Finding Vivian Maier is the story of a mysterious nanny that took over 100,000 photographs which were then discovered decades later and would make her one of the 20th century’s greatest photographers. Directed by John Maloof and Charlie Siskel, the film focuses on Maier’s strange and riveting life and art, revealed through never before seen photographs, films, and interviews by dozens who thought they knew her. In 2007 her work was discovered at a local thrift auction house on Chicago’s Northwest Side, impacting the world over and changing the life of the man who championed her work and brought it to the public eye, John Maloof. Now, Vivian’s work is part of a renaissance in interest in the art of street photography.

Finding Vivian Maier is released in the UK on July 18th. 

findingvivianmaier.com

Tags: Finding Vivian Maier, photography

Anna-Marie Fitzgerald and Phoebe Frangoul are the co-editors and co-founders of the London grrrl-zine and literary salon Pamflet. Here they discuss the releases, trends and going’s on in the literary world worth knowing about. Follow them on Twitter and Instagram @Pamflet.

Happy birthday John Lewis and three provocative holiday reads in this month’s Pamflet x Twin books roundup…

Sally Heathcote: Suffragette by Mary Talbot, Kate Charlesworth and Bryan Talbot

Graphic novels are just such good value – great writing AND beautiful visuals to add another dimension to the reading experience – what’s not to like? Sally Heathcote: Suffragette (£ 16.99, Jonathan Cape) by Mary Talbot, Kate Charlesworth and Bryan Talbot tells the story of a young working class woman who becomes part of the suffrage movement and rubs shoulders with its biggest personalities – the Pankhursts and Emily Davison – and some others I hadn’t heard of before.

Much is made of the often bitter infighting between the various factions of fourth wave feminists, in particular the undignified way it can play out on social media, so in a funny way it’s quite reassuring to discover, on reading Sally Heathcote: Suffragette, ‘twas ever thus. Personality clashes and petty jealousies existed between the leading proponents of the suffragette movement, but in no way does that take away from their astonishing achievements – in fact a bit of healthy dissent amongst the troops probably helped strengthen their cause – a lesson that should give fourth wavers heart.

Alongside Sally’s story, there’s a parallel narrative that traces the developing suffrage movement, from the early days of pamphleteering and disrupting public meetings, to the more hardcore acts of civil disobedience. The power and passion of the campaign is vividly brought to life by the dynamic illustrations, nowhere more effectively than in a particularly brutal series of drawings that drive home the horror and humiliation of the force-feeding that the suffragettes endured in prison. There’s a twist in this tale that’ll hopefully leave anyone who ‘didn’t get round’ to voting in the recent elections feeling suitably ashamed.

A Very British Revolution: 150 Years of John Lewis by Jonathan Glancey

Anyone who’s stepped into the hallowed halls of John Lewis and given themselves up to its comforting, mum-like embrace will appreciate that 2014 is a significant year for this national treasure. JL is celebrating its 150^th birthday with special edition products, by opening up the roof terrace on the Oxford Street building to the public (it’s previously been an oasis for JL partners) and with the publication of A Very British Revolution: 150 Years of John Lewis (Laurence King, £20).

While this is pretty much a bible for JL obsessives, tracing as it does the evolution of the brand from its birth in 1864, it’s much more than that – it’s a social history, a study in Englishness. For we are, after all, a nation of shopkeepers and no one fits that description more accurately than John Lewis himself, the archetypal self-made man. We learn how the orphaned John was apprenticed to a draper, found his way to London and built up his own business slowly but surely (in contrast to the flashier William Whiteley down the road). He had a sad romance (his beloved’s family considered him too lowly a prospect), before eventually marrying Eliza Mills, one of the first female undergrads at Cambridge and he ruled his kingdom with a stern, firm hand.

John Lewis’ personal and professional story is told against a fascinating backdrop of British history, from the Victorian era’s energy and confidence, though the suffrage movement, the general strike, two world wars, the post-war rebuilding period and the social revolution of the sixties to the London 2012 Olympics. Art, architecture, fashion, technology and politics play their part in this story and it’s beautifully told through illustrations, photographs and Jonathan Glancey’s crisp, insightful prose.

The Empathy Exams: Essays by Leslie Jamison

Iowa Writers’ Workshop was immortalised in Girls series two and The Empathy Exams (Granta, £12.99) is an example of how it’s reached cult-TV-reference-status. Course alumnus Leslie Jamison writes essays in the way (it seems) that mostly only American writers have the space to do and in her first collection she proves herself a mistress of the form. She meditates on her subjects – the wounded, the wrongly accused, the heartbroken, and the downright wild – with intense curiosity and wonder. Universal themes emerge from the pieces, but her experiences and writing style are exclusively those of a twenty-something woman and she might confidently reference The Lost Boys in one breath and a classical philosopher in the next. This mix of low and high cultures, contemporary and ancient, intimate and public makes her writing and subjects shockingly fresh and new. Think Sloane Crosley in a deep and contemplative email exchange with Susan Sontag.

Tags: A Very British Revolution: 150 Years of John Lewis, Pamflet, Sally Heathcote: Suffragette, The Empathy Exams: Essays by Leslie Jamison

All this week The Red Lippy Project which coincides with Cervical Screening Awareness Week is asking British women to smear on its best scarlet shades in honour of womankind. Set up by production director Caroline Muhlich and make-up artist Linda Andersson, the project sprang from Muhlich’s desire to change the way cervical screening is perceived by younger women in the UK. The facts are that during 2012 just 32 percent of 25-29 year olds answered screening invitations from their GPs. It might not be most fun thing to do, but the screening process saved over 4000 women from cervical cancer in one year alone. So to raise awareness of the importance of cervical screening, as well as sheding the fear of the smear, the initative is asking you to don your favourite shade of red, tell your friends, post your #REDLIPPYPROJECT and #MAKEAMARK selfie on Instagram and crucially, book that all important appointment.

To celebrate the cause Topshop are selling a limited edition Red Lippy lipstick in the pout bars especially set up for Red Lippy Project at Topshop’s Oxford Street store. You can also donate to the Red Lippy Project on their website or even text RLIP14 £2 to 70070.

Tags: Caroline Muhlich, Linda Andersson, Red Lippy Project

This season, cult favourite’s Larsson & Jennings have decided to create a line of watches especially for us girls. The Liten Series looks back at previous collections, picking out the true hero styles and has recreated them in a 33mm casing, as apposed to the signature 40mm style the Anglo-Swedish brand is known for. Each timepiece from the capsule collection has its own character. The Liten | Black is made from black brass and Italian calf leather; the Liten | Bernadotte is a vibrant number, with pink and blue striped straps that were inspired by The House of Bernadotte, the Royal House of Sweden and the gold plated Liten | Gold is taken from the highly sucessful Chain Metal collection. So for those of you with dainty wrists, or if your style lends itself to the more subtle things in life, this one’s for you.

Released from the 20th June, the collection is available to pre-order now from larssonandjennings.com

Tags: Larsson & Jennings, Watch

Tags: Bags, Nathalie Trad

Sinéad O’Connor announced that she has a new album coming out this week. Set for release on August 11th, I’m Not Bossy, I’m The Boss is her first record since 2011 and her 10th studio album in her musical career. The first single Take Me To Church will also be released on the same day.

With twelve brand new tracks, the Nothing Compares 2 You singer reminds us why she has become the most iconic Irish artist of the last thirty years. August 11th, one for the diary we think.

Tags: SINÉAD O’CONNOR

The ICA is playing host to a three-day art book fair this week, in association with Claire de Rouen Books. You’ll be able to find publications on a range of themes such as art, photography, fashion and design, and as well as the books themselves, the fair promises to bring zine aficionados, legendary specialists, magazine experts and artist book connoisseurs together with visitors in a unique gathering any book lover will appreciate. Room&Book will be the first art book fair in London to focus exclusively on the role of the book dealer.

Participants confirmed are: Arthur Fournier Fine & Rare, Bookmarc, Christian Flamm, Claire de Rouen Books, Diagonal Press,Ditto Press, Elegantly Papered, Koenig Books, Louis Vuitton Maison Librairie, Luminous Books with Anagram Books, Maggs Bros (Carl Williams and Titus Boeder), Oliver J Wood, Bernard Quaritch Ltd, Simon Finch, Sims Reed, Test Centre Books, The Village Bookstore, 20th Century Art Archives.

For more information head to ica.org.uk.

Tags: Art Book, ICA

This week, the eyewear specialist Linda Farrow will be having a sunglasses sample sale from the 5th-7th June. With styles avaiable from collaborations such as The Row, Matthew Williamson, 3.1 Philip Lim, Dries Van Noten and more, it’s not one to miss. And if you happen to be a student, you can get an extra 20% off, so don’t forget your NUS or student card.

The sale will be open from 11am-7pm on Thursday and Friday, and 11am-5pm on Saturday.

Linda Farrow Sample Sale at 51 Calthorpe Street, London, WC1X 0HH 

Tags: Linda Farrow, Sample Sale

East London’s Truman Brewery is currently showcasing the UK’s largest graduate art, design & fashion show, Free Range. 2014 is the initatives fourteenth edition, spanning seven weeks, a hundred courses and 3000 students, all exhibiting their hard work. It is the perfect place to see what the young creatives and future trend-makers are up to, a place to feel inspired and also marvel at their craftsmanship. With work being shown across five disciplines, design, fashion, photography, Art, interiors and architecture, the sheer scale puts Free Range on the map as one international art fair not to be missed.

The exhibitions are free and open to the public until 14th July.

free-range.org.uk

Tags: GFW, Graduate Fashion Week

This August see’s the 10-year anniversary of the ever popular Film4 Summer Screen at Somerset House. Running from the 7th-20th August, they are set to be the showcasing of premieres, as well as showings of cult classics and much-loved movies, such as Annie Hall, Ghostbusters and E.T.

One of the UK premieres includes the documentary 20,000 Days on Earth, being shown on Wednesday, 13th August. Directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, this is a vividly cinematic documentary film that constructs an imaginary day-in-the-life of the oh-so-cool Australian musician, author and screenwriter Nick Cave.

Following him from his Brighton bedroom to the Sydney Opera House, it explores the creative process and the nature of collaboration. Forsyth and Pollard manage ‘guest stars,’ archive material and live footage to create a mysterious and moving portrait of a one-of-a-kind artist.

Other available movies: the double bill of Hairspray (1988) + Spring Breakers on Friday 15th as well as The 400 Blows on Monday 18th August.

Doors open at 6.30pm, DJ from 7pm and the film starts at approximately 9.00pm. Selected screenings will also be specially introduced by the film’s stars and directors.

Tickets available from ticketmaster.co.uk

Tags: Film 4, Somerset House

On Sunday 1st June, East London’s Oval Space will become home to a new kind of monthly fashion market. Fashion Sunday’s aim is to bring together some of the most exciting emerging and established designers London has to offer. It gives consumers the chance to shop direct from the brand, which means you can enjoy up to 20% off the current season price, larger discounts on past seasons as well as find one off samples. Each month you will find a differerent selection of designers setting up shop (the initial focus is on womenswear) and all have been handpicked by the curators. Fashion Sunday will also be giving away a stall each month to a start up of their choice – this time the lucky designer is Luke Brooks. You can expect to find a rich exploration of London’s diverse scene, including names such as Draw in Light, Auria, Paper LDN, Emma Shipley, Larissa Hadjio, Yolke, Estefania Cortes Harker, Kult Domini, Henriette Lofstrom, Hanger Inc and Hellespont.

Not only can you settle your design needs but you will also find a great place to relax and enjoy the view of Hackney’s skyline. With Pop Up Barbados serving up Bajan treats on the terrace, Blackbox offering a unique ‘coffee spritzer’ and Shake Rattle Stir mixing up colourful cocktails in the main room, there’s plenty to experience.

Tags: Fashion Sunday, Hackney, Oval Space

One of our standout shows during February’s AW14 season was Ashish. It was at the colourful and glittery display, at the Topshop showspace at Tate Modern that we learned that a tenth collaboration was on its way. Well, today is that day. Ashish x Topshop SS14 has landed and it’s as tongue-in-cheek as we expected. Titled Beach Please!, the capsule collection features oversized t-shirts, fluoro swimsuits and bikinis, wrap dresses and skirts as well as LED footwear. “I love this collection, it’s perfect for the beach and for pool parties, and they have the best ones at the Paradise Hotel,” stated Ashish Gupta. “I hope it’s going to be as much fun to wear as it has been to design!” Here Twin picks our top four pieces from this fun-loving collaboration.

White LED Leather Sliders, £250, topshop.com & Fluro Orange Backless Swimsuit, £45, topshop.com

Censored Mesh Dress, £65, topshop.com & LED Light Up PVC Backpack, £250, topshop.com

Tags: ashish, SS14, Topshop

“It’s not about design, it’s all about the clothing,” states Faustine Steinmetz when we meet in her East London studio. In a large, light-filled room, surrounded by looms, her small team (which she calls artisans) and two adorable dogs, we sat down to talk about the current collection, her obsession with denim and old lady books.

Tell us a about your first fashion memories….
I grew up in Paris in a very fancy neighbourhood, in the 16^th Arrondissement with my grandparents. That’s probably my first fashion memory; my grandmother with her very classic, beautiful outfits. A lot of Chanel and even if it wasn’t Chanel, it looked like Chanel. She would take me to Galeries Lafayette all the time to choose our clothes.

Did you always want a career in fashion?
No, I wanted to be an artist for a very long time but I did one painting and it didn’t work out – it was terrible. It was a black sheep and about how society is wrong or something quite ridiculous. Then I realised it was a bit too free for me.  Art can be anything and I wasn’t comfortable with that.  So I started cutting all my pairs of jeans, making my parents very mad. I looked terrible – I would make holes in the crutch of my jeans to make it into a jacket, I would take the pockets of the back of the jeans and make them into a bag that you put around your neck. I made a skateboard in denim also. I would always cut denim into other things until my parents said they wouldn’t buy me anymore jeans. For some reason denim was always my first choice.

What attracted you to denim?
It was since the beginning, it was always very natural. I think it comes from wanting to say something. Denim is this socially and culturally important piece – it’s the piece that everyone has in their cupboard no matter what.

You like your garments to talk about garments. Can you explain a little more about that?
When I made the tapestry jeans for SS14, it took us a month with ten people doing it. To me, it was a piece that talked about fashion in general, how this type of care would only be given to an evening gown. Just switching those codes makes you question the way you wear a garment and what are they for. For AW14 we hand wove with copper so that you can crunch it the way you like and they hold in place. It was all about making your clothes your own.

Tell us about AW14…
I’m trying to find what I want to say about fashion and what type of brand I want to be. I just really want to reproduce clothes that already exist because to me that’s the strongest. I’m not interested in fashion as such, its not about the silhouette, its about the actual piece. This collection was all about Issey Miyake Peats Please because I love this idea of a brand working with the same object over and over again but making it different every time and making these collectible pieces a bit like images that you collect, like the Spice Girl pictures you collected as a kid. It’s always about working with something that already exists and making a bit of a parody of it.

So it’s not about designing…
I’m trying not to, but at the end of the day I guess I’m a designer. It’s hard for me to resist doing a representation. So I will dye a fabric and it will come out as a beautiful accident – sometimes I will dip a fabric, by mistake, and it will create a beautiful gradient which I guess designing would be like, this is beautiful, lets do this but to me because it doesn’t have a meaning, even if it breaks your heart I have to cancel the idea. It’s all about the concept and what you have to say.

You put the name of the person who made the clothes in the label. Why is that so important to you?
I think they deserve it because they have spent so long making it. Someone has taken the care that would be part of the haute couture world into a pair of jeans. To me, that is what is strong about the brand. Not only eveningwear should be made with couture techniques. If you buy a piece of clothing that costs you more that £1000 it should be something you wear everyday, a bit more neutral and culturally, I think that jeans speaks to us more than dresses. You can’t go to the party two times in the same dress. This is a pair of jeans you can wear it over and over again. I think its important people know where its coming from. And they may not understand if they see a pair of jeans that’s really expensive in the shop, because anything can be made by a machine but someone has taken a week of their life to weave this for you. It’s all made traditionally. And also, those labels their inspired by the old couture labels, when they were still writing by hand the sizes, what has been done…

You studied in Paris then came to London to do your MA at Central Saint Martins. Is that where you got the idea for reproducing denim?
No actually, I’ve always worked around parodying other designers. Parodying sounds bad, but it’s about reproducing something someone has already done and show your version of that. In my MA I was working around Chanel and I was painting and sculpting Chanel bags and printing it onto the garments all made in plasticine. I made a little Chanel world in plasticine. That was really fun.

What was your BA graduate collection about in Paris?
That was very denim. I painted denim on denim, I painted denim on jersey, I knitted denim. It was more about drawing on clothes than actually making clothes. In France they teach you proper techniques, it’s our heritage so in our schools it’s a big point of focus. And my brain just can’t figure out those things, it was like geometry, but life size – it was a nightmare. So that’s why I started to work the material and that’s what lead me to be very textile orientated and to try to push the shape design to its minimum.

Tell me about the techniques you use…
I collect loads of old lady’s books. I love old lady craft, there’s this shop in Finsbury park that I love. Every time I see a technique that looks fun, I buy the book and then I go back to it. At the moment I am looking at rug making. That’s also how I learnt hand-weaving because you can find a lot of books, with different techniques.

What are your favourite techniques/materials?
I love sampling, going to the shop and looking at all the yarns around you. What stood out for me was the copper. Its 0.01, so you have to be very patient with it.

What has been your most intricate piece that took the longest to make?
Defiantly the tapestry jeans. I’d say about ten people and a month to make them. First I hand dye all the different yarns in different shades to create the different threads, like the orange thread of the jeans and the different tones. Already that was too much, I should have said stop. And then we had to print each part of the jeans on a canvas and all follow the same guidelines. I think it was about an hour a square centimetre.

We want to develop this new thing of creating artefacts that are not really made for selling, like an old couture piece. Our version of a capsule collection, or pre-collection. That Is really the way I see this brand – a little gathering of artisans together.

As demand grows, how do you plan to deal with orders if one piece can take up to a month?
We will adapt. AW14 for example, it’s still hand woven but its not hand dyed and there is no embroidery. My aim was to make something special with cutting some of the work. Although it will still take two days to weave a pair of jeans. I’m not scared of saying no and scared of being a small brand in the right places. I still think people should feel special when they wear the piece. I don’t want to be everywhere or collaborate with high-street people. I’m not scared of growing organically and slowly. I think next season will be about expanding the brand.

Faustine Steinmetz SS14 is available online from ln-cc.com. 

Tags: Faustine Steinmetz, LN-CC

Customising your trainers is nothing new, although Adidas are soon to take the idea to the next level with their Photo Print App. Come August, when the app launches, you will be able to decorate your Adidas Originals ZX Flux trainer with any image you see fit. Centred around Instagram, the idea is that you can choose your favourite image from the social network and have it printed onto your kicks, but of course, the quality of the image will determine the quality of the finish. We’d love to see one of our latest SS14 editorials on some trainers, wouldn’t you?

adidas.co.uk

Tags: Adidas, Trainers

It’s been five years since La Roux came onto the scene. Now, with a brand new album Trouble in Paradise out on 7th July, singer Elly Jackson has released the first track off the record, Let Me Down Gently. The song is a melancholic tune with a dark and moody video to boot directed by Oliver Hadlee Pearch. With a taste of what’s to come, we cannot wait to hear more.

Pre-order the album now at itunes.apple.com

Tags: La Roux

In Twin X, Danielle Levitt visits Arizona to meet the SUN CITY POMS, an acrobatic Arizonian Dance Troupe of women in their 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s. Here, Levitt captures the women in this short film to give us a greater insight into their lives, showing us that they are a force to be reckoned with.

The 10th issue of Twin is out now. Buy here.

daniellelevitt.com

Tags: Danielle Levitt, Sun City Poms

Tomorrow, Thursday 22nd May, Converse CONS Project London will open in Peckham – one of the city’s most up-and-coming creative hubs. The 10-week project sets out to unleash creativity within the community, giving young people a space to be inspired and learn whilst fuelling their own passions through a series of talks, workshops and exhibitions. Festivities begin with the launch of CONS Street, a new skate spot for London designed by Jerome Campbell.

The initative is curated by five local CONS Ambassadors such as James Benenson (Urban Nerds), Alex Synamatix (The Daily Street), Scratcha DVA (Rinse/Hyperdub), Jerome Campbell (Converse Cons Skate Ambassador) and Sam Taylor (Vice/Little White Lies). You will find US hip-hop legend PUSHA T launching CONS Project London when he takes to the stage at the official opening party on Thursday 29th May. There’s plenty to get involved in with events such as the Graffiti Canvas Workshop, Skate Photography Workshop, Keeping Print Alive Seminar and a DIY Digital Media Seminar plus many more.

For more information and to register for the free events and workshops, head to conversecons.com/ldn

Cons Project London
Copeland Gallery, 133 Copeland Road, Peckham, London, SE15 3SN

Tags: Converse

When the news broke last December that Kristen Stewart would be the new face of Chanel, some thought it was an odd choice from Karl Lagerfeld. However, this behind the scene video shows the 24-year-old actress is a perfect fit for his ‘Romantic Western’ collection. Shot by Lagerfeld himself, the ad campaign sees Stewart in pieces from the Texas-inspired 2013/14 Chanel’s Métiers d’Art collection that debuted in Dallas. Watch the video below.

chanel.com

Tags: Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld, Kristen Stewart

When it comes to jewellery for SS14, one statement piece comes out on top. The choker is yet another 90’s trend that’s being re-introduced into our lives. This time however, it’s less Spice Girls, more Celine, taking inspiration from the chic and minimal to give us a oversized piece that works with nearly every outfit. Here, Twin picks the top four chokers on the market.

Pearl Choker, £15.99, zara.com & Giuseppe Zanotti Stud And Buckles Choker, £360, luisaviaroma.com

Annelise Michelson Gunmetal Carnivore Choker, £830, avenue32.com & Paula Mendoza Hera Gold-Plated Choker, £700, net-a-porter.com

Tags: Annelise Michelson, Choker, Giuseppe Zanotti, jewellery, Paula Mendoza, SS14, Zara

Alasdair McLellan, one of the most sought after fashion photographers has looked back to his Yorkshire roots to publish his first book, Ultimate Clothing Company. The idea for the publication centres around growing up in England; “I’ve been working on the book for years. It’s pictures of young men and landscapes, and a lot of the landscapes are from memory: places that I used to go to when I was growing up,” stated McLellan.

McLellan will be signing copies of the book tomorrow, April 16 from 5pm at Idea Books, 17-18 Dover Street, London

alasdairmclellan.com

Tags: Alasdair McLellan