Paul Gorman is…

Magical: House Of Beauty & Culture 34-36 Stamford Road N1 (254 7794)

Jan 22nd, 2015
IMG_3161

//Heroes by Mark Lebon for i-D Bible 1988. Styling by Judy Blame and Christopher Nemeth//

I’m looking forward to participating in ShowStudio’s live broadcast discussion of today’s Louis Vuitton A/W 15 menswear show in Paris.

Vuitton artistic director Kim Jones has been trailing the show on his Instagram feed with tantalising hints as to the direction and content. Jones’ A/W 15 collaborators include Judy Blame, Nellee Hooper and Mark Lebon – all names associated with the late shoemaker John Moore’s magical 80s north-east London art/fashion space The House Of Beauty & Culture.

IMG_3160

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

George Cox: The origins of the Diano brothel creeper + samples ordered by Malcolm McLaren in 1973

Jan 20th, 2015
Malcolm McLaren 1972 (c) David Parkinson

//Malcolm McLaren in a previously unpublished shot wearing original 50s George Cox Bingley D-ring brothel creepers to match his detail-perfect Teddy Boy garb. Photo taken inside Let It Rock, 430 King’s Road, January 1972. (c) David Parkinson//

Saint Laurent side buckle patent creeper copy 3976 buckle diano copy

//Left, Saint Laurent point-toed patent brothel creepers, A/W 2014. Right: George Cox Buckle Diano made to the 1950s last//

Last season’s foregrounding by Saint Laurent of the pointed brothel creeper is just one of a run of examples of fashion brands plugging into the purity of this quintessentially British rock & roll style minted in 1949 by the UK independent footwear company George Cox.

Among the first stylistic innovators to take the design out of Teddy Boy revivalism and apply it to contemporary fashion was Malcolm McLaren, who had been selling creepers for a couple of years at Let It Rock, the boutique he operated with Vivienne Westwood, by the time he visited the Cox factory in Northampton in November 1973. Here he ordered samples for six styles, some of which went into production for sale at 430 King’s Road.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Dream capital: Mrs G on M Goldstein at Dover Street Market

Jul 6th, 2012

Scale & Distortion: M Goldstein's installation at Dover Street Market

Hackney Road’s M Goldstein is one of London’s most intriguing and exciting retail ventures, a constantly evolving arrangement of antiques and curios, clothing and objets d’art.

Scale & Distortion: M Goldstein's installation at Dover Street Market

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: , , , , , , , ,