Clothes Swaps

In anticipation of our Clothes Swap and Vintage Market on Saturday, we thought it'd be nice to recap our past swaps with some pictures!

Hope you can all join us in Snafu starting from 2 PM!

London Fashion Week(end)

Twice a year London Fashion Week is responsible for the pilgrimage of fashion designers, models, celebrities, and socialites that crowd the bustling city. During this week, you are faced with the crème de la crème of fashion royalty, watching designer catwalk shows and seeing next years trends first in the world. After the most stylish of weeks ends, London Fashion Weekend begins. Instead of fashion designers and celebrities, Somerset House is filled with us mere commoners, including 14 members of the Aberdeen Uni Fashion Society. Set in the same venue, as the actual London Fashion Week, the Weekend is open for public and focuses more on trends for the spring and summer. Chanel catwalks are replaced by a mix between designer and high street, keeping in mind that a student loan doesn't exactly cover head to toe Versace.

Even though the Fashion Week and the Weekend are two entirely separate events, we were never painfully reminded of our nothingness. Wearing our Sunday best, we fit right into the chaotic venue located along the Thames. After a rummage of our goodie bags, we raced to explore the huge building that is Somerset House. Filled with room after room of designer pop-up shops, Levi's jean fittings, Benefit make-up stalls, and free massages, it was easy to forget about our student life of late night study sessions and three pound meal deals. However buried deep, the student in me went around to collect any and every freebie I could find, whether it be a plaster or a chocolate bar. We were also fortunate to attend a fashion show. After getting ushered in past the press, we proceeded to dig out our individual cameras. The risk of looking like a tourist was no longer a problem, since we could all be deemed bloggers. The show was styled by Hillary Alexander and portrayed the four major trends of S/S 2013, Graphic Art, Urban Lifestyle, Doll's House, and Eastern Promise. Just as any proper designer show, the looks were either amazing or hideous; the only difference was that half of the outfits could be found on any high street in Britain.

London Fashion Weekend was a great experience and appropriately mimicked the real Fashion Week. We saw designer clothes, skinny models, and the occasional crazily clad grandma, what more can you expect?  

Catwalk photos Theo Cohen via Facebook/londonfashionweekend and Duncan Henderson, others Heta Mattila.

- Emmi Makiharju

Capturing Dreams

Recently AUFS visited the exhibition, Selling Dreams: 100 Years of Fashion Photography, at the Aberdeen Art Gallery. The inspirational collection of photos taken throughout the 20^th and 21^st centuries included images from a range of photographers or legends such as Edward Steichen, David Bailey, and Corinne Day. Stepping away from your basic fashion photography, the exhibition blurred the barriers between commercial photography and fine art, which made me think back to my favourite photographers. I thought I'd share a few of my heroes with you.

Sam Hessamian

I love the honesty in his work. He doesn't aim for pretty, even though working in fashion, but for a striking image that stands its ground. He started out in film school with cinematography, which is, in my opinion, evident in his work. Every picture seems to have a story behind it and I especially love the sense of movement that some of his shots capture. It's extremely difficult to choose only a few shots, so do visit his website for more!

photos via www.samhessamian.com

Ryan McGinley

Ryan McGinley is famous for his youth culture inspired photography, often shooting young men and women nude. I am actually speechless when looking through his work, so I'll just let the images speak for themselves. If you haven't already heard of him, it's about time you venture on to his website!

photos via www.ryanmcginley.com

Michael Lavine

Last but not least, Michael Lavine is my all time favourite portrait photographer. Maybe it's the 90s, but he seems to capture the very essence of youth, in all its rebellious glory. I bought his book Grunge a few years back and it still rests on my nightstand, but never gathering dust. There's something about his black and white photography, and the confidence that seeps through the image that keeps me coming back. Here's his website, I demand you have a look! 

photos via http://www.boston.com/ae/music/gallery/grunge?pg=11

- Emmi Makiharju