creative insight | Marc Ecko on The Breakfast Club

I’ve always loved Marc Ecko because he doesn’t shy away from honesty. Whether he’s analyzing his own faults or someone else’s, he always provides a genuine perspective, instead of the “ass-kissing” perspective that’s so infamous these days. Recently, he did an interview with Power 105.1’s Breakfast Club where he promoted his new book, Unlabel: Selling You Without Selling Out, and he provided great insight on his career and the fashion industry as a whole. He even touched on Kanye West’s recent cries of frustration and it was truly refreshing to hear a different interpretation of Ye’s expressiveness. Please check out the full interview below. 

Source: The Breakfast Club 

creative wisdom | Andre Walker on Issues in Fashion

This article was not written by me but Andre Walker shared an amazingly beautiful perspective on the current issues in the fashion industry with writer, Katharine Zarrella; therefore, I felt compelled to share it with all of you. I have never re-blogged another writer's article on the site before, so for this to be the first time, you have to know that it's quite significant. 

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Walker — a 45-year-old Brooklyn-based designer turned self-proclaimed fashion artist, whose claims to fame include an outré clothing line he launched in New York’s downtown clubs when he was a teenager, consulting for the likes of Marc Jacobs and Kim Jones, and publishing a tactile fashion and arts zine called TIWIMUTA — has a pretty firm grasp on the definition. And he is concerned that contemporary culture’s ‘Give me more now’ mentality, as well as its lust for synthetic materials and overproduction, has thrust the fashion industry into an ethically questionable downward spiral.

Walker sits down with Katharine Zarrella to voice his views on the state of the industry and why, in spite of it all, fashion is still “gorge.”

KZ: You once said that, at age nine, reading W magazine was a magical experience for you. Does fashion mean the same thing to you now as it did then?

AW: No, not at all. I believe that the infrastructures of fashion have eroded over the years, and I think the systems need to change. We need to revisit how clothing is manufactured, how fabrics are made and what kinds of materials are used. In my opinion, a lot of the top luxury brands are not really making luxury goods. I can’t look at plastic shoes that cost $3,000 and call that luxury.

KZ: Is manufacturing, in your opinion, the biggest problem?

AW: No, it’s consumption. Consumption is the new servitude. It affects every demographic, from the rich to the poor. Everyone is forced or obliged to purchase something. The extremely wealthy don’t have to think as much about what they buy as the poor or the middle class, so it’s up to the extremely wealthy to lead by example. They need to become more conservative in their behaviour.

KZ: How so?

AW: It would be really interesting to see how top-tier fashion companies would react to all of their consumers wanting something biodegradable, for example. I don’t see the future in clothes made from plastic and latex and nylon and acetate — not with everything that we know about the world. We need to go beyond this surface that everyone is so quick to call luxury. These fabrics are outdated. We need to challenge what we’re actually bringing forth into the world, rather than just paying homage to these dumb Hello Kitty dolls and having shrines of junk that are supposedly so cool.

KZ: How did you transform from the little boy reading Wmagazine to Andre Walker, fashion artist?

femme style | Marissa Webb Spring/Summer RTW 2014

New York’s Fashion Week arrived on September 5^th, and one of my highest show anticipations was built for Marissa Webb’s Ready-to-Wear collection. For years, I’ve been mesmerized by Marissa’s style which defines a perfect marriage between a tomboy and femme fatale. I was introduced to her by researching the designers of one of my favorite brands, J.Crew, and since then, I fell in love with her modish style of dress. So, it’s no secret that I was awaiting her 2014 Ready to Wear collection to make its debut during New York Fashion Week. The best ensembles of the collection were long-sleeve tie-blouses, paired with corsets, tutus, and/or pencil skirts. Once again, Marissa made sure to infuse both worlds of tomboy and femme fatale and I loved it. Check out footage from the show below.

Source: Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week

fashion revolt | Alexander II Akande Blazer Collection

We live in the consumer era, where the only thing companies want to do is sell. Even fields such as design, long held as creative and innovative, now focus largely on sales. Modern fashion is no longer about creating and being different, it is now about feeding into trends to create sales and generate profits. One designer makes a hit, everyone rushes to copy and replicate.

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La Révolte

Having grown up in Africa (Cameroon, Nigeria, DR Congo, Kenya) and Europe (U.K, France, Italy), it is easy to see the lines that divide fashion and design. European designers appropriate African themes for one-off designs and marketing campaigns, while African designers focus solely on Africa, where they feel their designs will be most appreciated in contrast to Europe, where they appear only as passing trends. Our designs merge African culture with European silhouettes. What we are trying to do is merge both worlds seamlessly and consistently, not merely as a passing trend or summer collection.The idea behind the brand, everything from the design process to the order process is simple; create value by treating customers like the individuals they are and not as sales figures and target markets.

All of our blazer pieces are handmade and custom made to measure in Cameroon, with designs limited per country. Customers get to pick their design, colour  and have the option to have their initials embroidered. Our blazers also feature traditional Cameroon prints, and we make sure not to send similar prints to the same city (just in case you run into someone wearing the same design, colour and initials!) The result is simple; you get what you want, not what you’re told to want. With that said, I’m pleased to introduce our debut piece, the Mist blazer.

fashion speaks | Manish Arora

The element of balance is imperative to some creatives, but yet, an unfathomable act to others. I’ve never believed it to be intentional though. I think it’s the creative mind working at its highest ability, which hinders those creatives from evening their business and creative scales. Manish Arora, a very famous Indian fashion designer, did an interview where he used himself as a great example for the infamous “creative balance” as it pertains to his career. Manish gave insight to what all creatives aim to do which is becoming successful from their artistic talents.

fashion speaks | Phillip Lim

It is difficult for many designers to inveigle fashion admirers into their personalities because many do not possess good personalities. Some designers strive to maintain a personal mystique while others are simply prisoners of their own successes. Well however they may label themselves, I appreciate it when designers can unveil their truth and unapologetically tell their story, such as Phillip Lim. While I am not a major fan of his clothes, I do love his handbags and more so his character. In the visual below, the creative collective, SHOWstudio conducted an in-depth interview with Phillip as a part of their In Fashion series that explores the depths of contemporary fashion’s current influencers. So if you have ever inquired about the man that is Phillip Lim, you are certain to receive your answers in the interview below.

Credit: SHOWstudio

Style Cinema | Ozwald Boateng

Ozwald Boateng is one of the "Big Three" designers who revived the bespoke tailored fit back into British fashion but aside from that, he is one of the top designers in the world and he is a style icon. Of course, I don't know him personally but through many interviews that I have seen and documentaries I have watched of him...he seems very debonair with a vibrant aura. A very suave guy who understands that style is whatever you make it to be and I love that. In the documentary below, Ozwald presents his perception on Why Style Matters. It's a very intriguing documentary that I'm certain all fashion aficionados will appreciate. 

 

Continue on for Parts 4 + 5

Vintage Culture | Willi Smith

As with any culture, it is critical for the new generations to know who were the initiators of that specific culture. In terms of fashion, when individuals think of ethnic designers they automatically assume that it all began with hip-hop but that could not be further from the truth. While Russell Simmons, Sean Combs, and Shawn Carter were brand owners in urban fashion they were not fashion designers. The first Black man that gained commercial success as a designer and fashion entrepreneur was none other than Willi Smith. In 1976, he founded his own clothing company, WilliWear, and became the most profound designer of his time. With his creative wit and passion for sleek style, Willi was able to steer WilliWear into a direction where the clothing label grossed $25 million dollars per year. That was in 1986. Unfortunately almost one year later, in 1987, he passed away and was not able to witness the milestone he was setting for world culture. There are assumptions of what caused his death but none are fact, so out of respect for this amazing man I won't make a false claim.  

Check out his obituary in the NY Times here. 

Avid Visionaries | Ayeisha Mesinger Interview

Name: Ayeisha Mesinger 

Visionary Class: Fashion | Designer  

Hometown: Los Angeles 

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Bria: What attracted you to fashion design?

Ayeisha: Sometimes I think it was temporary insanity! But I suppose most of my designs have been inspired by things I want but can not find.

Bria: Who were your fashion icons growing up as a young girl? 

Ayeisha: The Cosby characters [such as] Claire, Denise and Theo Huxtable, and Cindy Lauper are a given; and then I would say it was people like Cecily Tyson and Grace Jones who my parents loved because they were of West Indian decent. So, all very different people and characters but I think as a child I liked to observe, and it was interesting to see how such [diverse] individuals could be aesthetically appealing to such a range of people.

Bria: Who has been your largest fashion influence? 

Ayeisha: Alexander McQueen. I feel like it’s such an obvious answer these days but really, I had jaw dropping reactions to all of his shows and I admire his ability to turn his imagination into pieces of art. 

Bria:  How did you hone your design skills? Was it more through technical instruction or creative growth? 
Ayeisha: Some of this and that for sure. I designed before I went back to school for it.  I think for me, school gave me the confidence and technical skills to execute. Part of creative growth for me has been acknowledging the role that merchandising plays. You have to edit designs and you have to consider what will and won’t sell. 

Bria: What initiated the beginning of your brand Morgan Parish?  

Ayeisha: A need for a tote [bag] to drag around L.A. while I was working. I had a canvas tote that I always dragged around but I really wanted a leather one that I could beat up. This spawned the Ranch Tote, and the [creation of the] Prospect Clutch was kind of like, while I am at it, I really wish this clutch existed.

Avid Visionaries | Alfred Lape Interview

Bria: Where are you from? 

Alfred: I grew up in and I'm originally from Seattle, WA.

Bria: How was your childhood growing up? And did you have a creative drive as a kid?

Alfred: As a child, I loved and was always into the arts. I drew cartoons a lot - Spiderman, X-Men, Calvin & Hobbes, Dragon Ball-Z, etc. I played the piano for 10 or more years. I was always into music. My brother and I would have to save our lunch money during high school and collect records and albums. I used to make houses out of cardboard as a child as well so my mother thought I would be an architect. Then in high school, I learned how to crochet hats because I would always see Lauryn Hill, Common, etc. have those crocheted beanies and at that time, you couldn't find them anywhere, and I wanted something unique. So I got into the game, making hats before I expanded into doing garments.

Bria: What first engaged you into the fashion culture? 

Alfred: From as far back to when I was 13 years old, I was into presentation and how I expressed myself with my appearance. Everything had to look a certain way. Every detail from the shirt, jacket, shoes, accessories, and even my hair cut had to be executed. I learned to cut my own hair at that age and to this day if I'm wearing my clothes and I go out, I will not go out without a haircut. It was art to me and I was the canvas to express my art. Later in life, that attention to detail would lead to sales and a strategy to promote my brand on a guerrilla level.  I was heavenly influenced by music videos also. I wanted to look like my favorite artists in the videos.

Bria: How did your clothing label, LAVSH come to fruition? 

Alfred: LAVSH was founded in 2007. I started the brand with my bestfriend, Danny Prasad, we have been friends since we were 13 years old.  LAVSH came into fruition because I would get ideas and visions and I wanted to create them. As I said earlier, I initially got into fashion by making hats in high school for fun. In college, I wanted to push myself and I became curious with creating clothes. My mom had a sewing machine and I would go to the thrift store and alter/deconstruct a garment and learn how to put it together. After awhile, I would make make my own clothes and I wore my creations, and people would ask me where they can get a piece.

From there, we started making custom pieces for people by default. There was a demand for the product, but we couldn't manufacture these cut-and-sew pieces because it would cost $200,000 to start a line. It was either quit, since we didn't have the financing or sew it ourselves. We chose to dream and sew it ourselves. 

Later I met my mentor Jacque Goldsmith when I was in Seattle and she's been in the industry for years, and worked with pioneering brands like Alphanumeric, Enyce, and MECCA. She taught me how to sew, pattern make, taught me about the industry, working with factories, etc. Then when I moved to Los Angeles, I had another mentor Rose, who worked with lines like Jeremy Scott and Brian Lichtenberg, and she expanded my knowledge as well.

I would spend 18 hours a day for 3 days [consecutively] creating a single jacket, pants, or accessories, depending on the intricacy. We would wear it out to events, tradeshows, parties, etc. Eventually, we had artists like N.E.R.D, Kid Cudi, Mayor Hawthorne, Janelle Monae, Keri Hilson, Chris Brown, Black Eyed Peas, Jeremy Scott, Shay Mitchell, Jasmine Villegas, and many others wearing LAVSH. Recently, we were even featured in last month's issue of Vogue.

Bria: LAVSH is a very distinctive brand and in my opinion it promotes a lot of individuality through the line with very assertive quotes. What inspired you to do that? 

Alfred: The LAVSH brand and customer are rebels and underdogs. We incorporated quotes and a message with the [clothing] line organically, because it was just in our nature.  We wanted to make a visual impact with each design as well as each product name. We reflect culture, real people, and we all go through the same experiences, obstacles, and challenges, so people can identify with the message.