Political Style: photography

Showing posts with label photography. Show all posts

Capturing Fashion: Derujinsky

10.10.16

There's nothing more relaxing then sitting down with an oversized fashion book and a cup of tea - and Capturing Fashion Derujinsky has arrived at the right time! It's been a hectic few weeks of work and general life stuff, so this book is the perfect relaxing read!

Within the pages, discover the innovative photography of Gleb Derujinsky, one of the most unique and creative photographers of the twentieth century.

Gleb Derujinsky’s career as a fashion photographer took hold in the golden age of European haute couture, when Balenciaga and Pierre Balmain were at the top of their game. Derujinsky convinced his editors Carmel Snow and Diana Vreeland to send him around the world to photograph beautiful models—like Carmen Dell’Orefice and his future wife Ruth Neumann—draped in expensive gowns juxtaposed against rough desert dunes or a glittering ocean horizon at sunset. His ideas were revolutionary and they gave rise to the mystique and glamour that is now pervasive in fashion.

Derujinsky was the quintessential Renaissance man—photographer, cinematographer and commercial director, inventor, WWII veteran, world traveler, jewelry designer, musician, ski instructor, race car driver, and champion glider pilot. As a teenager, he became the youngest member of The Camera Club of New York. His photographs appeared in major lifestyle magazines before he began to work primarily for Harper’s Bazaar from 1950–70. This is the first monograph to celebrate his major contributions to the history of fashion and photography and contains over 200 black and white and colour photographs.

Derujinsky passed away in 2011, and as one of the most sought after fashion photographers of his time, his life and legacy still lives on thanks to publications like Town & Country, Harper's Bazaar and Glamour.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of Capturing Fashion to review.

IKEA to rescue photo frames

12.5.16

IKEA/Ady.rian

I'm a keen photographer, and if you're anything like me, printing out my photos is very much part of the process! It's fun to see the finished result in print, as is choosing a frame in which to display them.

Research from IKEA has demonstrated that photo frames may be on the way out. Over two thirds of the UK (68%) admit that they don’t keep a physical photo album any more but 61% fear that they could lose years of memories if technology failed them. 380 billion photos are taken per year and 300 million per day are uploaded to Facebook. Yet 66% haven’t printed a photo in the last year. However more almost half of Brits (49%) said that photographs would be the first object they would save if their house was on fire.

IKEA is hoping to change this trend and has launched a search for the greatest UK images in a campaign to celebrate the nation's memories. The public are being encouraged to share their favourite memories with a winning 100 images to be displayed in the chain's UK stores.

To take part in the campaign, upload your photographs here. The winning shots will be chosen by Britain’s most followed Instagrammer Mike Kus and IKEA co-workers. You can also enter by tagging photographs on Instagram and Twitter with #WonderfulEveryday and @IkeaUK.

Ink & Tailor

3.2.16

How can you take an everyday scene and turn it into a beautiful fashion item? Maya von Geldern and K'era Morgan, the creative geniuses behind Ink & Tailor know how! Starting their business after twenty years, Ink & Tailor is a culmination of their friendship and shared passions.

The duo has cleverly blended art and apparel; transforming a static image, a captured moment, into fluid works of art meant to be draped, wrapped and worn. They give a new perspective to the mundane, elevate the ignored and celebrate all that’s beautiful whether it be oddities or the simple joys in life. A fashion favorite for those who desire a bit of the unexpected, Ink & Tailor couples the whimsical with sophistication.

Each piece is a limited edition and each collection is inspired by the people, places and things close to home, as well as far away. In a world of different perspectives, their goal is to share their interpretation of the world captured through a camera lens.

From a downtown bakery in Los Angeles to the urban paradise of Honolulu, each scarf has its own individual story and journey to tell. I particularly love the Railroad Crossing, photographed in Portland, Oregon. Texas law once stated that when two rains meet each other at a railroad crossing, each train shall come to a full stop and neither shall proceed until the other has gone. I wouldn't have known this if it wasn't for Ink & Tailor!

With a range of beautiful images to pour over, Ink & Tailor is passionate about creating high quality products whilst giving back to society. It has partnered with the Creative Visions Foundation to create a limited edition scarf to further support their efforts in nurturing creative activism and social awareness whilst igniting change through the media and arts.

I'm looking forward to wearing my scarf this spring and reigniting my love of photography thanks to Ink & Tailor!

Ink & Tailor

Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon

31.7.15

Audrey Hepburn is one of the most glamorous women of our time. I'm a big admirer of her movies, her humanitarian work and her sense of style, so the Portraits of an Icon exhibition currently being held at the National Portrait Gallery in London is top of my visit list.

To coincide with the exhibition, a new book has been released. Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon is written by Terence Pepper and Helen Trompeteler and contains a mix of 145 black and white and color photographs. The exhibition marks the 65th anniversary of her performance at Ciro's West End night club that helped launch her career, and chronicles her early years in London, her Hollywood heyday and her career as a special ambassador for UNICEF.

Hepburn was principally dressed by Givenchy for much of her life, and sat for photographers including Cecil Beaton, Richard Avedon, Angus McBean, Irving Penn and Norman Parkinson. The book contains many of these images, as well as publicity stills, family photographs and informal images.

This is a truly amazing book, and has rekindled my interest in Hepburn and her impressive film reel. In fact, I'll be rewatching Breakfast at Tiffany's and Funny Face this weekend! If you love fashion, film or portrait photography, this is a book for you.

The exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery runs until October 18th.

In Review: Snowdon: A Life in View

28.11.14

I absolutely love the work of the 1st Earl of Snowdon, so it was a real joy to take a look at his new publication, A Life In View. Curated by the legendary photographer himself, and his youngest daughter Frances von Hofmannsthal, Snowdon: A Life in View looks back on an exceptional life through a selection of 175 iconic full-colour and black-and-white fashion photographs and portraits taken throughout his expansive and influential career. The book also features articles and texts by friends and colleagues of Snowdon who have written about different aspects of his work: Alexandra Shulman on being his editor at British Vogue, Suzy Menkes on his work for Issey Miyake in the 1980s, A.A. Gill on his documentary work, Grace Coddington on being his model and editor, and Lisa Immordino Vreeland on his correspondence with Diana Vreeland.

Princess Margaret, 1959. Photograph by Snowdon / Courtesy of Trunk Archive

At the start of his photography career in the early 1950s Snowdon focused on theater, fashion, and society subjects, and began a six-decade career with British Vogue. In 1960, he married Princess Margaret, the sister of Queen Elizabeth II, in the first globally televised Royal wedding. In the early 1960's Snowdon worked with The Sunday Times magazine on a range of documentary subjects from mental health to loneliness, and in 1965 Private View was published—an extensive and beautiful book on the London art scene which has now become a cult classic.

Nureyev/Fontaine in Sunday Times Magazine, 1961. Courtesy of Snowdon.

Over his prolific career Snowdon has photographed a vast range of cultural figures like Cecil Beaton, Charlie Chaplin, David Bowie, Marlene Dietrich, Bridget Riley, David Hockney, Serge Gainsbourg, Yves Saint Laurent, and Jack Nicholson that are featured in the book, amongst many others. In addition to iconic portraits, and legendary fashion images, archival material in the book includes previously unpublished Polaroids, private scrapbooks, and letters. As his daughter, and collaborator on this book, Frances von Hofmannsthal, states; “This book of stories and photographs only makes up a small fraction of my father’s work. The idea is not that it be a complete view, but a very personal one, put together with affection and curiosity, with a love and a lifetime of familiarity.”

Diana Vreeland. Photograph by Snowdon / Courtesy of Trunk Archive.

If you're in London make sure you go along to a special Snowdon exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. Snowdon has given 130 original prints including many of his iconic images to the National Portrait Gallery, and this gift is being celebrated by a display of his photographs curated by Helen Trompeteler, the National Portrait Gallery’s Assistant Curator of Photographs.

The exhibition runs until the 21 Jun 2015, with free admission. To find out more about the exhibition click here.

Marlene Dietrich, Cafe de Paris, 1956. Photograph by Snowdon / Courtesy of Trunk Archive.

In Review: Louis Vuitton Fashion Photography

20.10.14

Cover/ Patrick Demarchelier, 2014

Louis Vuitton is one of my favourite fashion houses and Louis Vuitton Fashion Photography provides a fascinating look at the photography associated with the designer and the brand.

Since the 1920s, the images of Louis Vuitton—both advertising and editorial—have proven mesmerizing to the client, changing the way travel, fashion, art, and culture is viewed by individuals across the world. The elegant Charlotte Gainsbourg graces the cover, whilst individuals including Gisele, Cara Delevingne and Madonna can be found inside.

Flashback/ William Klein, 1958

This exceptional album features over two hundred images by the most important modern and contemporary photographers including David Bailey, Henry Clarke, Patrick Demarchelier, Karl Lagerfeld, Annie Leibovitz, Helmut Newton, David Sims, Bert Stern, Juergen Teller, Mario Testino, and Bruce Weber, with images from iconic Vuitton advertising campaigns, and magazine editorials from publications including Vogue, L’Officiel, Numéro, V, Harper’s Bazaar, Interview, W, Egoïste, Love, and Pop.

This book perfectly chronicles the house's style, history and fashion and it is an essential read for fans of the fashion house, photography and art.

Fashion Editorial/ Robert Bellamy, 2000

Louis Vuitton Fashion Photography can be purchased here. I was sent a copy of this book to review.

Flasback/ Maria Vittoria Backhaus, 1985

Momentage and Photographers Without Borders

16.7.14

Want to experience a new photography app and support a non-profit? Over the next several weeks, Momentage will be donating 10c to Photographers Without Borders for every individual moment a hashtag is posted on their app. Momentage is the first ever company to donate to a non-profit through the use of a hashtag (#photographerswithoutborders) until August 31st 2014.

I recently downloaded Momentage to my iPhone and love the look and feel of the app. The app is free, and it lets you craft and experience moments by combining hi-res photos, video, sound images, text and links into fun and editable collages. Momentage’s app allows its users to compose, edit and share life’s moments via collections of images, video and voice/sound. Photographers Without Borders (PWB) pairs up volunteer photographers and videographers with small charities and NGOs worldwide that need great photography and a platform for raising awareness to accomplish their goals.

I played around with some of the photos I took on my iPhone whilst in Toronto. What do you think?

To help donate to PWB download the free Momentage app in the iTunes store at http://bit.ly/1tJ8iOd. Upload a Moment, add the hashtag #photographerswithoutborders and Momentage will donate .10 cents to Photographers Without Borders (PWB) organization.

Photos from Toronto

12.6.14

Author's Own

I recently visited Toronto for a week and had a great time exploring this new city. Particular highlights included dinner in the 360 rotating restaurant at the CN Tower and taking a trip to Niagara Falls! (Think I'm still recovering from the latter!)

Check out my photos from the trip here!

Penarth

27.5.14

The week before last I took a quick walk by the sea in Penarth. It was perfect to experiment with some filters on my iPhone!

Flickr Photo Archive

17.2.14

In my spare time (!) I love to take photographs. It's always a highlight on holiday when I get to take image after image, and I love to share them with my followers and throughout the large photography community.

Here are some of my favorite shots from a recent trip. Are you on Flickr? Make sure you follow me and check out some of my other images here!

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