Interviews, Venison & Soap Vases

Lovely hipster view from the train...

As usual, the event I am writing about was a few weeks ago because I am slightly behind at the moment! Maybe it was even last week... I don't know, I've lost track of the concept of time!

Basically, Blane Chapman over at Chav in Skinny Jeans was conducting an interview with the crazily multi-talented Ollie Olanipekun, and I popped along for the day to photograph it and generally hang out/eat Mcdonalds/meet up with Georgie. 

I spotted a lovely t-shirt shop with the nerdiest photography t-shirts, might have to pop back and get one! Hasselblad please!

The interview took place at The Old Blue Last, and when I told my Dad about this on the phone, he was going on about how in the old days it was good and how his Girlfriend used to hang out there a lot. Apparently there was a guy who used to play piano there... so that's interesting... my only experience of it was extremely wasted, but I noticed how lovely it was in the daytime this time around! I took some photos of the surroundings:

Massive gap in the floor... standard!

During the actual interview bit, I was dotting around trying to get the best images possible with a 50mm fixed lens (feeling a bit like the worst paparazzo ever/an unrelenting stalker), totally got in some guys way and then he ended up moving to the other side of the pub... I think the images came out very well regardless! To hear/see the actual interview of Ollie's exploits of a very successful guy moving from Coventry to London, you're gonna have to wait until Blane decides to publish it!

My fave portrait!

We then met Georgie and took ourselves over to McDonalds like the classy people we are, then met my old friend Elliot at the gallery Haunch of Venison, where he is working.

Georgie excited to see art!

George and me

Blane pondering art and/or life

You will be SHOCKED when I tell you that all of those figures (aside from the painting obviously) were made of SOAP. I kid you not. The Korean artist Meekyoung Shin has recreated sculptures and classical Chinese porcelain. In soap. It's all about dislocation and translation, heightened by some vases being presented on the crates they are shipped over in, clearly marked "Korea". 

I will leave you on this massive photo-essay of a post with a lovely picture of some typical East London graffiti that made me smile.

Setbuild Project

Here is a link to a stop motion film of the wonderful, wonderful (ahem) setbuild project which cost £500 and made me ill from stress...

SETBUILD PROJECT

I am the one with the awful grey hoodie... (edit: there was a lot of grey hoodie going on that week, your guess is as good as mine. Although I am sporting a fetching leopard print jumper that has since been relegated to pyjama wear...) In all honesty I did have loads of fun and I didn't think my course could get more challenging than say, recreating an entire film scene... designing and producing an exhibition is definitely more so.

Here is the original film scene:

And our rendition:

we did pretty well I think. All furniture was made by the team (with generous help from model maker Paul Coley) and everything was either made or sourced by us.

Shot on Hasselblad, lighting by Arri.

london streetstyle

Visual Seduction

The title of my latest project, I had to extend or create a new campaign for a chosen brand.

I chose the wonderful Tom Ford, and here are the results!

Got good feedback today from my group critique, so happy! The models like them too which is fab.

APC style

Some shots in the style of APC for Nadine's new project.

I don't post often enough

but there you go...

I have finished my book "Sally Murray"... that needs to be photographed and scanned and what have you for here... however I am bedridden, so I will focus on the new project for now.

It's basically Fashion and Advertising, and I need to create an ad for an existing brand, taking their current campaigns and history into account.

SO:

I narrowed it down to Burberry, as that's where my knowledge and photographic talent is best placed I think. I had models in mind, the clothing sorted, black and white straight portraits etc.

OR:

I was really liking the look of Tom Ford's campaigns, the AW 09 always caught my eye in magazines because to be honest I wanted to be the girl in the campaign and be with the guy! And then this season they've come out with a great continuation in the shape of Nicholas Hoult and an attractive blonde OTT topless model with the male chauvinistic theme of her combing his hair. It will be tricky to come up with something along the lines of this, and to work out the lighting and do it as well as Tom has been but this is the one I've decided to do!

Very exciting. I was up until 6am searching for models and what have you, will update when I can.

Grace Jones

Photography: Myself
Editing: Hayley Powell
Styling: Nicole Allan & Nadine Blagdon

Model: Nicholette

Home for the Holidays

in pictures.....

With a compact camera & Blackberry ... it's the way forward

We went to The Old Blue Last last night for a bit of New Years Eve merriment, today we went for our take on the traditional family New Year's Day dinner.