The Surreal Photography of Andy Houghton

When looking for some cool, edgy photography for my apartment back home I ran into a site online featuring the work of UK based photographer Andy Houghton. Houghton runs his photography business out of Kingston upon Hull in the UK and produces striking and surreal photographs that are not only done for personal use but also have been featured in editorail spreads and magazine pages. His mix of staged subjects, lighting techniques and quirky surreal touches give the photographs a very interesting quality as well as an intriguing sense that draws the viewer in rather than just being a pretty or attractive surface image. Please visit his personal website as well as his Flikr page for additional information and images from this visionary and interesting photographer.

--Stephen Fisher--

http://www.modelmayhem.com/andyhoughton

http://www.flickr.com/photos/andyhoughton

Riccardo Tisci for Givenchy Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2010. McQueen similarity or no?

Riccardo Tisci seems to be adjusting well to the House of Givenchy, after recently releasing his Haute Couture Winter 2010 collection, a collection that I feel has the expert craftsmanship and luxury that one would associate with one of the great fashion house, yet possesses a modern edge and forward focused style direction needed to breathe further life into the house.

When I first saw the pieces I was immediately drawn to them due to their silhouette, fit andconstruction. The pieces seem to possess en exceptional fit, especially around the torso and combine striking metallics, exquisitely pieced lacework, feather accents, fur, and articulated upper jacket and dress panels that reminded me of historical photos of renaissance Italian articulated armour.

The feel of the collection I thought hit me as definitely being his own view of fashion, where he wanted it to go and what he wanted to present, yet also drew strong parallels between it and the Alexander McQueen collection of that same season, as was evident in the brocade, beadwork a heavily embroidered and embellished fabrics, Valentino through the fluid use of light and airy fabrics and attatchment techniques on the skirts as well as the use of the feather accents, and also possessed a feel of Tom Ford’s collections for YSL during this tenure at the house.

A look at the similarity of the two collections of the separate designers for the same season.

Weekly Trend Report: Burberry Shearling

OK so I decided to cover this trend due to the fact that it has popped up on so many catwalks recently and will definately be on the streets as the weather cools down and fashionable citygoers look for a more dressy alternative to that of the basic winter coat. The shearling is a yearly favorite and has been for decades, due to the ability to look dressy yet also relaxed, and perform well in both casual and formal settings depending on the cut and fit, and designers like Christopher Bailey are doing great things with them this past season. I have included three pieces that I really liked from Burberry Prorsum, and I believe are great additions to any wardrobe.

The first piece that I chose was that of the Burberry Prorsum shearling coat. This coat hit the ground running when it was introduced and has appeared in countless blogs, magazines, and websites due to the popularity. It takes the traditional item of a shearling coat, yet is reworked to form a more modern and urban formulation, one that is at home both in the country as well as the city streets.

The next piece is another offering from Christopher Bailey at Burberry, and is a shearling ankle boot that I love. This boot possesses everything that you love about a traditional shearling coat, yet embodies it as footwear. These boots possess an edge to them that could be worn with a pair of plain tights or with skinny dark jeans for a great statemant piece that will be sure to make a statement and garner compliments.

The last piece that I really liked was that of the Lambton shearling messenger bag/tote/hobo from Burberry Prorsum Menswear collection F/W 2010. I love this bag because of the fact that it is not what one expects when they think of a traditional messenger bag. This bag offers a chance for any man to mix it up without going out on too far of a limb, but still taking a fashionable risk.

--Stephen Fisher--

A few more pictures of the Lambton bag and messenger.