29 May 2014

Problems of a Drunk Fashion Student:

My old PE shorts, an old pair of Netball socks and my sandals, hideous I know. First of all I'm not Jesus or your granddad so unfortunately I do not rock the socks and sandals look but I secretly wish it was expectable to wear this out. This set of clothing is my comfort clothes, I love lounging around in this. 
I recently did an interview with Oliver Proudlock and one of the questions I asked him "What guilty clothing do you secretly wish would come into fashion?" and he replied with a pair of tight leather dungarees that he usually just wears around the house or studio, "Pouch up if I'm in a good mood, otherwise it's down"; I imagined a pretty odd picture of him wondering around his studio in tight leather dungarees. This got me thinking to what I wish I could wear outside.

***

No.1: Umbro PE shorts, I'm not a bit fan of Umbro and I realise that most of you aren't either because they are dubbed more uncool than puma. However when you're in year 7 picking out PE shorts I don't think it matters what brand. I wish I could tell my 12 year old self to buy a pair of nike shorts. 
Only recently have I been addicted to wearing these around halls; it started when my friend said he wore them, so putting them on I remembered how comfy they are.


No.2: Nike Socks aka Netball Socks, I was ecstatic to realise that I was finally on trend for something when I walked into TopShop and they had started selling my netball socks. Me and my sister have both been playing netball for over 12 years and between us we must have over 20 pairs of the same white socks, all nike. Strangely Emma, my sister, will always wear two pairs when playing and I am not sure why? I'm not sure she knows why either.



No.3: Sandals, I have to admit Birkenstocks are more comfortable than the Topshop knock offs however when on a student budget I can't afford to spend £50 on sandals. Sandals are practical and I love practical things, easy to slip on and off so basically just like a rigid pair of slippers. I wouldn't trust going into a student kitchen with slippers on; they would most likely stick to the floor because of last nights beer spillages and then smell of old alcohol for the rest of the year until you take them back to your parents to wash.




Lastly is something I haven't brought and I probably will never buy, although secretly wanting it. A nike bucket hat, as you probably have guessed I love nike.

I want one to go sight-seeing in Munich with. My next holiday with the guys is a piss up in Germany, I don't even like beer. I found out last year when I went to Prague, sight seeing on a hangover in the hot sun is 100 times worst than any hangover you've had. So this year I want to be sensible and by a sun hat. I guess I should stick to the normal black rimmed hat that every fashion girl has out there, instead of venturing into the world of earl sweatshirt by wearing a bucket hat.
The lines between Porn and Art are blurred, for advertisers now know the key factor is that sex sells. It seems we have outgrown Christian views of chastity and devaluating the body 500 years ago, when nudity in art became popular. It was in a recent lecture that our class were analysing banned adverts and when one particular diesel advert was shown, with numerous female legs wrapped around a male, my lecturer asked "Where does this belong?". I stupidly replied "Porn Hub", then he made me explain to the class what porn hub was... 

Porn or Painting?













Answers:
1.Painting, Judith Beheading Holofernes, Caravaggio, 1598.
2.Porn
3.Painting, Venus and Mars, Botticelli, 1483.
4.Painting, The Entombment of Christ, Caravaggio, 1602-3.
5.Porn
6.An Allegory with Venus and Cupid, Bronzino, 1545.
7.Porn
8.Porn
9.Cimon and Pero, Peter Paul Rubens, 1630. 












If I've learnt one thing from paying £9k a year at university it would have to be 'It's ok to wear all black'. A truthful statement that my friends have taught me. Maybe I've learnt this because I'm getting sucked into the typical cliche of an art student and next year you'll see me cut my hair short and also see various pictures of me smoking on a rooftop. 

If you're going to buy anything black it has to be a pair of black skinny jeans. I was devastated when my pair broke the other day; when I went to the bathroom and in an attempt to do them back up the rivet went flying underneath the cubicle wall and into the next. One of the 'classy' moments in life. It seems like androgynous and unisex fashion is dubbed as cool now, however I am still ashamed to say I once had a boyfriend who had the same pair of black skinny jeans as me, it is for this reason that it's best we're not together anymore.

Black Jacket Jeans Belt Girl TumblrBlack Jacket White Trainers Bag Girl Tumblr


Nike Trainers Box Black White

Audrey Hepburn Trousers Bike FashionWhite Black Monochrome Tumblr Boots Walls









Credit: All images from tumblr.com

28 May 2014

Believe it or not most of our artistic abilities and creative flare's are influenced by the Renaissance. It was the re-birth of art and culture in the 15th Century and without this movement art may have been very different to what it is today.

So to celebrate this we should all dress like a Renaissance painting.




 





Credits:
1.Portrait of A Man, Jan Van Eyck, 1433 & Nadine Ijewere
2.Venus and Mars, Botticelli, 1483
3.Birth of Venus, Botticelli, 1486
4.Madonna of Chancellor Rolin, 1435, Jan Van Eyck
5.Bacchus and Ariadne, Titan, 1522-23
6.Mona Lisa, Da Vinci, 1503-6 & Nadine Ijewere

23 May 2014

Problems of a Drunk Fashion Student

Whats inside a student's freezer? 

Students praise the freezer, it is the best thing since the wheel or tinder. Most foods left in cupboards and fridges are just a ticking time bomb before it goes a delightful colour of blue. 

It might be down to our overwhelming shopping experiences when left in Morrisons or Tesco's alone. In our hungry state we buy all food we can carry home; only to be left in our cupboard or fridge. 

You would imagine a student would easily eat everything or anything, but in my experience during my panic buys I never buy anything that goes together as a meal. I've also had the re-occurring incident of my chicken defrosting on the tube, for those who haven't travelled on the tube it's like a menopausal women. Sat by a vent or at the far end of a carriage and a cold breeze sweeps over your face (and probably your hair into the next passengers face) however on most days it will give anyone a hot flush and you'll be sat their sweating.

So it is coming to the end of the academic year and what do I have left in my freezer? Plus also what do my flatmates have in their freezers? 


Half Eaten Tub of Ice Cream
Believe it or not this is not my half eaten ice cream. About a month ago it mysteriously got left in my freezer draw and no has claimed it yet.

Mouldy Sausages
Put in the freezer when I went home for a weekend and then got lost under the bag of broccoli until today. I still can't work out how I manage to let food go off even when frozen. 

Rice
There is only one possible question, why did I put rice in the freezer?

Waitrose Yorkshire Puddings
The rare occasion I feel wealthy and sophisticated I allow myself to shop here. They were brought alongside a decision to attempt a roast, only to find out roasts are impossible in a student kitchen. I thought buying eggs and milk would be a bad idea as it would only go off. Equally as worse Yorkshire's are the one thing that only go with two possible dishes, 1 toad in the hole and 2 a roast. The first of which I would only make from scratch as sausages next to a frozen pud is not the most appetising. 

Pizza Hut Ice Cream, 
Left here by my friend that came to visit the first week I moved in. I've never got round the concept of pizza hut serving ice cream.

A distorted Ice Pack. 
You never know when you might need one, however it loses its purpose when you freeze it while curled up in a ball. Someone could turn this into an art project one day, manneristic ice packs. (Mannerism was a period in art where figures were distorted and had elongated limbs for those non-art lovers)

Tesco Value Broccoli
Thought it was the best idea buying frozen veg in bulk. However I shortly discovered it tastes like shit.

Peas
My trusty peas I brought today. Peas will go with any meat/potato/rice combination, perfect for getting that nonexistent 5-a-day. My mum once put them in pasta "If the Chinese can put them in rice, then we can put them in Pasta" Just one of the infamous quotes from my mother.


Flatmate No.1: On the left, a weird egg-like food with a peanut filling? What?

Flatmate No.2: A lot of dumplings. 

Flatmate No.3: I can't really describe this. 








22 May 2014

The Matisse Cut Outs exhibition has now arrived in London. However why is it so expensive for a ticket? If Matisse cut his artwork in half, he should at least cut the ticket price in half.




I really hate it when people refer to artwork like this as 'shit I could draw', because to me that's an uneducated opinion. For me the most relevant part of someone's artwork is not the art itself but the context it lived in; for Matisse it was the invention of the camera.

Now imagine you are in a world where you can't take a selfie, or photograph using your iphone. The wonderful moments in life you have to enjoy without that Kodak Moment. How would you describe it to others? However one day someone brings a camera along, a weird device which captures what the human eye can see. With this device there is no need to paint realistic paintings; the camera can document the world for you. How do you feel?

This is most likely what Matisse felt; he was free to paint and capture a surreal world that we can only imagine living in. His paintings could capture vibrants colours which the camera could not. He could go beyond the camera by displaying emotion and movement through different colours. Just think, if you were in his situation what would you paint?



I wrote an article about Matisse and the celebration of colour for Juicebox magazine, however it never got published so here is a shorten version for the online world to enjoy.



Who would of thought that weaving your way in and out of elderly art enthusiasts would lead me to imagine myself running through an electric cloud of coloured paint?


This month the Tate Modern is engulfed by an array of colour. Matisse’s late work towers the walls and it is hard to miss the overwhelming colour that fills the gallery. No wonder you have to make your way through a sea of people.

Wondering through the crowds and into a room deep within the exhibition I found one of Matisse’s more famous works that caught my eye, the captivating Blue Nudes. A series of four female figures cut out of paper stand out from amongst the crowd. Even though blue is associated with sadness the figures convey happiness, elegance and beauty. The third portrait is intriguing, the female is leaning back while seated crossed legs, and she looks relaxed and filled with pleasure. Matisse is known for his enjoyment in life. Her large thighs and full figure reflects an image the majority of us have. Looking around the room I can see it connecting with many others.





















Unpublished Editorial from Juicebox


The Blue Nudes are just one example of the depth and enjoyment Matisse’s work brings to the Tate. The bright colours catch people’s attention; “The brighter the colour, the happier you are”, he enjoyed pleasing people. It is simply a celebration of life through colour.

What more do you need to celebrate life? Do you need a good old pint or shot of tequila? What about Music? Listening to the mumbling of crowds of people it doesn’t really sound to much like a celebration to me however moving through to another room we learn how colour and music join to gather to touch all our senses. A series of costumes and scenery made in 1937 for a ballet performed to Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony #1. The music is hypothetical, however the movement of the dancers is caught in the flow of colour creates a sense of music, a bit like our modern day interruption of the Indian Holi Festival. Holi is a celebration of 'good defeats the bad' based on the story of Hiranyakashyap, the demon princess. It is meant to cleanse your soul and represent freedom from bad relationships. During Holi everyone is seen as equal.













I wondered if he ever travelled to India and saw the vibrant colour used in fabrics and dyes there. Would Matisse’s paintings and cut outs be different if he saw the celebrations they have in India?
We are fortunate enough to have in London this summer a traditional Indian festival, Holi Festival taking part adjacent to Matisse’s exhibition. The festival is an explosion of powdered paint and colour; the atmosphere has an electric feel, a feeling reflected in Matisse paintings. It is two events that link two cultures together.

In my own mind I can imagine the Tate being filled with a cloud of powered paint, explosions of colour everywhere, with people running through throwing faith and freedom in the air, in amongst glances of Matisse’s red and blue figures draped on the wall. For me this would make a great film.



 






Images from: www.lexpress.fr, tate.org, wikipaintings.org, heliconmagazine.co.uk, angryarabscommentsection.blogspot.co.uk, ovjulianna.nl and daviddanielsphotography.com.

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