Rose-tinted Menswear

24.04.2012 | Blog , Fashion | BY:

With London’s inaugural menswear week set to take place in June, the spotlight is firmly on the talented young designers making clothes for the men for a change. Martine Rose is one such menswear designer who stands out from the pack.

Whether its turning the humble shirt into a statement piece or collaborating with big name brands such as CAT and Timberland, her collections always mix the best of East London attitude with avant-garde design.

Twin spoke to the designer about her work…

What was the initial appeal in designing men’s clothes?
I’m just better at it, I’m quite a tomboy so it appears to be my natural aesthetic!

You started out in true London style, starting from nothing on your own, and have gone on to collaborate with big brands like CAT and Timberland, what are the most important things you’ve learnt along the way?
That London has a huge wealth of support for young designers. Contrary to popular belief, most people in fashion are lovely. Help people out if you can, as you will certainly need help yourself….just a few little tips I have picked up along the way

You’re known for your shirts, but what other pieces are you finding yourself drawn to with each new collection?
Outerwear actually, particularly bomber jackets.  I’m really enjoying playing with the references of the classic bomber jacket.  It comes so loaded with association already, especially in the UK punk, skinhead, thug… it’s really fun to re-invent and push what it might be associated with next!

Which guys – and girls- are your all time style heroes?
Grace Jones, Molly Parkin, Diana Vreeland, but mainly the kids on the street give me the most inspiration.  How they might wear two t-shirts and how they tie their laces, fix their hair, whatever it is. That is the best thing about living in London. The most inspirational style is on the streets

How do you feel when you see a guy in one of your designs?
Thrilled to bits!

Your clothes are bright and fun – do you get girls buying them too?
Sometimes, definitely. They tend to be extremely cool chicks!

What do you listen to as you work?
Absolutely everything! Mainly Radio 6 though, it caters for all tastes in the studio

What’s up next?
SS13 in June, the most exciting development in British menswear for a long time…our own mensweek.

martineroselondon.co.uk

 

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Fashion Illustrated

23.04.2012 | Art , Blog , Fashion | BY:

So, A/W 12 might not actually be ready to wear quite yet, but seeing how fashion illustrator Tanya Ling has already interpreted some of what was on offer at the shows in February is keeping us happy.

Ling, the talented illustrator mum of Twin favourite Bip, has been adding her langurous, painterly style to hot looks for years. Most recently her work can be seen as part of Selfridge’s newly opened Women’s Designer Galleries. We’re not sure what we want most, the clothes themselves, or Ling’s take on modern luxury.

fashionillustrationgallery.com

Nina Ricci A/W 2012

Calvin Klein A/W 2012
Top: Meadham Kerchoff A/W 2012

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The Girl’s Alright

20.04.2012 | Blog , Fashion | BY:

Art director and publisher Hannah Ridley and fashion photographer Stephanie Sian Smith met and became friends at art school. Both have since gone on to have careers in the fashion industry, working together on glossy mags such as Elle. So Hannah, the mastermind behind gorgeous publishers Ida Rhoda, was the natural curator for an exhibition of Stephanie’s images entitled I’ve Done Alright For A Girl.

She says; ‘I’ve always loved Stephanie’s own work – before a shoot she’ll ask the model to spin around in the studio or run around on the beach or jump up and down on a trampette – the girls are often going somewhere, which is where the title of the exhibition came from.

“I was working my way through the images Steph gave me and I had the Melanie Anne Safka song in my head – ‘Don’t Go Too Fast, But I Go Pretty Far’.”

As well as informing Hannah’s curatorial decisions, the song lyrics also run through the free newspaper of images that Hannah and Stephanie will be giving away at the exhibition. Not bad at all indeed.

I’ve Done Alright For A Girl is Upstairs at The English Restaurant, Spitalfields, for one week only from today.

stephaniesiansmith.co.uk
idarhoda.co.uk

 

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V for Vagenda

19.04.2012 | Blog , Culture , Thoughts | BY:

Taking gloss to task, nothing seems to slip through the watching eye of the Vagenda team. Launched in February this year, Vagenda is made up of a collection of anonymous industry moles, as well as recent graduates.

Whether it’s hilariously showing the way stock photos reinforce gender stereotypes, or lampooning the predictability of women’s magazine features, Vagenda are a sharp and funny redress to the all too often complacent way what women want to read is construed in mainstream media.

Twin spoke to Vagenda’s editor about their work and world…

Who and what is the Vagenda?
The Vagenda takes a humorous look at the women’s magazine industry and how it perpetuates anti-feminist stereotypes. We feel that laughter is the best weapon. In terms of who, well, we are a group of girls in our twenties living in London. Holly and I edit it and came up with the concept but the others have been instrumental in providing hilarious and witty content for the blog and producing great ideas. Most of us went to uni together. However, since the blog launched and became so popular we’ve had contributors from all over the world- EVEN MEN!

What’s your earliest feminist memory?
Mine personally was being a toddler in London’s Dartmouth Park and a much older boy (he must have been about six) asking me, “Are you a boy or a girl?” My mum had just given me a pudding bowl haircut and I remember feeling outraged. I’m sure the others all have their own memories too.

What do you feel is wrong with modern women’s media, mags etc?
 It’s our feeling that the content alienates a lot of women. It’s very body focused and a lot of the time pretty stupid. The way female celebrities are portrayed, especially when they are going through some kind of crisis and trauma, is often cruel. There’s little to no focus on politics or art or music, or any of the fun stuff we like doing.

What makes the Vagenda team angry?
 We all vary. We try to steer away from polemic on the site as it can be alienating, but obviously women’s mags drive us crazy a lot of the time. We also had a really terrible night out in Soho not long ago where the DJ at Punk nightclub was urging women to flash their “gash for cash”. We were pretty angry about that, and one of us cried. The way rape cases are reported in the press is also incredibly anger inducing.

What three changes would make the world a better place?
Only three? That’s a tough question as there are so many changes that need to be made and women in the developing world are being treated appallingly. For this country, however:

1/ A greater understanding on the part of men that the division of domestic labour is still pretty unequal.  We’re the ones who are still, in the main part, having to scrub the toilet bowl, yet often this type of women’s “work” goes unrecognized. Equal pay and more flexible working hours would be nice, too.

2/ Better sex education in schools. It’s mostly crap and if young women are growing up with their only source of this information being women’s magazines, of course they are going to start subscribing to a manufactured version of female sexuality.

3/ We’d obviously like it if the media started giving a more balanced view of women and femininity. And we’re going to keep calling them out on it and laughing at them until they are embarrassed into doing it.

Who are Vagenda’s heroes?
We have so many. The UK is fortunate in that we have many incredible women journalists who are already out there giving the patriarchy hell. We love Eva Wiseman, Suzanne Moore, Caitlin Moran, Harriet Walker, Helen Lewis, Laurie Penny, Hadley Freeman, Rosamund Urwin. For every great woman journalist, however, there seem to be umpteen ones who don’t give a toss about female equality and instead write complete and utter drivel, which is sad.

What’s Vagenda’s approach to fashion?
Each of us has a different approach. I’d say a lot of us wear vintage and secondhand clothes, but some wear high street too. I personally have been boycotting Topshop for over a year now but I don’t know about the others. I used to have a bit of a shopping addiction and my house is so full I have no need to shop anymore. Fashion is great as a tool for personal expression, but that’s not to say that there aren’t aspects of the industry that make me feel a bit sick. Those flowery trousers, for example. We all have some pretty mental garments tucked away and that’s fine. But when a magazine is actively trying to get you to look mental, then there is a problem.

What does the future look like?
Not vagina-shaped, that’s for sure. At the moment, it’s a cross between Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror, Orwell’s 1984 and the Handmaid’s Tale. In other words, pretty shit. But we’re staying chipper and fighting the power in our own small way.

vagenda.blogspot.co.uk

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Twin Playlist X I AM A CAMERA

18.04.2012 | Blog , Music | BY:

The brainchild of singer Francesca Ross and instrumentalist Ian Watt, electronic pop duo I AM A CAMERA is responsible for infectiously catchy songs such as Commuter Love and their most recent single Factory Boys, set for release on May 27.

The duo met by chance in a club in Manchester, shortly before starting the band in October 2010. “We ended up chatting late into the night about everything from our favourite lyrics to Coronation Street to drum machines. We started writing together shortly after and that”s how it began. We knew straight away we were onto something,” recalls Ross.

Influenced by the likes of Astrid Kirchherr, Paisley Park and Arthur C. Clarke, I AM A CAMERA underpins their hypnotic beats with dreamy yet dark lyrics, visually captured in their atmospheric music videos.

Twin spoke to Ross about the inspirational appeal of the everyday mundane and her nine favourite tunes of the moment…

 

Describe your music in three words.
Beats, Drama, Strings.

What inspires you?
We”re inspired by everyday life. The most mundane things can be made in to a sinister subject. It can be a photo we”ve seen or a story on the news, even a sinister-looking woman on 60 Minute Makeover. We like to find the stories behind things.

Do you ever find that the city of London feeds into your work?
We live, eat, sleep & dream in London. We are inspired by the things that go on in everyday life so it inevitably feeds through into our work. The people around us become the subject of songs without even knowing it. It’s a huge city with so many individual stories and events. We”re always pondering over what goes on behind closed doors, what people are really thinking about and their darkest secrets.

How would you describe the creative collaborative process?
It differs with each song. Sometimes it will be one of these stories that sparks an idea. Otherwise, when I get to the studio and Ian will have stacks of chords & beats to work on and we just go from there.

What is the story behind the song Factory Boys and its music video?
Factory Boys is inspired by the true story of  The Dupont Twins, two teenage boys who made their way from living on a gas station in a small town to the legendary New York club Studio 54. They went from being penniless one day to being paid by Warhol in Screen Prints to hang out with him the next. Amazing. We made the video ourselves by filming on our iPhones & iPads. We set it up like our own home studio. It”s inspired by the pop art and fabulous imagery that surrounds that time in New York and the glamorous debauchery of Studio 54.


How do you perceive positive and negative aspects of producing music in this digital age?
It”s positive because you can access so much and interact with so many people. We can upload a video in our studio in London, then within five minutes someone has blogged about it in Russia. We love that. The negative side is scary hackers stealing what’s not theirs.

What does the future hold for I AM A CAMERA?
The immediate future holds us making an amazing first album, lots of touring, new material and great hair.

 

1/ La Femme – Sur La Planche
This band is from France, in case the name didn”t give it away. It sounds like the B-52″s on a night out with Bis. In France.

2/ Morrissey – Suedehead
I have a slight fascination with redundant sea side towns. This song sums this up entirely for me whilst bringing some Manchester vibes at the same time.

3/ Canyons – When I See You Again (Nick Zinner Remix)
This is a beautiful song from The Canyons, made even better by Nick Zinner”s remix. He”s really turned it around and made it in to a danceable track with shakers & electronic claps. The perfect track to get you ready for summer.

4/ Kleenex – Ain”t You
Swiss post punk, best filed between The Raincoats & The Bush Tetras. I love how the sections are so different and how they stumble into each other.

5/ Bananarama – Aie A Mwana
Loving this extended version. Bananarama”s first single in the pre SAW days, a cover of a song by Black Blood. The released version was actually a demo, & apparently this song also inspired the band’s name.

6/ Friends – I”m His Girl
It”s all about the bassline in this song. That and the old school vibes in the video. Makes me want to get back to New York asap!

7/ Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy
This was their debut single, it”s got such memorable riff which set the precedent for future dance music.

8/ Seasfire – Falling
I went to see them play in London recently. This song really stood out, it”s full of raw emotion, contrasted only by its clean instrumentation.

9/ Donna Summer ft. Giorgio Moroder – I Feel Love
One of the greatest songs ever recorded! The sounds and production are so ahead of their time. I recently watched a programme on the origins of disco, and it made me realise how much music owes to this genre and this man.

Listen to I AM A CAMERA”s playlist

iamacameraofficial.com

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Act of Faith

17.04.2012 | Art , Blog , Music | BY:

At times, Marianne Faithfull the Sixties legend has threatened to overshadow Marianne the real and living person. But after over thirty years in the spotlight, and the former pop ingénue  has battled addiction to continue to put out records.

It’s fitting then that her curated exhibition at Tate Liverpool should be titled Innocence and Experience and nothing better sums up the show then a 1976 Mapplethorpe image of Faithfull, seemingly uneasy as she transitions from her Sixties naïveté to a dark awareness of life’s depths.

Having selected works from the Tate Collection, Innocence and Experience reflects upon Faithfull’s artistic influences, as well as those over her private life. Dark and romantic, the works in this exhibition are brought together by a curator whose life will be forever intertwined with art and performance.

Innocence and Experience curated by Marianne Faithfull  is at Tate Liverpool 20 April – 2 September 2012
tateliverpool.org

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THE ROOFTOP FILM CLUB

16.04.2012 | Blog , Culture | BY:

It’s about that time of year again; the evenings are becoming noticeably longer and the air is remaining warm yet faintly fresh. Summer is upon us and so is a season of ‘Cinéma en plein air’ thanks to the return of London’s legendary Rooftop Film Club.

Due to popular demand this year sees the launch of two additional venues, Netil House (London Fields) and The Roof Gardens (Kensington) as well as the original Shoreditch-spot at the Queen of Hoxton. From 30th April to 30th August, the RFC are scheduled to screen a combination of classic, cult and contemporary flicks. Everything from the 1960’s hit Breakfast at Tiffany’s, to Aronofsky’s gritty Requiem for a Dream will be available to view underneath the starry nights sky surrounded by exquisite panoramic views of London’s cityscape.

For further information and to book tickets visit rooftopfilmclub.com

Words: Sarah Barlow

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Art-Zine

16.04.2012 | Art , Blog , Culture | BY:

What do you get when two young creative women, call together their friends to contribute to a zine dissecting what it is to be creative and female? The answer is teenVAG, a zine that explores coming of age, beauty and the body from a firmly feminine viewpoint. Confounding stereotypes and creating new imagery that fits their own feelings, Twin spoke to Natasha and Allison about teenVAG…

Where did the name teenVAG come from?
The name “teenVAG” is rooted in yesteryear conversation with an especially dear group of friends- we often threw around the word “pussy.”  Coincidentally, we all previously held internships at Condé Nast.

What thoughts preoccupy you as artists and how is teenVAG a conduit for them?
There are infinite forms of expressions. Collectively, the constant desire to create has fuelled our greatest artistic ventures and our initiative enables these visions to come into fruition. We are constantly developing ideas, themes, and insights while cultivating a unique rapport with an incredibly talented group of our contemporaries. teenVAG has allowed us to create an evolving, communal space we share amongst our featured artists and audience.

Why did you feel the need to form a female collective of artists?
New York is a super hub of creatives. The artists we worked with on Issue # 1 inspired the idea of an all female project- they set the groundwork for the basis of the project. The progression of Issue # 2 continues to foster a strong voice and female presence we feel most necessary amongst the creative community.

Why is a zine still an effective way of communicating ideas in the era of blogs, tumblrs etc?
It is tangible- there is physical contact with our audience. The viewer experiences the artist’s work without interruption and becomes a part of the collective dialogue taking place. The zine becomes a perpetual vehicle of communication that can always be revisited. In our digital age it offers a slight sense of nostalgia and a quiet escape from the fast paced nature of the information super-highway.

 

Who are the other female artists involved in the zine?
We work with twelve artists each issue- a mix of friends, acquaintances and artists we admire. Issue # 1 focused on the basis of photography and featured the work of Nina Hartmann, Sandy Kim, Maggie Lee, Nicole Lesser, Kathy Lo, Katheryn Love, Luisa Opalesky, Logan White, Coco Young, and Nadriah Zakariya.

Issue # 2 encompasses several mediums ranging from sculpture, to illustration, painting and mixed media as well as the inclusion of photography. Issue # 2 features work by Aimee Brodeur, Elizabeth Jaeger, Olivia Locher, Carly Mark, Katie Miller, Anamaria Morris, Sophie Van der Perre, Rebecca Andrea Richard, Tara Sinn, Brooke Ellen Taylor, Alexandra Velasco, and Jessica Williams.

What, if any, obstacles do female artists still face?
teenVAG: When initially reaching out to print teenVAG Issue # 1, a business denied carrying out the job due to “explicit sexual content,” “pornographic”  imagery, and a questionable title. Female artists face connotations that are inherently attached to their art due to gender- we want to break that stigma.

Where is the zine available?
The zine is available on our online shop http://teenvag.bigcartel.com/. as well as a selection of stockists in NY, LA and TX. For a full list of stockists check out our website teenvag.com

What’s next?
We are planning our second show for May of this year- it will be a collective exhibition surveying the work of artists we have been working with for the past year. In the coming months we will begin the conceptualisation of teenVAG Issue # 3 due out in September 2012.

We’ll also be doing a collaborative selection of pop-up shows and mini-events throughout the summer- we are very excited to continue working with an amazing network of creatives and hope to expand teenVAG to its fullest potential

 

 

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Wild Girls

13.04.2012 | Art , Blog | BY:

In 2009 Cass Bird took a group into the forest with the intention of taking femininity back to its basics and stripping away the gender stereotypes.

Casting friends as well as queer women scouted on the streets of New York, her book Rewilding represents Bird’s attempt to go native. The results are androgynous scenes among Tennessee’s lush forests, which take the gender soaked tutu and make it climb a tree.

“I’m trying to play and celebrate life,” says Bird. “To create a space where people can physically express and take risks.”

Rewilding is available at cassbird.com

 

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The Book List

12.04.2012 | Blog , Culture , Thoughts | BY:

Publisher and bookshop Persephone Books has a strict remit; female writers – mostly neglected ones – from the early Twentieth Century.

In 1983 Persephone founder Nicola Beauman wrote A Very Great Profession: The Woman’s Novel 1914-39. Sixteen years later, many of the writers she had discussed were still out of print, so she decided to do something about it. In 1999 Persephone was born and thirteen years on and Beauman hasn’t wavered in her mission to retell old stories to new audiences.

With 96 books to choose from, Twin asks Persephone for their recommendations…

A book for Spring…
We think our upcoming titles Harriet by Elizabeth Jenkins, and Virginia Woolf’s posthumously edited A Writer’s Diary will make great Spring reads – both out on the 19 April.

A book to make you laugh…
Without doubt Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day – No. 21 -. This is a hilarious fairy-tale account of a dowdy governess’ accidental encounter with a glamorous night club singer. Although those with a dryer sense of humour might prefer Julia Strachey’s short novel, Cheerful Weather for the Wedding.

A book to make you cry…
You’d have to have heart of stone not to cry at Still Missing – a book you wont be able to put down. William: An Englishman – No. 1 – is also extremely emotional, as it brings home the terrible human cost of the First World War through the fate of one very ordinary English couple.

A book that will shock you…
 Margarita Laski’s To Bed With Grand Music – No. 86 – follows the protagonist, Deborah, as she sleeps her way round London, completely debunking the cosy myth of women patiently keeping the home fires burning while their husbands were fighting on the front line.

A book about style…
High Wages by Dorothy Whipple – No. 85 – is about a young woman who sets up her own dress shop in a northern town around the time of the First World War.

It includes some really interesting details about fashion and style in the period, and explores different women’s responses to the opening up of different opportunities both in terms of how they can dress and how they can make their mark on the world.

A book for living in the city…
Farewell Leicester Square by Betty Miller – No. 14 – or Helen Ashton’s Bricks and Mortar – No. 49 – are great books about London in the first half of the twentieth century.

A book to expand your mind…
Round About a Pound a Week – No. 79 – and the suffragette novel No Surrender – No.94 -both explore different but equally important aspects of women’s lives before the First World War.

A book you won’t be able to put down…
Still Missing  – No. 88 – by Beth Gutcheon is literally impossible to put down. It is a beautifully written and extremely tense novel about a little boy who goes missing from his Boston home. We both cried when we read it. A lot.

persephonebooks.co.uk

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Ben Watts + 3×1

11.04.2012 | Blog , Culture | BY:

As if skateboarding wasn’t cool enough, bespoke denim label 3×1 has added an extra chill factor to the sport through its collaboration with NY-based photographer Ben Watts.

Founded by Scott Morrison of Paper Denim & Cloth and Earnest Sewn, the brand has created Ben Watts + 3×1, a collection of limited edition skateboards with designs featuring Jessica Hart, Lake Bell, Elsa Hosk, Behati Prinsloo and Chanel Iman in the label’s tailor-made pieces on Watts’ signature diamond motif and Hipstamatic lens backgrounds.

With all proceeds going to charities such as Studio in a School, Food on Foot, Polaris Project, Goods for Good and Keep A Child Alive, there’s no excuse not to add to your collection of decks. Even those of us with two left feet needn’t miss out; these skateboards also make for a pretty stylish wall decor.

3×1.us

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A Place in The Sun

11.04.2012 | Art , Blog , Culture | BY:

Santorini is the latest super hot spot marked out for art domination. With the mission of promoting emerging and established artists, right now the Biennale is calling for artists to send in their material for consideration.

Working to the theme of The Past: Memory and Nostalgia, the exhibition will be a melange of everything from graphic design to sculpture and industrial design.

In particular, Curator of Illustration for the Santorini Biennale of Arts 2012 Nicky Peacock, has her eye casting out for fashion illustration. She says, “I will be living in Santorini for four months this summer during the biennale and this will no doubt be somewhat of a culture shock for a town-based girl like myself.

“With this in mind, I’m interested in works that are a little incongruous to a paradise island – a little discordant and out of place. As an artist and curator, this is the kind of thing that fascinates me and keeps me on my toes – something dark to contrast with all that sunshine!”

Santorini Biennale takes place form 01 July to 30 Sept 2012

Go to www.santorinibiennale.gr to submit your work

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Present and Correct

10.04.2012 | Art , Blog | BY:

Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present is a powerful documentary which takes its viewer inside the mind of one of the Twentieth Century’s most provocative performance artists.

Directed by Matthew Akers, the film is an account of Abramović’s three decades and counting career, her both professional and personal relationship with Uwe Layseipen, and a behind the scenes look at the emotional journey leading up to her extensive 2010 exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

At the three month-enduring retrospective, the Belgrade-born artist engaged her viewers in a performance piece which entailed a varying audience member sitting across from her at a table in silence, solely staring into the 65-year-old’s eyes in an attempt to question the concept of art becoming life.

Marina Abramović has always been a fascinating creative force, but this documentary will be the first opportunity to see the woman behind the legendary artwork. It might just be her most inspiring performance yet.

Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present is set for release on July 6.
marinafilm.com

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Raf Simons X Dior

10.04.2012 | Blog , Fashion | BY:

Ever since John Galliano’s departure from Dior in March last year, the fashion industry has been playing its own game of ‘designer ping – pong’ bouncing names back and forth in speculation as to who will take the creative reigns of the Parisian couture house. Jacobs – Tisci – Ackermann – Jacobs – Simons – Kane – Ackermann – Simons… It went on.

However after a year-long debate the rumours were finally put to rest yesterday as LVMH CEO, Bernard Arnault, announced that Raf Simons will take over as Artistic Director. Having left his previous post as Creative Director at Jil Sander earlier this year, Simons will commence work at his new design home with immediate effect, preparing for what will be his first Dior collection, which will be showcased at Couture Fashion Week in Paris this July.

Words: Sarah Barlow

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Twin Playlist X Gemma Cairney

04.04.2012 | Blog , Culture , Music | BY:

In the space of a few short years, Gemma Cairney has gone from fashion graduate to styling Florence and the Machine before a complete volt face into radio and TV presenting.

On the eve of her first breakfast show for Radio 1, Twin caught up with the rising star and asked for her top eight tunes…

You were a fashion stylist for a number of years and styled a number of musicians – was music always an inspiration to you?
Subconsciously, definitely. I”ve always shied away from considering myself a “muso” of any sort, but I”ve always adored it. Especially dancing to it.

When I was styling I knew some musicians and we all wanted to work together so we orchestrated some fun photo-shoots, that’s how it started really.

What have the past three years been like for you, the career change, finding yourself in front of the camera and on the radio?
Bonkers. I like trying things that make me excited and my stomach churn. When you try new things, I”ve found you continue to meet new inspirational people along the way. I was 22 when I decided I wanted to do more than just fashion and that I should try radio presenting. I loved it. The past three years has just been a continual stomach churn.

What”s your everyday mantra?
It”ll be alright.

What does being on Radio 1 mean to you?
A mind boggle of joy.

What else are you excited about for the future?
I have two documentaries coming out later this year that are quite serious, it will be good to share what I”ve been sinking my teeth into for quite a while now. Obviously, getting settled into my new Radio 1 role and lastly (the most boring) is putting up some cork tiles in my house! So that I have fixed notice board & can get more organised.

Gemma”s top eight tracks…

1/ Erykah Badu ft. Common – Love of My Life (Ode to Hip Hop)
I”ve been in such sparkling awe of Erykah Badu from around aged seventeen onwards. I just thought she was amazing, all of her songs hold such special nolstalgia for me. I remember finding out that she”d once been out with Common and I could hardly cope I found it so cool.

2/ Dub Phizix – Marka
This is new(ish) record that we played on 1xtra and I was gripped by the genre journey I was taken on. That sounds stupid, but if ya haven”t heard it listen and you”ll see what I mean.

3/ So Solid – 21 Seconds
The sheer frothing peak of garage raving. This tune is massive.

4/ Spice Girls – Spice Up Your life
Just beacuse I so did, most probably a generational thang.

5/ Mikey J and The Female Allstars
Rock the mic – female musical power in its current form.

6/ Barry White – Can”t Get Enough of Your Love
I used to swoon around the lounge to my mum”s Barry White section of her cd collection on repeat.

7/ Lauryn Hill ft. D”Angelo – Nothing Even Matters
Such a beautiful song. You JUST get it. Not to mention how stand out brilliant the album it”s from is.

8/ TLC – Creep
It was hard to choose between TLC and Destiny”s Child – who I”m obsessed with – but I had the Crazy Sexy Cool album on cassette before Destiny”s Childs” Writing”s On The Wall, so they win.

Listen to Gemma”s playlist

From 7 April 2012, listen to Gemma Cairney at the weekend, 7am-10am, on BBC Radio 1.

bbc.co.uk/radio1

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Diamond Wonder

04.04.2012 | Blog , Fashion | BY:

Conjuring up images of everything from Maharajas to Marilyn Monroe, diamonds hold highest rank when it comes to wonder gems. So it’s fitting that for this month only diamond specialists, Cartier, have taken over Selfridges’ Wonder Room for an exhibition entitled Cartier Loves Diamonds.

Enriched with over 150 years of history and heritage, Cartier are sure to captivate visitors with their savoir-faire on the subject of sparkling stones. Part of the space houses a special “bridal lounge” as well as an exhibition composed of archive imagery and stories on legendary Cartier stones which have ultimately become just as famous as their eminent wearers.

Diamonds have long been associated with idealistic views of romance and love – something that is much of a focal point in Cartier’s series of short films entitled True Love has a Colour and a Name, all of which are available to view in the room’s “interactive space”.

Pride of show is the renowned “Oriental” Tiara; a platinum headpiece dating back to the beginning of the Twentieth century featuring over 1,200 diamonds – We’ll be adding this to our Spring wish list then!

Cartier Loves Diamonds is on now until 29 April located at The Wonder Room, Ground Floor at Selfridges, London.
selfridges.com

Words: Sarah Barlow

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Liberty X Nike

03.04.2012 | Blog , Fashion | BY:

Spring is sprung. Continuing their collaboration with Liberty of London, Nike Sportswear have taken the luxury store’s iconic floral motifs and flowerbombed their classic running trainers. From the Cortez to the Air Max 1, the Make It Count collection is about making fashion work hard for you.

Twin has its eye on the Destroyer Baseball Jacket in particular. Make sure you check out the Nike pop-up space if you’re in London this April.

Shop the collection at liberty.co.uk

 

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Stranger Than Fiction

02.04.2012 | Art , Blog , Culture | BY:

The time of the YBAs feels like an eon ago. It’s a feeling galvanised by the simmering of retrospectives for artists who were part of the irreverent gang. Last year saw a retrospective of Tracey Emin’s work at the Hayward and for 2012 it will be hard to avoid Damien Hirst, once his show hits the Tate Modern this week.

Meanwhile at the Whitechapel, Gillian Wearing is the subject of a major retrospective of her work. Wearing as an artist will be forever tied to the golden years of the Nineties; winning as she did, the Turner Prize in 1997 as New Labour and a new focus on British culture came to the fore.

Her work also documented the change in how individuals engage with society. With its confessional quality, Wearing’s work has long negotiated the lines between public and private.

Influenced by Seventies documentaries, she has a history of taking private individuals and unveiling them as objects of interest. Her ability to persuade subjects to make private secrets public foreshadowed the reality TV generation, proving fact is every bit as beguiling as fiction.

Gillian Wearing is at the Whitechapel Gallery until 17 June 2012

whitechapelgallery.org

 

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The Eyes Have It

30.03.2012 | Art , Blog | BY:

If you don’t already have plans for today, Twin recommends heading down to Jacob’s Gallery in Butler’s Wharf for The Responsive Eye exhibition.

The original The Responsive Eye was an exhibition held at MoMA in New York in 1965. Bringing together artworks by so-called ‘Op’ and minimalist artists such as Bridget Riley, Josef Albers, Viktor Vasarely and Almir Mavignier, audiences were challenged to rethink ways of viewing art.

For 2012, Twin’s own Francesca Gavin has curated an exhibition of contemporary optical artworks, with the same aim of exploring our mental and physical relationship with art. And as part of South London Art Map Late Fridays the exhibition will be open until 8.30pm tonight. Utilising digital techniques such as gifs as well as video, this is optical art brought to date.

The Responsive Eye is at Jacob’s Island Gallery until 12 May 2012

jacobsisland.co.uk

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30 Minute Moment

29.03.2012 | Art , Blog , Culture | BY:

If you haven’t already, check out Simon Annand’s illuminating portraits of actors at The Idea Generation Gallery. Taken moments before they step into the footlights, each portrait is a study in concentrated emotion. Often pensive, with an air of mystery, they are private moments shared with the photographer.

Annand has been photographing actors in the final half an hour before curtain up for 25 years. In 2008 he published The Half, a book of his work, but he continues to add to his oeuvre and the exhibition includes new and unseen images of London’s leading theatrical lights. His work gives theatre lovers unprecedented access to a who’s who of performers, with humour, fear and always intimacy. The Half brings the dressing room to life, making it a stage of its own.

Simon Annand: The Half is at the Idea Generation Gallery until 8 April 2012

simonannand.com

ideageneration.co.uk

 

 

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