Amelia’s Magazine | University of Central Lancashire: Graduate Fashion Week 2012 Catwalk Review

Hayley Harrison GFW 2012 UCLan by Alice Hair

Hayley Harrison by Alice Hair

Before attending my first Graduate Fashion Week show, I had a little look around the stands to see what would jump out at me without the glitz and glamour of the catwalk. University of Central Lancashire immediately got my attention thanks to full-sized toiles of Xiaoping (Fiona) Hwangs intricately pleated clothing on display. I chatted with UCLan lecturer Kate Ball, who gave me her tips of who to look out for on the catwalk. Xiaoping was on her list, as well as Claire Acton‘s hair-inspired silhouettes with oversized perspex hair clips, Talia Golchin who created silhouettes based on old Victorian brothel imagery and Emma Guilfoyle who experimented with large-scale prints of John Major. “It all sounds a bit mad but it’s done in a really innovative way,” assured Kate, and after flipping through student portfolios and seeing amazing use of colour, pattern and a healthy dose of illustration (always good) I was ready for the catwalk show.

Claire Acton

Claire Acton GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Claire Acton GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

Claire Acton opened the show with, well exactly what lecturer Kate Ball described, but much better than I imagined. Fun ideas are great, but fun ideas produced to this standard are amazing. Fabric was turned into strong graphic lines by clever strips cut to look like hair, pinned out of the way of the printed faces peeking underneath. Young, exciting and colourful, Claire was a perfect choice to open the show with, and the use of perspex accessories (which seemed to be everywhere this graduate fashion week) was spot-on. Claire has already been raved about in the press for her impressive collection, as well as a runner-up for the Gold Award. I’m expecting we’ll see more of her brilliantly executed work soon.

Talia Golchin

Talia Golchin GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Talia Golchin GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

For Talia’s collection curvy, illustrated female figures balanced on top of oversized masculine boiler suits or floaty dresses printed with lips and moustaches. It may not be to everyone’s taste, but I could appreciate the strength of the concept here: much like something a Vivienne Westwood or Masion Martin Margiela in-the-making would do, it was bold wearable art that challenged what you would expect to see on a catwalk.

Hayley Harrison

Hayley Harrison GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

Hayley Harrison‘s collection was full of loud, eye-popping colour, but done in an exceptionally smart way. Strong lines, crisp structured white shirts and plastic draped as if it was silk made me want to look, look, and look again at her workmanship. Lecturer Kate Ball summed up this year’s graduates by commenting on how much they all experimented with surface pattern and print, which was evident in the hazy polka-dot neon pattern used for this collection.

Hayley Harrison GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Hayley Harrison GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

I love polka dots- japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, the ‘Princess of Polka Dots‘ uses them in everything, (and has recently collaborated with Louis Vuitton) and while using so many variations in one look could be over-crowded, Hayley Harrison added just enough to each outfit.

Emma Guifoyle

Emma Guilfoyle GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

Thatcher-ite style seems to be in big favour recently, and graduate Emma Guilfoyle took it to an incredible level with conceptual fashion. The illustrative John Major print made an appearance with an Andy Warhol-like punch, framed by extended version of 80′s power shoulders. Emma made it beautiful with excellent colour combinations such as mint and white or pink and brown tweed sections, adding little touches such as iridescent pailettes or rosettes emblazoned with ‘Vote!’. I also like that she included a matching bag – a massive part of any female politician’s trademark look.

GFW collection by Emma Guilfoyle
Graduate collection by Emma Guilfoyle

Emma Guilfoyle GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Emma Guilfoyle GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

Steph Cunningham

Steph Cunningham GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Steph Cunningham GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

Trompe l’oeil digital prints with a hint of 90′s Versace: Steph Cunningham hit the mark with patterned suits, dresses and separates in an array of rich colours. I loved the gilded frame print used as an edging to the bottom and waist of a skirt or as the lapels on a coat (reminiscent of Mary Katrantzou), as well as the jumble of images that reminded me of a tapestry, echoing the feminine silhouettes perfectly.

Graduate Collection by Steph Cunningham
Graduate Collection by Steph Cunningham
Graduate Collection by Steph Cunningham

Xiaoping (Fiona) Huang
For each graduate’s work I saw, I would put a star next to my notes against a few who really impressed me, and Xiaoping Huang was definitely one of them. Already intrigued by the toiles on the UCLan stand and the heads up from a lecturer, I was not prepared for the incredible collection about to come down the catwalk. Incredible – and I mean incredible as Xiaoping has since been awarded the Zandra Rhodes Textiles award for her work – variations of accordion pleats in a ton of primary colours came bounding down the catwalk. Models changed from stiff structures to delicately shrouded forms in Issey Miyake-like softly pleated silks, then to bouncing, walking, jack-in-the boxes.

Xiaoping (Fiona) Huang GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Xiaoping (Fiona) Huang GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum
Xiaoping (Fiona) Huang GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

It was like Xiaoping Huang wasn’t just designing, she was playing with her skills, visually exploring the ways she could stretch her abilities. There was so much to see, and so many details that you could spend forever pouring over. Lecturer Kate Ball told me that Xiaoping is even involved in creating a set of ‘shrinkable furniture‘ and I began to see correlations between her work and Hussein Chalayan‘s famous collapsable, wearable furniture collections.

Graduate Collection by Xiaoping Huang

Seeing how successfully this collection turned out from looking over a teaser toile at the UCLan stand was the perfect end to the show. I cannot wait to see more from Xiaoping Huang, as well as the other graduates from such a talented group. Look out fashion world, there are some super-designers in waiting.

Xiaoping (Fiona) Huang GFW 2012 UCLan by Alia Gargum

Categories ,90s, ,Alice Hair, ,Andy Warhol, ,Claire Acton, ,Earls Court, ,Emma Guilfoyle, ,Gold Award, ,Graduate Fashion Week, ,Hayley Harrison, ,illustration, ,Issey Miyake, ,John Major, ,Kate Ball, ,Louis Vuitton, ,Maison Martin Margiela, ,Mary Kantrantzou, ,shrinkable furniture, ,Steph Cunningham, ,Talia Golchin, ,Textile Award, ,University of Central Lancashire, ,Versace, ,Vivienne Westwood, ,Xiaoping Huang, ,Yayoi Kusama, ,Zandra Rhodes

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Amelia’s Magazine | Middlesex University Graduate Fashion Designers 2013: Preview Part One

Annest Gwynedd ethical_menswear-by_gaarte
Annest Gwynedd by Gaarte.

Last week fashion students at Middlesex University held their 2013 internal fashion show, featuring work from over 100 graduating students. Some of them were then chosen by fashion world luminaries (including Louise Gray and James Long) to showcase full collections on the catwalk during Graduate Fashion Week this June: an exciting event to look forward to. Due to a mix up in timings I sadly missed the collections from the first 25 students to show: but here’s the best of those I did see, all of them possible stars of tomorrow. What a wonderful diversity of work on show!

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Annest Gwynedd
Ethical menswear by Annest Gwynedd hit a contemporary nerve with useful pockets adorning aqua and coral coloured tailored coats, and chunky knitwear details.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Rachel Chapman
Rachel Chapman‘s exotic urban look saw men sporting neon wristband ruffs, appliquéd 3D flowers on shirts and prints inspired by ancient stone carvings on parka coats.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-I.R.Walcott
I.R. Walcott‘s models wore dip-dyed high-tops to match distressed devore garments inspired by the textures of the urban environment.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Anna Giles
I loved the elegant appliqué detailing on sleek dresses by Anna Giles: in this dress the green lobes remind me of a prickly cactus.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Grace Peverall
Grace Peverall went dotty with layered body con dresses that reminiscent of all over body painting by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Marion Doreau
Marion Doreau styled her menswear with some great papermache animal heads which provided a striking focal point on the catwalk.

Kirsty Anderton 2-by_gaarte
Kirsty Anderton by Gaarte
Kirsty Anderton by Gaarte.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013 Kirsty Anderton
I don’t believe there can ever be enough over the top knitwear, and Kirsty Anderton‘s skull shaped knitted dress was a major highlight of the show.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Luke Anthony Rooney
Luke Anthony Rooney successfully mixed wild colours and textures in his sculptural outfits, topped with tiaras.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Abbie Ridler
I loved the simple styling of Abbie Ridler‘s oversized mens’ jumpers, which were resplendent with abstract motifs inspired by African designs.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Sophie Chiesa
Sophie Chiesa by Chetna Shetty
Sophie Chiesa by Chetna Shetty.

Sophie Chiesa by Cathy Hookey
Sophie Chiesa by Cathy Hookey.

Sophie Chiesa‘s discharge printed catsuit was a riot of colour, styled to great effect with over the top hair extensions that would not look out of place on a Barbie doll.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Anita Tetteh
Anita Tetteh‘s tapered powder pink harem pants were worn with cream chiffon and a pencil skirt and scalloped crop top in bold monochrome stripes were a lesson in understated elegance.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Shiri Elmekless
Tailored menswear by Shiri Elmekless featured beautiful oversized shirts with clever layers of folds and beautiful button detailing.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Sylwia Szyplik
Sylwia Szyplik took inspiration from relaxed 80s style in her cream and dove grey collection.

Middlesex Fashion Graduate Show 2013-Christia Charalambous
Scalloped sculptural cutaway shapes were combined with geometric triangle detailing and fringed mohair by Christia Charalambous.

Read my next blog to discover the best of the rest. You saw them here first!

Categories ,Abbie Ridler, ,Anita Tetteh, ,Anna Giles, ,Annest Gwynedd, ,Atrium, ,Ba Degree, ,Cathy Hookey, ,Chetna Shetty, ,Christia Charalambous, ,fashion, ,Fashion Textiles, ,Gaarte, ,Grace Peverall, ,graduate, ,Graduate Fashion Week, ,I.R. Walcott, ,James Long, ,Kirsty Anderton, ,Louise Gray, ,Luke Anthony Rooney, ,Marion Doreau, ,middlesex university, ,Rachel Chapman, ,Shiri Elmekless, ,Sophie Chiesa, ,Sylwia Szyplik, ,Yayoi Kusama

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Amelia’s Magazine | The ACOFI Book Tour: visiting The Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011

On Tuesday I hit the second date of my ACOFI Book Tour, buy this time at the rather wonderful Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh. I chat with super friendly bookshop guru Matthew via the wonders of twitter, symptoms so it was a delight to meet him in the flesh.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Narcissus Garden Yayoi Kusama
Narcissus Garden by Yayoi Kusama.

After settling in for a nice piece of fruit tart and a glance at a selection of the newest titles in the incredibly well stocked bookshop I had a brief chance to wander around the current exhibition Narcissus Reflected, information pills which features a painting by Salvador Dali on loan from the Tate and for the very first time shown as it was meant to be, with the poem that accompanies it. Upstairs a mass of light silver balls floods the airy space – Narcissus Garden is an update of a piece by Yayoi Kusama first shown back in the 1960s. A small darkened room strewn with comfy floor cushions has been cordoned off to showcase a beautifully soporific film by Pipilotti Rist.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 biscuitsACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-iced gemsACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 biscuits

The Fruitmarket Gallery cafe was sadly closed for our evening event so I went a bit crazy in the local supermarket: plates of colourful Jammy Dodgers, Iced Party Rings, Jaffa Cakes, Iced Gems and Pink Wafers were soon adorning the cafe tables. Yup! It was a veritable E number fest. If it’s not going to be beautifully homemade why not head off to the other end of the spectrum I say?! These biscuits remind me of many a childhood party…

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Dr.Hauschka
At the front I arranged a tray of yummy Dr.Hauschka goodies for guests to take away and try later.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Juiceology
Matthew’s expert merchandising skills came to the forefront as he arranged a (fashionable) colour block display of Juiceology juices and appealing piles of ACOFI and AAOI atop a round table next to which I sat to give my talk.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
Abi Lewis of We Are Caravan.

I had been a bit nervous about travelling all the way to Edinburgh because it’s so far away from my normal stomping ground and I don’t really know many people up there… but I needn’t have worried because the cafe packed out very quickly with about 50 people, who gathered in friendly groups, chatting and taking the opportunity to sample the colourful Juiceology offerings before I settled down to do my talk, a very good write up of which you can read on the We Are Caravan blog.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
v
Lesley Barnes and her friend Libby.

Luckily my only Scottish-based ACOFI illustrator Lesley Barnes was also in able to make it along to The Fruitmarket Gallery – she brought along some wonderful work to share with us, and talked a little bit about the process of working with me so it was really wonderful to have her there, especially now we’ve been working together for nearly two years since she answered the brief for my first book. I only realised this week that this was in fact pretty much the start of her involvement with briefed illustration, although she was doing lots of her own work beforehand.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Lesley Barnes

I do like to remind people that hers is an exceptional talent – Lesley Barnes has never been formally trained, instead choosing to do a degree in English Literature, and yet she has managed to develop an utterly unique and identifiable style that is finally garnering some acclaim: she featured in a recent issue of the Sunday Times Style magazine and her work is stocked in the Soma Gallery, to which I will be trundling along on Thursday 26th May.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011

After the talk there was more time to speak to everyone and I managed to take snaps of just a few of the delightful creative people that I met: some of whom I persuaded to pose against the excellent neon sculpture in The Fruitmarket Gallery cafe area.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-We Are Caravan
Ian, Julz and Abi run We Are Caravan, with whom I’ve been chatting on twitter in the run up to my Edinburgh visit. You can also find Abi Lewis, who was dressed in the most wonderful patterned vintage dress, at Hateful Snippets. We Are Caravan run a mobile gallery that travels around in yes, you guessed it, a caravan.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Kirsty Jay Anderson and Emily Hall
Kirsty Jay Anderson and Emily Hall had come along to get inspired. Kirsty studied textiles and now runs A Wooden Tree which sells gorgeous upcycled vintage textiles and ephemera, whilst Emily has recently decided that she is going to turn her hand to illustration after doing many other things for years, including stone carving in castles, which sounds fantastic! I look forward to seeing what she produces.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Mabel Forsyth and Siobhan Murchie
Mabel Forsyth, aka Pink Pig came along with her work colleague Siobhan Murchie of Shiv Illustration – who just happens to be the cousin of Amelia’s Magazine contributor Sam Parr. What a small and wondrous world.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Roger la Borde
The Fruitmarket Gallery stocks my new range of Roger la Borde cards alongside my books (above), and so it was great to meet Lucy, who distributes my card designs all over Scotland. What a lovely lady she is! Here with her friend Sara.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Lucy and Sara

A very enjoyable part of the evening was giving a few portfolio crits. Yay! I hope I get to do more of these at the next few places I am visiting.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Casey Otremba
Casey Otremba.

First up I met American lass Casey Otremba, who was formerly a packaging designer in New York before becoming inspired to come to Edinburgh to study illustration a few years ago. The reason? Someone showed her a copy of issue 4 of Amelia’s Magazine. Double yay!

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Casey Otremba
Her fashion illustration portfolio features some really wonderful fine line pencil work with some stylish injections of pure vibrant colour. I particularly loved the meticulous fluidity of the poses she draws and I hope she’s going to start contributing to Amelia’s Magazine soon so you’ll get to see more of her work…

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson
Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-doodle by Lizzie Hudson
A doodle by Lizzie Hudson.

Elizabeth Hudson had travelled all the way from Glasgow, where she studies fine art, along with her friend Culloden Robertson of Iko Art. It was wonderful to see how a trained fine artist adapts to illustration briefs and I was particularly enamoured of the sweeping fantasies of her impulsive narrative work which make imaginative use of colour, line and text.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson, Amelia
Myself with Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson. I’m not sure why I thought it was a good idea to stick my finger in my ear. It was late.

As a special thankyou to everyone who turned up for this event we are extending the special offer that was available on the night at The Fruitmarket Gallery. Just quote Amelia’s Blog offer when you go in, and you’ll be able to purchase both Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration and Amelia’s Anthology of Illustration for £40 together, or for £22 apiece. The offer is valid for one more week, so if you didn’t decide to purchase on the night you can still take advantage of some very reasonable prices indeed. Thankyou Fruitmarket Gallery!

Next week I will be embarking on a triple whammy: Brighton on Tuesday 24th May at Castor & Pollux, where we’ll be fed by cupcakes from the Angel Food Bakery, then on to Comma Shop on Wednesday 25th May, where there will be the chance to sample a specially blended new flavour of ice cream from G & D’s Cafe: raspberry with white and dark chocolate chips. Nom nom nom. Plus rosette button making lessons from Anna Butler at Custom Made UK. Really, what’s not to like?!

Then on Thursday 26th May I’ll be turning up at the Soma Gallery in Bristol: where Hart’s Bakery will be providing home made iced biscuits, custard creams and gingerbread hearts, whilst local girl and Lahloo Tea founder Kate Gover will be on hand to answer all your tea-related questions.

Finally, I will be back at Tatty Devine on Tuesday 7th June the week after, where I will round up the ACOFI Book Tour with a little help from Biscuiteers. Looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible en route! Don’t forget to join the facebook events by clicking on the various shop links above.

Categories ,A Wooden Tree, ,AAOI, ,Abi Lewis, ,ACOFI, ,Amelia’s Anthology of Illustration, ,Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration, ,Angel Food Bakery, ,Anna Butler, ,Biscuiteers, ,Biscuits, ,brighton, ,bristol, ,Casey Otremba, ,Castor and Pollux, ,Comma Shop, ,Culloden Robertson, ,cupcakes, ,Custom Made UK, ,Dr.Hauschka, ,edinburgh, ,Elizabeth Hudson, ,Emily Hall, ,G & D’s Cafe, ,Hart’s Bakery, ,Hateful Snippets, ,Ice Cream, ,Iced Gems, ,Iced Party Rings, ,Iko Art, ,Jaffa Cakes, ,Jammy Dodgers, ,Juiceology, ,Kate Gover, ,Kirsty Jay Anderson, ,Lahloo Tea, ,Lesley Barnes, ,Mabel Forsyth, ,Narcissus Garden, ,Narcissus Reflected, ,Oxford, ,Pink Pig Illustration, ,Pink Wafers, ,Pipilotti Rist, ,Roger La Borde, ,Salvador Dali, ,Sam Parr, ,scotland, ,Shiv Illustration, ,Siobhan Murchie, ,Soma Gallery, ,Sunday Times Style, ,Tatty Devine, ,The Fruitmarket Gallery, ,Yayoi Kusama

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Amelia’s Magazine | The ACOFI Book Tour: visiting The Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011

On Tuesday I hit the second date of my ACOFI Book Tour, this time at the rather wonderful Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh. I chat with super friendly bookshop guru Matthew via the wonders of twitter, so it was a delight to meet him in the flesh.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Narcissus Garden Yayoi Kusama
Narcissus Garden by Yayoi Kusama.

After settling in for a nice piece of fruit tart and a glance at a selection of the newest titles in the incredibly well stocked bookshop I had a brief chance to wander around the current exhibition Narcissus Reflected, which features a painting by Salvador Dali on loan from the Tate and for the very first time shown as it was meant to be, with the poem that accompanies it. Upstairs a mass of light silver balls floods the airy space – Narcissus Garden is an update of a piece by Yayoi Kusama first shown back in the 1960s. A small darkened room strewn with comfy floor cushions has been cordoned off to showcase a beautifully soporific film by Pipilotti Rist.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 biscuitsACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-iced gemsACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 biscuits

The Fruitmarket Gallery cafe was sadly closed for our evening event so I went a bit crazy in the local supermarket: plates of colourful Jammy Dodgers, Iced Party Rings, Jaffa Cakes, Iced Gems and Pink Wafers were soon adorning the cafe tables. Yup! It was a veritable E number fest. If it’s not going to be beautifully homemade why not head off to the other end of the spectrum I say?! These biscuits remind me of many a childhood party…

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Dr.Hauschka
At the front I arranged a tray of yummy Dr.Hauschka goodies for guests to take away and try later.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Juiceology
Matthew’s expert merchandising skills came to the forefront as he arranged a (fashionable) colour block display of Juiceology juices and appealing piles of ACOFI and AAOI atop a round table next to which I sat to give my talk.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
Abi Lewis of We Are Caravan.

I had been a bit nervous about travelling all the way to Edinburgh because it’s so far away from my normal stomping ground and I don’t really know many people up there… but I needn’t have worried because the cafe packed out very quickly with about 50 people, who gathered in friendly groups, chatting and taking the opportunity to sample the colourful Juiceology offerings before I settled down to do my talk, a very good write up of which you can read on the We Are Caravan blog.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011
v
Lesley Barnes and her friend Libby.

Luckily my only Scottish-based ACOFI illustrator Lesley Barnes was also in able to make it along to The Fruitmarket Gallery – she brought along some wonderful work to share with us, and talked a little bit about the process of working with me so it was really wonderful to have her there, especially now we’ve been working together for nearly two years since she answered the brief for my first book. I only realised this week that this was in fact pretty much the start of her involvement with briefed illustration, although she was doing lots of her own work beforehand.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Lesley Barnes

I do like to remind people that hers is an exceptional talent – Lesley Barnes has never been formally trained, instead choosing to do a degree in English Literature, and yet she has managed to develop an utterly unique and identifiable style that is finally garnering some acclaim: she featured in a recent issue of the Sunday Times Style magazine and her work is stocked in the Soma Gallery, to which I will be trundling along on Thursday 26th May.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011

After the talk there was more time to speak to everyone and I managed to take snaps of just a few of the delightful creative people that I met: some of whom I persuaded to pose against the excellent neon sculpture in The Fruitmarket Gallery cafe area.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-We Are Caravan
Ian, Julz and Abi run We Are Caravan, with whom I’ve been chatting on twitter in the run up to my Edinburgh visit. You can also find Abi Lewis, who was dressed in the most wonderful patterned vintage dress, at Hateful Snippets. We Are Caravan run a mobile gallery that travels around in yes, you guessed it, a caravan.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Kirsty Jay Anderson and Emily Hall
Kirsty Jay Anderson and Emily Hall had come along to get inspired. Kirsty studied textiles and now runs A Wooden Tree which sells gorgeous upcycled vintage textiles and ephemera, whilst Emily has recently decided that she is going to turn her hand to illustration after doing many other things for years, including stone carving in castles, which sounds fantastic! I look forward to seeing what she produces.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Mabel Forsyth and Siobhan Murchie
Mabel Forsyth, aka Pink Pig came along with her work colleague Siobhan Murchie of Shiv Illustration – who just happens to be the cousin of Amelia’s Magazine contributor Sam Parr. What a small and wondrous world.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Roger la Borde
The Fruitmarket Gallery stocks my new range of Roger la Borde cards alongside my books (above), and so it was great to meet Lucy, who distributes my card designs all over Scotland. What a lovely lady she is! Here with her friend Sara.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Lucy and Sara

A very enjoyable part of the evening was giving a few portfolio crits. Yay! I hope I get to do more of these at the next few places I am visiting.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Casey Otremba
Casey Otremba.

First up I met American lass Casey Otremba, who was formerly a packaging designer in New York before becoming inspired to come to Edinburgh to study illustration a few years ago. The reason? Someone showed her a copy of issue 4 of Amelia’s Magazine. Double yay!

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-Casey Otremba
Her fashion illustration portfolio features some really wonderful fine line pencil work with some stylish injections of pure vibrant colour. I particularly loved the meticulous fluidity of the poses she draws and I hope she’s going to start contributing to Amelia’s Magazine soon so you’ll get to see more of her work…

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson
Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011-doodle by Lizzie Hudson
A doodle by Lizzie Hudson.

Elizabeth Hudson had travelled all the way from Glasgow, where she studies fine art, along with her friend Culloden Robertson of Iko Art. It was wonderful to see how a trained fine artist adapts to illustration briefs and I was particularly enamoured of the sweeping fantasies of her impulsive narrative work which make imaginative use of colour, line and text.

ACOFI Book Tour Fruitmarket Edinburgh 2011 Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson, Amelia
Myself with Culloden Robertson and Elizabeth Hudson. I’m not sure why I thought it was a good idea to stick my finger in my ear. It was late.

As a special thankyou to everyone who turned up for this event we are extending the special offer that was available on the night at The Fruitmarket Gallery. Just quote Amelia’s Blog offer when you go in, and you’ll be able to purchase both Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration and Amelia’s Anthology of Illustration for £40 together, or for £22 apiece. The offer is valid for one more week, so if you didn’t decide to purchase on the night you can still take advantage of some very reasonable prices indeed. Thankyou Fruitmarket Gallery!

Next week I will be embarking on a triple whammy: Brighton on Tuesday 24th May at Castor & Pollux, where we’ll be fed by cupcakes from the Angel Food Bakery, then on to Comma Shop on Wednesday 25th May, where there will be the chance to sample a specially blended new flavour of ice cream from G & D’s Cafe: raspberry with white and dark chocolate chips. Nom nom nom. Plus rosette button making lessons from Anna Butler at Custom Made UK. Really, what’s not to like?!

Then on Thursday 26th May I’ll be turning up at the Soma Gallery in Bristol: where Hart’s Bakery will be providing home made iced biscuits, custard creams and gingerbread hearts, whilst local girl and Lahloo Tea founder Kate Gover will be on hand to answer all your tea-related questions.

Finally, I will be back at Tatty Devine on Tuesday 7th June the week after, where I will round up the ACOFI Book Tour with a little help from Biscuiteers. Looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible en route! Don’t forget to join the facebook events by clicking on the various shop links above.

Categories ,A Wooden Tree, ,AAOI, ,Abi Lewis, ,ACOFI, ,Amelia’s Anthology of Illustration, ,Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration, ,Angel Food Bakery, ,Anna Butler, ,Biscuiteers, ,Biscuits, ,brighton, ,bristol, ,Casey Otremba, ,Castor and Pollux, ,Comma Shop, ,Culloden Robertson, ,cupcakes, ,Custom Made UK, ,Dr.Hauschka, ,edinburgh, ,Elizabeth Hudson, ,Emily Hall, ,G & D’s Cafe, ,Hart’s Bakery, ,Hateful Snippets, ,Ice Cream, ,Iced Gems, ,Iced Party Rings, ,Iko Art, ,Jaffa Cakes, ,Jammy Dodgers, ,Juiceology, ,Kate Gover, ,Kirsty Jay Anderson, ,Lahloo Tea, ,Lesley Barnes, ,Mabel Forsyth, ,Narcissus Garden, ,Narcissus Reflected, ,Oxford, ,Pink Pig Illustration, ,Pink Wafers, ,Pipilotti Rist, ,Roger La Borde, ,Salvador Dali, ,Sam Parr, ,scotland, ,Shiv Illustration, ,Siobhan Murchie, ,Soma Gallery, ,Sunday Times Style, ,Tatty Devine, ,The Fruitmarket Gallery, ,Yayoi Kusama

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Amelia’s Magazine | Exhibition Review: Alice in Wonderland at the Tate Liverpool

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool
A few weeks ago I was whisked up to Liverpool to see a preview of the new Tate exhibition Alice in Wonderland, which runs until the 29th January 2011. The Tate Liverpool is located in a warehouse on the edge of the rapidly evolving dockside area, now home to many a museum and art gallery.

Nyima 445 by Annelies Strba
Nyima 445 by Annelies Strba.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Annelies Strba
Nyima 438 (detail) by Annelies Strba.

Our tour began with a visit to the ground floor exhibition, which looks at the influence of Alice in Wonderland in modern art. Strba‘s floating girls certainly have the eery quality of an Alice-like dream, but Jason Rhoades‘ neon words provide a more tenuous link to the playful language of the novels.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Jason Rhoades
Tate Touche from My Madinah: in pursuit of my ermitage by Jason Rhoades.

On the way to the main top floor exhibition the walls are embossed with curving quotes from the artists who have felt the Alice influence. ‘I spent my childhood surrounded by animals, so I particularly enjoy the enchanted world of shape-shifting anthropomorphic beasts that Carroll brings to life,’ says Samantha Sweeting.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-books
Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-books
Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-books
Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-books
Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-books
The exhibition starts with a room full of cabinets crammed with Alice in Wonderland books, including the original manuscripts that are worth a small fortune. The cabinets are busy but I enjoyed comparing the illustrative depictions of different artists, including Moomin maker Tove Jansson. A series of Mazzawattee tea tins caught my eye as well as a very fetching Alice furnishing fabric, printed in 1920 but still wonderful today.

Alice Pleasance Liddell, Summer 1858
Alice Pleasance Liddell, Summer 1858.

Lewis was a great friend of the Romantic movement and it is postulated that he drew on this aesthetic to create his own book worthy heroine, who was of course based on a real little girl. The exhibition takes a tour through the real Alice’s life, as seen through Lewis Carroll‘s eyes, and includes some wonderful photographs which showcase his experiments in double exposure to achieve a dream like image.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Dali
Alice in Wonderland illustrations by Salvador Dali (detail).

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Joan Armstrong Dreaming Head
Dreaming Head by John Armstrong.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Le Grand Jour by Roland Penrose
Le Grand Jour by Roland Penrose (detail).

I had no idea that Alice had such a claim on the Surrealist movement but here the direct links are laid out – Dali created a whole series of Alice inspired artworks and a proposed animation eventually became a film. The next room features a room devoted to works by the Children of Alice: 1930s British surrealist artists who experimented with ideas about the disruption of time and language to create new worlds. It’s hard to see a direct link back to the little girl in the photographs of the previous room, but it’s intriguing to learn about such obscure Alice connections.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Paul Laffoley
Alice Pleasance Liddell by Paul Laffoley (detail)

John Wesley - Falling Alice
Falling Alice by John Wesley.

Alice influenced art was obviously big in the 1960s and Adrian Piper‘s typically psychedelic paintings are utterly evocative of the era. Yayoi Kusama even created an Alice themed Happening, with polka-dot painted naked people cavorting in Central Park for the cameras.

Kiki Smith Pool of Tears
Pool of Tears by Kiki Smith.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Bill Woodrow
Humpty Dumpty by Bill Woodrow.

Of course, it has not just been the content of the book which has inspired artists down the ages, but also the fantastical imagery of Alice and friends. Kiki Smith‘s Pool of Tears 2 depicts Alice swimming with a host of new beasts, and Bill Woodrow‘s sculpture recalls the precarious stance of Humpty Dumpty.

Alice in Wonderland tate liverpool-Samantha Sweeting
Run Rabbit, Run Rabbit, Run Run Run by Samantha Sweeting.

The exhibition finishes with a mix of contemporary installations, some of which are more Alice themed than others. Run Rabbit, Run Rabbit, Run Run Run shows the artist reanimating a dead rabbit with her hands. Gary Hill‘s Why do things get in a muddle? (Come on Petunia) is a curious film that was made in the 80s and features the peculiar relationship between an Alice figure and her father. This is an ambitious and interesting exhibition but one aspect remains under explored. Why was the real Alice so very special to Lewis?

The exhibition is accompanied by a lovely book, Alice in Wonderland Through the Visual Arts.

Categories ,60s, ,Adrian Piper, ,Alice in Wonderland Through the Visual Arts, ,Annelies Strba, ,Bill Woodrow, ,Charles L. Dodgson, ,Children of Alice, ,Dali, ,film, ,Gary Hill, ,Humpty Dumpty, ,Jason Rhoades, ,John Armstrong, ,John Wesley, ,Kiki Smith, ,Lewis Carroll, ,Mazzawattee, ,Moomin, ,Paul Laffoley, ,Pool of Tears 2, ,review, ,Roland Penrose, ,Romantic, ,Run Rabbit Run Rabbit Run Run Run, ,Samantha Sweeting, ,surrealism, ,Tate Liverpool, ,Tove Jansson, ,Why do things get in a muddle? (Come on Petunia), ,Yayoi Kusama

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