• PRINCESS JULIA TALKING•

MOLLY PARKIN Style Icon Hits 80

2012-01-24T09:31:00.000-08:00

This February the notorious Molly Parkin celebrates her 80th birthday. Her early life has been well documented, born in Wales, two marriages, two children, heaps of lovers and a career that has seen her explore life as an artist, a writer, editor and style icon.

Young Molly aged 29

Moving to London during the 2nd World War with her family as a child aged 7 she suffered both violent and sexual abuse from her fascist father recently documented in her latest book 'Welcome To Mollywood'. She then went on to gain a scholarship at Goldsmiths art college at 17 and began her life as a painter.

She found herself a young woman of 22 and still a virgin, the damaged Molly married in 1957 but not before a stolen kiss with Louis Armstrong and her first love affair. By the 60's she divorced, gave up painting and became a fully fledged member of London Society of the time whilst painting and bringing up her family. Hanging out down the Colony Rooms with other artists and writers, developing a style that became her signature look and fast becoming a somewhat of a celebrity she lived life on the fast lane cramming in a myriad of challenging creative outlets. Working with Barbara Halanicki creating hats for Biba, running her own shop and entertaining at dinner parties.

It seems Molly Parkin was a bit of a pioneer with her endevors, penning ten novels, poetry books, the fashion editor of Harpers & Queen, writing for Nova magazine and The Sunday Times, bringing up her two daughters - Sarah and Sophie and cavorting around town with her numerous lovers, Molly really somewhat of a force.

Working as an editor in the 60's (right)

I first saw Molly in the late 70's as part of London's creative set, she was working her turban based creations and was swathed in luxuriant cloaks of swirling pattern and design. Her presence was larger than life, she turned up at drinking dens and social events mostly sloshed (I would imagine) her penchant for a tipple was well known. Nowadays she has given up the grog and the cavorting, nonetheless her presence today is just as engaging.

In the 80's she was well established for her saucy and explicit novels and sense of style, she says she's a product of the Welsh valleys she originated from, her grandmother was her role model and alcoholism seems to run in her family. Molly went onto a second marriage in 1968 which ended in 1980. She may have got over the urges of her decadent youth, (she's been sober for 25 years), and worked through her demons but she still finds inspiration in dressing for any occasion.

Her she is in her sheltered accommodation flat in Chelsea dressed up to the nines.

The 90's saw her take up painting once again and in the past decade Molly Parkin has kept busy with her pursuits, involved with various events and of course dressing in her own inimitable style.

Happy Birthday Molly

2011-11-28T17:21:00.001-08:00

THIS IS JONNY WOO

Soho Theatre

(Click on title to go to i-D Online for full review)

Band Round Up... Bo Ningen, Blue On Blue

2011-11-01T07:34:00.000-07:00

Record launches over the last few weeks....

The amazing Bo Ningen topped the bill for the release of their latest single Henkan/ Jinsei Ichidokiri on Stolen Recordings at Camp basement on the 26th of October. Flinging their long locks with compulsive flair Bo Ningen create a psychedelic trauma with their experimental and artistic sound.

(Supporting them Blood Music, watch out for more on them - currently recording with Tim Burgess.)

Blue On Blue gave it up at an instore launch at Rough Trade off Brick Lane this week. Dee Sada and Billy Trivial create an atmospheric ambience of electronica and guitar. Smoothly wafting into ethereal vocal lines they are releasing a self titled EP on Tip Top Recordings.

Interview from iD Magazine

On the new band front Blue On Blue stand out as a force gently easing their way into a music neiché of their own, for the past year and a half they've been striking a chord with a devoted bunch of followers... Core members Dee Sada, Billy Trivial have set up a calming dimension of music making that is as apt for both introspective moments as it is for a soundtrack to reflect on wilder times. Dee Sada says, 'From a writing perspective it's pretty self-focused and I only write about what I think will help ease issues on my mind or help me come to terms with things. So I have a personal audience of one.'

They talk about and have a concienous streak to the way they relate to the intrcocies of life's up and downs, Billy's approach also takes on a personal slant, 'There's a quote in Slapstick by Kurt Vonnegut about how every successful artist creates with an audience of one in mind, and I think he's absolutely right in saying that. For me, it's one or two very close friends who's opinion and integrity I fully respect. I've never thought of an audience beyond that and I don't think it's healthy to.'

Dee started out initially in Experiment On A Bird In An Air Pump, the overlap came in August 09, when she considered forming Blue On Blue as a side project, she explains, 'I was sick as a dog for 6 weeks and wanted to document what I believed to be the last songs I would ever write as I thought I wouldn't live to see the end of the illness. Most of these songs were bedroom demos from my death-bed.' Meanwhile Billy had been experimenting with his own solo endevours both bumping into each other on the London circuit. Dee continues, 'Billy came to the fold in January 2010 and then we became a live band, at the time we had drummers (Mark Abbot and when he left, Samir Eskanda from Flats). Billy and I really wanted to delve into a true musical journey so we decided to continue as a duo and mix in layers of sounds both natural and electronic.'

The thoughtful conviction Dee and Billy have to Blue On Blue is apparent, when you see them play live they're not in your face, they seep into your subconcouness in very subtle style creating moods without being stropy. Dee says, 'I bring the bleakness and Billy brings the hope to our music. So we are somewhere in between heaven and hell; a constant state of purgatory.' It's a good balance, honest and reflective, infact true to life, Billy goes on to add, 'So many bands get stuck in having what they think is a 'mood' - and then end up churning out the same shit album after album. What's the point in saying 'we're a happy sunshine pop band' or something like that - when you end up excluding 95% of human emotion from your work. Its a creative constriction of the worst kind. No person is always sad, or angry, or ecstatic - and neither should any honest band.' They write from the heart, lyrically Dee takes a personal stance spilling her heart out, 'From a songwriting perspective, it's usually about myself and my life experiences. Unfortunately human nature tends to focus on the unforgivable so I tend to write about people that have been in my life and the madness and sadness that continues to haunt me. It's meant to be a therapeutic process but lately I've realised that each time I perform these songs, it takes me right back to the emotional place when I wrote them; the place I am so desperate to forget and run away from. So in fact, these songs are more like constant thorns in my side that are screaming to get out.' Billy backs up Dee's thoughts, his musicality compliments the set up, 'When it comes to writing for me, the most powerful songs come out of intensely personal experiences. I tend to be able to hold simultaneous conflicting viewpoints, which also comes out in the music.'

More recently they've supported The Charlatans which to all intents and purposes seems to have given Blue On Blue the impetous to become even more prolific, 'That was probably the most diverse crowd we've ever played to. It was a challenge as their fans all thought we were 'scary' and 'depressing' but we really enjoy playing out of our comfort zone. The fact that songs written in your bedroom are now making some kind of impact on people continues to fascinate me.' In a sense their taking things as they come, there's no strict agenda or expectation, Billy explains, 'Thinking about stuff like that waters down music, and the pure intention of creativity. If we ever thought at any point that we had to have a particular drum sound to be played in clubs, or be compressed to fuck so it sounds good on radio, we'd be doing our work a great disservice.' The dreamlike quality they expel is at once captivating, soundwaves that envelope you, Dee Sada's softly sung vocal style comes from her utter conviction, 'Most of my songs have come out of hazy states of numbness so I think the dreamlike quality is intrinsic to the style of the song rather than just the production.' I think the sounds we tend to gravitate towards are quite blurry, or smudged. I've always thought of our music as quite painterly in some ways. Having said that, in our most recent stuff there's a lot of precision - completely untreated analogue drum machines. I think Dee's voice is very ethereal as well, so maybe that has a lot to do with it.'

Blue On Blue are releasing an EP on Tip Top records and Tim Burgess from The Charlatans having produced some of their tracks which will be released on his Oh Genesis label.

Princess Julia

KABUKI DOES MAKEUP

2011-10-25T14:25:00.000-07:00

Look what came in my in-box this week, the legendary makeup artist Kabuki sent me a message about a competition My Face Cosmetics (Kabuki's the artistic director) are running. I've always been a fan of Kabuki's work and this is a great chance to win some cosmetics and get a signed illustration of an original Kabuki drawing. I'm little bit jealous as I'd like one of his drawings myself. I interviewed Kabuki for iD magazine a while ago so for those of you not so aufait with him I thought I'd put it up... meanwhile here's the details of the Halloween competition, you can find out more by going to their fb page myface.cosmetics where you simply upload your looks to enter.

You were a “club” legend early on and now you’ve become

a “make-up” legend, tell me darling, what made you cross over

into piling make-up onto others rather than yourself?

"The crossover to professional make-up artist happened because Pat Field

called me up out of the blue and asked if I was interested in being the make-

up artist for a new TV show called “Sex and the City” that she was going to

start styling. I’d recently done some test shots so I had something besides

snapshots of myself to show the producers and Sarah Jessica Parker. Before

that happened, I’d had no career ambitions or plan. It all seemed beyond my

control. My interest in make-up was purely personal expression. I’d started

wearing make-up in broad daylight at age 14, before I moved to New York City. I

was the Naked Civil Servant of the redneck section of Florida.”

Who were your first subjects?

“I learned the most from painting myself because I could spend hours and

hours doing it. I had a club kid friend named Jodee Jingles. We’d go to Disco

200 together and she’d nag me to do her make-up. But I’d be so burnt out after

spending hours on my face, I’d just slap something on her in 5 minutes. Once

I painted her face white, then ringed her eyes in black liquid liner, then another

ring and then another, until her whole face was full. That night we saw Olympia,

the bartending drag mother/club legend. She was well known for always having

varied and theatrical make-ups. She screamed in excitement: “Let me look! I’ve

never thought of that before – the onion!”

Who or what inspired you initially?

“Erte, Boy George, Grace Jones, Oriental art, the New Romantics. My first make-

up inspiration was definitely Richard Sharah’s work in the “Ashes to Ashes” video

and his Zandra Rhodes stuff. I didn’t actually see the “Fade to Grey” video until

the late 90’s having been stuck in Kissimmee, Florida when it came out. I also

loved all the faces of Bowie, especially the cover of “Pin Ups” with Twiggy. I

was so occupied drawing and painting my own fantasy illustrations as a child.

There’s a video on youtube called “Kabuki Starshine on Kidsworld”. I would also

make dolls by painting faces on wooden spoons, so I guess those were my first

inspirations.”

Nowadays, you are constantly in demand and your work covers

a spectrum of sublime, beautiful and fantastical visions. What

keeps you enthralled with creating such concepts?

“What keeps me going is working with great stylists and photographers who, like

me, care, almost neurotically, about the standard of their work. I hate working

with lazy people; what’s the point? Also, I’m so lucky to have some very beautiful

and interesting faces to work on.”

So, the Mac master class tour, what’s it like? Do you find yourself

being quite technical about it?

“I think I made the right decision not to talk at all whilst working on the stage

and then have a full question-and-answer session afterwards. My partner/agent,

Chuck Fiorello, put the music together, which enhances the feeling of each of

the three looks I demonstrate. The music cues let me know if I’m on schedule

or running long. I start by demonstrating a glamorous smokey eye look taken to

an editorial level. Next I do the Kylie cd cover look. The last look is much more

intense and bizarre. I originally did this look on Karen Elson in Italian Vogue in

2004.”

What kind of projects do you find challenging? Do you have an

amusing story?

“Many of my jobs are very challenging, requiring a huge amount of preparation,

time and work. Occasionally, I have one that is so easy that I wonder “Why am I

here?” So I guess there’s no pleasing me. Usually the packing and the prepping

is more stressful than the actual day of the shoot or the fashion show. I’ve done

shows where I worked for three days without sleep. Manish Arora, Boudicca, if

you look closely, you’ll see my bloodstains on their clothes…”

Do you find yourself subconsciously picking up ideas for

new “looks” in really random places?

“Not subconsciously, really. I’m usually given a theme and then I take if from

there. When Manish Arora did his medieval themed collection, I designed a mask

based on a chastity belt to compliment the make-up look. I sent the prototype to

India and then I put the finishing touches on it Paris. That mask had a second

life after the show, popping up in Italian Vogue, Numero and on Kate Moss’s

Interview cover.”

What’s the most obscure, maddest place or person that’s inspired

you?

“I don’t know, Boy George is pretty mad…”

I heard there’s a trend for a “nude” look, which do you enjoy

applying most… a lot of make-up that looks like it’s not there or a

lot of make-up that most certainly is there?

“To be honest, I like both really. Variety is the spice of life; something’s got to

be…”

Personality or celebrity-wise, have you ever been in awe of your

subject?

“Once in a while but I get over it quickly. If I’m trembling, I can’t work. When you

meet someone famous, there’s the weirdness of thinking you know them, but of

course you don’t. I thought I might faint when I met Michael Jackson, but I didn’t.

I did two shoots with him and he couldn’t have been nicer.”

Talking fashion shows, which have been your most challenging,

surprising and favourites?

“The shows that are my favorites are the ones that are the least challenging

or surprising. My team shows up 3 hours before the show and I have to have

everything ready for them. If it’s too confusing, too weird, too far out of their

comfort zone or they simply can’t handle it, I have to run around fixing everything

like a demented bee. Thus, with the shows that everyone seems to remember

most, I’m up nights trying to push them out of my mind.”

When you’re not thinking about “make-up” what do you think

about?

“I think about getting my hands on Harper’s Bazaar’s from the 1910’s and 1920’s,

the ones with the Erte covers. I think about Liza a lot too.”

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Jolly Good Fun at the Frieze Art Fair

2011-10-14T09:13:00.000-07:00

Rushing down to this year's Frieze down in Regents Park last night for the grand opening with Vogue Fabrics Lyall Hakaraia was quite enlightening. Now 'art' is in the eye of the beholder and Frieze crams in a lot of varied stuff, as Lyall said, 'It makes you wonder'. We did a lot of wondering, round in circles peering in close, standing back for full impact of the sculptures, paintings and various installations.

Bowie having a slash

Look at these huge blooms, look lovely don't they. We were quite taken with them, if you were going to buy these where would you put them, perhaps not suitable for a home...

We went in search of the bar, (no free drinks this year!) it was pretty busy and bumping into people was most definetly part of the fun. Straight away we saw Philip and Brix from Start shop in Shoreditch.

We like these sort of sculptures that look like they might not be actually be sculptures at all. I once had a tutor who did a reduced size supermarket carrier bag and the cleaners removed it much to her dismay!

This really is a sculpture

Neat and tidy... is this really a sculpture?

David Shrigley... relate?

This guy David Shrigley (left) is pretty famous for his poignant doodles, wonder how much this one is, he's always ready with a quip it seems and this one is spot on for the ladies.

So anyway see this little horse, well there's going to be a bigger one made and it's going to be situated as an outdoor installation, gateway to Manchester? (something like that).

My little pony

Grayson Perry (of course, I do believe)

We were very taken with this gold shirt with suggestive conch shell peaking out down below at Sadie Coles' space. The lovely Pauline in charge took us around the exhibits - but this was by far our fave.

At Sadie Coles HQ Gallery

Moody Marlene inspired

I'm really into this painterly stuff and I came across a couple of portraits on our travels, wish I had some money as I'd snap this one up for my art collection.

Mommie Dearest!

Giant wire coat hanger, gave us a lot of ideas, I'm intriqued as to how this might translate to the interior at Vogue fabrics, very intriqued indeed... as also this big old shiny plant sculpture (below).

Giant hyper real fantasy plant

Oh art lovers, this Frieze show is full of inspirations indeed, but then bumping into DJ producer Trevor Jackson put a realistic slant on some of the er, funnier installations... er what are these strange statues? Sorry not to our tastes either.

Scary

Errie

Anyway moving right along and ever in search of inspirations... we came across this Fred Butleresque cluster of sculpted metallic poms poms.

Fancy

What was the crowd like? I hear you ask, well we met some girls and they were on the lookout for some rich arty lads... think I found 'em here admiring this monkey sculpture...

Art lads!

Ok onwards and upwards, a few more bits and bobs...

Yoko/Lennon inspired

Yes, that's a real bird

Big shiny wall ball

And finally some classic stuff, tucked away in a corner I found a Tim Noble and sue Webster silhouette sculpture, they're doing a book signing on Saturday by the way...

Tim and Sues famous sculpture

Over at Lorcan O'Neills Gallery space, bloody hell a Richard Long mud circle!!!! Major dears....

Has to be seen to be believed!

Get down to Frieze Art Fair on till the 16th October... www.friezeartfair.com

PS... Later we went up to see Sarah Lucas installation up at The St John Hotel in Leicester Street, it's in the first floor bar.

PONYSTEP Issue 2

2011-10-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

This fall Ponystep magazine releases a three cover issue featuring Elvira, Dame Edna Everage and Donnatella Versace. What an issue! The inventive Richard Mortimer and his team have put together a 'lady' themed mag that covers icons from Pete Burns to Julie Verhoeven, to fashion shoots and interviews that reflect a slice of our society with a stylish twist.

Donnetella by Miles Aldridge

Dame Edna by Alice Hawkins

Elvira by Matt Irwin

I'm well chuffed with the look of this, plus I was lucky enough to interview friend Pete Burns, an enlightening interview if I do say so! Currently available at the Dover Street Store....

My London Fashion Week Moments

2011-09-20T11:12:00.000-07:00

This weekend I've been tearing around catching up with some highlights over London Fashion Week. Shows, party's and spot of djing I have to say there's been some amazing highlights. Giles Deacons show yesterday at the Halls of Justice topped it all off for me, totally camp, dresses with trains trailing (I want one), swan headdresses by Stephen Jones, sexy silver ensembles, 'm'lady' shapes and party puffs.

Giles Deacon s/s 2012

Prior to that I went to Todd Lynn's show (reviewed for i-D Online) a lovely collection of layered numbers in muted tones.

Todd Lynn s/s 2012

Up at the old Eurostar terminal, Waterloo... I'm a particular fan of Louise Gray who's gaining ground with her colourful and quirky designs. Part bag lady, part mata hari, her assemblage is quirky and original.

Louise Gray 'Trust Me' s/s 2012

Louise Grays goodie bag

Downstairs (same place) Nasir Mazhar's installation of performers grabbed our attention, throughly on a ragga tip Grime MC's Lioness and Shystie gave it verve with a live pa. Nasirs 'must have' caps and bags are unique and stylish!

Nasir Mazhar s/s 2012

On sunday I alas missed Fashion East due to transport problems but I did get to an off schedule show- Blow Presents at St Lukes Church in Old Street. Four new designers showcased, Blow PR are striking out with a taste of what LFW is all about. I reviewed this show for Vice Style go and have a look for a full report!

Eleanor Amoroso

Liberum Arbitrum (Shinsuke Mitsouka)

Fanny and Jessy

Jane Bowler

One of my favorite shows on Saturday was the wonderful Jonathan Saunders at a space he used last season up at Paddington Central. A spacious 2nd floor venue with amazing views, Saunders used neons to light the space. Against a soundtrack of minimal beats his beautiful frocks marched forth. Completely ladylike, demure, just gorgeous. Great after party by the way at Gordon Ramsay's new restaurant at the Bread Street Kitchen, including a star turn from the top hoola hooper in the country Marawa!

Jonathan Saunders s/s 2012

Over at the official home of LFW, Somerset House on the Strand my mates from Sibling knitwear launched there debut ladies range 'Sister' with an installation in the Newgen sheds. Fresh and breezey knitwear in striking candy neo punk colourways, the pink fluffy bolero was a hit with me, I'd probably get it in black though!

Sister from Sibling s/s 2012

I did get a few glimpses of the Basso And Brooke show last Friday, lots of floaty prints, jazzy combinations and clever cutting.

Basso And Brooke

Finally celebrating the launch of the latest issue of Gentlewoman I got to dj along side the lovely Pippa Brookes from Madame Says over in Mayfair on Sunday night...

And that my dears is just about it, although there's a chance I may go to mens day tomorrow to look at young men and... what they're wearing of course!

Ask Me A Question

2011-09-16T05:35:00.000-07:00

In the world of blogging I get asked to answer quite a myriad of questions, I particularly liked these ones from artist Jack O'Brien...

What defines you from everyone else?

What defines anybody from everyone else? We're all unique in our own way, how we express those sensibility's is probably the thing that draws attention to what we do, say, dress and think. Looking at things from different angles, putting together a 'look' with a twist, creating something with elements of the past and present with a forward thinking attitude.

Why should people take notice of what you're doing?

I like to think I live in a creative community, communicating with others via various expressive outlets. Whether it's on the internet or more traditional ways as in art or books and music in the 'real' world, all these levels of self expression can be challenging but also motivational. What is the human compulsion to be always doing things? Perhaps it's not really a question just part of what humans are, thinking animals capable of constructing and expressing themselves in a multitude of disciplines. What makes people interested in what others are doing or saying is all part of our interactive community. On a personal level there seems to be a fascination about my life, a life really that has gravitated towards situations outside of the so called 'norm'. It's a multiple layered conversation though, as I am continually inspired by those around me.

What do you feel is the driving force behind change?

Re-invention, renewal. Birth, life and death is the cycle of nature. Finding some sort of balance within creative process, and life itself, in order to do that I believe you may have to go to extremes as some sort of benchmark, in the process letting go of destructive forces and seeking out constructive situations. I find myself in challenging situations which test my inner resolve. The human race adapts and mutates, we logically seek peace but as territorial beings also seek spaces to inhabit and on a base level instinctively create conflict. As thinking beings capable of of choice making there seems to be a blood thirstiness to the human race, an urge to destroy, rebuild and ultimately leave a mark as testimony of an existence. Change can be slow, subtle on day to day life, the bigger picture can be dramatic. The age we live in means that change can occur quite rapidly i.e, with obvious technological breakthroughs in communication and science. The driving force behind change could be said to be in power of the human mind, limitless imagination and the ability to create, analyze and adapt. In essence ourselves.

What has been a conscious influence to your working practice?

It's funny I had a meeting today and had to describe what it is I actually do for work. I've managed to survive doing the things I love. Some things I get paid for others very little or nothing at all. I'm practically unemployable in the real world, not that my world isn't real but being able to exist and enjoy what I do seems to be of importance I believe. I have to motivate myself into a vague routine, set myself tasks and deadlines, in reality it isn't hard mainly because I'm surrounded by people with similar ideals. I'm hooked on expression, excited by beautiful things, ugly things, humor, insight, the pattern of daily life, the mundane and the decadence of opulence. I'm fascinated and intrigued by the streams of information channeled into our lives and how it affects the way we communicate and create.

Are there any rising talents in music, you believe will gain/ or should deserve global recognition? (link YouTube video if possible)

Indeed there are, I'm looking at Gross Magic, Novella and Toy at the moment... perhaps not so mainstream but you never know.

Gross Magic

The meaning of the word 'Art' is subject to personal interpretation. What is your personal definition?

'Art' is the practice of personal statement making, you can view art, make art, be art. You can think of art in classical terms or you can take it into conceptual realms. Art is an idea, a notion or a solid object, a sculpture or a painting. Art reflects society at any given time, art is at the mercy of available tools and methods of construction. Art gathers together many forms of thought and process and hopes to put a provocative/poigient point across. Successful art triggers a reaction.

Who or what would you say is the epitome of beauty?

Beauty is everywhere, it's in nature, it's perfections and imperfections. To say something or someone is the epitome of beauty is to recognize elements of ideas of perfection in that particular moment or person. To watch a dancer perform, to hear a singer sing, to capture a photo, to read a line that perfectly describes an idea, to view a masterpiece or gaze upon a person that radiates an exacting state of beauty. The notion of that moment can become the epitome of beauty.

Do you see birth and death as two separate events, or more so an infinite moment? (Depending on which answer, does it affect the way you live?)

In the greater scheme of things these two points are intrinsically linked, there's no two ways about it. The cycle of birth, life and ultimately death is all there is. All the old clichés apply and for good reason. Life itself is a series of infinite moments, a series of events, past, present and future, a sum of memories and chapters, a scene of curves that shape our individual personalities. I try very much to live in the present, in the now, I take what is good from past experience and learn from mistakes, the future is up for debate, one can never be so certain as to what may occur, but you can be sure whatever energy you invest into something that it will be returned in some form. Nothing is a waste of time even if it turns out to be far from your initial vision. I try to turn things around, when things or people upset me I see it as experience. I don't wish to dwell on the negative and much prefer to see the good side of things because as the saying goes 'life's too short'.

How relevant is 'Celebrity' to society?

Celebrity is a somewhat modern invention, what exactly is it? I shall endeavor to analyze briefly... the notion of celebrity in contempoary society seems to stem from the idea of fame and recognition. One can be famous for many reasons but the 'pop-culture celebrity' we know and love celebrity tends to be pigeon holed as someone keen for mass approval on the premise of just existing without really doing or saying very much of constructive input. Celebrity once acquired is actually quite a hard job to maintain, routes to becoming one reflect our society in manifold ways. Like any institution a heirachy exists, those who have earnt their celebrity through sheer hard work and talent and those who have found instant fame by invovlement in media vehicles. The beginings of celebrity can be traced back to the era of glamor, the movie era of the 20's, 30's and 40's where starlets were created in film studio's. Later the TV generation of the 50's emerged where quiz shows invited various members of the public to become involved, Zsa Zsa Gabor, who was considered a second rate actress is cited as one of the first mainstream celebrities who made a living from TV shows, appearances and marrying a lot of different men. Reality TV of the 60's further invited the public to view 'normal' people in their day to day lives and spawned a format that exists today. The idea of celebrity culture in our society is relevant insomuch as it exists to satisfy ideas of glamour, pop-trash culture and money making, but it also satisfies our human act of voyeurism, the celebrity must put up with exposure which also reveals a 'real' side to their lifestyle, a side we can relate to or be entertained by.

Sexuality is a prominent part of our lives, does it affect your working life? Do you believe it should?

Whatever sex you are throws some stereotypes into the equasion, in the past we are conditioned by society and the media to fall into various roles which supposedly reflected our sex and sexuality. Boys wear blue, girls wear pink, boys play with guns and girls dolls and so on. For me djing in the 80's, I was often asked the question of what it was like to dj on a scene that was predominitly seen as a boys club. It was true there were hardly any girls djing at the time I started (80's) which always seemed quite bizarre. I could count on one hand (even in the early 90's) the amount of girls who djed. It seems mad today where everyone is a dj or at least has attempted to experiment with playing music on various occasions. The idea of even being asked such a question today seems antiquated to say the least. Like so many things attitudes have changed, and perhaps I have been integral to part of that change, it would be nice to think so!

In our politicly correct society stereotypes and cliché's are questioned, camp mannerisms need not mean you are gay, cross-dresser's experimenting with gender roles, the male role as a parent and vise versa, job descriptions and roles in the workplace etc. I think these issues should be questioned in the name of equality and fairness. Self expression, presentation and opinion are always valid in our society and infact reflect the diversity and opportunity to be our unique selves within the human mindset.

Questions from Jack O'Brien
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Modeling For Illamasqua and Other Experiences

2011-09-09T05:50:00.000-07:00

Well, I actually did go to the casting for Illamasqua's latest campaign 'Theatre Of The Nameless' and I was most excited and flattered to be asked to part of this latest shoot. Alex Box did my makeup which was fascinating, there's nothing I like more than being coated with a liberal layer maquillage and as Alex explained the inspiration behind her work and this shoot I quickly became mesmerized by her process and technique.

The final result for Illamasqua.

I thought I might have grown out of it by now but not to put too much of a finer point on it, I realize I'm part of the Joan Collins school of presentation. I really can't leave the house without at the very least lipstick on! I've been lucky enough to have my make up done by some amazing makeup artists such as Richard Sharah who like Alex Box studied fine art before becoming involved in face painting. Responsible for the high drama looks of the late 70's and 80's Richard conjured up masques of layered pigment creating surrealist visions for people such as Zandra Rhodes and model Vivienne Lynn.

Still from Visage 'Fade To Grey' makeup Richard Sharah

Friend Lesley Chilkes also emerged as a prolific makeup artist and did my makeup for an early shoot with Mario Testino, she created the looks for 80's label Body Map and has continued a career in makeup with a much more natural approach.

On Mario's balcony, makeup Lesley Chilkes 1980

For an invite to one of Antonio Beradi's first shows we did a mock up of an iD cover, Pat McGarth did the make up. She carried on in the tradition of experimentation with surrealist notions of beauty seeking inspiration from unlikely sources.

Pat's makeup

I'm forever intriqued by the art of makeup artists, I had every intention of becoming one when I left school but really only dabbled in a few shoots and videos. There's something very of the moment about makeup, creating a look that will last for the duration of a shoot but ultimately recorded as a photograph for eternity, but that's another story!

Lovely Hat's at 'THE MILLINER'S TEA PARTY' S/S 2012

2011-09-08T11:27:00.000-07:00

What a great idea, 'The Hat Collective' got together today to unveil the latest collections of up and coming milliners in the relaxing surround of Metro Garden Restaurant in Clapham, a garden party indeed named 'The Milliners's Tea Party'. Angela Bruce, Ellen Bowden, Awon Golding, Eliane Sarah and Mandy McGregor each showed the craft, care and love of creating the prettiest, dramatic and artistic sides of hat making in the UK.
In afternoon tea party tradition the soiree began with a selection of refreshing cocktails and delicious tidbits, scones, savory delights and lashings of tea!

Right on with the show...

Galapagos- Angela Bruce

Kaze-Awon Golding

Libby- Eliane Sarah

Lapsangsouchong-Ellen Bowden

Shadow Rose-Anna Pulleyn

As you can see these are very 'my lady' creations, very feminine and jaunty statement makers. I spoke with some of the designers who revealed a passion for their craft.

Bonjour-Awon Bruce

Lorie-Eliane Sarah

Lady Grey-Ellen Bowden

Peony Passion-Mandy McGregor

Fabulous names by the way!

Ni Hao-Awon Golding

Assam-Ellen Bowden

Gertrude Stein-Anna Pulleyn

These are but a few of this seasons collection, the aim of The Hat Collective is to provide a platform for newly graduated miliners. They plan to exhibit future collections each season in and around LFW.

Lastly the Gin Trifle, delightful! (we took the glass cup and saucer home with us!)

The Hat Collective.co.uk
Turn To The Left PR
Metro Garden Restaurant

RENGENERATE JAPAN CHARITY POP UP!

2011-08-31T09:12:00.000-07:00

Friday 16th-Sunday 18th September 2011 , 10am-10pm

Looks amazing and for a good cause, film maker and artist Ben Charles Edwards finds an inventive way to raise money for Japan.

Regenerate Japan
The Reading Room Gallery
65-66 Frith Street
Soho
London
W1D 3JR

Set in a beautiful Japanese garden installation designed by award winning film director Ben Charles Edwards, it features unique theatre effects from raining cherry blossoms to projected waterfalls. The project promises highlights throughout the weekend including nail bars, sushi and Japanese tea ceremonies with kimono dressed staff to serve.

The event is combined with a consumer pop-up store to raise money for The Japan Tsunami and Earthquake appeal at the Red Cross.

The project will be on for this limited time only, with designers from around the world who have joined together to present their collections in a fashionable closing for the appeal, featuring Eley Kishimoto, Cabinet by Tomoko Yamanaka, Misa Harada, Sae Miyazaki, C/Bruerberg, Maria Seveyna, Lucchese Boot Co, Eva Evanovich, Alice Palmer and Louise Amstrup on sale.

Regenerate is a project that brings life and growth through art to raise funds for charity. Created by Ben Charles Edwards and Freya Olsen. Regenerate Japan is the first project of its kind, Partnered with Nolcha from New York Fashion Week for this project, to make a truly international collaboration for Japan.

Ben Charles Edwards-save the date!

'POP UP MARY' VINTAGE KNOCKING SHOP

2011-08-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

'POP UP MARY' RETURNS ON SUNDAY 11TH SEPTEMBER, 1PM TILL 6PM

*************The George & Dragon, 2 Hackney Road***************
We had so much fun last month we decided to set up again! Selling an array of specially selected vintage clothing, accessories, art, nic nacs, etc from...

Josh Quinton
Pippa Brooks
Jonas Ranssøn
Christina Mitrentse
Chris McMillan - Glamour Puss
Sol Bjorck
Felicity Hayward
Yasmina Dexter
Karlie ShellyPrincess Julia

*Light refreshments, tea and coffee (note the new tea urn) and cheap cakes available and the bar is open for something a bit stronger.

*Djing Alpha Deluxe throughout the afternoon! After which 'HIT IT MARY' hosted by Lavinia Co Op will continue into the evening till midnight.

*****************We look forward to receiving you!*******************

TIRADE! A personal viewpoint of the current social climate.

2011-08-16T06:21:00.000-07:00

I'm actually a fed up of hearing about the so called depraved sector of our community in London. I was born here and went to school here and actually was educated with the very people who's children are probably something to do with the riots that are gong on today. I'm totally unemployable in the real world, and I always have been. I've found my own creative and very enjoyable outlets, I'm not rich, I struggle making ends meet. I'm the daughter of an Hungarian refugee and grew up in north east London along with other immigrants, West Indian, Jamaican, Indian and Greek in the 60's. We were the foreigners. I went to a school with English people who said the most ridiclous things. Obviously this was an age ago, but have things changed? I'm still hearing the old woe of people who resent other people making the most of themselves. I had a typical education of the time, one where as a female you were expected to perhaps have a career and then get married and start a family, and coming from a family where my old fashioned father endorsed this idea, trying to arrange suitors for me at age 15, I somehow knew that it wasn't really what I wanted in life. For some people it is and I have no problem with it, but for me it really wasn't the be all and end all.

Now then, and this is where our island mentality comes in, my father was incredibly racist, claiming that when new 'foreigners' arrived he was here first here and that gave him some sort of standing, bitter and resentful he worked hard at a job he felt was beneath him. Who are the people now rioting? A mixture of second and third generation immigrants and English who forebears have a huge work ethic, high family standards but who have somehow lost the plot. I went to give a motivational talk at Barnet college where total disinterest pervaded, even though we have access to information via the internet, libary's, gallery's and the old tv... the students there just weren't bothered, I even told them to go out, have a good time and write about it, the reaction? Throughly dismal, London is a place where you can see and do things everyday more or less 24/7, were they interested, not in the slightest, with the exception of 2 or 3 students their faces were a blank. When people say the educational system here is not good enough surely there has to be some spark from the pupil, when I was at school I was even caught up with the attitude, 'well what's the point?' lethargy soon set in, I soon found other things to spark my imagination.

I am reminded here of the old 'bug in a rug' story, I picked up somewhere along the way. Basically it's the tale of a bug living in a square inch of the most beautiful persian rug. Going around in circles it's existence is invaded when another bug comes to visit and wonders why he is traveling round in circles when outside his square inch are the most wonderful patterns to explore!

People sometimes really do expect things to just happen with absolutely no imput from themselves, not everyones like that but there seems to be a sector of our community where bombarded with trash tv, celeb culture and generic lifestyle just expect that's how their perfect existance is gaged. Owning the latest technology, owning the must have trainers or designer gear makes the perfect situation for them. This is all brand envy, brainwashing and they've unwittingly fallen for it, where did the looters head off too? Onto their own doorsteps of course, the places where they pass and shop at everyday. Lets face facts these so called rioters don't seem the smartest of people, infact the whole thing seems a senseless opportunity to get a few freebies. A bit of a jolly, a laugh thats got out of hand spearheaded by a few petty criminals who in the community may have a bit of kudos.

Princess Julia 2011

Andrew Logan... In The Glasshouse

2011-08-12T12:56:00.000-07:00

At the moment Andrew Logan is in the process of creating a number of new pieces, one of which is bust of my good self. We started two years ago, had a bit of a break but now we're back for a series of regular sittings. Andrew asked me to sit for him some years ago somehow we never quite got around to it until now. I'm insisting I be placed between Fenella Fielding and his other latest bust of Rula Lenska.

Fenella Fielding by Andrew Logan

During our sittings I confess I take full advantage of Andrews hospitality and pick his brains incessantly. Probing into his colourful past and future projects, his wide range of friends, life in London in the early 70's, the art, fashion and music scene, his parties and the thought process behind the things he creates.

Andrew originally studied architecture, he's completely self taught I was surprised to find out. He emerged in London as part of a collective of creative people, Zandra Rhodes, Ozzie Clark, the Glam rock scene, Brian Eno, Barbara Halanucki the founder of Biba, Mick and Sheila Rock, Keith from Smile hairdressing salon, Derek Jarman, Duggie Fields, Luciana Martinez, Kevin Whitney, Michael and Gerlinde Costiff to name but a few. Some household names, some like him at the time, striking out with new visions in expressive art. Andrew is a rather modest chap in real life, he lives with his long term bf Michael Davis and comes from a rather large family.

Andrew's work area

When you enter Andrew Logan's world which is his home as well, aptly named The Glasshouse, you're at once transported into a glistening and prettified space. Through his dinning and kitchen area up a flight of stairs and into a glass roofed room full with his fractured and fractal mirror splintered work. To the left is a cluttered work area, the main space being crammed with larger finished pieces, jewelry and works in progress.

Andrew Logan meticulously pieces together sculptures, artifacts and jewelry, his process is seems to be about creating things of beauty, surfaces decorated with colourful mosaic inspired cracked glass, glitter resulting in a high camp drama. His subject matter combines portraiture, adornment and symbol.

The resulting sculptures are flash and beautiful, striking in their immediacy. The initial impact is full on with glamour. Larger than life. Loaded with pop culture and at the same time ancient symbolism, Andrew makes no pretense about his intensions, to make things that are beautiful and make you happy. 'Art can be discovered anywhere' he says, there's an attractive nievety to the way Andrew presents himself and his work. in actual fact if you try and analyse what kind of messages Andrew is sending out his philosophy becomes apparent.

Logan's preoccupation with 'camp' is not to be sniffed at. He himself enjoys the revelations people experience through his work as he does when creating them. A bit on the hippyish side Andrew comes across as a gentle soul. he actively practices yoga and crafts his art with peaceful diligence.

Andrew with a work in progress

Currently Andrew Logan has created a shop next to his studio in Mellior Place near London Bridge. Andrew Logan Shop opened late in 2010 and sells an array of sculpture and jewelry.

Andrew Logan Shop

Other things of interest include The Andrew Logan Museum of Sculpture located in Wales. Forthcoming film 'The British Guide To Showing Off'

facebook.com The-British-Guide-To-Showing-Off

www.andrewlogan.com

David Hoyle: Unplugged

2011-08-12T04:33:00.000-07:00

The always contraversial David Hoyle performs at the Soho Theatre until the 20th August. I went on last Wednesday to see David reflect upon his own insecurities, current affairs and sing accompanied by Michael Roulston on piano. David Hoyle takes a turn… all singing wit, outspoken but heartfelt.

David Hoyle

David Hoyle has had a checkered career, supporter of the fringe elements of society he has battled with his own demons and with insight those of others. He is a multi dimensional artist, performing, painting and singing. For Hoyle's unplugged session a stream of consciousness is delivered with a lively line of patter which keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout.

Personal Image - Trials and Tribulations

2011-08-06T15:42:00.000-07:00

I recently went to Amber Swallows' 'Boob-A-Thon', a fund raising party for Amber's new transitional bosoms. I had a chat with Amber and she told me that the only funding the NHS would provide for her was speech therapy, hence a whip round to help Amber attain her curvaceous female form.

Amber Swallows (De Hanika)

It's a so called 'postcode lottery' as to what funding is available and to whom it can be applied. The process is lengthy and complicated and it seems all a bit hit and miss when it comes to personal analysis. I was curious to see how the NHS allots funding and found this...

Generally, you will be able to obtain funding for specialist psychiatric

assessment and for hormonal medication. In addition, a few PCTs

will fund hair removal, especially on skin from a donor site that is

to be used in later surgery. Speech therapy may also be included in

the package of care provided by a gender identity clinic (GIC) or a

private gender specialist, and some PCTs are willing to fund this

treatment. However, when you are considering surgery, you may find

that the PCT limits this, in line with the view that there are ‘core

procedures’ – which would usually be funded – and ‘non-core

procedures’ that may be deemed ‘cosmetic’ or ‘aesthetic’. In the case

of trans women, this is likely to mean that facial feminising surgery,

for instance, will not be covered. Even breast augmentation may be

deemed aesthetic, and therefore not funded, despite the fact that this

surgery may be essential to the success of the transition to the new

gender role. The exclusions of such types of surgery are in line with

local policies, and apply to anyone, whether or not they are a

transsexual person. Chest reconstruction for a trans man, however, is

likely to be regarded as ‘core’ surgery.'

http://www.transgenderzone.com

It may seem hard to understand why someone would want to alter themselves so drastically but in afore thought it makes me wonder how many people have suffered silently in the past when faced with this dilemma. In todays modern age we have the knowledge and wherewithal to address and alter our outside appearance to align with our innermost sensibilities. In varying degrees perhaps we all feel uncomfortable in our own skins. Certainly from a personal viewpoint I have used various devices (make-up, personal style, botox) to acquire an image I feel comfortable with, but I have never felt truly 'comfortable' in my own skin. It's a strange feeling.

Some years ago in the early 80's, a friend of mine called to say 'she/he' had something to tell me, would I come over. I happily went to see my dear friend, who, had bravely decided to explain the predicament. ' We discussed this uneasy feeling deciding the only conclusion was to move forward, my friend in essence has always felt a woman inwardly and mentally and has been living outwardly so for over 30 years. One of her eureka moments came after reading April Ashley's book truly fascinating book Odyssey, which tracks April's pioneering life and experiences in a time when the idea of gender reassignment was vertually unheard of.

April in her modeling days, London, 1961

'Although sex-change operations in 1960 were associated in the public imagination with Dr Frankenstein (and still are very often), they were not brand new. The first report of one was made by a German, F. Z. Abraham, in 1931, but he gives no details. The first popular account was in 1933 in Niels Hoyer's book Man Into Woman. It is the story of a Danish painter, male, who became Lili Elbe after a series of operations only vaguely described.

Lile Elbe

The term 'transsexualism' was invented in 1949 by Dr D.O. Cauldwell who wished to describe a girl who obsessively wanted to become a boy (the incidence of transsexualism in males however is much higher than in females, about four or five to one). A few years later the word was taken up by Dr Harry Benjamin whose researches led eventually to the first systematic study in 1966, The Transsexual Phenomenon. In 1952 a team of Danish surgeons under Christian Hamburger performed the operations on George (later Christine) Jorgensen which established the general blueprint for transsexual surgery and post-operational treatment. Publicity of the case the following year brought the matter before the whole world for the first time.'

Christine Jorgenson

Excerpt April Ashleys book 'Odyssey' 1982

Personal Choices

In the search for perfection and peace we all make use of what's available to us whether it's off the shelf or something rather longer lasting. In one sense it's big business, ( a thing we're all quite well aware of) on the other hand it's an individual and personal choice of how we choose to present ourselves. I wouldn't go out out of the house without at least lipstick on, part of my own insecurity when dealing with my own image I suppose. Nevertheless I feel a whole lot happier.

Friend, Pete Burns is truly one who has become a pioneer of perfecting self beautifcation. His knowledge and fascination with surgical procedure means he could probably carry out an operation himself. He takes it very seriously and readily admits there have been some disasters in the past. To me he is somewhat of a work of art. His ideas and concepts are very precise. His honesty is very refreshing when it comes to explaining his ideas of self image.

Pete Burns with Lynn Burns

Perhaps I come from and have been influenced from an old fashioned style of self preservation. My role models are all people who express themselves in varying extremes of considered beauty and style, presenting themselves with individuality but ultimately having strength of character to live a life with conviction ultimately realizing their full potential

THE DROP FIVE

2011-07-25T04:12:00.000-07:00

Now for some music! The Drop Five are a relatively new band forming in 2010. I first saw them at last years Off Set festival 2010. You can get a free download and like them at their FB page The Drop Five they really have their own look and sound but take reference from early Style Council and Northern Soul combined with their own unique take.

A chance to see them on Saturday 30th July at The Victoria in Mile End, London The Drop Five Revue ...

John Linger- Guitar, Vocals, Bonnie Carr- Vocals, Brandon Jacobs- Keyboards,Eli Saunders-Deutsch- Bass, Paul Linger- Drums

http://www.thedropfive.co.uk
http://www.last.fm/music/The+Drop+Five
http://www.myspace.com/thedropfiveuk

RESTAURANT 88 by THE BISTROTHEQUE

2011-07-22T12:56:00.000-07:00

It's a 'pop up' restaurant at Canary Wharf's Restaurants In Residence brought to us from the Bistrotheque team, (didn't they invent the idea of pop ups!?). '88' is only open for a week and I went last Wednesday via the champagne speedboat from Westminster Bridge Pier, David Waddington himself hosting and pouring the Mumm champagne in lavish quantities!

David Waddington - far right

It was a stormy evening, a torrential downpour ensued as we approached said destination and made our way up to the third floor of the Create building. One of the first offices to be built in this area in the 80's the Bistrotheque team managed to create an ambiance that kept tongues wagging with references.

Pink neons, palms and blinds, a newly installed bar for the occasion and black and white checkered flooring gives the space a suitable 80's modernistic feel. The menu itself comes from Bistrotheques Tom Collins and Jeremy Lee.

Rice & Peas

We had a jolly table of friends old and new and managed to scoff every course...

Catherine, Saranne, Anthony.

Mains came in the shape of baby chicken... coquelet dears to you, delicious, although it did remind me of an Eraserhead scene.

The Coquelet!

The Pavlova!

VINTAGE AT SOUTHBANK CENTRE 29TH-31ST JULY

2011-07-06T07:39:00.000-07:00

Coming up at the end of the month 'Vintage At Southbank Centre'. After a bit of research I found out I'm djing up at The Penthouse on Saturday 30th at 6pm with a few friends...

BLITZ (Saturday)
On Saturday it’s ‘back to the futurist’ as the New Romantics and Futurists that made The Blitz Club famous around the globe assemble once more. We’ll be joining the dots between the outlandish fashions, performance art and groundbreaking music as we celebrate the cult with no name.
The dj's... Paul Rae, Paul and Ralf Ralf Randell, Martin Degville, Princess Julia, Jeffrey Hinton and Mark Moore

I didn't actually dj at the Blitz itself, infact I did the coatcheck for a while and once Steve Strange actually asked me to do the door, which I was rubbish at! I did a spot of djing at the WAG club in the early 80's for designer Stephen Linard. The night was called Total Fashion Victims. Towards the end of the 80's I had another go at Djing at The Daisy Chain over at The Fridge in Brixton. It was a Tuesday gay night run by Jimmy Fox and djing came from Mark Lawrence and Jeffrey Hinton. I did a warm up spot and really that's how I started djing. I was working at Michael and Gerlinde Costiff's shop World and soon they started a night, Kinky Gerlinky's. I became resident there along with Rachel Auburn and Martin Confusion.

I found this amusing TV exposé of Kinky Gerlinky!

Eventually I began to travel across the UK and further afield across Europe and beyond, djing at some of the most amazing nights!

For Vintage at Southbank I think I'll play a mixture of music that has played a part in my dj career! It will range from post punk electronica, disco, retro pop, dance and anything else I find at the bottom of my handbag!

Justin 'Vivian' Bond... Mx Bond Has Got Pazazz!

2011-07-03T17:24:00.000-07:00

Mx Bond, has been flying high throughout her/his career, I first met Justin as the delirious Kiki, a deranged and deluded character who with the help of Herb on piano relived a fictional life of theatrical hilarity. Later going solo with perceptive insights on a life well lived and those orbiting, I've kept apace with Justin Bond, who resides in New York and pays us regular visits with shows that with her unique rhetoric and song renditions never fails to tick all the boxes.
This month Justin is back after a two year sojourn (has it really been that long!) as Mx Justin Vivian Bond with a solo album and show 'Dendrophile' at the Soho Theatre . I popped down last week to catch up with the one and only. Her exposé shows somehow always take on a new angle. 'V', our very own Justin Bond is now somewhat of a lady of a certain age nowadays, he/she tells of her introduction into the NYC gay scene. It was hanging out at gay pride, she says, waiting for the float with the people who looked and acted like 'her people'. Every amazing moment of her life, which incidentally leads to apt songs dispersed through the show, is delivered with personal and intimate hysterical flourishes.

Justin Vivian Bond

Personal tales flip back and forth, I was most intriqued by Justin's childhood, which will be published in a forthcoming book. Justin read an excerpt revealing just what a naughty boy he was, sleeping with a neighbour, building a treehouse and then getting caught in the act by the boys mother... I can't wait to get a copy.

Justin Vivian Bond is on at the Soho Theatre till the 9th of July, it's so good I might try and see it again!
Justin Bond.com

Top Tip for Festival Goers.. Melissa Jelly Shoes!

2011-06-29T10:41:00.000-07:00

Top tip for festival goers, the footwear problem is solved with the Melissa jelly shoe experience! Come rain or shine, muddy field or grassy hillock a Melissa shoe really does solve the issue for the style conscious amongst us. Tried and tested, I trolloped through 10 inch deep mud last weekend in a pair of Westwood designed bootees. Mock ye not, they stood up rather well!

When day turned into dusk and the lure of Vogue Fabrics loomed I turned to the latest strappy number from Viv Westwood, a pair of buckled plastic heels. I can see you sniggering at the though of wading through the mud slush of a camp site! But these Melissa's are of course waterproof. Ok a few wobbly moments, but these girls have grip as well.

Next day and time to slip into a cushioned Westwood wedge. Sun blazing I skillfully graced a bare shin down to the breakfast area. The toes did need a breather.

Big plus, just stick 'em under the tap and all traces of any festival disappear...

www.melissa.com.br/en

For all enquiries contact

Clare McShane
Press & Liaison Officer
melissa
plastic dreams
...........................................................
call me in the office:   0207 377 2570
email me:          clare@melissashoe.com

send me things:
1 Fashion St,
London,
E1 6PX

Er, Glastonbury...

2011-06-22T17:31:00.000-07:00

Somehow I've managed to avoid this festival of festivals, that is until this Saturday when I will be getting an afternoon train and arriving early evening to partake in what will probably be a bit of a muddy and messy experience. I'm actually djing at the Vogue Fabrics area at the night called 'Pop' and I imagine I will not be leaving this part of Glasto swampland until Sunday.

All most amusing, slightly concerned about footwear so I've booked a visit to the Melissa jelly shoes company in the hope of something fashionably waterproof. Obviously I want something with a heel of sorts!

Anyway the salacious theme of Vogue Fabrics is all a bit 'slap and tickle' so to speak, on the line up Dalstons finest will be entertaining festival goers with a multitude of goings on... i've copied and pasted here as I couldn't put it more succinctly!

'A kinky disco in a field, sensory stimulus, Benidorm or Bedlam, aversion therapy, sexual deviation, addictive obsessions, abnormal results, behaviour modification, enlightenment, aftercare. Different shades of fun for consenting adults only. We're saucing things up for Glastonbury 2011 without a burlesque routine in sight...come and get literally vajazzled.'

Bedlam will be ruled over by living Goddess, all the way from Los Angeles;
Danni Daniels www.dannidaniels.com/

While the Mayor of Benidorm is porn superstar
Ashley Ryderhttp://ashleyryder.blogspot.com/

Your host for the weekend is Tranny with a Fanny,
Holestarwww.holestar.com
Each evening, we showcase the finest queer performers

Bourgeois & Maurice www.bourgeoisandmaurice.co.uk

Jonny Woo & Batty Lashes present Les Goom www.jonnywoo.com

Miss Annabel Sings www.missannabelsings.com

Mr Teds www.myspace.com/mrteds

Natalie Monroe www.nataliemonroe.co.uk

More to be announced...
After midnight, we turn into an all-night sweaty and kinky disco, hosted by the finest East London club nights

Friday | Dirtbox
Jos Gibson, Borja Peña & Duchess of Porkhttp://tinyurl.com/dirtboxfacebook

Saturday | POP!
Princess Julia, Duchess of Pork & Holestarwww.facebook.com/POP.London

Sunday | Hot Boy Dancing Spot
The Lovely Jonjo, Hannah Holland, Dan Beaumont, Wer'e Not Cool & Josh Caffehttp://hotboydancingspot.com/

Set Design

Alun Davieshttp://www.alun-davies.com/

Anna Bruderhttp://www.annabruder.com/

Films

Cathal O'brienhttp://www.ilovecathal.com/

Alexandros Pissourioshttp://www.alexandrospissourios.com/

Photography

Lorenzo Rosi

Vogue Fabrics is located in the basketball court of the NYC Downlow in the Block 9 Field

Films from 8pm
Performances from 10pm
Disco 12 – 6am

Open minds only

'FOUL PLAY' A White Box theatre production where all is not as it seems!

2011-06-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

Down at the Bristroteque's cabaret room things are heating up with Tessa Christians 'Foul Play', taking place every Wednesday and Thursday throughout July. It's a tale which encompasses a series of anxious incidents between three friends climaxing in a truly dark scenario. A touch Ortonesque, Christian tackles a sub text where the three manipulative characters try and outwit each other with great dollops of black comedic rhetoric keeping you firmly on the edge of your seat.

Actors Brett Brown, Sean Hart and Matt Hickey the stars of Foul Play.

The Cabaret Room / Bistrotheque
9pm / every Wednesday & Thursday in July
£10 on the door / advance bookings: www.bistrotheque.com
nearest tube: Bethnal Green station

BURGER QUEEN IS A CONTEST!

2011-06-10T17:42:00.000-07:00

Performer Scottee has a few radical ideas up his sleeve and the latest goings on take shape in the form of the Burger Queen Contest! I went down to The Royal Vauxhall Tavern this week where the contest takes place every Wednesday throughout June. I heard the first heat was a riot, this week Judges included Paloma Faith, Timberlina, the Cock n Bull Kid, The Broken Hearts, the girls from Tatty Divine and the girl with the hula hoops on Britains Got Talent Marawa all presided over by the fantastic Amy Lamé from Duckie.

Scottee thinks it's about time we had some healthy role models on the scene, 'fat is a politic not a dress size' the contest is open to all, the slant is towards finding 'the perfect fatty to enter the final'. Throughout the evening Scottee and guests performed with insight. Tmberlina did some great songs on her banjo, Scottee did an emotional piece with black tears dripping down his face and Jude Bean presented a video diary of her weekly meals, a total hit! Meanwhile the contestants got ready for their own turns.

Scottee

Two of my friends entered this week Angel Rose and Oozing Gloop along with Nina Neon and Roberto Palfrey. Nina Neon was the overall winner this week and brought the house down with a dialogue of commentary centered around her wheelchair.

Angel Rose performed her unique take on life, death and glitter.

Oozing Gloop mimed an emotional track from Hedwig And The Angry Inch.

Next week round three of the heats continues!

I THINK I FANCY JARVIS COCKER...

2011-06-08T07:02:00.000-07:00

Last nights 'do' at the Tate Modern for Michael Clark was quite something I must say, alas I missed the first section of Clarks company's dance section in the Turbine Hall. Never mind I met Michael Snipe, who introduced himself 'Hi, I'm Michael Snipe'... 'Hello dear', I said, secretly I was thinking, 'Oh, I know Larry Tee, didn't you go out with him?' That would have been too much though! Anyway I was thinking of having a fag with artist Simon Popper when the band struck up! It was Relaxed Muscle, Jarvis Cockers band of the noughties. I was well excited, I actually brought their 7"single Sexualized/Billy Jack in 2003. I bustled in to get a better view. Jarvis had a face slathered in abstract makeup, so did his band, he was working his corner with a lot of gesture, I was quite mesmerized...

Meanwhile Michael Clark did a bit of a swirl over in the disco area to Relaxed Muscles music. Couldn't get close enough though. Michael dashed off when it was all over, quickly dressing to get ready for the next part of the evening, which was another bit of the Michael Clark Company's show on the main floor of the Turbine Hall. Was bloody amazing, highlight? Kraftwerk, Bowie with a combination of his company and the his ingenious and very enthusiastic non-trained dance troupe. Love!
After all this excitement, and a couple of red wines later Jarvis struck up again...

Look at him dears! Relaxed Muscle are an experimental sideline of dark wave goings on. Anyway after there bit I stuck a few songs on for the disco dance entertainments, while making Trevor Jackson go and get me some nibbles from the chocolate fountain. Jeffrey Hinton turned up for a back to back dj session, I took full advantage of him and went off for a fag, Mr Cocker was packing up so I had a chat with him. 'Hello dear', I said, he looked bemused. 'Yes, I met you at Giles Deacons birthday party, I thought that was a great set'. 'And it will be the last of Relaxed Muscle', he said, while sipping on his glass of white wine. We had a lovely chat I must say, we talked about cats... or was that with Bobby Gillespie!

Glad I caught them then. By the way after guzzling more chocolate fountain dipped marshmallows and fruit I got back on the decks with Jeffrey till 1am. I want to do more discos in the Turbine Hall!

WHY SADE'S STILL GOT IT!

2011-06-01T16:17:00.000-07:00

We made the pilgrimage to see Sade and her band perform after an absence of 18 years at the O2 Arena last night. I didn't have any preconceptions but I was hoping for a string of her better known songs from the 80's I must confess! I was also intriqued to see Sade working her definitive style... I wasn't disappointed on both counts.
Sade rules, she really does... it's all in the detail, precise, easy, she came on in a body con style outfit, plus signature 'polo neck' (I'd already discussed her wardrobe with a few friends! Bolero jacket, cummerband and capri pants were all options). She arrived on stage hair slicked backed, big hooped earrings, my favorite look really, looking elegant, modern, understated and most of all really happy to be on stage in London.

The return.

Back in the day Sade wasn't the most enthused about performing, infact she hated it by all accounts. A fashion student at St Martins around 1980, she trained in the era which produced Stephen Jones, John Galliano, Kim Bowen, Melissa Caplan, Stephen Linard and Lee Sheldrick. She soon gave it up but her looks and style were already legendary even back then.

Initially Sade was in a couple of bands backing singing - Arriva and then Pride - she then became lead in Pride co writing Smooth Operator and eventually forming her own band under her own name with some of the original members of Pride. Amazingly all members have stuck true to the Sade journey, they are Andrew Hale, Paul Denman and Stuart Matthewman.

The boys in the band.

I know she's huge in America and I knew she had an album out a couple of years ago (Soldier Of Love and now The Ultimate Collection) but I always wondered why she didn't tour in the UK over the years. I still don't know, perhaps some things are better unsaid. At the age of 52 she's really come into her own. Stylistically her vocal range is better than ever and really quite unique, without pastische, i.e. she's got her own style and she always has... which is a thing I worry about when listening to emerging singers- generally they always sound like somebody else.

Ok next 'look', Sade came striding on in flats and a natty and modish looking suit complete with pocket detail and braces, (can't find any pics alas). She worked the stage with a backdrop of video installations, films and projections courtesy of Sophie Muller, it all looked perfectly in keeping, not trying too hard or over the top, and here I go again, she looked immaculate, absolutely stylish. And you know what, when she had the saxaphone solo going on it didn't seem dated in the least... I admit to a guilty sax moment! Her next looks were much more 'my lady' a white satin floor length gown and a red number, hair down.

This is Sade now (above) but lets have a look at some of her iconic moments...

Early days hanging out, Sade and Ollie having a fag! (Shapers Of The 80's.com)

What a lady, long may she reign!

S.C.U.M update SUMMON THE SOUND

2011-05-26T09:17:00.000-07:00

Hello, hello. what have we got here then... the latest on S.C.U.M

Summon The Sound, the first new material since last years download series SIGNALS, is the slow-burning, epic new track from S.C.U.M and announces their long-awaited return. It is the first taste of what to expect from their highly anticipated debut album on Mute in September 2011.

Based in London, S.C.U.M exploded onto the music scene two years ago with the release of their debut single ‘Visions Arise’. The single, together with their exciting and intense live shows, quickly grabbed the imagination of fans and critics alike. Since then band have toured extensively across the UK and Europe to a growing fan base and released three exclusive digital download tracks entitled SIGNALS (‘PARIS’,‘BERLIN’ and ‘WARSAW’).

www.scum1968.com

www.myspace.com/scum1968

www.mute.com

SAMI KNIGHT HAIR DRESSING

2011-05-22T16:10:00.000-07:00

Up at the Amwell Street Knocking Shop Karlie Shelly and I are looking forward to hair dresser Sami Knight coming by to tease and 'up do' ours and your hair on Friday June the 3rd. Sami has perfected his craft of extraordinary and beautiful hairstyles at Nina's Hair Parlour and is well known in our circles for creating statement hair. Originally graduating as a photographer in 2008, Sami Knight has since extended his talents and branched out into a career in art performance as well as carving a neiche with his amazing hair creations.

Sami Knight

Here are some of his amazing styles, one of his muses the wonderous Felicity Hayward is often seen with an array of bouffant styles.

Felicity Hayward, glamour pink tips.

Foxy 'up do'.

Titus Groan with a candy pink set.

40's inspired.

To book in on June 3rd contact The Amwell Street Knocking Shop via our FB 'like' page or Sami Knight directly. We are open from 12 midday till 7pm.

Sami Knight

The Amwell Street Knocking Shop

Nina's Hair Parlour

MUTE RECORDS SHORT CIRCUIT

2011-05-14T15:02:00.000-07:00

Off I trottered to the Mute Records do up at the Roundhouse yesterday (Friday 13th) and basically saw everything in the Studio Theatre, basically Komputer, Balanescu Quartet, Carter Tutti With Nik Void, Non and Richard H. Kirk (Cabaret Voltaire). I did catch a bit of Nitzer Ebb on the main stage, missed the end, the lure of Tutti was too much!

Komputer

Komputer, Simon Leonard and David Baker, two boffins from Muswell Hill, are quite a pair in matching red boiler suits twiddling about. Originally signed to Mute in '84 as I Start Counting and releases as Fortran 5, they did quite a few old numbers and kept the pace going with a few intermittent chats... one of the true originators of future electronic pop.

Non

Non, that's Boyd Rice is happily controversial, starting out in the mid '70's with a whole lot of concepts his noise pollution his highly entertaining. For this show he got his drill out, attempted to attach some sort of flaying gadget, got there in the end with help from a member of the audience and proceeded to play his electric guitar with it. I heard someone say they liked his film projections, Non, Rice provocative.

Tutti Box v1.0 from Chris Carter on Vimeo.

Chris Carter Tutti With Nik Void from Factory Floor were really the hit of my evening, extended pulses, subtle, mesmerizing, nice bit of reverbed wailing from Cosey... the crowd were with them. We were feeling the love. They worked really well in the intimacy of the Studio room but I can't help feeling they should have been on the main stage... there was a queue of people who couldn't get in!

THE AMWELL STREET KNOCKING SHOP

2011-05-11T08:44:00.000-07:00

We are proud to announce, that's Karlie Shelly and I that we are opening a pop up shop from the 20th May at 63 Amwell Street, London EC1, until Sunday 26th June. Open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays 12 till 8pm and by appointment on weekday's. The Amwell Street Knocking Shop

Selling contemporary archive, vintage fashion and accessories from labels such as Westwood, Pam Hogg, Judy Blame, A Child Of The Jago, plus specially selected vintage clothing from all eras from our amazing team...

Karlie Shelly (Clothes)*

Felicity Hayward & Henry Wickett-Padgham (Clothes)*

Josh Quenton (Clothes)*

Lauren Webb (Clothes)*

Princess Julia (Clothes)*

Yasmina Dexter (Clothes)*

Pinkie Love (Clothes)*

Pam Hogg (Clothes)*

Joe Corre - A Child Of The Jago(Clothes)*

Ben Westwood (Clothes)*

Vivienne Westwood (Clothes)

Judy Blame (Accessories)*

Flora Starkey - Superfine (Clothes)*

Noki (Clothes)*

Mich Dulce (Hats)*

Maiden - Noah Crutchfield (Vintage Books)*

On two levels, with special events...

FILM SCREENINGS

Today Is Boring (Tree and Adam Carr) Film Screenings 6-9pm

Regular screenings tbc, with explanation of film from either a guest curator or themselves. Refreshments available.*

Badge Making Working Workshop

Make your own badges, directed by PINS (Karlie Shelly). Three hour workshop to take place in the kitchen area, for a nominal fee pupils make and keep their work. *

LIFE/FASHION DRAWING CLASS

Sunday afternoon class to take place in the screening room.*

STRAIGHT UP DAY IN CONJUNCTION WITH i-D ONLINE

Emily Rose England takes 'straight ups' in the downstairs area- kitchen, outside areas and screening room. Customers can either wear purchases from the shop itself or as they come. To be put up on i-D Online. http://www.i-donline.com/*

Art Installation

With Scottee and Eat Your Heart Out.*

Appointment Only Portraits

With photographer and DJ Alpha Deluxe on Saturday 28th May*

Hair Dressing Salon

With Sammy Knight, specializing in vintage hair styles. By appointment.*

CELEBRITY SHOP ASSISTANTS

Sue Tilley *

Directions-tube Angel Islington, go up Pentonville Road, turn left opposite The Lexington and down to Amwell street...

Please go to our FB events pages for updates - THE AMWELL STREET KNOCKING SHOP

2011-04-27T09:26:00.000-07:00

My friend Elaine Chalmers has a great eatery on Kingsland Road, east London, what would A LITTLE OF WHAT YOU FANCY serve up over this right royal bank holiday weekend? Personally I'd eat everything they've got, but here are some of their specialities!

A seasonal salad.

Lunch could be chestnut and chorizo soup, porcini mushroom risotto, sweet potato, red pepper and spinach fritatta, roast chicken with lemon garlic and herbs... a favorite.

Artisan bread.

I'm very keen on Elaines flourless chocolate cake, she made me one for a birthday and I was absolutely thrilled. Also her quails egg scotch egg,what a tasty mouthful. I'm always keen for a slice of welsh rarebit, hers has got tomato chutney on the side.

Herring and all the trimmings.

I've got to go now, I'm starving....

Daily/ seasonal salads

Jon 'Pleased Wimmin' Does Pop Art Tart

2011-04-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

Jon Cooper aka 'Jon Pleased Wimmin' is known as a DJ, music producer and club promoter for his monthly Edinburgh night Dare, which I hasten to add comes to London on a regular basis... adding a new string to his bow Jon has launched a rather enterprising art project. Centered around musicians, various stars and celebrities (there's a thread of the Warhol's to them) Jon has been busy printing limited editions of his art work, not sure how he does it but there seems to be a formula to his work.

Patti Smith

Inspired by the idea of instant art, his portrayals are immediate and colorful, playing with notions of iconic imagery. He invites you to to become part of his gallery with personal and bespoke commissions.

Sioux

To find out more enter Jon's web site... POP ART TART.COM

'HELP!' (A comedic tale of two flatmates who receive an unexpected visitor)

2011-04-14T07:58:00.000-07:00

Dark days, dark days indeed, 'Help' is a satirical play about three friends who irritate the fuck out of each other but ultimately love each other. This is a twisted tale based on (and I'm guessing) on some real life experiences. Matthew Hickey, Ryan Styles and Russell Graham take on meaty roles playing themselves... or are they? The scene takes place in a loft apartment which Ryan and Russell share, the bickering banter is swift and witty, the repartee leaves the audience with mouths agog.

The domestic scene is disturbed by the arrival of Matthew, who it seems has fallen on bad times, caught up with his addictions and hustling to make ends meet. It's a situation one can easily relate to, I often say it's a fine line. The plot moves along when it is revealed that Matthew and Ryan were once a love interest, Russell is caught in the firing line trying to unravel their past. He does it with a series enquiring assumptions delivered in overtly camp fashion, the suspense is akin to tightrope walking as Russell seduces information from the pair by producing a 'jaffa cake' cake, donning a wig and screaming at Matthew as he pretends to 'use' the toilet. But Russell's is character is savvy, he knows what's really going on.

Ryan and Matthew seek some sort of closure to the situation in the second half, their own seduction ends in macabre fashion... the final line is crossed as Matthew's character takes control...
(You'll have to go and see it to find out what exactly happens! On tonight, 14th at the Bistrotheque cabaret room).

Curtain down.

'HELP'
Written and directed by Tess Christian
Additional Material: Matt Hickey, Ryan Styles
Scenery: David Shenton
Set bulid: Rocky Alvarez
Lighting/sound: David Thackery

Why Kylie's Still Got It

2011-04-13T16:53:00.000-07:00

This week I went to see Kylie Minogue's Aphrodite Les Folies Tour 2011 at the 02 Arena, a few months ago I went to interview her for Ponystep whilst she was busy preparing for the tour. Matt Irwin took the photos and our Miss Minogue was on top form... you have to get the magazine to read our chat!

Kylie looking fab!

Back to the show and Kylie is really quite remarkable, the thing I'm always quite intrigued by is the pure popness of Kylies voice, there's no one else can sing like that without being sped up! On stage Kylie shines, she was born to it, she lights up, her eyes twinkle... her spectacular and camp shows have become her forté. Apparently this is the most lavish and expensive show ever staged, full of entrances, boys in fish tanks, boys as gladiators, girls in surrealist pom poms, sculptural mesh, sequins, honestly this show is a visual treat. Creative director William Baker really has pulled out all the stops for Aphrodite, this is his dressing up box come to life.

Kylie really engages with her audience, I've seen quite a few of them and I was mortified (in a good way) when she suddenly saw me in the audience and called out my name from the stage for not dancing! Lets face it you really do have to get up when Kylie belts out her major hits! (I even caught myself mouthing along to the choruses the other night.) We've grown up with her and somehow she is like the girl next door, even though her shows are staged she chats away on a personal level noticing handmade banners and loyal fans. And that's what she's really like...

Live phone pic of the 2011 show.

Is Kylie a style icon? Yes she is, her thing is about embracing the dressing up part of the business of show. She takes on each 'look' enjoying every moment. She's not freakish, her allure is sexy and provocative. She taps into old school glamour and pushes boundaries with it, plays with it and it's so captivating you ultimately end up fancying her without realizing why or how, the saucy minx!

Finale

It's really the whole package Kylie projects, her timeless 'lolita-esque' qualities, she's a girl in her early 40's but I bet when she's 70 she'll still have that same indefatigable energy...

The Alchemist Presentation A/W 2011

2011-04-10T16:59:00.000-07:00

I never forget how industrious my friends can be, take said Lyall Hakaraia, last week he invited me along with a small gathering of 20 people to fine dine two doors up from his homestead of Vogue Fabrics. Two doors up happens to be a labyrinth of connecting rooms known as MC Motors Warehouse, that on this particular evening became home to Hakaraia's latest presensation for a feast, performance plus a personal tour of his current collection of accessories. These 'accessories', and I'm sure there must be another word to describe Lyalls feats of adornment because really they're more like sculptural spector's consisting of transparent neck pieces, cuffs and bodices made grey ponyskin, patent leather with brass and magnetic fastenings. The overall effect has a modernity attached to it but the reference points have a powerfully glamourous twist. Nipped in and snapped to the body seems to be the primal focus. Ecru coloured lycra gloves, body formed cut out pieces dipped with a blush of taupe form the basis of Lyalls vision on.

At first I hadn't the faintest idea of what Lyall had in store for us us as I devoured the main course of lamb tergine, one of A Little Of What You Fancy's delicious dishes from the set menu for the evening. Lyall then informed us a performance was about to commence in the adjoining room... we filed in whilst in the dim light a body hung, two assistants pushed the androgyne back and forth,as she unwrapped, swayed and stretched, limbs flaying. Piece by piece, a ceremony of removal took place, carefully unbound the figure was stripped bare.

This is Lyall Hakaraia's A/W 2011 collection named 'The Alchemist', he's keeping things very precise, although Lyall is known for creating couture and costumes for many of our contemporary dressers, which you can find out about at http://voguefabricsdalston.com/ http://voguefabricsdalston.com/studio/

COCKTAILS

2011-04-05T15:58:00.000-07:00

Seeing as I'm partial to a tipple when GQ Style sent me to go and sample a few of the best in town I really couldn't say no! Well it would be rude not to...

DENIS BROCI - CLARIDGES

The passion for concocting cocktails that slip down a treat is not lost on Denis Broci, cocktail creator at Claridges. He measures aromatic botanicals, Campari, Koniks Tail Vodka, Tanqueray Gin, Creme De Mar and pink grapefruit juice to create an invention of his own making... the 'GQ Style'! Flattery will get you everywhere and I'm fascinated as he 'washes' ice with Campari, stirs, fine strains and finally pours the delicate pink and translucent mixture into a signature Claridges bevelled John Jenkins glass. Denis tells me, 'The drink itself is quite masculine', and as I lift glass to lips a heady aroma takes over my senses! 'It's got a kick!' Denis exclaims knowingly.

Drinking cocktails with Denis is a flirty process and the role of bartender could be seen as part confidante, part entertainer as the pop and fizz of Champagne merges with Creme De Cassis, strawberry's and crushed ice to become Claridges classic 'The Flapper'. Delving into The Flappers past is daunting, but I think we can safely assume it's namesake must surely be attached to the roaring 1920's Flapper girl. Perhaps interior designer David Collins payed homage to this deep cerise classic when designing the Claridges bar, upholstered in The Flappers resulting vibrant shade, it's simple to make and gorgeously attractive in it's crystal champagne flute, set off jauntily with a seductive strawberry embelished flourish. Quite fitting as the juiciness, sparkle of champagne and strawberry's evoke a real sense of occasion.

ERIK LORINCZ - SAVOY

'Malecon' is the very charming Erik Lorincz's award winning elixior in the Legacy Cocktail competition. Named after the promenade in Havana, Cuba, Lorincz has somewhat of a philosphical attitude explaining the concept he has successfully endevoured to conjure up within a crystal coupette. He assembles the elements that go into his molten bowl of luxurient liquors, each ingredient appearing to symbolise and represent an attitude of celebration, the main inspiration originating from the passion of the Cuban people. Part of the fun is watching the process, Erik takes a huge chunk of clear ice and splinters a perfectly formed shard ready for the final touch. The cocktail itself consists of Oloroso Sherry, Bacardi Superior Rum, tawny port, lime juice, caster sugar and a few drops of Peychaud's Bitters. Malecon is surprisingly fruity and after some jazzy moments with a cocktail shaker I'm urged to savour the final pouring, ice seductivily glistening amid a pool of potent liquid. 'Look at it, hold it, take a little sip', Erik suggests. I do as I'm told and enjoy the sensation flooding my tastebuds as the golden nectar trickles over my tongue.

31 year old Lorincz has become a force to be reckoned within the bartending world winning DIAGEO RESERVE WORLD CLASS Bartender of the year in 2010 he regards his work with creative artistic integrity saying, 'Perfect cocktail moments are art forms for me'. And believe you me sherry and twany port never tasted so good!

ALESSANDRO PALAZZO - DUKES

As Alessandro Palazzo creates the signature Dukes 'Vesper' with an inventive twist he recalls the history of this classic vodka martini, shaken not stirred... if you get my gist. Indeed this was the favoured tipple of James Bond author Ian Flemming who used to swing by Dukes on a regular basis. Consisting of Lillet, Potocki Vodka, Gin, Angostura bitters stirred and set off with a sliver of lemon peel, 'That's what gives it a ladies appeal!' Palazzo continues to inform me as he measures each component carefully and pours into a martini glass. Over the years the Vesper has created many a heated moment of debate but Alessandro has kept as true to the original as he can be, 'I changed it because quite simply some of the ingredients don't exist any more'. This Homage to Flemming represents both the masculine and feminine slant's to the glamourous characters conjured up in Flemmings books and films but is specifically named after secret agent Vesper Lynnd in Casino Royal.

'The best things are always the simple things', 53 year old Palazzo states with the wonderfully jovial attitude of a seasoned bartender. Infact the experience of cocktail hour pivots not only on the drink itself but on the decadence, ambience and good humour involved. Simple, elegant and glamourous are the notions the Vesper evokes as she sits upon the bar, the clean, sharp tang is at once refreshing and somewhat intoxicating. No one can denny her allure, it's a sexy little drink that exudes class.

AGOSTINO PERRONE - CONNAUGHT

You know these mixologists are an inventive lot! International Bartender of the Year in 2010 Agostino Perrone or Ago as friends and regulars call him, cheekily invented his 'Marcharita' the day before the shoot. 'This one is for Tequilla lovers', he tells me, and further explains how his intention was to merge modern and classic notions into his latest creation. Born and raised in Lake Como, Ago shakes and strains a lime green concoction consisting of green tea cordial, Tequila and lime juice. Presentation is everything and Ago's fancy engraved coupette rimmed with black sea salt sets the tone with a contempoary flourish, the salt positvely dances off the glass creating a fabulous contrast of modernity. The crunch of black sea salt, kick of Tequilla and sweetness of green tea cordial is quite mouth watering, but it's the arresting hue of the vibrant green contents which is really a talking point. Sophisticated and fresh with a quirky dash of good humour, Ago seems to have hit on a most alluring combination.

BRIAN SILVA - RULES

It's quite apparent Bostonian born Brian Silva is a legend in the bartending world. With a history in the biz spanning back 30 years, with residency's at Scotts and The Connaught Silva's aura of calm and knowledge exudes with it a sense of concentration and precision... quite simply put, Brian Silva does what he loves doing best, namely make amazing cocktails! Splashes of guava lime juice, soda, rum, green chartreuse, crushed ice with parcels of shredded mint leaves sit atop of his 'Mojito', a concoction generally affiliated with Cuba but historically attributed to pirate Richard Drake in the 1500's. Suddenly an alluring tower of tantalizing refreshment materializes in a flick of an eye. Brian's focus and vision is all about balance, 'There are percific rules', Brian tells me as he lovingly measures, layers and crushes down each summery and fragrant component into a high ball glass. 'And there is some theatre to it', he adds, 'It's all about the drinks and we change the top 10 drinks list regulary at Rules'. Brian's 'Mojito' is sumptuous, elegant and rejuvenating. A joy to behold, but not for long as I quickly ask for for another one.

LAUREN SHAW - DEAN STREET TOWNHOUSE

Originally from Liverpool 22 year old Lauren Shaw is a relative newcomer to the scene, she's currently months into her residency at Soho's Dean Street Townhouse having spent 3 years honing her craft in Nottingham's 'The Livingroom'. Her choice of cocktail is a spin on the classic 'Breakfast Martini', she's renamed it the 'XX Breakfast Martini', Lemon juice, gin, ginger, marmalade and cranberry juice go into this refreshing, remarkably light but punchy classic gem of a drink, garnished with a swirl of orange peel. The ginger gives it a real kick and makes it almost detoxifying, am I kidding myself here? Lauren goes into the history of the drink as she grates the fresh ginger and spoons a tasty dollop of delicious marmalade into the bottom of a martini glass... originating as the 'Marmalade Martini' by Salvatore Calabrese at the Lainsbourugh Hotel in 2000, it's roots can be traced back to the 1920's as the 'Marmalade Cocktail' by Harry Craddock first published in The Savoy Cocktail Book. Finally as Lauren finishes the final touches to her perfect appertiff and hands over her delightful tipple, I take a mouthwatering gulg and immediately get an uplifting sense of exhilaration.

Princess Julia for GQ Style 2011

Vidal Sassoon... The Interview (Ponystep Magazine)

2011-03-22T17:54:00.000-07:00

The name of Vidal Sassoon is synonymous with an era considered to be the height of decadence considering social concepts and attitude. The 60's 'look' embraced modernity into the creative equasion taking inspiration from contempoary art, design and architecture, Vidal Sassoon was one such person who felt compelled to instigate a need for change.

An orphan for 7 years of his early life and child of worn torn Britain, these factors shaped the young Vidal who soon became aware of the political climate whilst endevouring to throughly revolutionize former concepts of beauty and style... but not without his struggles. His vision, passion and ideals are legendary, Sassoon is forever locked into our consciousness as an innovator. Nowadays Vidal spends his life living between London and Los Angeles. Vidal currently in London town opens his door dressed in a natty grey ensemble complete with matching and rather jauntily placed flat cap, ever the style icon, his presence is at once charming and welcoming as he leads us into his flat full of strategically placed contemporary paintings, sculptures and furniture set out in a minimalist style. Joining us today, John Vial who joined London salon 'realhair' as a creative director 2003 but worked closely with Vidal as part of Sassoons team, being creative director in Asia throughout the 90's. John Vial shares the great passion Vidal has, consequently never really seeing Vidal as so much as a work colleague... more of a Dad!

I am fascinated by Vidal's beginnings, there is a timeless quality to Sassoons aura and I find myself immediatly captivated as the stories begin to unravel. Starting his training in 1942, at Adolf Cohen's salon, 101 Whitechapel Road, 'He was the top guy in the neighbourhood!' Sassoon found himself in the midst of World War Two, age 14, 'Across the road the buildings had been bombed down, no one was rebuilding during the war. Didn’t make any sense to.' Sassoons memory of the time is crystal clear. He remembers how the community supported eachother, 'They were just tucking in with neighbours and in the underground. The tailors union would wait for someone to give them a job for the day.' In the midst of all this trauma hairdresser Adolf Cohen catered for the grooming needs of the area. Who were the people that went to Adolf Cohen’s? Painting a vivid picture, Sassoon explains, 'I would say the local people, but there was an enormous amount of kids in uniform, in the army and women.' Even though times were hard, presentation was of utmost importance, a sense of self preservation prevailed in Cohens salon, 'Trousers pressed, shoes cleaned, nails clipped, all whilst living in the shelters.' Cohen's standards were high, and it's from this initiation Sassoon laid the foundations of his future. The ethos and basic training were to reappear in later years when Sassoon opened his own salon in the mid 50's. Sassoon describes his daily life at the time, 'There were no cleaners then because most of the women were on wool-work and in factories, so we’d have to go and scrub the floors and then scrub the clients.'

Meeting Vidal Sassoon for the first time, I admit I was totally mesmurized, and I'm really not sure if Vidal is actually aware of the effect he seems to create around himself. He's a real eastend boy with a down to earth attitude and that really is part of his affable charm. We got talking on this occasion and I relayed a story of a book milliner Stephen Jones lent me to read some years ago. It was the story of Mayfair hairdresser Mr 'Teasy Weasy' Raymond Bessone.

Mr 'Teasy Weasy' Raymond

At once Vidal rather excitedly tells me he worked under Raymond, it all makes complete sense now I think to myself. Raymond was known for the teased behive hair of the 1950's, all very set and 'dressed' hair confections of the time. 'Yes, that’s why I broke off. My year with Raymond was just wonderful, I really learned how to control a pair of scissors. But without discipline from my first job at Adolf Cohen I probably wouldn’t have got to Raymond.' Raymond was somewhat of a showman, with TV appearances, even a fake French accent and become somewhat of a celebrity of the day. Vidal was keen to soak up all the knowledge he could, 'And part of that was leaving places I wasn’t learning anything, so I’d take off. Once I was 6 weeks without work as I earned a bit of a reputation as someone who didn’t stick around.' Vidal pays homage to Mr Teasy Weasy, 'That was my last year of training before I went out on my own. And it was the best year. He taught me how to cut hair, with scissors, to get rid of the shears and all the other nonsense... Raymond, lovely work, the very very best of the other style. The best of what was going on before we came along.' This was about 1952, two years later in 1954 Vidal Sassoon would be opening his first salon in Bond Street, Mayfair, revolutionizing the way people thought about hair. 'It was imperative that we got rid of all that backcombing. Women were taking off in the wind.' Partial to a bit of backcombing myself I am fascinated by the way Vidal took fundamental elements of Teasy Weasie Raymond's cutting techniques and set a creative backlash, working with the hair rather than against it. This was all rather radical in the mid to late 50's and it wasn't really until the 60's that the concepts Vidal had been pioneering eventually saw the light of day. From his small salon Vidal stuck by his guns and perfected the 3 basic cuts that would become Sassoon cornerstones.

The kind of ethos and basic training Vidal first encountered via Cohen and Raymond carried a high standard that Vidal took through into his own realm. Looking the part and presenting yourself in a smart fashion became fundamental to the 'look' of Sassoon. It must have become apparent Raymond saw in Vidal a drive and ambition... 'Compared to many of the stylists at Raymond’s who’d been there for many years, I’d only been there one year, he said to me “I’m opening in Cardiff and would you like to go there take over and manage?” I told him I would, but I was much more interested in the artistic side. I asked could it be named 'Vidal And Raymond'. He said, "no we don’t do that, as it’s not part of company policy".' Vidal continues, 'I realised that while Cardiff may be a charming city, I was thinking of New York'.

Funnily enough years later John Vial would open Sassoons in... Cardiff, Vial explains, 'Vidal and I opened up Sassoon in Cardiff in about 1990. It was great fun'. Vial turns to Vidal noting, 'It’s funny that Raymond was offering you the job of opening up there and you were saying “no it’s Cardiff”, and yet 40 years later one of your stylists would be doing just that.' John Vial goes on to relay the excitement and stir the Sassoon salon ceated, 'It was a really big deal, it was like being a celebrity. Everybody in Wales at the time had long curly hair and all our kids working there had bonkers geometric haircuts and neon hair. You knew who’d been there. It was amazing. It must have been your 25th salon'. As part of the Sassoon team John Vial travelled the world, 'We had loads of great trips in Asia, Hong Kong and Singapore, Tokyo, Japan. For me that was my favourite time in hairdressing, running round with Vidal, Ronnie, Tim and Martin.' John Vial is curious to know about Vidal's best time in hairdressing? Vidal considers the question, 'Obviously the design side, from '54 to '67 when we brought out the 'Greek Goddess'. I’ll never forget that. We took two rooms at Grosvenor House and spent a whole weekend to get it perfected. When people were tired they took a few hours to sleep or got some food. We had a salon there, Roger Thompson and me. By Monday morning, Annie Humphrey had done the perm and Roger Thompson had done a beautiful geometric cut. It was beautiful, I said, “That’s it, lets photograph it”.

John notes how the impact this new concept of styling a 'perm' must have had at the time, 'Even that was a massive revolution. It was the first ever wash and wear perm. Permed hear was always previously set or blow dried out'. Rather humourously Vidal and Vial wonder who actually perms or has perms nowadays, Vidal continues, 'I’ve seen young girls with beautiful hair that I can’t tell if they have a perm, but I guess we’ve put a stop to perming, it’s very old fashioned. It’s all in the cut and colour.'

But I diverse, this pivotal moment signaled a change for Vidal Sassoon, 'After that I went away and thought to myself, 'Do I stand behind the chair for the rest of my life, where I’d had marvellous times, or do we go international?' From that moment Sassoon the brand was born, 'So we started a show team and a product company. You don’t do that without superb people around you. We had Rodger Thompson in New York and Christopher Brooker in London. A marvellous team and very good management.'

On a parallel, Sassoon was on the path to revolutionizing hair with amazing cutting techniques, at the same time he was also revolutionizing the the way he promoted himself, the way his staff dressed and the look of his salons, the complete package was considered. Later Vidal Sassoon would involve his own branded products into his burgeoning empire, up till then there really hadn't been anything like it before Sassoon came along. With vision, incredible drive and a real perfectionists attitude he had a precise way of going about things and making his dream become a reality. 'The precision was in the discipline... the ideas that come out of peoples’ heads. You can’t make rules for that. Though the more hard work you put in the more likely you are to make something happen. I must go back to the team because all the top people that I had, had chosen to come; I wanted them to feel that this was their company. And they did. Not for the shares but for the love of the work. We‘ve had people cry when we’ve had to tell them “we don’t think you’re going to make it”. They would say, “Where can I go?” The standard was and is incredibly high, Vidal himself set the precedent, 'To open up new salons meant training, training, training. The teaching team had their own spiritual way, they were proud that you could get hold of someone very young and teach, teach, teach and the artistic team oversee. So the organisation was terrific which allowed me the freedom of working around in New York and getting involved with products.' This work ethic is still with him, and Vidal, age 82 has continued with a schedule a person less than half his age would feel exhausted at the prospect of, 'These last two years have been madness, I’ve written my own book.' Vidal: The Autobiography' 'Which', he adds, 'Is not ghost-written.' Then there’s the film, 'Vidal Sassoon The Movie' produced by Michael Gordon, who incidently is really quite a legend in the hairdressing field himself having founded salon and product line Bumble & Bumble. Vidal proudly exclaims, 'The film has been taken by the New York Film Festival and was one of the top six out of 60. It’s going out in the cinemas in February 2011'.

Vidal and grace

What do you think of when you think of when you think of Vidal the man, I mean the real man? I don't know about you but I think of the 60’s and possibly Sassoons many peaking moments as he created images for some of the most glamourous women in the world including Twiggy, Carol Channing, Peggy Moffitt and Grace Coddington. Sassoon was and is a sexy and incredibly driven guy, there he was in the thick of things, swinging in London and NYC creating these amazingly modern haircuts. Touted as a sex symbol at the time Vidal looks bemused, and modestly replies when I put the question to him, whether he ever considered his sex symbol status, 'No, if other people thought I was then that’s fine.' Adding with a saucy glint in his eye, 'They were wonderful days, penicillin cured everything, you didn’t have to worry about a damn thing!' Ha, ha, ha, oh Mr Sassoon, so the 60’s were all swinging parties and free love? 'Well,' Vidal confidentially tells me, 'It was all the same as it is now. Just a very open society and if you fancied one another it was very simple. It was sometimes easier than it was to get a hot dinner... Well the food in London was dreadful!' He adds, 'Then, not now.'

Being in the middle of it all, Vidal set about the next phase, 'The thing that really happened was that we opened an academy and it just grew and grew. People were just coming from many different countries.' Vidal further explains, 'Our way was very different, there was a French way and there are other ways of doing hair and they do it beautifully. The young people wanted to learn our way. So when you have people from all over the world that want to learn the Vidal Sassoon method, we are their teacher, I don’t think you can go better than that. You could make a billion dollars on products, whatever you do, that’s only money. This is affecting the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and that is very important to me. And very exciting.' It's precisely this optimistic attitude that continues to inspire Vidal and his team, John Vial reiterates, 'Everybody that you work with at Sassoon has it. Everybody was proud to be part of what was, and still is perceived to be the best in the world. And you wanted to be as good as your contemporaries, you want to work with the best. You’d always be looking round and thinking, “that’s a good haircut, better make sure my graduation is clean”.

Vidal Sassoon is philosophical when thinking about hair, 'Thing is, what other part of the body can anybody use to create shapes and angles? Only plastic surgery and that takes months. Hair can be done within a day.' Possibly it's this way of seeing that became part of concept. 'People used to say, “I bet you look first at peoples’ head of hair?’’ And I’d say, “No, I look at the ankles and then work my way up.” Adding rather logically, 'Because I wanted to get a feel of the bone shape and the body shape. Nobody objected to that.' At the time Vidal must have appeared quite eccentric, in the book first published in 1978 'Cutting Hair The Vidal Sassoon Way' Vidal from the late 1950's is described as a 'crazy young man in Bond Street trying to do something really new with hair'. Advantguarde concepts were not always accepted as immediately as we might imagined back then, but Vidal persevered, 'The excitement of working on a substance growing from the human form, that no one else can do, deserves much more credit than it gets.'

Next stop New York and although Vidal had always had his heart set on 'the city that never sleeps' it seems he happened to get there quite by chance, 'It was very strange, there was a show in New

York, which showed hairdressers from 14 different countries. They asked me if I’d be the guy to represent Britain. “Why not?” I said, I was very proud to. The show was on a Sunday at the Pierre Hotel.' It was 1964 and Vidal Sassoon's reputation had already spread across the Atlantic, 'We thought that no one would be there, but the press came and we were told by the editors that they had to have pictures in by

Sunday for the Monday morning papers. So I was suddenly cutting these three girls and I gave them all different haircuts and shapes and suddenly we were surrounded by press. There was some beautiful hairdressing going on all around us, but it was hairdressing. What we were doing were geometric cuts to suit bone structure. I used to say, “Eliminate the superfluous”. Create beautiful shapes. The following day we had coverage in the five main newspapers and on every beauty page we had pictures.' The buzz must been incredible, 'So suddenly I get a call saying a Mr Richard Saloman would like to speak with you. I went to see him and we had a chat for a few hours and he said, “O.k. I’ve heard enough, I’ll buy a building on Madison Avenue, you go there, spend a year training your staff especially for New York”. Vidal continues, 'I said, “I don’t have the kind of money to do this”. He said, “my problem is the money, yours is the artistic problem”, and suddenly were in New York without literally spending a penny.' The 60's really were a time of possibilty and Vidal was well aware of the opportunities... '1964 we did the show. 1965 we opened. There is a little bit of luck to go with the talent. You’ve somehow got to be at the right place at the right time. The 60’s were definitely it. The Beatles had just come over and the Rolling Stones were soon to follow. It was a total madhouse; it was like being in London'. Sassoon became affiliated with the London invasion and underground happening scenes of New York and by the mid 80's Andy Warhol even modeled for him endorsing Sassoon's hairspray for men. 'Well Andy did a commercial for me. A magazine commercial not a film. I’d have loved it had he done a filmed one. Thing is you met so many people being in the craft.'

The hairs styles emerging from the doors of Sassoons soon became seminal and iconic, the asymmetric bob, geometric bob and the five point cut as worn by Grace Coddington. Styles such as the Nancy Kwan, the Greek Goddess and the Graduation, the pixie cut Vidal gave Mia Farrow in film Rosemary's Baby and of course Mary Quants classic bob truly epitomised London's hip scene in the 60's era. In Europe too the atmosphere was beginning to embrace the future, Vidal remembers, 'Grace [Coddington] was walking around Paris and these models were coming over and asking, where can I get my haircut and she would say, “London”. John Vial, too young to have lived through the experience recently spent time with Grace at an airport, he interestingly quizzed her on her personal experience of the time asking, 'Have you got any idea what you two did? She replied saying, 'She didn’t realise at the time what was happening, it was just what you were doing. She had no idea of the revolution that was actually taking place.'

Sassoon has great affection for his craft and the world eventually caught up with the ideals he and his team pioneered, 'All those years, we all go through it, when you’re an unknown and you’re struggling and learning, it never happens suddenly'. Vidal is very aware of the grass roots role of being a hairdresser, 'I think hairdressers are some of the nicest people I’ve ever known. You know why? Every day they have to please every client. They can’t walk in a bad mood and do bad work. They’ve got to please them (the clients) and make them feel and look better than when they came in. I find very few miserable hairdressers'. There is something very rewarding about hairdressing, I did hairdressing from '76 to '78. I totally agree that it’s really nice to have that one to one interaction, John Vial readily agrees, 'It’s almost like giving somebody a gift. When you are pleased with it and you see the client walking away pleased'. Vidal Sassoon himself took very special care of clients and colleagues, time and time again he mentions his team and the importance of the aims they were all working towards whether in his own salon, on session work or going on to set up their own ventures. 'It's all about bringing elegance to the craft. I once sent a guy home because he had dirty shoes.' And on taking care of clients and the importance of the role of the hairdresser, 'Here’s a lovely story,' Vidal says, 'Suzy Parker was the only one I’d take downstairs and give her the rollers, pin curls, the whole bit. Because she had straight-ish hair that when it was dried in an old fashioned dryer, all you have to do was put your fingers in it and it would fall into lovely shapes.' Later on Suzy had a proposition, 'She called me and told me she was doing a two-day shoot', and added, 'I’ve asked if you’d do the hair. It was for some major company. I said to Suzy that they just wouldn’t pay. They think that we (hairdressers) just work for

the credits. She said, “Charge them a thousand pounds.” Vidal realized it was very important then to assert his role, 'A thousand pounds was a lot of money in those days. So the guy from the company gets on the phone and say’s “Mrs Parker wants you to do they hair for our company and we’ll send you lots of products.” I said, “No you won’t. Two days work, it’ll be a thousand pounds.’’He said, “What?” and slammed the phone down. He called back an hour later and said, “Mrs Parker insists, you’ll get your thousand pounds.” Vidal felt so strongly about setting standards he really stood his ground... A case in example, 'The films that Leonard did with Stanley Kubrick. Leonard had to do phenomenal hair because it made the picture, it made the frame. There was quite a few [The Shining, Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket], They were so special and I thought, “My Goodness, no mention, no awards.” The way they treated hairdressers… they’d say, “we’ll send you £100.00 worth of product.” And I’d say, “No you wont, you’ll pay me.” I said, I wouldn’t degrade not only myself but also the craft.' John Vial agrees, 'I think all of us that have opened our own salons have carried that on the Sassoon discipline. We still take the same care, love and attention.' Vidal adds, 'It’s our students that have come out of Sassoon and kept the standards going. People that have been with us for years and then left, opened their own salons, they’ve kept the standards, and we couldn’t do it alone. They’ve kept the international side going, which I’m very proud of. It is vital that the people we train go out and train.'

The main thread of inspiration in Vidal Sassoons life and the legacy Sassoon stands for continues with an honest and determined energy, Vidal sums up his life's work, 'I would say the great loyalty that I’ve had from people around me, because you have to inspire to bring out the best... And that the spirit and energy is still there'.

By Princess Julia for Ponystep Magazine

POLY STYRENE for Clash Mag

2011-03-22T17:23:00.000-07:00

POLY STYRENE

In '76 Poly Styrene began a career as the confrontational singer of X-Ray Spex, her image and music immediately caught the imagination of a small group of musicians, artists, and rebels that soon became the epicenter of a movement that within the year become known as Punk Rock. Punk was fundamentally anti fashion, playing with the idea of rebellion and confrontation, the stars of the scene becoming style icons in their own right. In a matter of months X-ray Spex and Poly became a fixture on the tiny but burgoning scene playing gigs at infamous Roxy in Covent Garden and a residence at The Man In Moon pub on The Kings Road, which was really where it was all happening in the 70's. All this is well documented and Poly Styrene's legacy, which spans over 30 years, has become quite legendary. Her music and personal style of the day was somewhat unique even then as she strode into London with her short hair, braced teeth and Oxfam clothes trimmed off with ankle socks and stilettos. 'I tried you know, I did have an amazing amount of confidence, I think you do when you're young, I just did not care, I just went out there wacky.' She adds with a sense of humor, 'I remember my mum refused to walk down the road with me because I had odd socks on... anyone would have thought I had a mini skirt on up to my cheeks. Jesus, she wouldn't go out with me....' She remembers with an amused tone. When describing the way Poly presented herself and the way it went with the music, the misconception is that everyone thinks in the days of punk everyone walked around in bin liners with saftey pins hanging out of theirs noses. In actual fact everybody had their own individual look. Siouxsie Sioux went for an S & M look, whilst Jordan wore Seditionaires jazzed up with skyscraper hair and geometric makeup . Girls like Tampax and Cat Woman customised themselves with an uniqueness that would make you look twice even today. Poly Styrene stood out for her way of jumbling things around. 'Doing it on a budget, you don't really get paid a lot of money when you first start gigging, living hand to mouth that can make you a bit more creative...' Wearing clothes that represent your personality at any given time, Poly's personal wardrobe flourished in X-Ray Spex, 'You've got put your own personaility into what you wear.' And certainly Poly's wardrobe assemblages reflected the ironic but socially conscious side of her music. 'Oh Bondage Up Yours' a two fingered salute to society, Poly donned a a political stance and looked like the lyrics she sung... 'Some people say little girls should be seen and not heard'. Poly could be seen and heard! I asked her whether she was aware of her impact of what she was doing, 'It's funny', she says, 'when you do something, you don't think about that sort of thing at the time, you just go out there and do something'. Her DIY stance was all very tongue in cheek and her short lived self named shop in the Kings Road became a hang out for bands and style seekers alike. 'In the beginning I was well styled focused'. She adds. 'but later on I was playing so much it got a bit more Oxfamy... we got so busy that i didn't have so much time.'

Her image was at that that time really was very individual, 'I thought that was quite important,' she explains, 'Early on I tried to create a different look, with short hair and I had braces anyway, that was different. Dresses by Sophie Horgan, I had these stilettos and the day glo rolled down socks with tights and leotards.' Her ingenious attitude developed as time went on but by 1979 it seemed X-Ray Spex was over when Poly Styrene left the band amid a flurry of rumours. A debut album 'Germ Free Adolescents' and a string of singles behind them, in those few years Poly had created a lasting legacy with her various looks and unique music.

Much of X-Ray Spex's music became anthems of the time, living on through the 80's, 90's and 00's to the present day. Just like the image, Poly's music has become seminal, she says, 'I did feel there was something about it, I just thought this feels right, it feels like it's connecting with everything in the world. Sometimes you get a little magic feeling about what you create, and that album has a magic feeling about it.' As I talk to Poly she reveals her song writing process, 'Sometimes I don't feel like I've written my songs, it's like I've been channeling them, coming through me with the melodies.' There were no other bands at the time that had your particular sound, I state and Poly readily agrees, 'Yes I wanted that, some of the other bands had a nilistic end of the world doom and gloom. I didn't believe that, i'm quite an optimist really. I tried not to be like the other bands, not that I didn't like them because I liked the Pistols, I liked the Clash. Some of the influences I did like, John Lydon for his vocal style and the Clash for their high energy. I saw a lot of those bands live at The Roxy, The Jam were always very good. It was good to be a bit different...'

Living very much in the now Poly Styrene is presently battling with cancer, she's in reflective mood as she tells me, 'It's quite amazing that I get all this positive feed back - how it's influenced other people. As long as you can influence for positivity, I think thats great.' Her current album Generation Indigo produced by Youth makes a reverent nod towards X-Ray Spex such as on the track 'LUV' nevertheless it has a forward thinking attitude attached to it. Deciding to do something again after a gig at the Roundhouse in 2008, she was amazed at the response she got and it was suggested she start work on a new album, 'It could have been an X- Ray Spex album but it would have to have had that particular sound.' She decided on a more contempoary feeling, something which gave her scope to experiment in a less limited way. 'It was liberating to do it as a fresh start.' When Youth was suggested as the producer, Poly went away for a bit and came back with 20 songs.'Obviously we lost some a long the way, I just thought it was a new experience, I'd heard of Youth but i'd never met him. I thought why not try it, i'd never really worked in the indusrty in that way before where a producer had been suggested and I really enjoyed it, so that's how Generation Indigo came about.'

Princess Julia for CLASH MAGAZINE

Leigh Bowery 50th Birthday

2011-03-16T09:35:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it the amazing and influential Leigh Bowery would have been 50 this year, to celebrate his life and work the ICA are holding a one day event on the 1st April, kicking off with a talk at 1.30pm from bezzie mate Sue Tilley who relaunches her book about their friendship 'The Life And Times Of An Icon'

Leigh bowery

I first met Leigh in the early 80's... Leigh Bowery experimented with notions of body distortion. AIDS was becoming an epidemic, Bowery represented this by painting yellow huge yellow circles on his face. His weekly club Taboo was a melting pot of ideas showcasing Leigh's increasingly wild attire and social commentary on sexuality, body adornment and humorous but valid views on style. Bowery arrived in London from Australia in the early 80's and started developing a small collection, 'Pakis In Outer Space' which set him on a path that in the future saw him designing costumes for dancer Michael Clark. Hilton Als explains, *'Bowery's great stroke a year into his London stay was to turn the uniform of the dandy on it's head, he combined Mannerism with Modernism. He parodied excess'. His vision, which at the time was regarded as quite spectacular was infact Bowery's attempt at wearable fashion with a twist. Futuristic maybe but Bowery's influence can be felt in many of the advant designers of today. Leigh himself said, +'The looks were a total package. I can't think of one thing without the other. When I'm working on a look, everything is taken into consideration'. Bowery paraded his latest looks at the clubs he frequented, he used social occasions to confront and have fun both with his own persona and the reaction he caused around him. Equally Bowery's day look was quite confronting on a subversive level, he got into wigs which he customized resulting in toupees shawn so you could see the webbing amid tufts of nylon hair. Other times the look could be quite coiffured. He took to wearing trainers inside clog type shoes, all in all he looked quite eccentric, he had pierced cheeks and with natural make up his dimpled piercing's gave him a perverted air. Still he insisted that he could pass for 'normal'. Leigh Bowery eventually poured his creative energy into various unique stage costumes for his own performances which included giving birth and a live enima show, he gave up the idea of designing collections as such, but created further outfits for Michael Clark eventually becoming part of his dance company with cameo roles. His art status increased with a week long installation piece at the Anthony D'Offay Gallery in 1988, his friend Sue Tilley explains the scenario, $'There was a simple set, just Leigh and a chaise-longue. In the gallery he had the sound of traffic playing and each day a different smell was wafted around, one day banana the next marshmallows. Every day Leigh wore another one of his looks. He would lie on the chaise-longue and then maybe prowl around or do some high kicks or keep a pose for ten minutes depending on waht sort of mood he was in.' Leigh later became a model for artist Lucien Freud and formed his band Minty, he died in 1994.

S U P E R N A T U R E

2011-03-06T10:58:00.000-08:00

Artist Matthew Stone asked me to contribute a written title for an imaginary show to take place at the ICA entitled THE NEXT 100 YEARS, as part of the 2011 ICA fund raising gala. I came up with

'S U P E R N A T U R E', which came to me via a disco song by Cerrone.

'Once upon a time
Science opened up the door
We would feed the hungry fields
Till they couldn't eat no more'

'S U P E R N A T U R E' conjures up ideas of lost studies, diagrams and landscapes. Future scientific breakthroughs in communication, personal appearance, modifying nature to suit human needs and aesthetic.

'But the potions that we made

Touched the creatures down below

And they grow up in a way

That we'd never seen before'

Gainsborough

Angus Fairhurst

Simon Popper

'They were angry with the man
Cause changed their way of life
And they take their sweet revenge
As they trample through the night'

Richard Long

'For hundred miles or more
You could hear the people cry
But there is nothing you can do
Even God is on their side
(God is on, God is on, God is on their side)'

Wolfgang Tillmans

Live sex life drawing class with porn star Ashley Ryder

'Cars will break the light
Come flowing in the air
The creature will decide
Who goes where'

Installation from Scottee

Adham Faramawy

R.I.B. REST IN BEEF

Film by Angel Rose and Owen Parry

'How can I explain

Things are different today
Darkness all around
No one makes a sound
Such a sad affair'
No one seems to care'

cindy sherman

Marc Quinn - Buck Angel

Orlan

Martin C De Waal

'Better watch out
There's no way to stop it now

You can't escape
It's too late
Look what you've done
There's no place that you can run
The monsters made
We must pray'

Victorian venus

Hans Bellmer

Sue Webster, Tim Noble



'Maybe nature has a plan
To control the ways of man
He must start from scratch again
Many battles must he win
Till he earns his place on earth'

Installation Paul Kindersley

Yoko Ono light installation


'Like the other creatures do
Will there be a happy end
Now that all depends on you'

DO IT YOUR SELF

2011-03-06T06:15:00.000-08:00

CLASH MAGAZINE

DO IT YOURSELF

In todays musical climate visual communication is key for bands, singers and clubs alike. In the late 70's, as we all know MTV proved a pivotal moment for the 'pop video' to evolve, custom made with a view to airplay, poptastic film and live coverage endlessly played out on our TV screens. All this meant big budgets and lavish production that the bigger labels could afford, in the affluent 80's our pop stars became superheroes exploring their own their own musical dramas, 3 minute epics filmed in glamourous locations and film studios propped up to the nines with fantastical storylines and extras... or in the case of Michael Jackson over 10 minutes of filmic epilogue. The so called 'underground' scene relied on snatches of super 8 film, low fi endevors pieced together that have since become rather novel in their niavety as they verge on arthouse sensilbilities in order to get a message across. At the time film maker and artist John Maybury used the pop video format to breach and explore new and instant technologies, chroma keyed backdrops and special effects became part of Mayburys artistic style. Working with Neneh Cherry, Marc Almond and Sinead O'Connor he stepped up and embraced the pop video as breach between his original art films and full length features.

John Maybury experimental film 80's

As for me, I became fascinated early on, being part of Visages 'Fade To Grey' and working with Godley and Creme who created this seminal video intrigued me. At the time the digital age seemed like something out of Star Trek - the original series! But here we were filming straight to screen in a set up that resembled something not far away from Dr Who's Tardis.

Technology really has moved on! Todays version of super 8 could be on your phone, computers have made available not only the recording of instant music but instant film, and yes I am stating the obvious perhaps but come on let's all make a pop video, face facts we're all film makers now... as well as dj's, photographers and musicians. The world of the App is empowering us to record snatches of memory and thus create something that appears everlasting, which seems to be a thing that us humans are addicted to, overwhelming evidence suggests that mankind likes nothing more than to record his own activities and tell everyone about it, me included!

So much for futurism, nostalgia also has it's place in the fast world of image. Film maker and photographer Emmaalouise Smith has tapped into a style which resembles early film noir when she creates her boyfriend Brandon Jacobs' films for his band Good Night And I Wish*. Seeking out dead film stock she puts things together in a very traditional way, processing film and waiting for the result can be a lengthy and pecarious excercise when compared to digital downloading, but she says, 'Hand processing super 8 in a dark room is an art in itself; temperature, light and how much of a perfectionist I'm feeling on the day often hinder the final result. With expired finds there is definitely an unpredictability and somehow spiritual quality to it'.

Goodnight And I Wish by Emmaalouise Smith

On the club scene self expression is ripe, and the current explosion of nifty edits record the club event itself and the stars of clubland in full glory soundtracked with suitable pulsating beats. Gabriel Gettman who has worked in the realm of fashion producing experimental film shorts recently concocted a film for Circus, for his version he sliced together a clever collage of stylish club goers in full color attack. Photographer Dorota Mulczynska likewise is producing film shorts directed by the artists and performers from London's The Ace Of Clubs.

Fruit Loop

At Shabba Dabba Da they regularly update and record their hedonistic nights and over at Neo Romantic night The Face it's all go with the posing and fb pasting!

Film makers Tree and Adam Carr cut a dash when they projected a vision of their night Switchblade on Youtube last year, they cleverly injected and spliced apt cult film classics into the equasion.

Switchblade promo

Artistic license always hits the spot, think Andy Warhol and The Velvet Underground, think Wolfgang Tillmans or Derek Jarman and the Petshop Boys. And perhaps thats where todays technology sits so well, the tools that enable us to explore the elements of creative expression and imagery combined with the notion of immediacy... start a band, do some gigs, flip on your Flip, get editing and secure a deal!

Words- Princess Julia

NOTES ON LOVE

2011-02-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

To be consumed mentally and physically, being 'in love', the desire to find oneness in which ever way possible and meet a soul mate is the thing us humans fall for at some point in our lives, whether we like it or not. Some years ago I wrote a piece called 'Love Is A Chemical Imbalance' based on my own experiences. The trappings of 'romance' are glamourised, we crave, dream and scheme for the of moment of being 'in love' to arrive, and arrive it most certainly does in most unexpected ways. Romance is the stuff of novels, songs and of course everyday life, the search for the perfect partner to spend seconds, minutes, hours, days and years to come. The ethereal dream, the clouded vision of pure love, the craving for true love and finding it is also somewhat like an addicts fix.

I have since discovered that in the last ten years scientists have discovered that I wasn't far away from my initial thoughts, so I did some research. Along with sex hormones testosterone and oestrogen, which kick start the process of love, adrenaline, dopamine and serotonin take lovers onto the next stage and finally the latest discovery, that oxytocin and vasopressin, both trigger the final bonding and attachment stage in various ways. In 2000, Andreas Bartels and Semir Zeki found out when they scanned the brains of people madly in love that infact only a small section of the brain was active, and they weren't the parts associated with friendships and other emotional states such as fear and anger. Not only that the 'in love' areas were the same as those affected in a cocaine user.

Brain scan of love...

*'Then there is attraction, or the state of being in love (what is sometimes known as romantic or obsessive love). This is a refinement of mere lust that allows people to home in on a particular mate. This state is characterised by feelings of exhilaration, and intrusive, obsessive thoughts about the object of one's affection. Some researchers suggest this mental state might share neurochemical characteristics with the manic phase of manic depression. Dr Fisher's work, however, suggests that the actual behavioural patterns of those in love — such as attempting to evoke reciprocal responses in one's loved one — resemble obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).' Source: Economist, 12 February 2004. * “Why We Love: The Nature and Chemistry of Romantic Love”, by Helen Fisher.

Interesting talk from Helen Fisher...

As a self confessed romance addict, I'm fascinated by the compulsive notion of being in love, how we select our love interests, what makes them work and what doesn't. For romantic love to exist there seems there must be a longing and yearning not to mention the thrill of the chase. The possible notion of doom initially may not be the focus of this idlylic state of high romance. Are we all looking to subconcionsly find partners that resemble of our parents? Nature, nurture? If we were asked for the traits we might admire in a future love match we might say, humor, kindness, power and money. Infact in an experiment it was found it takes between 90 seconds and 4 minutes just to decide if you fancy someone and it is possible to 'fall in love' approximately just over 30 minutes after meeting. It seems nature has ways of deciding for you...

*But what is the role of the brain in the stage of love? One chemical, oxytocin, plays an important role in romantic love as a sexual arousal hormone and makes women and men calmer and more sensitive to the feelings of others. Physical and emotional cues, processed through the brain, trigger the release of oxytocin. For example, a partner's voice, look or even a sexual thought can trigger its release. Attachment to someone has been linked to chemicals released from the brain known as endorphins that produce feelings of tranquility, reduced anxiety, and comfort. These chemicals are not as exciting as those released during the attraction stage, but they are more addictive and are part of what makes us want to keep being around that person we are in love with. In fact, the absence of these chemicals when we lose a loved one plays a part in why we feel so sad. But is that it? Are chemical releases triggered by the brain when we think of or are in the presence of our partner all there really is behind those "I love you's"? *Love In The Brain, Claire Smiga

Artifying love Genesis P Orridge and Lady Jane intellected a process of united cosmetic surgery. Falling for eachother they become 'Genesis Breyer P-Orridge', and cultivated a process which symbolized their great love 'We started out, because we were so crazy in love, just wanting to eat each other up, to become each other and become one. And as we did that, we started to see that it was affecting us in ways that we didn't expect. Really, we were just two parts of one whole; the pandrogyne was the whole and we were each other's other half.'

Genesis Breyer P-Orridge

For most people that may be a bit extreme, personally I absolutely get it. I get why people carve eachothers names on body parts and trees, send love letters, notes and generally enjoy the euphoric rush only being in lust and love can give. In reality it's a basic human compulsion but obviously the complexities of human behavior can confuse matters at times, but isn't that all part of it. Happy Valentines!

Princess Julia