THROWING STONES FROM MY GLASS HOUSE AND DESIGN INDABA PICS

Firstly let me admit that in my 32yrs I have never been to a Design Indaba, embarrassing i know, judge if you wish. I went this past Sunday and it was not quite what i expected, i'm not criticizing skat so please don't get your customized broeks in a knot, i'm just saying it was different from my expectations. I should also put it out there as a disclaimer that i'm really not great in places with lots of indoor stalls or families. Indoor vendors and children make me uncomfortable.  Fortunately i ran into my fashion loving friends Ody and Luisa, we spent most of Sunday checking out the fashion shows on the ramp at the back. I snapped a few pics as you can see above. I guess this also means i have to write a fashion 'something'. Fashion blurbs are really not my thing, there are just too many fucking fashion experts out here in blogosphere and i have a feeling that the sun will still rise tomorrow with or without my fashion opinion. I get so irritated sometimes when i read the post of a poorly informed blogger going on about what's hot and what's not. It almost always up ends sounding like sycophantic rubbish or  like someone got their hands on a sachet of 'Instant Fashion Commentator', just add hot water and voila you're channeling Andre Leon Talley, Anna Wintour and fucking Elsa Klensch, minus the years of experience and front row seats. I'm not saying i know better nor am i saying that people with strong opinions should censor themselves to appease my self-esteem issues. Maybe my issues are the real problem here, maybe i should stop shitting on others from dizzy heights. There really is a lot of great fashion journalism out there, and every time i read an awesome piece i feel such great respect for the passion, knowledge and talent reflected in the work. It also reminds me not to attempt critiques without doing the necessary research. I really do hate poorly informed opinions, it's one thing to say 'i like this, i don't like that', it's quite another to say 'that is bad, that is good' and before one attempts the latter it's key to equip oneself with shitloads of knowledge. I got a bit peeved recently when i chanced upon a blog post where the blogger compared a classic image from a 2001 - 2002 Steven Cohen performance to a 2008 Viktor & Rolf fashion show, he then went on to suggest that Steven Cohen must have been inspired by the 2008 Viktor & Rolf show. Huh?  Steve's great and all, but time travel?  Fair enough the blogger assumed it was just some crazy trannie and did not know it was a Steve Cohen performance but still...a bitjie research never hurts my skat. I'm getting a little distracted and i'm not getting to my fashion blurb, which is kind of the point i guess because it's not what i do. What i do though from time to time is say what i like and what i don't like. The pics above are of stuff that i liked at Design Indaba this weekend, the colourful threads on top are from Coppelia (can't ever figure out how to get the apostrophe on top of the e), the guys are dressed by Adriaan Kuiters and in leather accessories by The Summit. If you've been with us for a while you'll know that i am absolutely in love with all things 'The Summit', I really do love what Cindy Poole and her team do with leather. That should be fairly obvious from the amount of pics i've posted up here. Check here for my previous post on her work. The last two of images are Christopher Strong. I was a bit sad coz i got there late and i missed the David West show and i was really looking forward to that. Okay i think i must stop now, this post is becoming uncharacteristically long and that's another pet hate of mine, fucking long blog posts, but let's save a little bit of vitriol for another day. Besides, i'm running out of stones and my glass house isn't exactly built on an indestructible  foundation, nor is it shatterproof.

ELLE BLOG INTERVIEW

Check out my interview on ELLE blog.

OF ART, CRAVINGS AND PRETENTIOUS BLOG POST TITLES

That up there my skat was going to be the title of a blog post i was going to post on Tuesday night. It was going to accompany stunning pictures that i took of Richard Hart's opening at What If The World Gallery this Maonday (i thought Monday nights belonged to AVA, you live and learn). I was planning on telling you about cravings and disappointment, the latter is not directed  at the art of course, I've made it clear before that i'm no art critic so i try not to comment on the art, i leave that to braver and less ignorant minds, besides i really enjoyed Richard's work. The dissapointment was aimed at myself. After 14 months as a self-righteous ex-smoker i succumbed to one puff which was then followed by another and another...you get the picture. Dangerous situation skat, because once i start that ciggie habit it tends to stick like crack to Lindsay Lohan, like dodgy fashion choices  to Suzy Bell. As if that was not enough, i went and fuck of fucks i fucked up my whole diet mission with a steers burger which was followed by...like i said, you get the picture. Unfortunately after all the wine i guzzled at WITW i got home and accidentally erased all the images and just like that no more oh-poor-me post. But i can't resist a pity-party so i thought i'd let you know anyway. Let's move on to a new title more relevant to today's post:

WEDNESDAY AT iART FOR MATTHEW HINDLEY'S EXHIBITION OPENING /// AN EVERLASTING ONCE

I went with my friend Zo and her immediate reaction as we entered the gallery was "Oh my Gawd this so refreshing, an exhibition with actual paintings", and oh my fuck can he paint! Got me thinking a bit actually, there's never any fucking painting at a lot of the exhibitions i go to. Don't they teach people that anymore in art school? It's always conceptual this installation that. Don't get me wrong skattie, i love all of it, what kind of pretentious, hanger-on, wannabe art-fag would i be if i didn't? But i'm just saying. Okay, now i'm gonna and read my Matthew Hindley catalogue so i can get a bit of an art education.

AMARANDOM SNAPS

THURSDAY /// THE RISE AND RISE OF THE DOEPELGANGSTERS

A couple of weeks ago i wrote a post on another Doepelganger event. If you are not familiar with them best you go read that post, better yet fuck my post go straight to their website and familiarise yourself quick. It's so exciting to watch this happen, these guys are creating a platform for themselves and other creatives, by doing so they are also carving a niche in the cultural landscape. Thursday night marked their first of many designer-musician colabos to come. They showcased Zaki Ibrahim's musical talent and Odysseus of Arnreuby's fashion talent. In case you're bit slow maybe i should make it clearer; the red dress that Zaki is wearing on stage was made by Ody. Not sure what else to tell you that you can't see from the pics. I always struggle with words when writing about events that i'm very personally proud of. I really am so proud of these guys, watching people i've known for sometime grow and do these beautiful and amazing things is such an amazing experience in itself. Wit escapes me, humor too, and i turn into an emo shithead who just wants to go on about how proud and amazed and proud and amazed and proud and amazed and proud and amazed i am. Make sure to check out some more pics on UrbanMosadi's blog.