The Case Of The Anonymous Blogger

Andy Pickering (Artists Impression)

This past weekend, guest editor of the Herald On Sunday 'Spy Pages' Andy Pickering (editor of Pilot Magazine), outed the previously anonymous writer of The Honest New Zealand Fashion Blog as Cameron Lee Putt.

I thank everyone who read this blog throughout December 2011 and January 2012, especially those who commented - it was an exciting and educational experience.

No opinion should ever be protested, especially those that are negative. They're the ones from which you learn the most.

FQ Summer 11/12 Cover

FQ Summer 2011/12. Image - Steven Chee/Fashion Quarterly

2011 was the year that fashion magazines across the globe fell in love with the animal cover. Another, Numero and Cosmopolitan gave it go. Elle seemed obsessed with the concept, and tried it no less than six times. Closer to home, New Zealand's preeminent fashion-forward title Fashion Quarterly (FQ) jumped onto the bandwagon for its Summer 2011 issue.

A magazine cover should be striking, glamourous and immediately desirable, but the FQ Summer 2011 cover shot in Italy, photographed by Steven Chee, styled by Marina Didovich, featuring Mariana Braga at Premier, is anything but.

Part of the problem with this cover is the odd brown colour treatment applied to its image. I have no inherent issue with the colour brown, or beautifully tanned skin, but in this instance it alludes to a sense of dirtiness and poverty. It reeks of Tevye from Fiddler On The Roof - a poor, downtrodden commoner. International model Braga, who usually looks tanned and healthy, seems to be suffering from a terrible case of jaundice.

Adding to the questionable colour treatment, is the choice of cover co-star. Fashion magazines live in an idealised world full of rare, beautiful, or dangerous animals - horses, leopards, snakes. A donkey is a symbol of the working class, and tough manual labour completed in the scorching sun. A donkey is a dimwitted sidekick voiced by Eddie Murphy. A donkey is not a worthy fashion magazine cover star.

I certainly applaud the creative risk FQ took with this cover, and it's wonderful that they broke from their usual cover formula. However, an aspirational fashion magazine like FQ lives in a revered, utopian world. It is not a place for dirt. Or donkey.

FQ editor Fiona Hawtin does deserve some recognition this issue for doing away with the usual cover text, bar the issue title "White Heat". It presents a cleaner, more dramatic finish. It's a direction that most international fashion magazines have already headed in, and instantly elevates FQ from generic local title to international contender. It's just a shame that there isn't a stronger image underneath.

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Side note.

For more international coverage on the year of the animal cover, see here care of Fashionista.

New Zealand Fashion Festival 2012 Campaign

NZFF12 Campaign. Image - Stephen Tilley

The New Zealand Fashion Festival (NZFF) 2012 campaign image is wonderful. With a nod to the incredibly famous United Of Colors Of Benetton advertisements of the 1980's, this campaign is a fun, inclusive and accurate representation of the NZFF and its target demographic.

With creative direction by Glenn Hunt, photography by Stephen Tilley and styling by New Zealand polymath Karen Inderbitzen-Waller, this campaign is a production from New Zealand's best creative talent. Beaming models Seon at Clyne, Penny Pickard at N Model Management, George Vause at Red 11 and Daniela also at Clyne, (from left to right) create a genderless and ageless invitation to join in.

A consumer focused fashion event is hard to advertise. While displaying a fashion forward directionality and aspiration, it must also appear accessible and down to earth. Hunt, Tilley, and Inderbitzen-Waller have done an incredible job achieveing this delicate balance. The stylised models look modern and polished, but also completely welcoming and achievable to the layman.

The most notable aspect of this campaign is the smiling, obviously joyous models. It's a definite break from the usually sullen and serious image presented by most New Zealand fashion houses/events. The mainstream fashion consumer (who this event is directed at) is accustomed to the cheerful campaigns from mass market retailers like Just Jeans, Dotti, and Max. The NZFF12 campaign image delivers just this - a recognisable and palatable attitude, yet it also displays an elevated, directional style expected from a fashion event.

The choice of models is perhaps the most obvious reference to the fantastic ideals that were previously laid by United Colors Of Benetton. Multi-cultural, multi-gendered, and multi-aged models reference an all inclusive atmosphere. They are welcoming and non-threatening, in an industry that is often anything but.

As much as I love the direction NZFF have taken with their 2012 campaign, their logo leaves much to be desired. Dated and jarring, it displays none of the modernism expected from a current fashion production. Its strong, bold typeface seems at odds with the relaxed and inviting atmosphere displayed otherwise.

Overall, the campaign displays a fun and welcoming atmosphere. The NZFF looks like a lively event, and something exiting to be part of.

Zambesi S/S11/12 Campaign Image

Zambesi S/2 2011/12 Campaign. Image - Zambesi/Marissa Findlay

For a fashion house with such vast experience, the recently published Zambesi S/S11/12 campaign image (above), shot by Marissa Findlay, was unusually confusing. Featuring three models surrounded, dressed, and made-up in white, it should have been an exercise in simplicity without distraction.

I must admit that Krystal Glynn at Clyne (middle) looks incredible. She conveys an exclusive, aspirational mood that is expected from one of New Zealand's oldest and most respected fashion houses. Glynn's lipstick is an incredibly striking, yet subtle deep red that demands attention without distracting the eye. Her perfectly tousled platinum blonde hair displays a relaxed attitude while simultaneously alluding to a constant dignity and poise.

The males however, David Kemp at Nova (front) and Joshua Skelton at Vanity Walk (rear), appear to lack the polish and consideration that was given their female counterpart.

Pure white hair, while an impressive feat by Jason Li at Stephen Marr given the natural brunette of both Kemp and Skelton, appears lackluster and undernourished. Rather than implying a nonchalant or carefree attitude, it is one of haste and poverty. The hair of both Kemp and Skelton is neither highly polished, nor effortlessly messy - it seems to hang between both in a confusing limbo.

The 'Zero Tie' clipped onto the neckline of Kemp's tee, is surely the most confusing aspect of this image. Standing out as the only non-white item draws an oddly large amount of attention a completely unnecessary item. The relaxed attitude and ease in which the rest of the garments are worn contradicts the forced and fussy nature of the disco influenced costume tie. The awkward v-neck that is created by the weight of the tie seems out of place, as one of the few sharp angles displayed in this image.

Although these two issues may seem incredibly minor, they distract from what is otherwise an incredible campaign image. I find myself overcome by these two small faults, and unable to appreciate the simplicity of the image as a whole.

This is not the first image used to advertise the Zambesi S/S11/12 collection, but it is the least impressive. There are other, substantially better options. Perhaps it is a matter of sharpening the editing knife and trimming the fat - placing the focus upon fewer images, which display a higher degree of professionalism and a more concise mood.

As I've mentioned before (here), Zambesi do not work with a dedicated stylist, and this may be a good example of why they should.

Helping Hands

Helping Hands. Image - The Labyrinth/Tristar Pictures

Although it may not come across in some of my most recent blog posts (here and here), I support next generation talent in every way I can. Hell, I'm probably considered one myself. What I won't do, is give praise where it isn't due. Or equally, stand by and neglect to scold what I believe deserves to be scolded.

While an 'everyone's a winner' attitude is fine for a breakfast cereal sponsored children's triathlon, it is not fine in the highly competitive adult creative industries - in this case, fashion. It is only through critical analysis that things will improve.

Sure, there are platforms in which developing talent should be nurtured, and shielded from negative remarks - tertiary education publications, for example. However, when sub-standard amateur work is presented within the confines of a completely public and professional platform, I believe it is entirely acceptable to look upon it with a critical eye.

I have had a fair amount of negative feedback within my working life (not to mention within the comments of this blog), and it was such remarks that helped me improve. The negative feedback was often correct, and so changes were made. And where it wasn't correct, it gave me the opportunity to thoroughly consider my own thoughts and ideas, and why I choose to stand by them.

Surely negative feedback, when constructive, is better than none at all? At the very least, it shows that someone cares.

Olivia O'Driscoll By Derek Henderson

Image - Pilot Magazine/Derek Henderson

Pilot is an incredibly good looking magazine.

Produced in New Zealand by Andy Pickering (once editor of Remix Magazine), with a focus upon exceptional design and layout, it seems logical that Pilot would also focus the same exceptional aesthetic standards upon their homegrown fashion editorials. In the past they have done so brilliantly, but it seems their recent issue has left a little to be desired.

Issue #6 of Pilot contains only one New Zealand produced fashion editorial, styled by industry novice Emma Gleason, and shot by Derek Henderson.

While drafting up and coming contributors usually displays an encouragement of fledgeling talent, in this instance it seems to display a lack of imagination from editor Andy Pickering. For a magazine which usually features several locally crafted fashion editorials, produced by some of the countries best names, to suddenly have just one, is an oversight.

I could be wrong, but I'd pick that Gleason was chosen because of her close ties/tweets with Murray Bevan of Showroom 22, her blogosphere fame, and self-promoted dabblings as an assistant to the respected Dan Ahwa. Rather than her own proven styling ability.

The shoot itself does indeed display a certain degree of polish expected from such a preeminent title, but this is undoubtedly due to the photographer and model, rather than the stylist. The styling is lackluster, and is an expected exercise in the pseudo-androgynous style Gleason herself is known for. Ill fitting menswear garments appear out of place alongside their more feminine counterparts. Accessories seem forced, and chosen only for their inherent brilliance, rather than a cohesiveness with the rest of the shoot. Fit and style are awkwardly transient throughout.

Apparently giving Gleason complete stylistic freedom, this shoot could have been her opportunity to shine in a discipline she is, thus far, not know for. Instead it was a largely directionless mash-up - Twiggy meets Mad Men meets Pretty Woman. It displayed none of the heightened creativity expected of a fashion editorial.

The addition of other content, from New Zealand's more experienced fashion industry personnel, would have added a credibility that this issue of Pilot lacks.

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Side Note.

The Pilot cover image of David Dallas, also styled by Gleason, is breathtaking. It is the best of all the summer covers from New Zealand's lifestyle, culture and fashion titles. Slick, polished and entirely unexpected.

McInnes Taljaard By Calypso Paoli

Image - Calypso Paoli

I've always held The Fashionisto in such high regard. It is my go-to-guy when it comes to menswear imagery. A one-stop-shop for the best male fashion campaigns, editorials and runway productions in the world. It represents an incredibly comprehensive view of global mens fashion, without sacrificing quality.

Initially an only an aggregator, The Fashionisto launched an in-house magazine in February of 2010. It was a logical next step for an entity with a such a large readership and experienced editing eye. It was to be, or so I thought, a chance for incredible, but otherwise unpublished, photographers and stylists to display their work.

New Zealand's creative talent has recently featured on The Fashionisto, in an exclusive - McInnes Taljaard By Calypso Paoli. An editorial shot by Calypso Paoli and styled by Benjamin Walls, features the top names in New Zealand fashion design. What could have been an incredibly rare chance to display our countries best talent to the world, was anything but.

The stylist of this editorial, Benjamin Walls, is a photographer - by training, but not by trade. It is perhaps due to this lack of educational and professional styling experience that this shoot seems to possess no definitive identity or personality. From Indiana Jones, to an Ivy League attendee, to John Steed - it transcendeds look, style, or reason.

Besides the lack of real character direction, there is no styling polish in this shoot. Shirt collars are too large and not reduced with styling tricks, delicate fabrics are not ironed or streamed, and rich felts still have traces of dust and lint.

I get the feeling that the stylist forced every piece of menswear he collected into the shoot, without editing or thought as to what was being photographed.

There are a couple of great looks in this editorial. But they are lost amongst the sea of mediocrity. With a little bit of garment editing, this could have been a winner.