Showing posts with label Designers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Designers. Show all posts
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Pinned x Stitched: AFROPUNK'14 FASHION
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Meet Mike the Ruler | 13-Year-Old Instagram Fashion Star
By: Leon Neyfakh/NY Mag
Meet Mike the Ruler, 13-Year-Old Instagram Fashion Star
@miketheruler
Age: 13
Instagram Followers: 11,945
The first photo of Mike the Ruler that really made clear what was going on with him appeared on his Instagram page about a year ago. In it, the young boy is standing in the middle of a sunny road wearing a Rick Owens hoodie, a pair of black Rick Owens pants tucked into Rick Owens socks, and a white tee by Supreme. You can’t see his face because the hoodie is so big the top hangs down to his upper lip. In the comments, a fellow streetwear enthusiast has written, “All hail the king of the youth.”
Mike’s all-consuming love for high-end fashion has only grown more intense since that picture was taken. Meanwhile, he has become familiar to the downtown designers he worships, and when he comes into stores like Supreme and Opening Ceremony he gets hugs from staff and sometimes goes home with hand-me-downs from their own closets. Last summer, he was featured in a video for the website of V-Files, the streetwear boutique, and by the following winter, he was being interviewed by The Fader about how to dress and what music to listen to for fashion inspiration. Today, he is a mascot — not only for the brands he admires, but for a way of being cool and obsessively knowledgeable about culture that kids his age could have never been before the internet.
“I don’t really like big brands,” Mike says. “I like little designers who are creating something new.” His favorites right now are Telfar Clemens (“Their clothes are very masculine but androgynous, with a very athletic feel”), Hood by Air (“I’ve been to two of their fashion shows, and I own a good amount of pieces from them”), and Eckhaus Latta, which he describes as “conceptual” and “like nothing you’ve seen before.”
When he went to the Eckhaus Latta showroom the other day with his mother, Karen, a lawyer, he examined a shirt from another designer hanging from a rack and complimented the woman who had created it on her Vivienne Westwood reference. “She was like, ‘I can’t believe you caught that,’” Karen says. But most of Mike’s wardrobe comes from thrift stores and consignment shops, where he digs through garments looking for pieces from his favorite designers’ past collections.
Not so long ago, Mike was into Legos. Everything changed when, in 2011, he saw the Alexander McQueen show at the Met. “These clothes were very overwhelming,” he says. “They were dark. Some were disturbing and beautiful at the same time. And it felt like they were demanding something. It put this thought into my head that clothes were important and they have their own personalities and they tell stories when you wear them.”
At school (eighth grade), Mike has to wear a uniform most of the time — “a blazer and khakis and, like, ugly shoes” — and when he gets the opportunity to put on stuff he actually likes, some of the other kids make fun of him. “They say rude crap to me about it, like, ‘What are you wearing? You look homeless, you look gay, you look stupid.’ But I don’t care what they think, because they don’t get it.”
At home, he can wear what he wants, explore his mom’s closet, and work on his own designs. There — and on Instagram — “I feel like I can be the person who I am.”
Meet Mike the Ruler, 13-Year-Old Instagram Fashion Star
@miketheruler
Age: 13
Instagram Followers: 11,945
The first photo of Mike the Ruler that really made clear what was going on with him appeared on his Instagram page about a year ago. In it, the young boy is standing in the middle of a sunny road wearing a Rick Owens hoodie, a pair of black Rick Owens pants tucked into Rick Owens socks, and a white tee by Supreme. You can’t see his face because the hoodie is so big the top hangs down to his upper lip. In the comments, a fellow streetwear enthusiast has written, “All hail the king of the youth.”
Mike’s all-consuming love for high-end fashion has only grown more intense since that picture was taken. Meanwhile, he has become familiar to the downtown designers he worships, and when he comes into stores like Supreme and Opening Ceremony he gets hugs from staff and sometimes goes home with hand-me-downs from their own closets. Last summer, he was featured in a video for the website of V-Files, the streetwear boutique, and by the following winter, he was being interviewed by The Fader about how to dress and what music to listen to for fashion inspiration. Today, he is a mascot — not only for the brands he admires, but for a way of being cool and obsessively knowledgeable about culture that kids his age could have never been before the internet.
“I don’t really like big brands,” Mike says. “I like little designers who are creating something new.” His favorites right now are Telfar Clemens (“Their clothes are very masculine but androgynous, with a very athletic feel”), Hood by Air (“I’ve been to two of their fashion shows, and I own a good amount of pieces from them”), and Eckhaus Latta, which he describes as “conceptual” and “like nothing you’ve seen before.”
When he went to the Eckhaus Latta showroom the other day with his mother, Karen, a lawyer, he examined a shirt from another designer hanging from a rack and complimented the woman who had created it on her Vivienne Westwood reference. “She was like, ‘I can’t believe you caught that,’” Karen says. But most of Mike’s wardrobe comes from thrift stores and consignment shops, where he digs through garments looking for pieces from his favorite designers’ past collections.
Not so long ago, Mike was into Legos. Everything changed when, in 2011, he saw the Alexander McQueen show at the Met. “These clothes were very overwhelming,” he says. “They were dark. Some were disturbing and beautiful at the same time. And it felt like they were demanding something. It put this thought into my head that clothes were important and they have their own personalities and they tell stories when you wear them.”
At school (eighth grade), Mike has to wear a uniform most of the time — “a blazer and khakis and, like, ugly shoes” — and when he gets the opportunity to put on stuff he actually likes, some of the other kids make fun of him. “They say rude crap to me about it, like, ‘What are you wearing? You look homeless, you look gay, you look stupid.’ But I don’t care what they think, because they don’t get it.”
At home, he can wear what he wants, explore his mom’s closet, and work on his own designs. There — and on Instagram — “I feel like I can be the person who I am.”
Friday, September 5, 2014
The Regiment: S.O.U.L. | prod by Sinitus Tempo
The Regiment have teamed up with graphic designer RF3RD to create a new project which merges 2 of the 5 elements of Hip Hop: MCing and Graffiti. The new project, S.O.U.L. (Sound Of Us Living), is one of the first to utilize our new platform -- HiPNOTT Certified, an outlet of HiPNOTT which allows us to showcase specific brands represented or sponsored by the label. HiPNOTT Certified, over the coming months, will bond with and promote individuals/brands within the industry such as graphic artists, DJs, videographers, and clothing designers. It allows us to focus on other aspects of the industry and push the HiPNOTT brand even further. RF3RD is an extremely graphic designer and we are proud to label him HiPNOTT Certified!
Beginning today and each Friday at the top of the month, The Regiment will release a track from S.O.U.L. along with original artwork from RF3RD. Here's the first cut, "S.O.U.L.", produced by Sinitus Tempo.
theregiment.hipnottrecords.com
www.twitter.com/theregiment
www.facebook.com/theregimenthiphop
www.hipnottrecords.com/hipnott-certified/rf3rd
www.RF3RD.com
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Karen Mabon | Vintage-Inspired Scarves That Go With Everything.
by: jackie yaeger/Nylon
In 2014, you probably don't consider a silk scarf your go-to accessory for pairing with platform sandals and cutout dresses. But what if those silk scarves came in patterns inspired by scenes from Hitchcock movies? Lucky for all of us, they actually exist. And it's all thanks to Karen Mabon, otherwise known as the Scottish creative who is obsessed with Grease 2 and vintage prints of insects.
I had the chance to chat with the seriously cool designer and artist about everything from her daily inspiration to the next band she's checking out live. Get it all in my interview below!
How did you get into making scarves specifically?
I studied jewelry at college and worked at a company designing it after, but I always did a lot of drawing and it just seemed like a natural way to combine drawing with making something wearable. I always wanted to do clothes, but I felt like the patterns you could get were quite boring and derivative and I wanted to do something that was a bit more unexpected. I like when you open the scarf up and there's something different going on in each of the corners. You can really enjoy it and it's like a conversation piece.
I saw you once created a scarf based on a scene from The Birds. What are some of your favorite movies and are there any scenes that you want to translate into a piece some day?
I really love Grease 2. It's by far the superior Grease. It's so ironic and I'm kind of obsessed with American culture and the way that we see it in Britain is quite different. We all grew up watching Sister, Sister (it's brilliant) and I think every kid in Britain just wished that they were at the Saved by the Bell school in America. I love The Grand Budapest Hotel, it's so good. Wes Anderson is so great. His films would translate so well into designs because he's got a natural aptitude for colors--he should be designing scarves. But I really want to do a scarf based on the scene from Romeo + Juliet where Leonardo DiCaprio is looking through that fish tank.
Do you watch movies all day in your studio for inspiration?
I'd love to, but then I would just sit there and watch movies. I really love YouTube. I just love watching these old clips of Elvis and I'm like, "Oh my god, he's so amazing." I did watch this documentary over the Christmas holiday...you know that poodle grooming championship in Hershey? All these people carve the hair of their poodles into different shapes and one of them was like Memoirs of a Geisha and it had a little bridge over the back.
What's the last concert you went to?
It's been a while, but soon I'm going to see The Libertines. I love Radio 6 music, too. It's great.
What can people expect to see from your 'fall 2014 collection?
Oh, well a lot of poodles...and lots of American things. Lots of ostriches and Las Vegas. I think it's good to be random. There's this dark beauty pageant scene that some people might think is too creepy, but I kind of like that. I love that film Drop Dead Gorgeous with Kirsten Dunst that's really dark and filled with black humor. It's so good.
Can't get enough of my new BFF? Me either--that's why I follow her on Instagram here.
Now go shop her collection
In 2014, you probably don't consider a silk scarf your go-to accessory for pairing with platform sandals and cutout dresses. But what if those silk scarves came in patterns inspired by scenes from Hitchcock movies? Lucky for all of us, they actually exist. And it's all thanks to Karen Mabon, otherwise known as the Scottish creative who is obsessed with Grease 2 and vintage prints of insects.
I had the chance to chat with the seriously cool designer and artist about everything from her daily inspiration to the next band she's checking out live. Get it all in my interview below!
How did you get into making scarves specifically?
I studied jewelry at college and worked at a company designing it after, but I always did a lot of drawing and it just seemed like a natural way to combine drawing with making something wearable. I always wanted to do clothes, but I felt like the patterns you could get were quite boring and derivative and I wanted to do something that was a bit more unexpected. I like when you open the scarf up and there's something different going on in each of the corners. You can really enjoy it and it's like a conversation piece.
I saw you once created a scarf based on a scene from The Birds. What are some of your favorite movies and are there any scenes that you want to translate into a piece some day?
I really love Grease 2. It's by far the superior Grease. It's so ironic and I'm kind of obsessed with American culture and the way that we see it in Britain is quite different. We all grew up watching Sister, Sister (it's brilliant) and I think every kid in Britain just wished that they were at the Saved by the Bell school in America. I love The Grand Budapest Hotel, it's so good. Wes Anderson is so great. His films would translate so well into designs because he's got a natural aptitude for colors--he should be designing scarves. But I really want to do a scarf based on the scene from Romeo + Juliet where Leonardo DiCaprio is looking through that fish tank.
Do you watch movies all day in your studio for inspiration?
I'd love to, but then I would just sit there and watch movies. I really love YouTube. I just love watching these old clips of Elvis and I'm like, "Oh my god, he's so amazing." I did watch this documentary over the Christmas holiday...you know that poodle grooming championship in Hershey? All these people carve the hair of their poodles into different shapes and one of them was like Memoirs of a Geisha and it had a little bridge over the back.
What's the last concert you went to?
It's been a while, but soon I'm going to see The Libertines. I love Radio 6 music, too. It's great.
What can people expect to see from your 'fall 2014 collection?
Oh, well a lot of poodles...and lots of American things. Lots of ostriches and Las Vegas. I think it's good to be random. There's this dark beauty pageant scene that some people might think is too creepy, but I kind of like that. I love that film Drop Dead Gorgeous with Kirsten Dunst that's really dark and filled with black humor. It's so good.
Can't get enough of my new BFF? Me either--that's why I follow her on Instagram here.
Now go shop her collection
Friday, May 9, 2014
Chicago is exploding with Art
We knew it all along, but finally a University of Chicago study affirms that Chicago is a city bursting with creatives.
That’s because the city’s labor force, as compared to other, similar cities, over-indexes in terms of artists. The study, Measuring Chicago’s Artistically Creative Economy, takes a look at how those in the field – from folks such as street painter wunderkind Hebru Brantley to creative writers such as “Divergent‘s” Veronica Roth – impact the local economy. And, if larger minds can agree on a way to measure and harness said art and culture, it could very well be added to the equation that measures the nation’s gross domestic product.
Here’s an interesting set of points from the study:
An estimated 63,008 artists work in Chicago. Designers represent the largest share of the artist workforce in Chicago, at 36.3 percent.
And:
Among Chicago artists, writers/authors and architects are most highly concentrated compared to the U.S. as a whole. Chicago also has higher concentrations of designers, musicians, photographers, actors, and dancers compared to the national baseline, but fell below the nation in its concentration “fine artists, art directors, and animators.”
Why does this matter? The study dovetails nicely with a number of city-sponsored public art events that span the summer and will expand everyone’s horizons. Brantley, who two years ago sold a piece to Jay-Z for $20,000 and is now showing in Beverly Hills, California, will be showcasing an exhibit called “Parade Day Rain” at the Chicago Cultural Center starting June 14, 2014. Not that Brantley’s paintings are singled out in the university’s study, but with smaller wall pieces that easily sell for at least $4,000, fervor for artists such as Brantley could stir an economic pot.
It’s all part of a larger discussion being held by the National Endowment of the Arts and the US Bureau of Economic Analysis, and others, who are trying to figure out how to measure how arts and culture contribute to the country’s gross domestic product.
In other words: culture is a measurable export.
While the big brains harangue over the definition of art economy, you can help move things along by visiting a growing number of modern exhibits. For the designer community, the CHGO DSGN: Recent Object and Graphic Design is a good bet. It opens May 31 and runs through November 2 also in the Chicago Cultural Center, in the Exhibit Hall, 4th Floor North.
It’s a major exhibition of “recent object and graphic design by 100+ of the city’s leading designers,” according to the city. It’s also curated by Rick Valicenti, the 2011 recipient of the Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award, with displays designed by Tim Parsons, Associate Professor of Designed Objects at the School of the Art Institute.
- Adrienne Samuels Gibbs
Arts & Entertainment, The Daily Sizzle
Get In Touch: @adriennewrites | agibbs@suntimes.com
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