SHOWstudio: Asia Argento, Victoria Beckham, Nick Knight, Cara Delevingne, Aimee Mullins, Alice Hawkins, Marie Schuller, Rebecca Wilson, Anna Dello Russo, Lady Gaga, Judy Blame, Ruth Hogben, Rei Nadal and more...

If this email is not displaying correctly click here to view in web browser
	Newsletter | 26 April 2012
CURRENT FASHION FETISH: ASIA ARGENTO
From Florence to fetish, there is something for everyone in Asia Argento's provocative Fashion Fetish offering. Continuing the series' trend for innovative creative displays, the actress and director contributes Don't Bother To Knock, a series of film shorts exclusively for SHOWstudio. Presented as a 'video diary', these videos - captured during Argento's London promotion of the feature film Marie Antoinette in 2006 - combine DIY reportage aesthetics with meticulous direction from Argento and Nick Knight. Intertwining reality with fantasy, the films are aided by a script devised by author Emma Forrest, their original display as entries on the SHOWstudio blog adding weight to the dupe. User comments are displayed alongside the shorts, forming a corresponding narrative of viewer perceptions of Argento's actions and the suspension - or not - of disbelief as they navigate the fiction/fact labyrinth of this unique film series. [more]
CURRENT RANGE ROVER EVOQUE SPECIAL EDITION WITH VICTORIA BECKHAM
Nick Knight's latest fashion film is a collaboration with award-winning British designer Victoria Beckham. Teaming with Land Rover, Beckham serves as guest creative designer for a special edition of their latest model, a new bespoke hand-finished Range Rover Evoque - the model displayed to perfection in a fashion film directed by Knight and inspired by the fantasy cityscapes of graphic novellas. Beckham stars as her own model, sporting her eponymous fashion line alongside her equally sleek and streamlined automobile. The designer comments: 'I want everyone who gets into this car to feel special and empowered by its quality and craftsmanship. I like that it feels luxurious but also has quite a classic edge to it as well as a contemporary feel.' Who can't be won over by fabulous fashion and a fast car combined?   [more]
CURRENT PUSSYCAT, PUSSYCAT
On Friday 20 April 2012, SHOWstudio was the stage for Nick Knight's first ever Instagram fashion shoot - Pussycat, Pussycat - showcasing a priceless array of fine jewellery from Van Cleef and Arpels, Fabergé, Cartier, Solange Azagury-Partridge and the acclaimed postmodern bijoux of Delfina Delettrez alongside a menagerie of furry friends in the able hands of model Cara Delevigne. Captured instantaneously by Knight and relayed to global viewers via Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter and SHOWstudio.com, the shoot also offered snippets of intellectual fashion analysis delivered off-the-cuff by SHOWstudio fashion director Alexander Fury. The resulting images celebrate not only the cutesy-poo popularity of internet GIFs and memes, but next season's dressed-to-excess extravagance, teaming those gems with equally precious garms from the likes of Mary Katrantzou, Valentino Haute Couture and Rochas. Couture never looked quite so cute. [more]
COMING UP IN FASHION: AIMEE MULLINS
Filmed earlier this year, a brand new In Fashion interview edit featuring Aimee Mullins launches tomorrow, Friday 27 March, at 12:00 BST. The actress, model, athlete - and one of People magazine's fifty most beautiful people in the world - is in conversation with SHOWstudio fashion director Alexander Fury. She can be heard discussing her experiences as an bilateral amputee, as well as her sporting exploits, fashion career, and acting roles, alongside the process of storytelling in all three. As with all our In Fashion interviews, this is a frank and honest dialogue, providing a unique insight into the mind of a woman who has undoubtedly shaped the ever-changing landscape of contemporary fashion, athletics and culture.
CURRENT FASHION MIX
Perfectly coordinated with our Selling Sex exhibition, both playlists in our Fashion Mix series this week come from female image-makers. On Monday, photographer Alice Hawkins opened up her record collection, offering up a tribute to her sartorial and musical heroine Dolly Parton. A self-confessed Dolly-addict, Hawkins has already created a previous ode to the singer in her Ponystep story 'Dolly Parton is my religion', and even based her own wedding dress on the blond songstress. Truly a super mix from a super fan, Hawkins playlist is the perfect pick-me-up when working nine to five. On Friday, prior to her Fashion Fetish contribution next week, film-maker Marie Schuller will take to the SHOWstudio DJ both, offering up the songs and sounds that inspire her own creative work. Featuring everything from Sharivari by A Number of Names and Dirt by The Stooges, these fashionable tracks are not to be missed. Tune in on Friday at 13:00 BST to here Schuller's playlist for yourself. [more]
CURRENT VOTE FOR SHOWSTUDIO
Voting in the 16th Annual Webby Awards closes today! As a nominee for Best Fashion Website, SHOWstudio is eligible to win a Webby People's Voice Award, which is chosen online by you. You only have until the end of the day, Thursday 26 April, to cast your votes, so hurry over to pv.webbyawards.com/ballot/7 to show your support for SHOWstudio. [more]
FROM THE SHOP BLOW ME, 2011
Blow Me defies the conventional utility of ceramics by combining materials to become a teasingly coquettish collage. Scottish based artist Rebecca Wilson uses slip-casting techniques to produce high-quality items which defy the throwaway nature of their subject matter. Wilson often brings transient materials into the making process and in doing so interrupts the formality of traditional techniques. Her ceramics turn everyday items into a collage of pleasurable extravagance. She constructs new objects by casting discarded knickknacks, most commonly found in charity shops and car boot sales, into luxurious porcelain and bone china. The incongruous nature of provocative sexuality printed onto a staple of household propriety charms each viewer. The concurrence of porcelain with eccentric, dispensable and incidental materials creates an ironic play of worth between what we desire and what we choose to indulge in. [more]
FROM THE ARCHIVE THE FASHION BODY
Appropriately coinciding with Selling Sex's exploration of the female nude, SHOWstudio digs up this gem from our 2010 archives. Originally commissioned to feature as part of the 2009 exhibition SHOWstudio: Fashion Revolution at Somerset House, The Fashion Body focused on exploring and celebrating the human body, offering a unique combination of fashion and moving image. Over forty creatives - including designers, photographers, models, filmmakers and stylists - were tasked with contributing a personal and distinctive fashion film. Each focused on a different area of the body, using fashion items from the latest collections to adorn it. Alongside the final films, a series of essays explored our notions of fashionability and the body through the individual voices of almost thirty journalists, authors and academics. Not only functioning as distinct cinematic entities, the Fashion Body films are each a vital part of a larger panorama of fashion-focused moving image, built up organically over time to mirror the human body's own growth. From Anna Dello Russo's nose and Lady Gaga's left eye, to Ruth Hogben's buttocks and Judy Blame's left wrist - check out SHOWstudio's very fashionable form. [more]
LATEST ENTRIES BLOG
Rei Nadal: Water Sculptures I recently discovered the artist Shinichi Maruyama. What I loved about his work is, given the ephemeral nature of his sculptures, they can only exist through a photographic or film media support. [more]
'Selling Sex' receives a glowing four star review in today's Independent SHOWstudio Shop was delighted to receive a glowing four-star review in The Independent for our current exhibition 'Selling Sex'. [more]
Wayne McGregor's Carbon Life at the Royal Opera House With costumes by Gareth Pugh and music led by famed cool-kid Mark Ronson, this dance masterpiece was always going to make a splash. [more]
To send us feedback and comments please contact us. To unsubscribe, visit: showstudio.com/newsletter.

SHOWstudio: Nick Knight, Cara Delevingne, Fabergé, Van Cleef and Arpels, Cartier, Valentino Couture, Mary Katrantzou, Giles, Rochas, Asia Argento, Void of Course, Erdem, Tim Blanks and more...

If this email is not displaying correctly click here to view in web browser
	Newsletter | 19 April 2012
CURRENT FASHION FETISH: ASIA ARGENTO
The latest Fashion Fetish offering continues the series' trend for unique and innovative creative displays. Actress and director Asia Argento contributes Don't Bother To Knock, an incredible series of film shorts exclusively for SHOWstudio. Presented as a 'video diary', these shorts - captured during Argento's London promotion of the feature film Marie Antoinette - combine DIY reportage aesthetics with meticulous direction from Argento and Nick Knight. Intertwining reality with fantasy, a number of the films are aided by a script devised by author Emma Forrest, thus blurring the line between fiction with reality. Interspersed amongst the narrative are films exploring the theme of 'Twenty-three words beginning with 'F'', sparking monologues on everything from fetish to Florence and allowing a tantalising and raw insight into Argento's mind, routine and habits. Additionally, the films are accompanied by comments from SHOWstudio users. Originally presented as entries on the SHOWstudio blog, the user soundbites are displayed alongside the shorts, forming a corresponding narrative of viewers perceptions of Argento's actions and the suspension - or not - of disbelief as they navigate the fiction/fact labyrinth of this unique film series. [more]
CURRENT VOTE FOR SHOWSTUDIO
Time is running out to cast your ballot in the 16th Annual Webby Awards - so vote for SHOWstudio now at pv.webbyawards.com/ballot/7! We are thrilled to have been nominated for Best Fashion Website and you have just a week left to help us win. Dubbed the 'Internet's highest honour' by The New York Times, The Webby Awards is the leading international award honouring excellence on the Internet. Get voting for SHOWstudio and make sure to tune in on 21 May for The Webby Award show live stream!    [more]
COMING UP PUSSYCAT, PUSSYCAT
SHOWstudio's commitment to live fashion takes a new twist: this Friday 20 April 2012, SHOWstudio turns to the latest web tools - Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr - to offer up Nick Knight's first ever Instagram photo shoot. This is a 'live shoot' in its most literal sense, with images of model Cara Delevingne posted online straight from Knight's camera alongside tweets of pithy analytical fashion commentary from fashion director Alexander Fury. The theme? Well, if diamonds are a girl's best friend and dogs are a man's best friend, what happens when the two collide - with the addition of a kitty-cat, bunny, chick and a selection of Autumn/Winter 2012's finest fashions to the mix? Pussycat, Pussycat takes inspiration from Internet meme culture and the craze for animal GIFs to combine high fashion, fine jewellery and a cutesy-poo array of web-friendly and cuddly creatures. Featuring the finest of jewellery from Fabergé, Van Cleef and Arpels and Cartier, ludicrously luxurious fashions from Valentino Couture, Mary Katrantzou, Giles and Rochas and a four-legged menagerie of meme-worthy adorable animals, this editorial is a true exploration of society's passion, addiction, and obsession with the many fabulous faculties of the web. Furry friends, fabulous fashion and jaw-dropping gems: tune in for our take on unapologetic aesthetic indulgence.  Follow the shoot on Instagram via @showstudio_nick_knight and watch the SHOWstudio Twitter and Tumblr throughout the day this Friday 20 April 2012 to see all the action unfold.
CURRENT IN YOUR FACE: VOID OF COURSE
Those who missed the original live stream of Void of Course's two day design residency in February 2012 can now access the edited footage online. As part of the SHOWstudio Shop exhibition In Your Face the fashion design duo set up camp in February 2012 at our Bruton Place headquarters, producing an exquisitely dark 'Uglylove' outfit, which is now available from the SHOWstudio Shop. The making of their erotic elastic 'peek-a-boo' bandage dress - very apt for our current Fashion Fetish series - and tumor-ridden veiled hat are all documented in the newly launched film, accompanied with a candid discussion about the duo's creative process and some anecdotes from their career journeys. The footage is accompanied by a very special soundtrack, an original piece made especially for the film by pianist Lance Horn. [more]
COMING UP RANGE ROVER EVOQUE SPECIAL EDITION WITH VICTORIA BECKHAM
Victoria Beckham teams with Land Rover for her latest creation: as guest creative designer for a special edition of their latest model, the Range Rover Evoque. Beckham chose to collaborate with Nick Knight to create the accompanying campaign imagery and fashion film, showcasing VB herself clad in her eponymous fashion line alongside the equally sleek and sophisticated Range Rover model. This exclusive film, inspired in Knight's words by the concept of 'The Fountainhead meeting Bladerunner', will launch on SHOWstudio at 13:00 on Sunday 22 April 2012, allowing our viewing public to pore over Beckham's design as captured by Knight.
CURRENT SHOWSTUDIO MILESTONES
Perfectly timed with our Archive item for this week, Nick Knight's 2010 interview with The Business of Fashion to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of SHOWstudio, is the launch of SHOWstudio Milestones - a blow by blow retrospective of all our finest web work since our founding in 2000. With details of all SHOWstudio's most innovative past projects and exclusive collaborations, the visual timeline takes you through key moments in SHOWstudio's eleven-year history. A neat summary of our vast archive, with details of projects such as our In Camera interview with Lady Gaga from 2010, our interactive project Taking Liberty’s from 2004 that saw SHOWstudio take over the London department store windows, and Nick Knight's film tribute to Alexander McQueen To Lee, With Love, Nick from 2010. From our first ever film to our most recent, boundary-pushing technical endeavors, be sure to revisit the best of SHOWstudio. [more]
CURRENT FASHION MIX
It's been a stellar week for Fashion Mix with playlists from London prince of prints Erdem Moralioglu and acclaimed fashion journalist Tim Blanks. Monday saw the launch of Erdem's mix - given that he is fêted for his flirtatious colours and sensual feminine shapes, it's perhaps unsurprising that love and romance were the lynchpins of his musical musings. From the sultry soulful sounds of Billie Holiday and Nina Simone to classics like Antony & The Johnson's 'Crazy In Love' and The Mamas & The Papas's 'Midnight Voyage', the mix, just like Erdem's frocks, is sure to make any girl swoon. Friday's mix packs a more eclectic punch, with a hugely diverse mix from writer Blanks. You can look forward to wonders such as Gene Wilder's 'Pure Imagination' from the Willy Wonka soundtrack. Make sure to tune in, and keep your ears as fashionable as can be with SHOWstudio's Fashion Mix. [more]
FROM THE SHOP MR & MRS, 2012
Mr&Mrs is a loveseat made from vintage Ercol chair frames. Charlotte Kingsnorth is a London based designer who uses furniture to narrate the world as she sees it, conjuring up thought provoking ideas which push accepted boundaries and values. Her work melds together the practical and the sculptural. This piece is from her collection Hy-breed; which evolved from a mixture of vintage furniture frames and fleshy biomorphic forms. The character of the original frame informs the contours of the fleshy cushioning that make up its body, thus creating a unique anthropomorphic piece. Bringing the fantastical into any environment, Kingsnorth's pieces invite us to engage with the furniture intellectually and emotionally. [more]
FROM THE ARCHIVE FASHION PIONEERS: NICK KNIGHT
SHOWstudio is opening up our 2010 archives - publishing,for the first time, on demand footage of SHOWstudio founder and director Nick Knight's Fashion Pioneers interview with fellow online fashion portal The Business of Fashion. On 26 November 2010 - the eve of SHOWstudio's ten year anniversary - Imran Amed spoke to Knight about his status as a visionary image-maker and SHOWstudio's role in shaping contemporary fashion. The original discussion was broadcast live - in true SHOWstudio fashion - on SHOWstudio.com and thebusinessoffashion.com, but is now available for re-visiting in Fashion Pioneers: Nick Knight on SHOWstudio. [more]
LATEST ENTRIES BLOG
Amanda Harlech: Found Saw this in an overgrown flower bed at Birmingham international. It seemed to have such a sorrowful story. I hope I am wrong but I felt the key ring with its happy holiday "forever yours" embrace had been ripped off its key and chucked away as if one of the smiling couple had lied to the other. The photograph was a lie. Somewhere I imagine the other still has their photo key ring - they still look at it every day as they open their front door - a holiday romance laced with promises - but as the months eat into months and that call never comes, the key ring with that illusion of true love is the only thing that make life worth living. [more]
Neal Bryant: SymbiosisO: Voxel - Issey Miyake's Interactive Grid SymbiosisO: Voxel is an interactive installation that has been installed within Issey Miyake's flagship New York store. The piece is constructed from silk and felt hexagonal pads that respond to body heat. Users are encouraged to touch and play with the grid to leave their 'mark' on the installation. As well as the physical interaction the piece also responds to a mobile website that enables users to design a pattern that can then be displayed across the polygons. [more]
Neal Bryant: Louis Vuitton Harmony Trunk Soundtrack During The Sound Of Clothes: Anechoic SHOWstudio explored the sounds that garments produced whilst being worn. Similarly, Louis Vuitton are now producing a soundtrack of the workshop noises created during the production of their Harmony Trunk. [more]
To send us feedback and comments please contact us. To unsubscribe, visit: showstudio.com/newsletter.

SHOWstudio: Poppy de Villeneuve, Rei Nadal, Ellie Grace Cumming, David Koma, Aimee Mullins, Nicopanda, Marian Newman, Pirelli Calendar, Porn on Valentino and more...

If this email is not displaying correctly click here to view in web browser
	Newsletter | 11 April 2012
CURRENT FASHION FETISH
The latest addition to our Fashion Fetish season takes us on a trip to the Everglades, courtesy of acclaimed photographer and film director Poppy de Villeneuve. The exclusive short roots its sensuality in juxtaposition - contrasting the ultra-obvious eroticism of a sheer latex coat with the femininity of lapping water and a peaceful natural setting. A marked departure from the raw eroticism of previous Fashion Fetish contributions - indeed, reflecting the multifaceted natures of women's sexual persuasions and peccadillos - de Villeneuve's piece takes a subtle tone, using colours and visuals that at first appear starkly anti-fetish. Complimented further by the dark and somewhat haunting musical soundtrack, de Villeneuve's film subverts our traditional notions of sexuality, while still offering a thorough exploration of the traditional codes of fetish. The result is a beautiful, ethereal piece which prompts the viewer to consider the sensual possibility of wet latex on female skin. Tune in to see this latest addition to our Fashion Fetish series, and watch out for new launches every week - each showing a unique representation of the female form - by the likes of Lady Amanda Harlech, Daphne Guinness, Lily Donaldson, Liberty Ross, Rei Nadal and Dasha Zhukova of Garage magazine. [more]
CURRENT REI, I DON'T EXIST
Following the end of Rei Nadal's SHOWstudio Tumblr curation, revisit our image gallery detailing the aids and inspirations that helped facilitate last week's posts. In her own unique interpretation of Fashion Fetish, Nadal turned our Tumblr into her own personal reference book, posting found imagery, self-portraits and textual musings - all of which are still viewable in her specially-curated selection of imagery. Nadal was assisted in her work by stylist Ellie Grace Cumming who carefully selected an array of high-fashion objects, cosmetics and accessories sent daily to Nadal's Barcelona home - free for her to use in any way she desired. Each daily selection was available for twenty-four hours only (09:00 CET - 09:00 CET). The week saw a plethora of diverse and highly covetable outfits, from a sugary-sweet and lacy Louis Vuitton look, to provocative second-skin latex by Atsuko Kudo, to a full-skirted (and, in retrospect, terribly New Look) frock from Raf Simon's final hurrah at Jil Sander. Rei, I Don't Exist documents all the pieces delivered to Nadal, alongside pertinent information to highlight the decision behind their selection, while her exclusive imagery can be seen alongside a unique mix of art and fashion on the SHOWstudio Tumblr. [more]
CURRENT IN FASHION, DAVID KOMA
Filmed earlier this year, a brand new In Fashion interview edit launches today, featuring much-feted London-based fashion designer David Koma. The Georgian born designer - a press favourite, NEWGEN recipient and established London Fashion Week highlight - is shown in discussion with SHOWstudio fashion director Alexander Fury, covering everything from his initial decision to enter fashion, aged eight, to how an early viewing of a televised retrospective of stalwart Thierry Mugler helped shape and inform his celebratory relationship with the female form. As with all our In Fashion interviews, this is a frank and in-depth converation providing a unique insight into the creative mind of one of fashion's brightest young talents. [more]
COMING UP IN FASHION, AIMEE MULLINS - RE-STREAM
Those who missed the original live-stream of our latest In Fashion interview with Aimee Mullins will be able to catch it today, Wednesday 11 May 2012 in an exclusive re-stream viewable for twenty-four hours, from 17.00 GMT. The actress, model, athlete - and one of People magazine's fifty most beautiful people in the world - can be heard discussing her experiences as an bilateral amputee, as well as her sporting exploits, fashion career, and starring role in Cremaster 3, alongside the process of storytelling in all three. This is a candid video discussion with an individual who has undoubtedly shaped the ever-changing landscape of contemporary fashion. Be sure and tune in from 17.00 GMT to hear Mullins for yourself, in conversation with SHOWstudio fashion director Alexander Fury. [more]
CURRENT FASHION MIX
It's been an unusual week for Fashion Mix, with one of our playlists coming from fashion's most stylish cartoon. On Monday Nicola Formichetti's second Fashion Mix arrived in the form of a special 'Nicopanda' playlist. Unsurprisingly the mix is full of Japanese, off-the-wall rhythms that match Nicopanda's cheeky character - from AKB48 to Dempagumi. Friday will see a more mainstream but by no means less creative mix from manicure maestro Marian Newman. The nail artist offers up an incredibly diverse playlist proving that her musical tastes are as versatile as her talon-transformation abilities. With everything from Amy Winehouse to Carla Bruni to The Kinks - it's the perfect soundtrack for a Friday afternoon manicure session. [more]
FROM THE SHOP PORN SEWN ON VALENTINO ADVERT, 2011
The work of London based artist Inge Jacobson's focuses on the transformation of found images through embroidery, cutting and collage. In her series of porn sewn on advertisements, Jacobsen brings to the fore the link of objectification of the female form in pornography and in women's magazines. Each piece forces a connection not only between the juxtaposed conception of women's bodies but also of a generational shift away from 'feminine craft' such as cross stitching and the move of fashion and magazines into the female sphere. Despite their political connotations Jacobsen states that she keeps her work open, 'allowing the viewer to decide whether the work is a critique of the fashion industry or pornography or something more celebratory'. Jacobsen's work is unique and hand made, stressing the deep physical connection between each work and the craft of the artist. [more]
FROM THE ARCHIVE PIRELLI CALENDAR
Perfectly encompassing, if pre-dating, the concepts and ideals behind Fashion Fetish and Selling Sex comes our archive of Nick Knight's imagery created for the 2004 Pirelli Calendar. In a pioneering venture Knight and art director Peter Saville shifted the focus away from men's desires to those of women. From fourteen conversations with eminent women, Knight constructed narratives for each month based on each woman's most intimate sexual fantasies. The specific author of each remains a secret, but their fantasies are explored here in groundbreaking interactive, allowing the viewer to not only visually consume the sexual fantasy, but to affect the image itself through physical activity - a digital reflection of the sexual act. Featuring the likes of Björk, Catherine Deneuve, Tracey Emin, Marianne Faithfull, Courtney Love, Stella McCartney and Aimee Mullins, peruse the twelve months of visuals and ponder who could be the author of each unique fantasy. [more]
LATEST ENTRIES BLOG
All-TIME 100 Fashion Icons SHOWstudio director Nick Knight has been named as one of TIME magazine's 'Fashion Icons' - not for sartorial flair (although his is undeniable) but as one of fashion's 100 most influential practitioners. [more]
SHOWstudio has been nominated for a Webby! SHOWstudio has been nominated for Best Fashion Website in the 16th Annual Webby Awards - get voting! [more]
Raf Simons at Dior 'I am truly humbled and honoured to become Artistic Director of the most celebrated French house in the world.' said Raf Simons. He's a well brought-up Belgian boy, so of course he would be. [more]
To send us feedback and comments please contact us. To unsubscribe, visit: showstudio.com/newsletter.