VOGUE MAGAZINE REVIEW

For my theory magazine review i have chosen to look at Vogue, as it is related to my preferred subject area, fashion. Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine which is now published monthly in 18 countries, originally an American publication. The magazine costs £4.10, an average price for such a publication. Vogue is aimed at female audiences that are interested in fashion. Like most fashion magazines it is full of advertisements. These are very suited to the magazine, advertising mainly high end fashion brands, although i have come across a few high street advertisements among these including Monsoon, H&M and Marks and Spencer to appeal to a wider audience. Advertised are clothes accessories makeup perfume and jewellery. Infact if the adverts were ripped out you would probably be left with only half the magazine. Advertising from the highest end designers always makes up the opening pages of the publication. For instance, opening my newest edition of vogue, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Chanel, Prada, Dior, Dolce and Gabbana, Burberrry, Estee Lauder, Cline and De Beers jewellery are all advertised before even getting to the first contents page. The many adverts are also spread between the articles and even in the middle of features. This is cleaver as the reader can’t avoid seeing these advertisements. Some of  the women who read Vogue may not be able to afford the products being advertised, however it still gives them something to aspire towards or just as inspiration. Regular features in the magazine include Editors Letter, Vogue Notices, Diary, Vogue.com, Stocklists and a Backpage Stylefile. To appeal to a wider audience it features Fashion, Beauty, Books, Arts and Film articles as well as other inspirational features for women.

Vogue November 2011, Coco Reborn.

This month’s main article is about Rhianna who is described as ‘the ultimate style chameleon’ in this feature. However it was a smaller article on books, Coco Reborn, that caught my eye in this issue. In Coco Reborn, Vogue takes an extract from Lisa Chaney's new biography, Chanel: An Intimate Life, which explores Gabrielle Chanel’s post-war comeback in 1954 at the age of 70.

The three page spred allows the reader to understand more about Chanel’s huge influence at the time as well as the struggles that Gabrielle went through, that perhaps are not as well known about.  The article describes how Paris became cut off during the war, while American ready-to-wear designers and manufacturers were set on making New York the new fashion capital of the world, which Gabrielle describes as ‘the ruin of French couture’ Perhaps frustration and dislike to current fashions was one of the reasons for Chanel’s return to Paris couture after nearly 15 years. I found this article particularly interesting as the reader is able to understand the difficulties that went on behind closed doors, learning more about Gabrielle Chanel. It also inspires you to look more into the relaunch of Chanel and want to buy the book to find out more about what happened.

'she lay flat on the floor in the grand salon while her models paraded past her; she was checking the length of their hems'

Vogue October 2011, Lone Wolf.

Lone wolf is the article that i was most interested in when reading Octobers vogue. The three page spread about designer Azzedine Alaïa talks about his first show in eight years. He is also interviewed by Annie Cohen-Solal.

As well as talking about his new gorgeous Autumn collection, you also learn a lot about the designer from the article, which is what interested me. I had heard of Alaïa before and seen a little bit f his work, but after reading this article i was interested in looking much more into the designer and his new collection which i fell in love with straight away. His new haute-couture show showing sharp contrasts between architectural precision and voluptuous sophistication included Mongolian-lamb boleros, slim coats in pea-green crocodile skin and laser cut velvet. It was impeccable. The interview lets us find out more about him, including how he first started out making dresses in Tunis for society women when he was 16, moving to Paris in the early sixties with a dream to stay there to find elite circles, and we learn the names of those that he has met and admired from designers and artists to writers and theatre or film people. The interview also seems more personal as those close to him are quoted, and we learn how Alaïa is the most hands on designer, legendarily generous and how he has created his own laws, rhythms and rituals.

Azzedine Alaïa Fall 2011.

HISTORY OF MY LIFE IN FOUR OBJECTS

Our first theory task was to choose four items drawn from different stages of our life: childhood, early teenage, late teenage and the present.

Childhood –  Amy Baby.

This doll was handmade by my Grandma who knitted it for me for my 2^nd birthday. For a reason i cant remember i named it ‘Amy Baby’ and i can remember taking this doll absolutely everywhere that i went. The doll now looks a little different to what she once did, as her mouth unravelled and came off and the wool has gone 'bobbly' However to say I took her absolutely everywhere with me for a few years she is still in quite good condition. It also has significance now, as my grandma has been given a few months to live, so it is still something important to me that brings back early memories.

 Early Teenage – My First Mobile Phone.

This was my first Mobile phone i had when i was 12 and i loved it so much! It was just used for the internet and mostly texting. I was so excited to have a new ‘flip phone’ which everyone seemed to have at the time. Looking back at this phone Its hard to think about why I loved it so much! I wouldn’t have even known what i had done with this phone if it wasn’t for my little sister now using it  for a play phone. I’m not sure where the phone was manufactured, but i would presume somewhere like china so they could be made cheaply in mass production.

 Late Teenage – My First Sewing Machine.

At the age of 15 i dug out my Mums old sewing machine from when she was younger out of the back of her wardrobe.  It was on it’s last legs but It was still just about working and i thought myself how to use it. Now my new sewing machine is a huge part of my life, as it symbolises my love for art and fashion, but I will always remember teaching myself how to alter and make garments on this sewing machine. This is a 2701 model by Toyota, and was made in Taiwan. I’m not sure of the date of manufacture, but my mum bought the sewing machine new when she was 20, in 1991.

The present - My Vintage Coat.

People always tell me that i have an unhealthy obsession with vintage clothing. This is probably true. My love for vintage clothing started when i was 17 and bought my first vintage item from ‘Wilder’ in Nottingham, this faux fur coat. Since i first stumbled across this tiny vintage shop i have hunted out many more, and now have a wardrobe overflowing with my vintage finds. Even if the sizing is miles too big i take the garment home and alter it into something new. I just find something so fun about getting clothes that no-one else owns. I don’t know who created this coat as there were no labels in the coat when i bought it. However faux fur was properly developed to a good quality in the mid 1950s. I have also come across very similar style coats looking through the internet from the 1960s, but perhaps it could also have been made in the 70s or 80s.

PERFORMANCE & PHOTOGRAPHY IN FINE ART



I really enjoyed our first day in the Fine Art taster, particularly experementing with different ways of wearing a T shirt. We then used the idea of Erwin Wurm and Thorsten Brinkmann's work to produce some more photos which was really fun and something I would have never thought to do. This was the idea of substituting parts of their body, mainly the covering of the face, but also other body parts.

THORSTEN BRINKMANN

When classic portraits meet modern art Just sums up his work. The interesting part of his work is the fact that the model is Brinkmann himself. He substitutes parts of the body with objects, and mainly covering up the face. The colours in the photos are also gorgeous. I am fascinated by his work.