St. Gemma's Ethical Fashion Show

  On Wednesday Shang Ting and Stacey headed to Alwoodley to check out the Ethical Fashion Show at Seventeen Restaurant, in aid of St Gemma's Hospice. The event featured a catwalk show, stalls and live music. We asked the girls what they had made of the evening:

 So how was the event?

 Shang Ting:

The whole event had a very vintage feel. Not only did the catwalk showcase the ethical brands, but also vintage shops, organic shops, Bethany Jane Davies vintage make overs, and they even booked a 1940s style act called The Old Time String Band! Since St. Gemma's Hospice works with many charity shops in Leeds, I thought it was a good approach to brand the event as vintage, especially more and more young people in Leeds are adopting a vintage retro style.

Stacey:

We arrived just after 7.30 and we were greeted by two lovely girls who gave us a little gift bag to share which included samples from the Body Shop and Paul Mitchell. We then headed to the bar for a nice drink and after we checked out the stalls which included some nice vintage boob-tube dresses, some vegetarian shoes and a velvet corset wedding dress (which Shang Ting liked ;-) ). Shortly after taking a few snaps we sat down to watch the show which began at 8.15. Live music was provided before and during the intervals of the fashion show by the singing duo Daisy and Martyn; The Old Time String Band and they were delightful. The models were from our very own Roller derby team and they modeled free of charge for this good cause. The hair and make-up of each girl was retro and glamourous. The girls were all different shapes and sizes but they all pulled off everything and it was refreshing to see such a variety of looks. We then took part in a raffle and we won one of the prizes provided by Ringlit, which was a pack that contained a scarf and some vintage gloves. Nice :-)

 

 Who was your favorite designer at the event?

Shang Ting

Birds Yard / Birdshell Boutique had quite a lot of trendy designs, it was a pleasant surprise to see them use recycled and different fabrics to construct new garments and even couture. Though I have to give my award to Izzy lane who use their own wool and I thought their collections were of a good quality technically. 

Stacey:

Although Izzy Lane had some amazing coats i must say that my favourite clothing range came from Birdshell Vintage. So many colours and styles!

 Any observations?

Shang Ting:

Attending events like this is always much more then just a fashion show. We see the new ways people are using different materials to create interesting garments. We also discover new talent in Leeds like the wonderful band that night and vintage hair and make-up artist that I had never known before.

Stacey:

I thought the St Gemmas representative/presenter of the show was very nice and enthusiastic. It would have nice to have a little more information in the program.

Visit the St Gemma's site here and see our previous report from the St Gemma's Vintage Fair here

Conceptual writing is "decidedly avant-garde" and the ICA is not, says the Independent. What do you think?

I know the Hebe Arts pages are getting top-heavy with information about the current exhibition of conceptual writing at Shandy Hall, and I promise to shift focus soon enough. But, whilst the air is filled with excitement about what is going on under Laurence Sterne's roof I thought I'd flag up an article in this week's Independent, which acknowledged The Perverse Library exhibition and recognised the immediacy of conceptual writing in art today.

The article, 'Trouble at Mall' was a critique of the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), London: an organisation founded in 1946 to provide a space for the artistic and intellectual avant-garde to meet, exchange and exhibit. In its heyday the ICA was a hot-bed for experimental, provocative and often controversial work. However, in recent years, the article suggests, contemporary art has lost the need for a gatekeeper and the ICA has been left struggling with it's identity and relevance. Kind of ironic, for an organisation whose outgoing leader, Ekow Eshun, said roughly the same about Live Art when he cut off the ICA's support for the artform?

Image from The Perverse Library at Shandy Hall: Carbonised book from The Black Library by Greville Worthington | Nick Hill © 2010

Have a read and post any thoughts in the comments below - is there still a place for the ICA?

Take special notice of the reference to 'conceptualism' towards the end (copied below) and if you haven't already, visit writingencounters.org today and book you place on the free bus tour from York train station to Shandy Hall.

"What is decidedly avant-garde is conceptualism in a quite different art form – literature. Visit Shandy Hall in Yorkshire, where Laurence Sterne wrote his experimental novel The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, and one will encounter the first exhibition in Britain of conceptual writing. Conceptual writers sometimes steal from other writers, reordering their text and jumbling it up. Bringing together conceptual art and language, this movement has led to fierce attacks from conventional authors. Influenced by Sterne himself (who plagiarised and rearranged passages) and writers like James Joyce, one leading figure in the movement says conceptual writing “seeks to ask what would a non-expressive poetry look like? A poetry of intellect rather than emotion.” Conceptual writing determinedly makes no claim on originality. It includes a transcription of a year’s weather reports and, in the case of one conceptual writer, the simple repetition of the sentence “I will not make anymore boring art.” It’s fitting that the house where one of the world’s most famous experimental novels was written is in the forefront of avant-garde literature." Read more...

Image from The Perverse Library at Shandy Hall: Bouvard et Pécuchet's Invented Desk for Copying by Gareth Long with Wilf Williams | Nick Hill © 2010

Leeds Street Style: 28/09/2010

Rosie Taylor

Dress: Urban Outfitters
Shoes:  Urban Outfitters
Bag: Primark
Belt: Vintage
Scarf: Vintage
Tights/ Socks: Topshop

Rosie's favorite Leeds clothes shop: Urban Outfitters
Describe the Leeds fashion scene in one word: Indie

Amelia Johnson

Top: Topshop
Coat: Adidas vintage
Shoes: Topshop
Bag: Gola
Hair Accessories: H&M

Amelia's favorite Leeds clothes shop: Topshop, Urban Outfitters
Describe the Leeds fashion scene in one word: Scenester

Mary Elliston

Top: Topshop
Bottom: Topshop
Shoes: Primark
Bag: Urban Outfitters

Mary's favorite Leeds clothes shop: Urban Outfitters
Describe the Leeds fashion scene in one word: Colourful

My Thoughts:

These 3 girls are my favorites this week, all of them were very friendly and nice too. Amelia's boyish look and her height makes her stand out in the crowd, and I think her worn Topshop boots look even better than if they were new. I also like how Mary uses different socks to create youthful playfulness while counter-balancing that with a boyfriend shirt. I was especially impressed by Rosie's use of accessories, her way of using a brooch on her scarf, choosing chain instead of leather belt, and ankle socks which I love just complete her girly style.

Briggate Idol

As a person who is on Briggate in Leeds almost every day, I have found that it contains more and more interesting culture and talent everyday.

I have been excited to see new and different street performers each day and for the most part they are enjoyable and talented. From the guy who sings Usher and Lionel Richie to the girl who sings Sixpence Non The Richer, this bustling street now not only is a great place to shop but also a wonderful place to grab and coffee and see some of our very own Leeds talent giving it their all and livening up our cold and rainy days. I will keep you updated with photos but for now… here are just a few of the artists I have spotted over recent weeks.

Is there anyone you have seen recently who really caught your attention?

Hand Picked By Harvey Nichols @ Swillington Organic Farm

On Monday evening we took a trip down to the lovely  Swillington Organic Farm just outside Leeds. We were invited by Harvey Nichols to sample some of the wonderful food produced at the farm, who are a supplier of the Harvey Nichols restaurant. 

It is always good to see big brands working with local businesses. We were given a quick introduction to the farm, and the meal we were about to eat, we then took our seats for a 3 course dinner. A Harvey Nichols chef prepared the Swillington Farm food, and Tadcaster's very own Sam Smith's brewery provided the refreshments, it's selection of organic ciders and ales tasted heavenly. The food was prepared and cooked outside where we were situated and was delicious. After the meal we gathered round the fire (where the pork had been roasted earlier) and enjoyed a nice coffee. 

You can also check out what Leeds grub and Guardian Leeds made of the evening.