackle the lack of racial diversity in the fashion industry.

The trio, who have named themselves The Diversity Coalition, have written to the fashion councils of New York, Paris, London and Milan, highlighting the fashion houses who consistently fail to use models of colour in their shows. “People have said we are shaming the designers,” Iman says in an interview with The Evening Standard, “But that’s not what we’re doing. Nobody is calling anybody racist; the action is racist,” she explains. “The absence of models of colour sends a message to our young girls that they are not good enough, they are not beautiful enough,” she says. “Photography and the runways are such powerful tools, and say such a lot about our society. It is so much bigger than the catwalk.” To read their letter and the compiled list of designers, visit BalanceDiversity.com

Text by Beccy Hill

Tags: Bethann Hardison, Iman, Naomi Campbell, The Diversity Coalition

On Tuesday the super duo Edward Meadham and Benjamin Kirchhoff behind the brand Meadham Kirchhoff’showed a theatrical experience through their Spring Summer 2014 collection.

It was an extraordinary collection with materials such as silk, lace and satin in white, black, red and gold.
A beautiful fairytale vibe mixed with a slightly darker vampire touch appeared when the models walked down the catwalk with bright orange hair, reminding one of a modern Pippi Longstocking, whilst ghostly sounds pumped out the speakers.

We saw baby doll dresses, punkish takes on the classic Chanel suit and hand embroided slipdresses.

Twin’s Trinity Ellis went backstage to snap some photos.

Tags: london fashion week, Meadham Kirchhoff

Ahead of his floral focussed presentation at London Fashion Week on Monday, Scottish designer Christopher Kane announced his company will be opening their first flagship store in London. Set to launch on Mount Street at the end of next year, Christopher Kane, Creative Director, and Tammy Kane, Deputy Creative Director of the brand, commented: “This is an incredibly exciting time for us. To have our own retail space gives us the chance to showcase our collections and to really express our vision. To open in London first was really important to us as this is where our label was born.”

Considering the label’s credibility and popularity, it’s hard to believe Kane don’t have their own store already. The brand have apparently spent a year looking for the right location, and will set up shop opposite shoe designer Nicholas Kirkwood. The label received backing from Parisian company Kering earlier this year, who plan to take it global.

Text by Beccy Hill

Images from Style.com

Tags: Christopher Kane

On Sunday the Topshop Unique SS14 fashion show took place, and as always they know exactly what women wants. Effortlessly sexy sundresses with spaghetti straps showing of the best part of the back, slouchy denim and frayed jackets were some of the shows highlights.

Head of design Emma Farrow was inspired by the wild heady days and endless freedom of summer, which translates into a collection of relaxed, fuss-free pieces that would be just as good on a relaxed Saturday in the city as they would on the beach in a far-flung destination.

We could see a lot of transparent voiles and precious silks, suedes and soft textured tweeds with raw edges. It was a mix of vibrant pure colours such as hues of blue, oranges, marigold and dazzling whites, pale greys and shaded green.

Watch the whole collection at style.com

Tags: london fashion week, topshop unique

As their name suggests, Artists Anonymous (AA) keep their identity well hidden. All that we know is that they are a group of three, dividing their time between Berlin and London. The anonymity is to remove the possibility of their gender and age influencing evaluation of their work.

The group started exhibiting together in 2005 and even created a gallery space in London to show their own and other artists’ work. Their rapid rise to prominence is culminating in a series of high profile international exhibitions this year, with solo shows in Stockholm, Zurich, London and Madrid between August and December.

The film above is from their exhibition at Wetterling Gallery in Stockholm. It was a remarkable installation of 49 almost identical oil on wood portraits (40 x 30 cm), showing a woman’s head changing direction from left to right.

From October 15, Artists Anonymous will display installations over three floors at the Berloni Gallery in London.
System of a Dawn, is an example of Artists Anonymous’ ongoing game of inversions and illusion with the viewer, where commonplace expectations implode from the inside out and back again.

berlonigallery.com

artists-anonymous.blogspot

Tags: Artists Anonymous, Berloni Gallery

Sharmadean Reid opened WAH Nails in Dalston, East London, in 2009 and since then they have opened up a business in Topshop Oxford Circus and pop ups worldwide, and has become the go-to salon for fashion forward nails. Sharmadean was named one of the ’15 people who will define the future of nails in Britain’ and was featured as part of the ‘New Generation’ in Vogue.

Yesterday Sharmadean Reid released her second book; The WAH Nails Book of Downtown Girls. Showcasing 25 brand new designs, including a Galaxy design for astrological sparkle, a pretty paisley print and an elegant script writing design, Sharmadean also includes a selection of exclusive 3D nail projects, hot tips for stylish outfits to suit your fashionable fingers, and WAH wardrobe essentials to update your look without the huge price tag.

hardiegrant.co.uk

Tags: Sharmadean Reid, Wah Nails

Alison Goldfrapp will be the first person to display works in The Lowry’s Performer as Curator exhibition series opening on the 19th October 2013. The enigmatic musician will bring together work from the painters, filmmakers, illustrators and photographers who have inspired her own artistic vision in this series that aims to bridge the gap between the performing and visual arts.

The diverse selection of works will engage with the artist’s fascination with the darker side of fairy tales and folklore, through the artworks of internationally renowned artists such as Marcel Dzama, John Stezaker, Leonora Carrington, Jan Pienkowski and Lotte Reiniger. Goldfrapp, who was hand-picked by the gallery to be the first performer in this series, not only acts as front-woman in her band but art-directs all things visual also. Michael Simpson, Head of Visual Art and Engagement at the Lowry said, “Alison Goldfrapp was a natural first choice for us, given her remarkable synthesis of music and visual imagery. This is an exciting new venture for us and there are more collaborations in the pipeline”.

Goldfrapp released their latest studio album Tales Of Us on Monday 9th September.

thelowry.com

Text by Mariella Agapiou

Tags: Alison Goldfrapp, The Lowry

For over 30 years, german photographer and film maker Peter Lindbergh has created a defining language of persona and iconography.
His work is now the subject of a solo exhibition at Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld. Occupying two floors, the exhibition consists of photographs spanning the 1980s through the present, many never before exhibited, each personally selected by the photographer from his archives. The exhibition is a kaleidoscopic, non-linear journey into Lindbergh’s pictorial world.

The exhibition also includes poetry by Pulitzer Prize Nominee Forrest Gander. A recorded voice, reciting Gander’s poem will loop throughout the exhibition.

Twin spoke to the legendary photographer about his solo exhibition and highlights of his career.

The exhibition will be on display at Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld from September 7 until October 4.

vladimirrestoinroitfeld.com

Tell us about the exhibition, what can we expect?

This is an exhibition with about 35 images, many of them never presented in a gallery. Viewers can expect a mixture of portraits, landscapes and still lifes mixed with Forrest Gander’s reading of the writing he did especially for the exhibition, which will permeate through a sound system for the duration of the show.

How did the idea to work with Forrest Gander come up?

This idea came about because I love Forrest’s poems. He’s also from the Mohave Desert, where many of my pictures have been shot, so it made him the perfect collaborator. I just love the idea of words and images together and think that one will inspire or enrich the other.

It is not just fashion images but also landscape and still lifes, is there a link between them?
I don’t think that there are many so called “fashion pictures” in the exhibition.  It’s more about a poetic mixture of portraits, landscapes and some still lifes. I do lots of landscapes and stills when I’m out shooting and love to mix all these different types of images together. In the end, I always enjoy doing a portrait or something, even when I’m shooting stills of hands or the desert.

Do you have a favorite moment as a fashion photographer?

An important moment was at the end of the eighties, when I could not, or didn’t want to, photograph women in the style used by fashion photographers and magazines. This is why I refused to work for American Vogue. After Alexander Liberman called me in to ask me why, I explained to him that my view of women was very different from that of Vogue. He proposed that I take one of his editors and photograph the type of women that I want and to show him the results. So I went with Carlyne Cerf to Los Angeles and photographed six models in white shirts. The models were Christy Turlington, Estelle Lefebure, Karen Alexander, Linda Evangelista, Rachel Williams and Tatjana Patitz. This was the beginning of 1988. These women were later recognized as supermodels and dominated fashion magazines around the world.

How do you think fashion photography has changed since you started?

Although there are interesting photographers working today, I believe that mainstream fashion photography today has put itself in a corner by overusing Photoshop. This has created an image of women that I totally disagree with. For me, fashion photographs are portraits of women in the context of the time they’re shot. The definition of a woman was always more important to me than anything else in fashion photography. The term “fashion photographer” is not automatically identifiable with an interesting point of view, when you study the actual fashion magazines. I’m saying this about mainstream tendencies, there are, of course, interesting magazines out there today.

Where do you find inspiration?


Inspiration is everywhere and everything is inspiration.

Are you working on some new projects now?

We’re currently working on several upcoming museum and gallery exhibitions, as well as two book projects.  These include a large museum exhibition in Zagreb, Croatia (April 2014), an exhibition at Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles (February 2014) and a second volume of “Images of Women” featuring work from 1995-2013.

Tags: Peter Lindbergh, Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld

Created in 2011 by illustrator Ted Pearce, these t-shirt’s have already racked up a serious cult following. Featuring caricatures of music and film icons in unisex black and white designs, they make a subtle and cool nod to pop culture. Each design is limited edition, so once they’re gone they’re gone; available at Browns and tedsdraws.com

Text by Beccy Hill

Tags: Ted pearce

Emerging Fashion East designer, Claire Barrow has teamed up with MATCHESFASHION.COM to produce an exclusive 6-piece capsule collection.

The line which consists of 3 leather biker jackets and 3 clutches all feature the signature dark, punky Barrow illustrations. The collection is inspired by the idea of 3 gangs: The Embers, fiery party girls, The Jewel Lake Ritual, girls turning into jewels and lastly, Earth Angels referring to all the angels that surround us in the city.

Now available at matchesfashion.com

Text by Felicity Carter

Tags: Claire Barrow, matchesfashion.com

Juliana Sorelli is a young french film director living in Los Angeles. She left Paris and its old beautiful buildings about one and a half year ago. She has found a new aesthetics in LA and loves the square buildings and the blinding neon lights. Perhaps that is what inspires her to make films.

Juliana is pretty much self-taught, she took a couple of classes in film but didn’t feel comfortable with the strict guidelines from the school and the teachers. She knew what she liked and what she wanted to do, so she mostly learned by watching a lot of movies and reading books about directors she liked.

Today Twin is excited to premiere Juliana’s new short film Pretty Pretty, an ironic essay about physical beauty and the sublime. We had a chat with the young director about the film and what beauty is for her.

Tell us about Pretty Pretty…

Well, it took a long time to make it. Usually when I have an idea, I start making it the week after and then two weeks later it’s done. But this one took almost six months, because the movie sort of constructed itself. It was just a one minute video from the beginning, with me in bandages saying all these quotes. And then I really liked the video and I thought I should do something more of it. I showed it to some friends and they also wanted to see more.

So you are acting in the film?

Yes! Before I started to make films I thought I wanted to act. But the more I was doing it, I couldn’t stand someone telling me what to do, because I felt it wasn’t me or it wasn’t right, so I slowly realized it would be much better if I acted for myself and produced my own things instead of controlling other peoples work. If there is a part in my film that I feel that I can do and that I’m right for it, I’ll do it.

Where did you find the inspiration for the short?

That first bit came up from an AA meeting. I’ve been sober for three years now, but I sometimes have to go to AA meetings, but I don’t like them that much. Many times people are going up there talking nonsense, but everybody claps and laughs no matter what they’re saying. They could be saying anything and everybody are cheering for them. So I was sitting at the AA meeting and thought it was a bit weird, these people don’t really listen, it’s just for show. Then I came up with the idea of a kind of “AA meeting”, but focused on women and plastic surgery. And at the same time I was reading this anthology about beauty and the sublime, and I got really into that and it helped me to develop the other stories.

What is beauty for you?

I think that being from France, I am used to a certain kind of aesthetics , especially from Paris with all those old buildings and that kind of pretty. But I was born there, and for me it is normal and really dull, and I find some parts of LA more beautiful. Everything is squared and there are neon lights everywhere and I find that really interesting. But I understand that many people think that this is just ugly. So it is kind of the opposite of what someone from here would think. Maybe I can find beauty in things that are not standard beautiful and different. But I can’t really explain why, it is like a compulsive attraction.

Is there a message in the film?

The common point in the three stories is that women tends to be focused on their own personal beauty. But admiration for beauty and glamour can be a curse. In two of the stories the women realize that there is also something more important than your own self and your own body. You are part of a bigger experience that goes beyond how you look and all the material things around you.

In these films two characters find their places in life when they realize how grand the world is. One of them gets this experience at the ocean, the other among the mountains. The only one who doesn’t find her place is the purely narcissistic person in the second story who gets totally lost in herself.
For me that’s the message behind the film. Everybody can get a bit self obtained and think that what we experience right now is so dramatic and important. But when you think about it for a second you realize that there are so much going on around us that is much more exciting than our small daily problems. That’s how I see it but I’m not sure if everybody else will see it like that.

Any other exciting projects coming up?

I just started up my own company, and I’m working together with a producer. I’m writing scripts and we will start sending them to festivals, actually I just finished editing another short film, it’s a fifteen minute long dark comedy.
It’s crazy how much have happened in one year. Perhaps next year I will be making features! I hope so! I am so grateful that I found out what I want to do and that I can actually make it. If I get an idea, I just need to give it a try. If it doesn’t work out, then at least I gave it a try.

Tags: Juliana Sorelli

Catwalk by TIGI products are launching this September, just in time for fashion week!

Three of Catwalk by TIGI’s hero collections – including the long-awaited return of cult-favourite, TIGI Oatmeal & Honey – have been repackaged, reformulated and are back in a big way.

Created by the TIGI International Creative Team and working with innovative technologists, each of Catwalk’s wash and care ranges treat and prepare the hair for catwalk-worthy styling.

Are you and your hair  ready to try something new?

catwalkbytigi.com

Tags: catwalk tigi

This is the question currently being posed by the blog If U Weren’t Afraid. Hosted by Lean In, the campaign run by the chief operating officer of Facebook Sheryl Sandburg, the site features pictures of women holding up Post-It’s, whiteboards or notebooks with their answers. “Start my own company” “Explore the world alone” or even “Be silly more often”. There’s no doubt that there’s a lot of things we would all do if the ability to remove failure or fear was an option, but this is even more so as a woman. Studies show women are less ambitious than men, avoid leadership roles and are afraid to speak up.

The project aims to challenge women, to acknowledge that we all have fears and to share them with one another, in a bid to conquer them. “We hope the women on this blog will inspire you to ask yourself, ‘What would I do if I weren’t afraid?’ And then to go and do it.” So ask yourself what you would do today, and who knows, maybe you’ll start doing it tomorrow.

Text by Beccy Hill

ifuwerentafraid.com

Tags: if you weren't afraid

Ines de La Fressange, style icon and Karl Lagerfeld’s long time muse is the essence of the expression “Parisian chic”. Last year she came out with a calendar for 2013 and since last month you can purchase the 2014 version. Deep-red faux leather cover with gold foil stamp, the Parisian Chic Weekly Planner is perhaps the chicest way to organzie your schedule next year.

The calendar offers Ines’s easy-to-steal ideas for how to be your most beautiful and elegant in every situation and specific pointers on how to dress like a Parisian for every occasion.

Order it from amazon.com

Tags: Ines de La Fressange