Between the mania of Taylor Swift and Carly Rae Jepsen both releasing career-defining albums this morning (apparently the Arctic Monkeys did too?) the girls, gays and theys have been occupied. But no worries, we’re here to keep you updated on all things fashion, from a landmark Meisel exhibition in Spain and the winners of the Samuel Ross’ Black British Artist Grant Programme 2022, to new collaborations from i-D’s own Alastair McKimm x Zara Kids+, Cecilie Bahnsen x ASICS and Amiri x Wes Lang. There’s also the new Natasha Lyonne-starring Bimba Y Lola, campaign, and, finally, an interview with Central Saint Martins art grad Corbin Shaw for his landmark piece in the newly redesigned Levi’s store on Regent Street. Here’s what’s in fashion.
Steven Meisel brings a landmark exhibition to Spain
A Coruña, the largest city in the Spanish region of Galicia, isn’t typically thought of as a fashion destination, but that’s all set to change on November 19th of this month. Why, you ask? Well, Meisel! Yes, late next month, the northern Spanish city will play host to Steven Meisel 1993: A Year In Photographs, an exploration of a pivotal year in the now-canonised photographer’s life and career. It was then that he shot 28 covers for Vogue, as well as some of his most iconic editorial stories, such as “Anglo-Saxon Attitudes” with Stella Tennant, Bella Freud, Plum Sykes and Honor Fraser for British Vogue. Featured in the show will be more than 100 portraits of fashion and film’s biggest stars, a tiny tease of which can be seen here. Time to snap up those tickets, girlies – A Coruña calls! MS
i-D’s editor-in-chief has launched his second collection for Zara Kids+
If we have learnt anything from North West, it’s that you’re never too young to dress like an icon. Taking her cue, i-D editor-in-chief Alastair McKimm has launched the second season of his Zara Kids+ collection so your little ones can be just as chic. Taking the stylist’s signature silhouettes that have adorned Kim Kardashian, Billie Eilish and Cruz Beckham in recent issues of i-D, the ZARA KIDS+ LILMCKIMM MMXXII Collection cutely shrinks these styles down and offers them in new colourways including beige, lilac and mint. Adorably showing off his dad’s designs, and photographed by his mum Amy Troost, is Alastair’s son, along with the nephews of model Selena Forrest. Launching online and in-store from 22 October 2022, get these pieces for the children in your life who need saving from their parents’ terrible style. TG
Cecilie Bahnsen brings couture-level craft to sporty shoes
The sneaker world has a perhaps unfair reputation for being a bit of a boys club, but this week saw the launch of a collaboration that bucks that trend. Japanese activewear brand ASICS have paired up with Copenhagen’s queen of airy, feminine fashion Cecilie Bahnsen on an upcycled capsule of sporty shoes. Taking ASICS techy GEL series silhouettes as the base, each shoe is elevated by Cecilie’s signature floral beading and appliqués, bringing a frisson of couture-level handcraft to running track staples. You’ll have to run to get your hands on a pair though – with just 50 pairs released in total, these are a seriously limited edition must-cop. MS
See how the Amiri x Wes Lang AW22 show collaboration came to be in a new photobook
Cast your minds all the way back to Amiri’s AW22 show and you will remember that the LA brand had coats, trousers and jackets within the collection adorned with the works of iconic artist Wes Lang. To celebrate the artistic journey and collaboration between Wes and Mike Amiri in creating the next iteration in the brand’s signature LA street style aesthetic, AMIRI have launched the book AMIRI WES LANG. Looking at the journey to the collection, the Rizzoli-published book contains curated text and photographs by artist duo Hart Lëshkina of the Amiri atelier and Lang’s studio. Additionally available are skateboards, printed with iconic artworks by Lang and then each board signed by him and Mike. The collaboration is so cool, the likes of Angus Cloud, Ty Dolla Sign and G-Eazy were all there to celebrate the book and the board’s launch. The book is available at Amiri.com and Rizzoli.com, as well as in Amiri stores and select global retailers alongside the skateboards. TG
Bimba y Lola takes to the road
In the doldrums between the summer and the Christmas holidays, it’s only natural that you might start to feel a bit of an itch in your feet. Well, just on cue to scratch that itch is Spanish fashion brand Bimba Y Lola, who’ve just dropped their dazzling new BIMBAYLOLIZED campaign. Drawing inspiration from on-the-road, Americana classics like Paris, Texas and Twin Peaks, the Petra Collins-shot epic series sees a group of Bimba y Lola girls roam about the desert settlement of Lolaville, exploring the strange, cinematic happenings taking place – think snow falling at the height of summer and the arrival of UFOS. A separate chapter to the campaign adds a dash of A-list star power into the mix with the casting of Russian Doll icon Natasha Lyonne, who’s captured in movie-still landscapes – from rocky outcrops to neon-lit desert gas stations – all while wearing Bimba y Lola’s boldly adventurous AW22 collection. MS
And the winners of Samuel Ross’ Black British Artist Grant Programme 2022 are…
Earlier this summer, we announced that the Samuel Ross Black British Artist Grant Programme was back for 2022 and that Grace Wales Bonner was joining the judging panel to find and support the next gen of POC talents within art, fashion and design. Well, now the results are in! Winning the categories for fashion are Cameron Williams and Torisheju Dumi. The Fine Art & Sculpture category was won by Rochelle Nembhard, Ebun Sodipo, Aaron Kudi and Rhea Dillon, while Habib Hajallie won the Illustration category and Issi Nanabeyin took the Industrial Design & Architecture crown. Finally, the Photography categories went to Jebi Ndimuntoh and Kemka Ajohu. Selected because of their exceptional talent, creativity and vision within their practice, the winners received £2,500 in financial support, as well as mentoring to grow their practice. Make sure you keep an eye on all these names! TG
Levi’s Regent Street has been taken over by Corbin Shaw, a Central Saint Martins graduate
Levi’s have always prided themselves on pioneering a culture of expressing yourself through denim and their newly redesigned Regent Street store in London makes this mantra the focus, with an expanded tailor shop at the front to modify, alter and style your Levi’s. To underline this vision of championing creativity and expression in the city, by the tailor shop sits an art piece custom-made by Corbin Shaw, a Sheffield-born Central Saint Martins art graduate. The piece – entitled London Tapestry and made by dying and imprinting squares of denim patchworked together – is a celebration of Corbin’s own relationship to the city and the memories he’s gathered across its streets in the years since moving there. Smaller versions of the design, along with other slogans such as “MY LOCAL MY LONDON” and “ALL RIVERS LEAD TO LONDON”. With his piece up at the Regent Street store until 4 November 2022, we spoke to Corbin about his inspirations for London Tapestry, how he made it, and the memories he holds in the city.
Do you remember the first Levi’s item you owned?
Yes definitely, it was Levi’s 501s, probably from Costco. It was actually my Dad who showed me the ropes with those things when I became a teenager, introducing me to the staples like Levi’s, Doc Martens, etc. Jeans are quite a tribal thing I think amongst men, especially at football where everyone wears them. I have one photo of a group of guys in Sheffield at the footy and literally everyone is in 501s! For me, owning the staples growing up was a way of fitting in, but then I’d style them differently to try and subtly stand out, and reflect my subculture.
What was the inspiration behind London Tapestry?
The first inspiration was Wolfgang Tillmans’ “Faltenwurf”, which is a series of images of discarded clothes. He had this really interesting quote that said “Clothes are 2D. They cover our bodies and then our bodies imprint ourselves onto the clothes”. That began everything.
I wear a lot of denim and I’m obsessed with the way a pair of jeans tells the story of the person wearing them – where they have been, what they have carried with them. Each fade is like a memory. I moved to London for uni and the city started to become a part of me. Some of my favourite memories have happened in different parts of this city. “London Tapestry” tells this story, with memories ingrained into the indigo in the same way that they are etched into my jeans. London is huge but in reality my London is small. My people and places are packed in certain areas and it becomes like a village.
Can you tell us about the process of making it?
For the first time in my practice, I used cyanotype for “London Tapestry”. It’s a water-based solution that you paint onto fabric then overlay your text or images before exposing it to light. 15 minutes later, the images are ingrained onto the fabric.
What memories of London have you put into the piece? When you look at it, are the overwhelming emotions positive?
I first came to London when I was 16 on a school trip and totally fell in love with the place. I just knew I had to be here, so I did everything I could to move. I worked at a service station whilst studying at Leeds College of Art to fund my move. I had heard about Central Saint Martins in London through Jarvis Cocker’s lyrics on the song ‘Common People’.
My relationship to London has been a real journey over the past five years. I moved here with no connections to the city. I was completely alone and I felt lost. I didn’t know if moving to London was right for me. Slowly but surely, I met my people who shaped me and guided me away from the previous 18 years growing up in a village up North. When I look at my tapestry on the wall I see all the people and places that made me feel at home – the thousands of memories and the many more to be made.
How did you go about choosing the slogans on London Tapestry and the patches?
I was thinking a lot about how our identities are formed from the places and people we encounter. London inspired me and moving here helped me make the work I do today. It helped me to draw cultural differences between the North and the South. I only realised what the North was like once I was outside of it. Distance helps you to reflect. When writing the slogans I was thinking about who had moved to London and had made it their own. I originally started to think about how water dyes jeans and how water, like the Thames, got to London. I found out that even the river Thames moved to London from Kemble.
How do you hope people will use the patches to express themselves?
What I like about the patches is that you can buy them even if they’re not interested in art or don’t think art is for you. It’s almost a gateway into art and hopefully a chance for them to read a little more about my practice and even explore other artists as well.