26 April, 2012

Landmark By RAKIN 12 *****

PHOTOGRAPHER:RAKIN

Hair Stylists: Jonathan Connelly

Darren Agyei-Dua

FASHION STYLIST: WAY PERRY

MAKE UP:Andrew Gallimore

MAKE UP ASSISTANT:Helena Lyons

 

Hongkong Land has collaborated with famed photographer Rankin to create a whole new image.
Text: Steven Knipp 

 

People often say “A picture is worth a thousand words”. It suggests that highly complex ideas – such as rebranding – can be better conveyed with powerful images than with mere words.

So when Hongkong Land decided to rebrand its portfolio of iconic retail properties, it sought out the rare skills of celebrated London-based photographer Rankin, one of the world’s top photographers.

Renowned for his portrait and fashion photography, Rankin has worked with some of the most iconic people of modern times – including David Bowie, Kate Moss, Tony Blair and Queen Elizabeth II. And he has created stunningly enduring images for such recognised global brands as Nike, Swatch, Dove and Pantene, in such magazines as Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar and GQ.

Hongkong Land’s David Martin, Head of Retail, flew to London to work extensively with Rankin on the rebranding images, the highlight of which are seven key ad visuals. Martin best explains the company’s reasons for selecting Rankin when he says, “Hongkong Land’s tastes are quite simple – we only like the best.”

While supervising the photo shoot, Martin says that great care was taken in the selection of models, including both Asian and Western faces, so as to present a visual style for LANDMARK which is both understated and daring. The goal was to create a more vividly focused brand designed to catch the eye and hook the hearts of Hong Kong’s elite as well as our discerning international visitors.

Rankin says, “I immediately understood what LANDMARK wanted to achieve. I can see that they want to position themselves as something beyond what is just fashionable. It has a kind of history and a context that I think the people of Hong Kong relate to.”

The famous photographer produced a collection of iconic images that are not just about the clothes, but about creating a series of images that inspire a sense of timeless elegance.

The advertising copy is equally clean and timeless. Playing with numbers and concepts of luxury, the copy features simple numerical statements such as “818 timeless pinstripes” and “8 cocktail bars”, while always signing off with “1 NAME”, a simple dignified phrase that conveys quality, reputation and suggests four retail locations under one new collective name.

Presented here for the very first time are the seven key visuals for LANDMARK, which perfectly represent and reflect the authentic elegance and timeless nature of the new brand.

Caption:
Images 1 to 3: The advertising visuals for the branding campaign hit the streets this March. The ad message highlights simple numerical facts and it always signs off with “1 NAME – LANDMARK”.

Images 4 and 5: The rebranding campaign’s high-end portraitures feature a mix of Western and Asian models, at the same time appealing to both older and younger generations.

Image 6: Bold, seductive and collective. Here the new branding campaign unveils.

 

 

26 April, 2012

Joanna Lumley For M&S 12*****

PHOTOGRAPHER:RAKIN

Hair Stylist: Jonathan Connelly Using Aveda

Darren Agyei-Dua

FASHION STYLIST: WAY PERRY

Talent: Joanna Lumley

http://www.marksandspencer.com/Shwop/b/1672188031

Shwopping is the new shopping, darling: Joanna Lumley launches clothes recycling initiative for M&S

 

20 April, 2012

GLOW PATHOS V.A.L.I.S NEW MIX DUA± 2012****

Friday 20th APRIL

I hope you enjoy the mix as much as I did putting it all together, its  packed with only the BEST  electronic Music the world has to offer

Play it loud for  the full experience

http://soundcloud.com/darrenagyeidua

Part 1

Part 2

 

GLOW PATHOS V.A.L.I.S PART 1 by D.U.A±

GLOW PATHOS V.A.L.I.S PART 2 by D.U.A±

13 April, 2012

Babour S/S 12 *****

Photographer: Andy Vowles

Stylist: David lamb

Hair: Chi Wong Using Bumble & Bumble

Darren Agyei-Dua

Make Up: Lauren Parsons

Teneille Sorgiovanni

 

11 April, 2012

PONYSTEP – S/S 12 COVER SHOOT – MILES ALDRDIGE *****

Photographer: Miles Aldridge

Fashion Director: Phoebe Arnold

Talent: Jourdan Dunn

Hair: Chi Wong Using Bumble & Bumble

Darren Agyei-Dua

Makeup: Adrien Pinaut

Manicure: Rebecca Wilson

 

 

10 April, 2012

Harper’s Bazaar April Issue U.S. By Terry Richardson 2012 *****

DINNER WITH DOLCE AND GABBANA

The design duo throw an Italian-style feast for London’s It girls.

Photographer: Terry Richardson

www.terrysdiary.com

Hair:Malcom Edwards Female Models

Hair & Gents Grooming;

Johnnie Sapong

Darren Agyei-Dua

Ranelle Chapman

Lorraine Dublin

Make Up Artist:Lucia Pica

Stylist: Andrew Richardson

Set Design:Andy Hillman

Models;

Domenico Dolce

Stefano Gabbana

Cara Delevigne

Tali Tennox

Amber le Bon

Pixie Geldof

Florence Brundell Bruce

Mary Charteris

Eliza Dolittle

Sunday Girl

Otis Ferry

Isaac Ferry

Tara Ferry

Oliver Cohen Jackson

Gary Barlow

Eva Herzigova


 

Iconic Italian director Federico Fellini once memorably summarized his country’s culture, saying, “Life is a combination of magic and pasta.” The adage certainly applies to the lives of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, and also this season, to their work. Dolce & Gabbana’s charming spring collection was inspired by the very Italian tradition of the family feast. Chili peppers, eggplant, and zucchini made for mouthwatering prints on flirty apron dresses; vampy bodysuits looked more tempting than homemade gelato; and, much to the amusement of accessories editors around the world, bejeweled earrings and bracelets were embellished with pasta noodles. “The dinner party is such an important part of our real lives,” Stefano explains about the inspiration. Domenico says that it’s not uncommon for him to cook for 18 people on a Sunday, boiling gallons of water for “buckets of pasta.” “Do you have any idea how much spaghetti you need for 18 Italians?”

Some of the pair’s most fabulous home-cooked meals? There was the time Domenico surprised Stefano with a 33rd-birthday fete that ended with a private Grace Jones concert, and a smaller dinner party where Christina Aguilera serenaded Domenico with “Happy Birthday” at his apartment in Milan. I ask if Aguilera’s spontaneous performance would qualify as the multi-Grammy winner’s “singing for her supper,” as the American saying goes. Domenico shakes his head and smiles. “No, it was just dessert.” Last winter, they organized a Christmas feast for more than two dozen friends; the meal’s finale occurred when the overdressed Italian fashion editor and blogger bait Anna Dello Russo wheeled out two giant cakes in the shape of the designers done up like Roman gods. “I tasted delicious,” Stefano deadpans.

Of course, the dinner party is a social ritual, but according to the designers, who met in 1982 at a nightclub and founded their fashion empire three years later, it’s also about appeasing appetites. Domenico is the one who cooks. He picked up a few tips from his mother as a young boy growing up near Palermo, but when he moved away for school, he taught himself. “I take my time and plan a menu,” he says. “It helps me relax. Cooking is like therapy.” Stefano chirps in, “And for me, eating is like therapy.” (Stefano offers one recipe, however: Leftover pasta tastes fabulous fried the next day with olive oil and seasonings. He says it’s the perfect hangover cure.)

The Dolce and Gabbana aesthetic is steeped in indulgence: in sequins and sex, and definitely in food. That’s why the two are drawn to seriously sultry actresses like Scarlett Johansson, the face of their beauty line since it began in 2009, and the latest campaign girl, Felicity Jones. “These two have breasts, hips, a waist, and lips…Italy!” Stefano shouts.

According to those who have dined with the duo, it’s not until after a carb-fueled meal that the real fun kicks in. Stories from Dolce and Gabbana dining experiences are legendary. One of Stefano’s most memorable happened last summer, when stylist Charlotte Stockdale sent him sumo-wrestling fat suits. Following lunch and under the direction of house model turned fashion editor Giovanna Battaglia, Stefano and friends climbed into the costumes and learned the choreography to Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies.” (Stefano, quite an active tweeter, posted a video on his account soon after the performance. “That’s me in the middle, of course,” he points out.) At other get-togethers, Linda Evangelista and Naomi Campbell have been known to provide runway lessons. Eva Herzigova, a longtime friend of the designers, fondly recalls a dinner party at their vacation house in Portofino that ended with an impromptu Mario Testino shoot featuring Stefano in a pair of Dolce & Gabbana stilettos.

Today, Herzigova is one of the guests of honor at a dinner party in London that Domenico and Stefano organized especially for Bazaar, as seen through the eyes of photographer Terry Richardson. In traditional Italian style, the red wine is flowing, the pasta is overflowing, and, at one point, the designers find themselves in the kitchen making pizzas. Stefano planned the day’s soundtrack, an old-school mix of big-band classics including “Mambo Italiano,” the anthem at the spring show. But the sounds heard most often are shouts of “Bellissima!” and “Bella!”

In the midst of it all, we find the designers egging the girls to kick up their skirts and get on the tables. Pixie Geldof and Eliza Doolittle happily oblige, as Mary Charteris gamely taps their bottoms, to the delight of Bryan Ferry’s sons Isaac, Tara, and Otis, and former boy bander Gary Barlow. Stefano asks Herzigova to dance and, showing off a skill that can be acquired only with years of practice, twirls his partner while balancing a wineglass in one hand and a bottle in the other.

The sun sets, and it seems that their lovely lunch is turning into a debauched dinner. “You know it’s getting a little naughty when Terry says to tone it down,” laughs Geldof, who at another point made the suggestion, “I think everyone should just make out.” No one batted an eyelash. Just another Dolce and Gabbana banquet.



 

Read more: Dinner with Dolce & Gabbana – A Dinner Party With Dolce & Gabanna, London It Girls and Terry Richardson – Harper’s BAZAAR

 

10 April, 2012

Playing Fashion 2012*****

Photography; Kim Jakobsen

Hair by; Ben Jones

Darren Agyei-Dua

Make up:Thomas De Kluyver

Stylist:Margaret Crow

Dempsey @ Union
Henrietta @ NEXT

2 April, 2012

Faces Of Josh Moroney & Joe Colier 2012*****

Photography: Iian Anderson

Digital: Adam Goodinson

Hair By;Darren Agyei-Dua Using Kevin Murphy

 

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