Amelia’s Magazine | Uncivilisation 2011, The Dark Mountain Festival: Saturday Review

telling stories to the trees - rima staines
Telling Stories to the Trees by Rima Staines.

Last weekend I went to Hampshire for my first experience of Uncivilisation, approved the Dark Mountain gathering of like minded folks interested in discussing our future.

Uncivilisation Dark Mountain 2011 photo by Amelia Gregory
Uncivilisation Dark Mountain 2011 photo by Amelia Gregory
Uncivilisation Dark Mountain 2011 photo by Amelia Gregory
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Dark Mountain is a manifesto put together by Dougald Hine and Paul Kingsnorth, pharmacy who met in that grand new fashioned way – through reading, admiring and commenting on each other’s blogs. This means that the process of getting to know each other has happened alongside the production of two Dark Mountain anthologies and two festivals – all of which has been hard work, both financially and emotionally.

Abi Daker Dark Mountain Graph
Dark Mountain by Abi Daker.

I am interested in the space that Dark Mountain occupies because I have been involved in direct action for change through both Climate Camp and Transition Towns. Climate Camp stops the source of problems whilst creating an alternate vision of a sustainable future. Transition Towns tackles sustainability with local community action. In both there are attempts to talk about the crisis we face and the emotions that this elicits, but Dark Mountain is more explicitly about facing some kind of imminent collapse, facing up to and talking through it on an intellectual level. The Dark Mountain Project is also rooted in Deep Ecology, a recognition that humanity is just one part of the wildness that makes up planet Earth. It touches on the kind of emotional work that Joanna Macy teaches: the Work that Reconnects which gives a voice to our deepest fears.

baba yaga by rima staines
Baba Yaga by Rima Staines.

So it was no surprise to find many familiar faces at the Sustainability Centre when I arrived late on Friday night, though the deep Hampshire darkness prevented me from doing much seeing and socialising. Instead I instinctively felt my way towards the fireside to join Tom Hirons‘ wonderful Baba Yaga storytelling session. It was so lovely to find a group of adults enthralled by stories, and a salient reminder that we need to have our imagination stimulated every bit as much as children do.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

On Saturday morning Uncivilisation officially opened with an introduction from co-founders Dougald Hine and Paul Kingsnorth. Paul, ever the more downbeat of the two, presented lost property of an iphone and a penknife. ‘One will be useful after the apocalypse.‘ We then went straight into the major panel discussion: Collapsonomics. This was due to be presented by Paul Mason, but he had to bow out, currently busy covering the actual collapse that we are experiencing right now.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Recovering bankerArthur Doohan echoed Nicole Foss of The Automatic Earth, who spoke at the Transition Towns conference last year. She spoke about how we are currently forestalling the collapse – which will make the eventual complete financial collapse even worse when it does arrive. He predicted it to be 9mths away which almost exactly chimes in with Nicole’s prediction of 2 years in June 2010. This is not the first time that we have headed towards collapse – it happened in the last century and it will happen again but unfortunately humans have short memories and each time we must relearn how to react. Arthur reminded us that proper banking should be the servant of the people, and somehow we have allowed this concept to be reversed. By propping up the banks we have poisoned sovereign cash, which, coupled with ongoing denial about our situation, puts us in a precarious state of affairs. We have to learn that ‘banking without bankruptcy is the same as Catholicism without Hell.’

Collapse by Aliyahgator
Collapse by Aliyahgator.

Smari McCarthy spoke about his attempts to deal with the Icelandic collapse. In Iceland if something is considered too fancy or luxurious it is common parlance to say ‘Oh, that’s so 2007.’ He noted how in the early stages of failure the state will offload services to the public, who concurrently have been so stripped of any power that they are unable to manage the infrastructure. Chillingly he predicts that whilst basic services are dropped the state will retain a monopoly on strategies of force. He finished with the chilling words, ‘You’re next.’ We are like Roadrunner, feet spinning wildly in the air before we plunge to the ground.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Eleanor Saitta is a specialist in how complex systems work and fail. She explained the need to fight the current structures that have been built in the name of stability, and of ways to manage the wild swings between despair and hope. Anton Shelupanov is a penal reformer from Russia who is now based in Tottenham and he told us that when the tools of civilisation are no longer fit for purpose then there is a tendency to go into overdrive – as seen in the state reaction to the riots with hyper incarceration. He did a chilling demonstration with bodies (including mine) of how tightly packed prisoners became in the Russian prisons after the collapse of the Soviet Union. This mania happens in all sorts of primary systems when there is a collapse.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

It was most intriguing to hear ways in which collapse has affected various countries and systems but the conversation stopped short just as things were about to get interesting. It was a shame that more of the weekend could not have been devoted to this specific subject, for the collapse that may have seemed far away when the programme for Uncivilisation was put together suddenly seems very much in the present, and having heard about the effects of collapsing systems I would have liked more discussion on how we manage a collapse, from all kinds of different aspects.

Crofting by Christina Demetriou
Crofting by Christina Demetriou.

Over in the beautiful Woodland space it was time to go back to the wild with crofter Sharon Blackie, who spoke eloquently of her new life in the outer Hebrides. Yearning to be in closer contact with nature she left a corporate life to learn how to farm and weave and spin; she believes that stepping out of the system can help to bring it down because if enough people chose a different way of life then the current system will crumble at the edges.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory. Sharon Blackie

By witnessing, really being, in a different way of life, in a place of wildness, Sharon hopes to show a more authentic way of living. The post talk discussion was particularly interesting, as many city dwellers addressed the importance of a connection with nature in urban spaces. Sharon Blackie also publishes books that inspire change via Two Ravens Press.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

The 200th anniversary of the Luddites is gaining ground everywhere. At Uncivilisation a panel discussion retrod territory that I heard covered by Theo Simon at Wilderness Festival. It was yet another reminder to consider how the structures and technologies we build to better our lives may not, in fact, be good for us.

The Sacred by Elizabeth Hudson
The Sacred by Elizabeth Hudson.

The discussion ‘We can no longer afford to ignore the sacred‘ was opened with a very moving introduction by Dougald’s own mother but from then onwards it was unfortunately convoluted and confusing, offering little in the way of concrete opinions or ideas, the format wrong for the subject matter. But it did cause me to ponder on the idea that Western religions do not accord as much power and importance to the act of birth (ie sex) as they do to death. Vinay Gupta questioned why the most creative act of life is hidden and the most destructive one is revered?

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Once the sun had set it was time once more to evoke the spaces beyond the intellect. I particularly enjoyed heartfelt acoustic folk music from A.P. Clarke. Liminal by Dougie Strang was staged in the woods with naked creatures, eerily glowing artwork and plenty of trance like chanting. The interactive performance was a highlight for many, confirming the need for physical release after the heady discussions of daytime.

Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.
Uncivilisation 2011. All photography by Amelia Gregory.

Why not read my Sunday review too?

Categories ,A.P.Clarke, ,Abigail Daker, ,Aliyah Owen, ,Aliyahgator, ,Anton Shelupanov, ,art, ,Arthur Doohan, ,Automatic Earth, ,Baba Yaga, ,Banker, ,Christina Demetriou, ,Climate Camp, ,Collapse, ,Collapsonomics, ,crofting, ,Dark Mountain, ,Dougald Hine, ,Dougie Strang, ,Eleanor Saitta, ,Elizabeth Hudson, ,Hampshire, ,Hebrides, ,iceland, ,Joanna Macy, ,Liminal, ,Luddites, ,Nicole Foss, ,Paul Kingsnorth, ,Paul Mason, ,performance, ,Rima Staines, ,Riots, ,Roadrunner, ,Russia!, ,Sharon Blackie, ,sheep, ,Smari McCarthy, ,storytelling, ,Sustainability Centre, ,Theo Simon, ,Tom Hirons, ,Tottenham, ,transition towns, ,Two Ravens Press, ,Uncivilisation Festival, ,Vinay Gupta, ,Work that Reconnects

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Amelia’s Magazine | Exhibition Review: Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballets Russes 1909-1929 at the V&A

This is the Kit wriggle out the restless

I’ve always loved France, abortion click harbouring an intention to learn the French lingo for many years. I’m not being frivolous, page I can assure you. I am able to testify to my desire through my ginger cat, whom I named Francois and my half French boy. Oui, j’adore France! Kate Stables wanted to learn French too, so she moved to Paris. Always an observer of life’s idiosyncrasies, she found her vision could stretch even further when she left Bristol’s borough and sat within a caffeinated artery of France. Stables, the singer/musician/protagonist in This Is The Kit, defines the music they create as ‘Screamo/Emo/Flamenco’. Which in a sense it is. A feisty, heart dancing, spirited, emotional flounce. Folky but not in the jingly sense, more soulful and with minimal instruments.

This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck
This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck

Stables is an endearing, dark Rapunzel locked figure. Her voice shoots through you like the first sip of wine after a slog of a day, trapped in an unlit cave. You will find This Is The Kit will gently waft along on a gondolier, tell you it’s all ok, then fighting off the cave bats with their melodies, take you outside to some weeping willow adorned fairy land. She beholds a sound similar to Mary Hampton and Martha Tilston, but more girl next door in pronunciation, realness and the simplicity of lyrics. See: Two Wooden Spoons and Our Socks Forever More. The latter, sang with an acoustic guitar and ukelele, is about wanting to take off your shoes and socks forever more. ‘One of these days’ going to make it back ‘to your mattress’… but ‘I have a thing about sound sufficiency’. It’s a haunting, touching song about decisions, desires and, ‘that someone’. Moon has to be the most splendid of songs about first breath romance. After being lost in the skies, the couple come down, gasping for air and hit by reality. It has only a few lines, but manages an upbeat yet serious undertone feel to it. ‘We had the Moon’ says all it needs to.

This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck
This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck.

It’s nice to be sitting down when you listen to This Is The Kit, with some Pear and Apple cider preferably, or indeed a cafe au lait, if you want to make it French. At many of their relaxed, low key shows (such as Village Halls) you can do this. However, This Is The Kit have also played with big Folk heros like Jeffrey Lewis in their time – so you’ll probably be somewhere bigger, without sitting potential and Maureen and Agnes’ tapestry collections festooning the wooden walls (shame). Multitalented Stables plays guitar, banjo, trumpet and percussion. Often she is joined on stage by her musical friends including Rozi Plain, Jim Barr and Francois and The Atlas Mountains. Tres Bon. Their latest album, Wriggle Out The Restless, on Dreamboat Records, was produced by long term collaborator, Jesse D Vernon, who also often plays on stage as a two piece with Stables.

Continuing to flit across the Channel, This Is The Kit are worth seeing whilst they are this side. They encourage the celebration of the pure and simple things in life. The joy from another person and the beauty right out there. French people will tell you about this: I quote Chamfort, the 18th century French playwright: “Contemplation often makes life miserable. We should act more, think less, and stop watching ourselves live.” Think about this, at a time when most of the world belongs to some form of networking site. Encouraging self evaluation, we discuss our loves, losses, diets and determinations into the abyss. France and This Is The Kit say: look out and to the people we care about.

This Is The Kit released their latest album Wriggle Out the Restless last week on Dreamboat Records. They are also touring at the moment. Catch them in London during mid November.

This is the Kit wriggle out the restless

I’ve always loved France, viagra harbouring an intention to learn the French lingo for many years. I’m not being frivolous, see I can assure you. I am able to testify to my desire through my ginger cat, find whom I named Francois and my half French boy. Oui, j’adore France! Kate Stables wanted to learn French too, so she moved to Paris. Always an observer of life’s idiosyncrasies, she found her vision could stretch even further when she left Bristol’s borough and sat within a caffeinated artery of France. Stables, the singer/musician/protagonist in This Is The Kit, defines the music they create as ‘Screamo/Emo/Flamenco’. Which in a sense it is. A feisty, heart dancing, spirited, emotional flounce. Folky but not in the jingly sense, more soulful and with minimal instruments.

This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck
This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck

Stables is an endearing, dark Rapunzel locked figure. Her voice shoots through you like the first sip of wine after a slog of a day, trapped in an unlit cave. You will find This Is The Kit will gently waft along on a gondolier, tell you it’s all ok, then fighting off the cave bats with their melodies, take you outside to some weeping willow adorned fairy land. She beholds a sound similar to Mary Hampton and Martha Tilston, but more girl next door in pronunciation, realness and the simplicity of lyrics. See: Two Wooden Spoons and Our Socks Forever More. The latter, sang with an acoustic guitar and ukelele, is about wanting to take off your shoes and socks forever more. ‘One of these days’ going to make it back ‘to your mattress’… but ‘I have a thing about sound sufficiency’. It’s a haunting, touching song about decisions, desires and, ‘that someone’. Moon has to be the most splendid of songs about first breath romance. After being lost in the skies, the couple come down, gasping for air and hit by reality. It has only a few lines, but manages an upbeat yet serious undertone feel to it. ‘We had the Moon’ says all it needs to.

This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck
This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck.

It’s nice to be sitting down when you listen to This Is The Kit, with some Pear and Apple cider preferably, or indeed a cafe au lait, if you want to make it French. At many of their relaxed, low key shows (such as Village Halls) you can do this. However, This Is The Kit have also played with big Folk heros like Jeffrey Lewis in their time – so you’ll probably be somewhere bigger, without sitting potential and Maureen and Agnes’ tapestry collections festooning the wooden walls (shame). Multitalented Stables plays guitar, banjo, trumpet and percussion. Often she is joined on stage by her musical friends including Rozi Plain, Jim Barr and Francois and The Atlas Mountains. Tres Bon. Their latest album, Wriggle Out The Restless, on Dreamboat Records, was produced by long term collaborator, Jesse D Vernon, who also often plays on stage as a two piece with Stables.

Continuing to flit across the Channel, This Is The Kit are worth seeing whilst they are this side. They encourage the celebration of the pure and simple things in life. The joy from another person and the beauty right out there. French people will tell you about this: I quote Chamfort, the 18th century French playwright: “Contemplation often makes life miserable. We should act more, think less, and stop watching ourselves live.” Think about this, at a time when most of the world belongs to some form of networking site. Encouraging self evaluation, we discuss our loves, losses, diets and determinations into the abyss. France and This Is The Kit say: look out and to the people we care about.

This Is The Kit released their latest album Wriggle Out the Restless last week on Dreamboat Records. They are also touring at the moment. Catch them in London during mid November.

This is the Kit wriggle out the restless

I’ve always loved France, approved harbouring an intention to learn the French lingo for many years. I’m not being frivolous, online I can assure you. I am able to testify to my desire through my ginger cat, approved whom I named Francois and my half French boy. Oui, j’adore France! Kate Stables wanted to learn French too, so she moved to Paris. Always an observer of life’s idiosyncrasies, she found her vision could stretch even further when she left Bristol’s borough and sat within a caffeinated artery of France. Stables, the singer/musician/protagonist in This Is The Kit, defines the music they create as ‘Screamo/Emo/Flamenco’. Which in a sense it is. A feisty, heart dancing, spirited, emotional flounce. Folky but not in the jingly sense, more soulful and with minimal instruments.

This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck
This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck

Stables is an endearing, dark Rapunzel locked figure. Her voice shoots through you like the first sip of wine after a slog of a day, trapped in an unlit cave. You will find This Is The Kit will gently waft along on a gondolier, tell you it’s all ok, then fighting off the cave bats with their melodies, take you outside to some weeping willow adorned fairy land. She beholds a sound similar to Mary Hampton and Martha Tilston, but more girl next door in pronunciation, realness and the simplicity of lyrics. See: Two Wooden Spoons and Our Socks Forever More. The latter, sang with an acoustic guitar and ukelele, is about wanting to take off your shoes and socks forever more. ‘One of these days’ going to make it back ‘to your mattress’… but ‘I have a thing about sound sufficiency’. It’s a haunting, touching song about decisions, desires and, ‘that someone’. Moon has to be the most splendid of songs about first breath romance. After being lost in the skies, the couple come down, gasping for air and hit by reality. It has only a few lines, but manages an upbeat yet serious undertone feel to it. ‘We had the Moon’ says all it needs to.

This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck
This Is The Kit by Kayleigh Bluck.

It’s nice to be sitting down when you listen to This Is The Kit, with some Pear and Apple cider preferably, or indeed a cafe au lait, if you want to make it French. At many of their relaxed, low key shows (such as Village Halls) you can do this. However, This Is The Kit have also played with big Folk heros like Jeffrey Lewis in their time – so you’ll probably be somewhere bigger, without sitting potential and Maureen and Agnes’ tapestry collections festooning the wooden walls (shame). Multitalented Stables plays guitar, banjo, trumpet and percussion. Often she is joined on stage by her musical friends including Rozi Plain, Jim Barr and Francois and The Atlas Mountains. Tres Bon. Their latest album, Wriggle Out The Restless, on Dreamboat Records, was produced by long term collaborator, Jesse D Vernon, who also often plays on stage as a two piece with Stables.

Continuing to flit across the Channel, This Is The Kit are worth seeing whilst they are this side. They encourage the celebration of the pure and simple things in life. The joy from another person and the beauty right out there. French people will tell you about this: I quote Chamfort, the 18th century French playwright: “Contemplation often makes life miserable. We should act more, think less, and stop watching ourselves live.” Think about this, at a time when most of the world belongs to some form of networking site. Encouraging self evaluation, we discuss our loves, losses, diets and determinations into the abyss. France and This Is The Kit say: look out and to the people we care about.

This Is The Kit released their latest album Wriggle Out the Restless last week on Dreamboat Records. They are also touring at the moment. Catch them in London during mid November.

ethical beauty by sandra contreras
Illustration by Sandra Contreras

The beauty industry changes as fast as the fashion industry, order constantly updating in line with the latest trends. Fashion has taken an organic and earth friendly approach for some time now, medical best epitomised in high profile clothing brands such as People Tree. Now earth-friendly beauty products are burgeoning too. Words such as Ethical, Natural and Organic have become common when it comes to the latest beauty products, but what do these actually mean, and is there a difference between them? If a product is ethical do we somehow think it is natural as well? If something is natural must it also be organic? I’ll now take you through an explanation of these expressions and what they can mean for your skin, and the planet.??

Ethical:
Ethical means being conscious of the efforts and conditions under which products are produced. It is often linked with Community Trade Programs such as Fair Trade. A good example of an ethical company is The Body Shop, which sources Fair Trade ingredients from countries such as Africa and South America. On the other end of the spectrum questions have been raised about the conditions of workers making Katie Price’s branded perfumes, which were withdrawn from the shelves of Superdrug earlier this year. Most ethical products are not tested on animals, but for this consumers must always check the packaging.

Dee-Andrews-Ethical-Beauty
Illustration by Dee Andrews

Natural:
?Natural is another confusing term when applied to beauty products. Brands which use this term include Lush, The Body Shop, Origins and many more. Natural can be applied to the state in which we are without intervention, i.e. no makeup or enhancements. However one may ‘naturally enhancing’ one’s natural features with minimal make up. ?Natural beauty, figuratively speaking, is made from nature, so if you go get some sugar and honey and mix them together for an exfoliating face mask, it would be natural, and the ingredients would be 100% natural. Lush aspires to make 100% natural products but they include this disclaimer: “we go for lovely natural ingredients and use as few synthetics as possible. In fact, we have an incredible range of natural products with no synthetics at all. Over 70% of our range is totally unpreserved and we will aim to improve on that.” (Lush, 2010) Which leads to the conclusion that up to 30% of lush’s products are not 100% natural, even though the entire range is marketed to consumers as natural skincare.

Organic:
Organic skincare means there is no chemicals, colourings, flavourings or additives in the production of ingredients or at the manufacturing stage. Brands which focus on organic skincare include Lush, Neal’s Yard, L’Occitane, Organic Surge and Liz Earle. Organic skincare naturally overlaps with natural skincare.

ethical_beauty3_by_jennifercostello
Illustration by Jennifer Costello

?It’s easy to get confused by these words, especially if you’re committed to being earth friendly, so which kind of products should you go for? The decision might be easier than you think… More often than not, ethical products are to some degree, natural and organic, for example, The Body Shop adheres to both ethical and Fair Trade policies and sources natural ingredients for the majority of their products. But not all organic products are particularly ethical. Take the newly released Bourjois Bio-Detox Organic Foundation which boasts 98% natural ingredients and 21% organic ingredients… how is it maunfactured?

ethicalbeauty_aniela murphy
Illustration by Aniela Murphy

Maybe it’s increasing awareness of how harmful chemicals can be to our skin or the ever increasing pressure to be kind to the environment; but the demand for more environmentally-friendly products has certainly inspired companies to seek profit from organic and natural products in growing numbers. As consumers, we are easily be lured into thinking that anything ‘natural’ is good for us and the environment, but it’s important to consider how these products are made as well, so it could be argued that ethical production is by far the most important aspect of any purchase. Ethical production ensures that workers get fair pay and conditions, but there is also the very serious risk of over dependence on the huge markets of the capitalist west: forcing yet another kind of colonialism onto impoverished parts of the world.

In the meantime maybe it’s best to buy from small brands that strive to make things locally from 100% natural and organic ingredients. Coming next…

Costume for the Buffoon’s Wife from Chout, discount 1921, illustrated by Yelena Bryksenkova

Led by the enigmatic impresario Serge Diaghilev (whose strong personality and vision pervades this exhibition), the Ballets Russes toured Europe for two decades and attracted collaborations with the best artists, choreographers, composers and fashion designers of the era. Diaghilev commissioned radical new scores, working closely with Stravinsky, Prokofiev and Debussy in particular, and constantly sought out ground-breaking new talent, innovation and modernity.

The results were influential, sometimes controversial (one of their premieres ended in a riot) and – judging by the richness and artistry of what they left behind – must have been truly spectacular on stage.


Vaslav Nijinsky, illustrated by Nina Hunter

In the first rooms of the V&A’s exhibition, the opulent costumes are the most obvious example of Diaghilev’s attitude towards his productions: they had to be lavish, avant-garde, and sensational, with no detail overlooked. He once nearly bankrupted the company by overspending on the costumes. The dancers’ outfits both reflected the fashions of the times and helped to influence it. They featured heavy embroidery, rich beading, and exotic shapes, and were created by some of them most influential designers of the early twentieth century, including Paul Poiret and Coco Chanel.


Paul Poiret costumes, illustrated by Joana Faria


Illustration by Felice Perkins

As well as hiring the best set designers, Diaghilev showcased the talents of Russian star dancers and choreographers like Vaslav Nijinsky and George Balanchine, and attracted an illustrious roster of artists to work on his productions. Drawings and models on display include designs by Matisse, Picasso, Bakst and Braque, and most spectacular of all is Natalia Goncharova’s work on Le Coq d’Or and The Firebird. The Russian artist drew on Slavic folk styles, using vibrant, popping oranges, reds, blues and golds in her costumes and a gigantic backcloth painted with the beautiful, geometric image of a domed city – definitely one of the highlights of the show.


Le Train Bleu, illustrated by Sandra Contreras

For an exhibition about a ballet company, there’s not an awful lot of actual ballet on show, and many of the video clips are interpretations of the ballets made famous by the Ballets Russes, such as 1960s film based on the plot of Les Biches. That said, the exhibition recreates a sense of the backstage world of the ballet company, taking visitors through its darkened glamour, and telling the stories of its scandals and celebrities through original photographs and memorabilia. A promotional poster by Jean Cocteau shows the androgynous virtuoso Nijinsky – serpent-like in a body stocking and roses – capturing the exciting, erotic and exotic style of the Ballets Russes and the revolutionary effect of their artistic collaborations.

Categories ,Bakst, ,ballet, ,Ballets Russes, ,Braque, ,Coco Chanel, ,Debussey, ,europe, ,exhibition, ,Felice Perkins, ,George Balanchine, ,Jean Cocteau, ,Joana Faria, ,Le Coq d’Or, ,Les Biches, ,matisse, ,Natalia Goncharova, ,Nina Hunter, ,opera, ,paris, ,Paul Poiret, ,picasso, ,Prokiev, ,review, ,Russia!, ,Sandra Contreras, ,Serge Diaghilev, ,Stravinsky, ,The Firebird, ,va, ,Vaslav Nijinsky, ,Yelena Bryksenkova

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Amelia’s Magazine | Fashion on Film: L’Amour Fou


Yves Saint Laurent by Krister Selin

The relationship between a fashion designer and his business manager-cum-lover isn’t a new concept to cinema. Anybody who has seen Valentino: The Last Emperor will have already witnessed the trials and tribulations when two men – one a rare, creative genius, the other a businessman, have to work together on a daily basis for fifty consecutive years.


Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge by Karolina Burdon

L’Amour Fou is a little different, however. For starters, where The Last Emperor was a celebration of Valentino‘s illustrious career, L’Amour Fou doubles as a celebration of Yves Saint Laurent‘s life. This film is more of a romantic tribute to the designer through the eyes of his partner, Pierre Berge.


Yves Saint Laurent A/W 1965 – the ‘Mondrian‘ dress – by Cruz

From the opening credits, I was hooked. An homage to Yves‘ ‘Love‘ cards that he designed and produced for staff (many on display at the Majorelle Gardens, Marrakech), flashes of colour and geometric shapes flood the screen. I saw the film at the ICA, and its diminutive cinema with old fashion red velour seats and dusty projector make the experience even more apt.


Yves Saint Laurent at his final show by Mitika Chohan

When the title sequence has rolled, we see Yves at a press conference declaring his resignation, juxtaposed with Berge‘s touching eulogy at Saint Laurent‘s funeral. We’re only about 6 minutes into the film here, and already I’m in pieces.


Yves Saint Laurent at Dior by Cruz

The film features archival footage of Yves Saint Laurent, from his days at Dior through to his greatest collections during the 1970s and 1980s, pieced together by Pierre‘s narration. The film skips between Yves Saint Laurent the fashion designer, Yves Saint Laurent the art collector, and Yves Saint Laurent the tempestuous lover. The film culminates with the dramatic, poignant and record-breaking art auction of 2009 in which Yves and Pierre‘s entire art collection was auctioned for AIDS charities.


Yves Saint Laurent Wedding Dress S/S 1999 by Janneke de Jong

The film explores the early relationship between the pair – they met at Christian Dior‘s funeral and it was pretty much love at first sight. You can tell by how Pierre talks about Yves that this was not an easy relationship. Yves‘ crippling depression, substance abuse, morbid insecurities and changeable state of mind have taken their toll on ol’ Berge. But through all this, a glint in his eyes remains, as his relates countless stories about one of the world’s greatest, creative men.


Yves Saint Laurent for Zizi Jeanmaire by Joana Faria

Amidst the drama of the relationship, fashion fans won’t be disappointed. The film features never-before-seen photographs of Yves at Dior, adjusting hemlines and admiring his creations on models. There’s film footage of his most celebrated collections, from bridal wear to Russian-inspired collections in the mid-seventies. We see Zizi Jeanmaire dancing in one of Yves’ most spectacular creations made of feathers.


Opium advert (1977) by Katrina Conquista

Wondrous footage of the original Opium ad is one of the film’s many highlights – and Berge describes how controversial this was; not so much the advert but the name (the controversial adverts would follow, with Sophie Dahl naked and spread eagle for Opium and the first ever fully naked man in a print advertisement for M7). The irony, as Berge describes, was that Yves selected a name with a narcotic reference, when it would be alcohol and drugs that would almost destroy their relationship. Berge talks about this at length, and how Yves would only ever be happy moments after a show; Berge would have to wait another six months to witness that same level of happiness.


Opium advert (2000) featuring a naked Sophie Dahl by Katrina Conquista

But it is the couple’s love of art that dominates this film. After Yves‘ death, Berge decided to sell the collection that they had tirelessly put together over twenty years. Why? Because, after Yves‘ death, ‘the collection had lost the greater part of its significance.’ There are less sombre anecdotes in the film: ‘When Yves designed the Mondrian dress, we never dreamt that one day we would own one,’ Berge says with a smile.


Yves Saint Laurent A/W 1965 – the ‘Mondrian‘ dress – by Mitika Chohan

And so at the end of the film, during the auction, we see Pierre sitting backstage clapping his hands and marvelling at the record-breaking sales prices. Finally, he’s the last to leave the auction and we see him walking down the stairs of the Grand Palais. It’s a poignant ending to a pretty poignant film, and there’s something a bit sinister about it that I couldn’t really put my finger on – the endless shots of empty rooms? Christies‘ employees, the ‘undertakers of art’, boxing up paintings? Berge‘s willingness to openly discuss every facet of Yves’ personality, at the risk of seeming a little bitter? I’m not sure. But I loved it, nonetheless. It’s a sombre tribute, but a colourful one.

Categories ,AIDS, ,art, ,Christian Dior, ,Cruz, ,Dior, ,fashion, ,film, ,france, ,ica, ,illustration, ,Janneke de Jong, ,Joana Faria, ,Karolina Burdon, ,Katrina Conquista, ,Krister Selin, ,L’Amour Fou, ,M7, ,Majorelle Gardens, ,Marrakech, ,Mondrian, ,Opium, ,paris, ,Pierre Berge, ,Pierre Thoretton, ,review, ,Russia!, ,The Last Emperor, ,Valentino, ,Yves Saint Laurent, ,Zizi Jeanmaire

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Amelia’s Magazine | Fashion on Film: L’Amour Fou


Yves Saint Laurent by Krister Selin

The relationship between a fashion designer and his business manager-cum-lover isn’t a new concept to cinema. Anybody who has seen Valentino: The Last Emperor will have already witnessed the trials and tribulations when two men – one a rare, creative genius, the other a businessman, have to work together on a daily basis for fifty consecutive years.


Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge by Karolina Burdon

L’Amour Fou is a little different, however. For starters, where The Last Emperor was a celebration of Valentino‘s illustrious career, L’Amour Fou doubles as a celebration of Yves Saint Laurent‘s life. This film is more of a romantic tribute to the designer through the eyes of his partner, Pierre Berge.


Yves Saint Laurent A/W 1965 – the ‘Mondrian‘ dress – by Cruz

From the opening credits, I was hooked. An homage to Yves‘ ‘Love‘ cards that he designed and produced for staff (many on display at the Majorelle Gardens, Marrakech), flashes of colour and geometric shapes flood the screen. I saw the film at the ICA, and its diminutive cinema with old fashion red velour seats and dusty projector make the experience even more apt.


Yves Saint Laurent at his final show by Mitika Chohan

When the title sequence has rolled, we see Yves at a press conference declaring his resignation, juxtaposed with Berge‘s touching eulogy at Saint Laurent‘s funeral. We’re only about 6 minutes into the film here, and already I’m in pieces.


Yves Saint Laurent at Dior by Cruz

The film features archival footage of Yves Saint Laurent, from his days at Dior through to his greatest collections during the 1970s and 1980s, pieced together by Pierre‘s narration. The film skips between Yves Saint Laurent the fashion designer, Yves Saint Laurent the art collector, and Yves Saint Laurent the tempestuous lover. The film culminates with the dramatic, poignant and record-breaking art auction of 2009 in which Yves and Pierre‘s entire art collection was auctioned for AIDS charities.


Yves Saint Laurent Wedding Dress S/S 1999 by Janneke de Jong

The film explores the early relationship between the pair – they met at Christian Dior‘s funeral and it was pretty much love at first sight. You can tell by how Pierre talks about Yves that this was not an easy relationship. Yves‘ crippling depression, substance abuse, morbid insecurities and changeable state of mind have taken their toll on ol’ Berge. But through all this, a glint in his eyes remains, as his relates countless stories about one of the world’s greatest, creative men.


Yves Saint Laurent for Zizi Jeanmaire by Joana Faria

Amidst the drama of the relationship, fashion fans won’t be disappointed. The film features never-before-seen photographs of Yves at Dior, adjusting hemlines and admiring his creations on models. There’s film footage of his most celebrated collections, from bridal wear to Russian-inspired collections in the mid-seventies. We see Zizi Jeanmaire dancing in one of Yves’ most spectacular creations made of feathers.


Opium advert (1977) by Katrina Conquista

Wondrous footage of the original Opium ad is one of the film’s many highlights – and Berge describes how controversial this was; not so much the advert but the name (the controversial adverts would follow, with Sophie Dahl naked and spread eagle for Opium and the first ever fully naked man in a print advertisement for M7). The irony, as Berge describes, was that Yves selected a name with a narcotic reference, when it would be alcohol and drugs that would almost destroy their relationship. Berge talks about this at length, and how Yves would only ever be happy moments after a show; Berge would have to wait another six months to witness that same level of happiness.


Opium advert (2000) featuring a naked Sophie Dahl by Katrina Conquista

But it is the couple’s love of art that dominates this film. After Yves‘ death, Berge decided to sell the collection that they had tirelessly put together over twenty years. Why? Because, after Yves‘ death, ‘the collection had lost the greater part of its significance.’ There are less sombre anecdotes in the film: ‘When Yves designed the Mondrian dress, we never dreamt that one day we would own one,’ Berge says with a smile.


Yves Saint Laurent A/W 1965 – the ‘Mondrian‘ dress – by Mitika Chohan

And so at the end of the film, during the auction, we see Pierre sitting backstage clapping his hands and marvelling at the record-breaking sales prices. Finally, he’s the last to leave the auction and we see him walking down the stairs of the Grand Palais. It’s a poignant ending to a pretty poignant film, and there’s something a bit sinister about it that I couldn’t really put my finger on – the endless shots of empty rooms? Christies‘ employees, the ‘undertakers of art’, boxing up paintings? Berge‘s willingness to openly discuss every facet of Yves’ personality, at the risk of seeming a little bitter? I’m not sure. But I loved it, nonetheless. It’s a sombre tribute, but a colourful one.

Categories ,AIDS, ,art, ,Christian Dior, ,Cruz, ,Dior, ,fashion, ,film, ,france, ,ica, ,illustration, ,Janneke de Jong, ,Joana Faria, ,Karolina Burdon, ,Katrina Conquista, ,Krister Selin, ,L’Amour Fou, ,M7, ,Majorelle Gardens, ,Marrakech, ,Mondrian, ,Opium, ,paris, ,Pierre Berge, ,Pierre Thoretton, ,review, ,Russia!, ,The Last Emperor, ,Valentino, ,Yves Saint Laurent, ,Zizi Jeanmaire

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Amelia’s Magazine | They shall not grow Oldmovies…

Youthmovies3Photograph courtesy of Youthmovies

For those of you familiar with Youthmovies, information pills I say this: Fiddlesticks! On the 29th of December, they declared their intention to split after a handful of farewell gigs. No planecrash. No overdose. Not even any musical differences. They just sound a bit busy, and too spread out across this green and pleasant land. They won’t be replacing anyone, they won’t be choosing a band member to do a Richie Manic so the rest of the band can go mega-famous, a “Best Of” seems unlikely, as does a 2 hour cinema release of rehearsal footage. It’s simply over.

YouthmoviesPhotograph courtesy of Youthmovies

For those of you not familiar with Youthmovies, I say this: Get familiar with Youthmovies. If asked to name five bands that have dominated my mp3 player in the last three years, I confess that two of them are Youthmovies’. That’s love. First up, though, a disclaimer. Youthmovies do have intellectually advanced lyrics. And they have a borderline-classical note sense. And any band found in possession of either is bound to get called pretentious by someone. But there is no way any of this is pretense. Pretense is a band that decides “ooh, let’s sing about, erm, black holes – they won’t expect that, it’ll make us sound well interesting”.

Youthmovies2Photograph courtesy of Youthmovies

Youthmovies’ Andrew Mears may be in the arty sophisticate camp for singing a two-pronged attack on bourgeois patriotism and William Blakes ludicrous hymn Jerusalem (205 years overdue), but he hasn’t just decided to sing about it to look cool. He means it. It’s something he really thinks and feels. Likewise, an affectionate farewell ditty to a polyp before its surgical removal is hardly as universal (or banal) as Sex on Fire, but why dumb down when you can sing your authentic complex self and guarantee you’re not falling into cliché. As for the clever music, pretension only happens when idiots shoehorn their songs into 13/8 and minor 9ths without knowing what they’re doing (see Yourcodenameis:Milo) or push orchestras around in Abbey Road without knowing what a French Horn is (the list is too long now). A Youthmovies track may have twelve distinct sections, and the third verse might be in a different rhythm, but when it finishes, you’ll have the feeling that it all belonged together. Nothing ever jars, which magically trumps even grand wizards like King Crimson. Whoosh.

Youthmovies4Youthmovies’ soundcheck, photograph courtesy of Adam Gnade
Anyway, it’s recipe-time (since that is the funnest way to review anything). We reverse-engineer the seriousness and beauty of Radiohead, the vigour and accomplishment of early Mystery Jets, the sensitivity of Satie, the fearlessness of Late Of The Pier, the purity of mid-period Tortoise, the occasionally-surfacing twisted-yet-hooky motifs of maybe Soundgarden (imagine I just mumbled that, breathily and nervously), the right hemisperes of iForward, Russia!, and the tendons of Mew and, inevitably, it’s all gone wrong. Let’s try something else…

Youthmovies5Youthmovies photograph courtesy of Adam Gnade

Remember when Foals were about to release their album, and NME made it look like it was going to be the album of the decade, and it would redefine the next twenty years at least, and possibly bring peace to Palestine? Well, the million-dollar production budget and the million-dollar propaganda machine were on the wrong album. Around that time, and with minimal fanfare, Youthmovies released Good Nature on Drowned In Sound Records, an album that actually was the secret Album Of 2008. Behold skilfully deployed teen pop-rock hooks in The Naughtiest Girl Is A monitor, the melancholic failure to caress or placate of Cannulae, the meandering thought-train of Surtsey, the protective cuddle of Archive It Everywhere, the lusciously twiddly-versus-parpy highs, lows and detours of If You’d Seen A Battlefield… Frankly, I really want them to do another one but they won’t.

Youthmovies6

Photograph courtesy of Gregory Nolan

Instead, we can follow a dozen solo-projects (closest to fruition is Jonquil) and hear Mears read his novel in an art gallery. And most importantly, keep relistening to the back catalogue for fractal levels of general truth and beauty, rendered with a depth we rarely hear in rockular bands. The bastards.

Categories ,Alternative rock music, ,Andrew Mears, ,art gallery, ,foals, ,iForward, ,King Crimson, ,Late of the Pier, ,mew, ,music band, ,Music review, ,musician, ,Mystery Jets, ,NME, ,Records, ,Richie Manic, ,Russia!, ,Satie, ,Tortoise, ,William Blake, ,youthmovies

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Amelia’s Magazine | They shall not grow Oldmovies…

Youthmovies3Photograph courtesy of Youthmovies

For those of you familiar with Youthmovies, I say this: Fiddlesticks! On the 29th of December, they declared their intention to split after a handful of farewell gigs. No planecrash. No overdose. Not even any musical differences. They just sound a bit busy, and too spread out across this green and pleasant land. They won’t be replacing anyone, they won’t be choosing a band member to do a Richie Manic so the rest of the band can go mega-famous, a “Best Of” seems unlikely, as does a 2 hour cinema release of rehearsal footage. It’s simply over.

YouthmoviesPhotograph courtesy of Youthmovies

For those of you not familiar with Youthmovies, I say this: Get familiar with Youthmovies. If asked to name five bands that have dominated my mp3 player in the last three years, I confess that two of them are Youthmovies’. That’s love. First up, though, a disclaimer. Youthmovies do have intellectually advanced lyrics. And they have a borderline-classical note sense. And any band found in possession of either is bound to get called pretentious by someone. But there is no way any of this is pretense. Pretense is a band that decides “ooh, let’s sing about, erm, black holes – they won’t expect that, it’ll make us sound well interesting”.

Youthmovies2Photograph courtesy of Youthmovies

Youthmovies’ Andrew Mears may be in the arty sophisticate camp for singing a two-pronged attack on bourgeois patriotism and William Blakes ludicrous hymn Jerusalem (205 years overdue), but he hasn’t just decided to sing about it to look cool. He means it. It’s something he really thinks and feels. Likewise, an affectionate farewell ditty to a polyp before its surgical removal is hardly as universal (or banal) as Sex on Fire, but why dumb down when you can sing your authentic complex self and guarantee you’re not falling into cliché. As for the clever music, pretension only happens when idiots shoehorn their songs into 13/8 and minor 9ths without knowing what they’re doing (see Yourcodenameis:Milo) or push orchestras around in Abbey Road without knowing what a French Horn is (the list is too long now). A Youthmovies track may have twelve distinct sections, and the third verse might be in a different rhythm, but when it finishes, you’ll have the feeling that it all belonged together. Nothing ever jars, which magically trumps even grand wizards like King Crimson. Whoosh.

Youthmovies4Youthmovies’ soundcheck, photograph courtesy of Adam Gnade
Anyway, it’s recipe-time (since that is the funnest way to review anything). We reverse-engineer the seriousness and beauty of Radiohead, the vigour and accomplishment of early Mystery Jets, the sensitivity of Satie, the fearlessness of Late Of The Pier, the purity of mid-period Tortoise, the occasionally-surfacing twisted-yet-hooky motifs of maybe Soundgarden (imagine I just mumbled that, breathily and nervously), the right hemisperes of iForward, Russia!, and the tendons of Mew and, inevitably, it’s all gone wrong. Let’s try something else…

Youthmovies5Youthmovies photograph courtesy of Adam Gnade

Remember when Foals were about to release their album, and NME made it look like it was going to be the album of the decade, and it would redefine the next twenty years at least, and possibly bring peace to Palestine? Well, the million-dollar production budget and the million-dollar propaganda machine were on the wrong album. Around that time, and with minimal fanfare, Youthmovies released Good Nature on Drowned In Sound Records, an album that actually was the secret Album Of 2008. Behold skilfully deployed teen pop-rock hooks in The Naughtiest Girl Is A monitor, the melancholic failure to caress or placate of Cannulae, the meandering thought-train of Surtsey, the protective cuddle of Archive It Everywhere, the lusciously twiddly-versus-parpy highs, lows and detours of If You’d Seen A Battlefield… Frankly, I really want them to do another one but they won’t.

Youthmovies6

Photograph courtesy of Gregory Nolan

Instead, we can follow a dozen solo-projects (closest to fruition is Jonquil) and hear Mears read his novel in an art gallery. And most importantly, keep relistening to the back catalogue for fractal levels of general truth and beauty, rendered with a depth we rarely hear in rockular bands. The bastards.



Categories ,Alternative rock music, ,Andrew Mears, ,art gallery, ,foals, ,iForward, ,King Crimson, ,Late of the Pier, ,mew, ,music band, ,Music review, ,musician, ,Mystery Jets, ,NME, ,Records, ,Richie Manic, ,Russia!, ,Satie, ,Tortoise, ,William Blake, ,youthmovies

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Amelia’s Magazine | Brainlove Festival 2012: Live Review

Brainlove Festival by Ed J Brown

Brainlove by Ed J Brown

What a day for a birthday! After what seemed like an interminably wet few weeks, the weather was cooking nicely for a trip to Brixton Hill. As has become custom on what is usually a Bank Holiday weekend, the venerable Windmill played host to the Brainlove Festival, organised by that defiantly square peg in the round hole of mainstream indie music, Brainlove Records. Today, though, was an extra special day, as the festival reached the five year milestone (though, ironically, main man John Brainlove was in danger of missing his own festival, having been stranded in Iceland!).

The first act I caught was AK/DK, helped out by Amelia’s Magazine favourite Napoleon IIIrd. Comprising of duo Graham Sowerby and Ed Chivers, they built up from programmed synth loops to various (often seemingly improvised) patterns, layered with different effects, distorted vocals, Napoleon IIIrd’s guitar and some serious drumming action, creating a very pleasing noise.

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I popped out to the beer garden, which was doubling as an outdoor stage, to catch some poetry in the sun, and heard tales of manga, Zooey Deschanel and what you really shouldn’t do with a jar of peanut butter!

It was time to head back inside, as Brainlove stalwart Andrew Paul Regan was about to come on. Previously known as Pagan Wanderer Lu, he still totes guitar, keyboard and laptop to create buzzed up *indietronica*, flavoured with a dash of witty, acerbic lyrics. Prefacing each song (from soon-to-be released new album, The Signal and the Noise) with ‘just pretend that you’re not in the Brixton Windmill..’ Regan weaved his darkly humorous tales.

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Out in the sun, Abi Makes Music regaled us with tales of accidentally being locked in the Hackney Picturehouse overnight, before her set of slightly twisted synth pop (which reminded me of You Will Always Find Me In The Kitchen At Parties era Jona Lewie). Despite an interruption from some random sweary local making his way to the barbecue, she won over the assembled onlookers. Also, I discovered that Abi’s partner is someone I know through work! Small world, eh?

Abi Makes Music by Sam Parr

Abi Makes Music by Sam Parr

Back on the indoor stage, London three-piece (and self-described “techno rock band”) Tall Stories were getting underway. With a keytar sporting bass player, they rocked out the crowd with their spiky, punk-referencing sound. I also noticed, later on, drummer Scott Vining helping out on the barbecue outside. Obviously a versatile sticksman!

Tall Stories by Scott Nellis

Tall Stories by Scott Nellis

One of the highlights from last year’s Brainlove Festival, Mat Riviere was occupying a spot in the beer garden. Crouched down with his keyboard , guitar and various effects, and using (amongst other things) one of the tables as extra percussion, he purveyed some haunting, discordant melodies.

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Guitar and drums duo Crushed Beaks let rip with their wall of noise before Dad Rocks! slowed things down a little with some acoustic led melodies. Fronted by Denmark-dwelling Icelander, Snævar Njáll Albertsson, and backed with some trumpet and viola, Dad Rocks! treated us to some lovely lo-fi, almost country tinged tunes, and they also welcomed home the intrepid explorer John Brainlove, as he finally made it to the Windmill.

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Continuing the Nordic flavour, as is traditional at Brainlove events, Estonian band Väljasõit Rohelisse took to the stage. Meaning ‘roadside picnic‘ and named after a Russian short story, they were bathed in darkness, save for a green lamp projecting on to one wall, with only guitarist Lauri Tikerpe’s back visible. The music was as dark as the stage, with sampled dialogue, reverb-laden vocals, fractured guitar, brooding bass and drums. There was a very post-punk vibe going on.

In complete contrast, headliner Enjoyed (aka dance music producer Peter Evans-Pritchard) offered up some blissful beats (joystep, as he calls it), which got some of the festival die-hards dancing. There was even, unless my ears were deceiving me, a remix of the old Mark Morrison floor-filler, Return Of The Mack. Didn’t see that one coming!

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And so, another Brainlove Festival drew to a close. As ever, it was a rich and varied selection of artists, a contrast of styles and genres that marks Brainlove Records out from the crowd. Wandering out into the South London night, I’m sure I wasn’t the only person thinking ‘roll on festival number six!

Categories ,Abi Makes Music, ,AK/DK, ,Andrew Paul Regan, ,Brainlove Festival, ,Brainlove Records, ,country, ,Crushed Beaks, ,Dad Rocks!, ,dance music, ,Denmark, ,Ed J Brown, ,Enjoyed, ,Estonia, ,Hackney Picturehouse, ,iceland, ,indie music, ,indietronica, ,Jona Lewie, ,joystep, ,Lo-fi, ,Manga, ,Mark Morrison, ,Mat Riviere, ,Napoleon IIIrd, ,Pagan Wanderer Lu, ,Post Punk, ,Russia!, ,Sam Parr, ,Scott Nellis, ,Synth-Pop, ,Tall Stories, ,Väljasõit Rohelisse, ,Windmill Brixton, ,Zooey Deschanel

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