a
Men who make things
WHEN OFF-THE-PEG feels way too predictable, and the ubiquitous chain store has become a total bore, only FREAKY-UNIQUE ACCESSORIES and objects - fashioned from a madcap mix of materials - can truly fill that void. With this in mind, we look at the new wave of ARTISAN MAKERS and shaker-uppers, NASIR, HUSAM, TONY and GARY whose clients include anyone wanting to stand out from the crowd...
It is resonant of all those weird and wonderful things you used to cobble together with cardboard and glue and glitter and paint and felt tips and fuzzy felt and sea shells and dried pasta and twigs and, oh, whatever - just because you could - in school art classes.
The in-built fun factor to all this bespoke madness means the resulting proportions might be exaggerated, big and comedy-clumsy. References can be wildly contrasting and rather giddy, ranging from the antique (a fancy chandelier, or four poster bed, for instance), to the 'street' (pairs of used sneakers, or stylised London skylines, perhaps?)
Meanwhile, the materials being used are not necessarily priceless or posh - though splash out if you so wish - but could be found down the local B&Q, or even down the back of the sofa, for that matter. The resulting creations, of the ilk featured on the following pages, have been fashioned by four of the current best Men-Who-Make-Things - namely Gary Card, Tony Hornecker, Husam El Odeh and Nasir Mazhar - and are less-so conventional accessories and more like attention-grabbing stage props. These can transform your image or your home into a series of theatrical gestures that leave dreary copycats meowing with envy, and happy-to-be-identikits utterly indignant.
If you look back in time, you would find this commendable cottage industry kind of spirit in the early '70s days of Vivienne Westwood, cutting out T-shirt patterns - minus any formal fashion design training - on the kitchen table, and adorning them with boiled-clean chicken bones. Likewise, in the '80s, Leigh Bowery making club looks for himself and his coterie from the hideously synthetic '70s fabrics and trashy tat which he found gathering dust in East End fabric shops, or Judy Blame - still going strong - carving out a unique reputation as a jewellery designer, by using deliberately non-precious materials and overcoming a lack of technical expertise with a gung-ho punk rock attitude.
In more recent times, forward-thinking stylists have routinely incorporated the collaborative efforts of the modern-day artisan - with all manner of oddball accessories, humongous head pieces, or custom built objects to-D.I.Y-for duly appearing in their editorial or commercial work, capturing a wider need for something other than what is obvious.
Having worked with most of the four talents being featured herein, at various stages across the past few years, stylist Nicola Formichetti defines them as being, "A bit Dada, and a bit Mad Professor. You can have an idea, then work with someone like Gary, for example, and the idea becomes amplified and is taken to another level." Formichetti, whose own home plays host to various Gary Card and Tony Hornecker's madcap creations, further enthuses, "These guys are really into what they're doing - which is something that's unique and fun, and what's great is that they just love making stuff! I have different relationships with them - depending on what we're working on at the time, you could describe them as being prop makers, or accessory designers or set designers... it changes with each specific project."
Thom Murphy, responsible for the accompanying images, reveals, "I originally studied 3-D design at college, so I have always been interested in props and handmade things and often used them in fashion shoots and shows for designers like Siv Stoldal and Cassette Playa or for brands like PUMA and Nike. 1 have also commissioned companies such as Inflate on several occasions, resulting in inflatable shirts and inflatable bow ties - all very practical!" Throughout his 20-odd years as an in-demand menswear stylist and art director, Simon Foxton, Consultant Fashion Director of i-D, has seen the fashion pendulum swing back and forth - from kooky and cluttered, to sober and restrained, as he attests. "The obvious move from conspicuous consumption and label-rutting of the '90s, to the present idiosyncratic, more experimental mood was bound to happen," he elaborates. "I think the fashion comet is at present moving through a 'belt of fun' and we should all enjoy it while it lasts. The last time it traveled that way was in the '80s, and what a fantastic time we all had then! The idea of going out and dressing-up is again seen as a creative pastime - the balance of power, in creative terms, has shifted from the design studio and back to the nightclub. So this is a time to be unique, it is a small window in the vast mundane diary of life... I urge you to grab it!"
What does he mostly do? He designs and makes all sorts of fantastic headwear.
Where did he learn his trade? He didn't actually have much formal hat making education, but instead just undertook a few one day-per-week courses. He learnt mostly from just making and experimenting, in addition to working for a theatrical maker.
What was his first ever job? A stint of training at Vidal Sassoon.
Who does he work with? He has recently been working with stylists such as Jane How, Thom Murphy, Nicola Formichetti, Patti Wilson, Edward Enninful, Sarah Richardson, designer Gareth Pugh whilst Madonna recently wore a headpiece on a recent cover of Dazed & Confused.
What's the best thing anyone's ever said about his work? A decibel-defying cry of, I love it! I love it! I love it! I fucking love it!'
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? Well, no-one has ever said anything bad to his face - which he thinks is probably because most humans simply aren’t that honest.
Which materials does he like to work with? He tries not to limit himself. He is constantly finding interesting new materials and crafty bits that he just knows are going to come in useful one of these days.
What would his ultimate dream commission be? At the moment he would love to re-design and make all the headwear for the next Olympic games.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? He would be leading a very, very simple life.
Where does he want to be in ten years' time? He hopes to be supping cocktails on a beach in Jamaica.
—
Who is he and where can you find him? GARY CARD is 26 years old, lives in Hackney, and has a studio in the same Dalston building as fashion designer Gareth Pugh and artist Mathew Stone.
What does he mostly do? He is a prop and costume designer who works mainly within fashion editorial and music videos.
Where did he learn his trade? He trained to be a theatre designer at Central Saint Martins and graduated about six years ago.
What was his first ever job? His first ever job was as a grill chef at a Beefeater restaurant, or was it as a labourer on a building site? He can't quite remember, but both things were utterly horrible experiences though.
Who does he work with? He works with Nicola Formichetti a great deal, and has just done a project with Solve Sundsbe. He does a lot of stuff with amazing up-and-coming photographer Jacob Sutton. He often works with Carri Mundane, not to mention Matt Irwin and Katie Shillingford. Then there is Ferry Gouw from Semifinalists - they make many music videos together, and clients so far have included the likes of Bloc Party, Simian Mobile Disco and Lightspeed Champion. He has also worked with Uniqlo, Dover Street Market and Wrangler. Blimey!
What's the best thing anyone's said about his work? His boyfriend is his harshest critic, so when he says he likes what he's doing, Gary is happy.
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? A record company binned a video he'd been working on for about a month because they considered it too wacky. He was gutted.
Which materials does he like to work with? He uses a lot of wire, card, poly board, foam, fabric - plenty of cashmere at the moment, in particular - and masking tape gum strip, wood... that kind of thing
What would his ultimate dream commission be? He wants Prince to call him up and ask for some kind of insane costume for his new album cover. Gary reckons he could save the pop legend's image. Other than that - a crazy puppet opera, or a new Batman movie would be good.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? He'd probably still be an illustrator - that's what he was doing for five years prior to doing this.
Where does he want to be in ten years' time? Laughing hysterically from the balcony of his L.A mansion, having just heard that he'll be designing the new Prince musical!
What does he mostly do? He reckons his work has become an extension of the way he lives.
Where did he learn his trade? He never formally studied - it felt too constricting - but worked for years in the events industry as a set dresser, which gave him lots of proper set-designing skills.
What was his first ever job? His first full time job was at Pizza Hut, in Streatham. He left, though, as it began to put a strain on his social life.
Who does he work with? Stylist Thom Murphy, designers Siv Stoldal and Mihara Yasuhiro. Tony built a moon station and moon buggy out of rubbish for the launch of the PUMA by Mihara shoe range. He works a lot with photographer Benjamin Alexander Huseby, and is going out to Norway to work on an art piece for him entitled The Rise and Fall of the House of Egypt. Tony also works with Kylie Minogue, oh and the video to The Priscillas most recent singleSuperhero was shot in his remarkable workshop/shack, by the way. Wow!
What's the best thing anyone's ever said about his work?He was very satisfied when someone once asked, "What is it?'
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? He was less satisfied when someone once asked, Er... is it finished?
Which materials does he like to work with? He tends to use things he finds on the street or in dodgy markets. And wood, lots of wood. He loves making things out of wood.
What would his ultimate dream commission be? Probably a film set where he was able to build an entire town out of scraps of wood and rubbish... cars and skyscrapers, fairgrounds and trees, people, dogs and lots of shacks. He loves a good shack, does Tony.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? He might be a farmer in Nicaragua, or something.
Where would he like to be in ten year's time? He wants to own his own shack, preferably somewhere warm - while still getting the chance to play and work and live.
—
Who is he and where can you find him? HUSAM EL ODEH is 29 years old, lives in Old Street work and works from a studio in Hoxton.
What does he mostly do? He describes it simply as playing with materials and ideas - and getting paid for it.
Where did he learn his trade? He studied German Literature in Frankfurt, Fine Art in Berlin and Chelsea, then Jewellery at Middlesex University.
What was his first ever job? Selling ice-cream on his school holidays
Who does he work with? He has regularly worked with designer Marios Schwab, since his degree show. Husam has designed a range of jewellery for Siv Stoldal and undertaken various projects with Topman, as well as producing a special range for Kickers. Further collaborations and contributions included the B-store artbook, launched duringcLondon Fashion Week in September 2006; Ann-Sofie Back's spring/summer 2007 show; a range of hair pieces for Mihara Yasuhiro's autumn/winter 2007 collection, and body pieces for his spring/summer 2008 menswear show in Paris. He put up an installation at L'Eclaireur during the Paris menswear shows in June. He has also produced various editorial designs for stylists like Thom Murphy, Patti Wilson, Jane How and Nicola Formichetti.
What's the best thing anyone's ever said about his work? Some geezer at the railway station in Milan complimented a VW pin he was wearing. He loves it when random people who don't care about fashion can relate to his designs.
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? He hates it when people feel they need to compare his work to other things - especially when they are comparing it to a rip-off of his own work.
Which materials does he like to work with? A mixture of metal, plastics, fabrics, leather... anything that catches his eye, really.
What would his ultimate dream commission be? Being given a material, and doing whatever he wants with it - ideally for lots of cash.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? It would still be this, in some form or another. He tried giving it up before, but he just couldn't do it.
Where would he like to be in ten years' time? He would enjoy sitting in a glass office, smoking cigars, and giving instructions over the intercom.
It is resonant of all those weird and wonderful things you used to cobble together with cardboard and glue and glitter and paint and felt tips and fuzzy felt and sea shells and dried pasta and twigs and, oh, whatever - just because you could - in school art classes.
The in-built fun factor to all this bespoke madness means the resulting proportions might be exaggerated, big and comedy-clumsy. References can be wildly contrasting and rather giddy, ranging from the antique (a fancy chandelier, or four poster bed, for instance), to the 'street' (pairs of used sneakers, or stylised London skylines, perhaps?)
Meanwhile, the materials being used are not necessarily priceless or posh - though splash out if you so wish - but could be found down the local B&Q, or even down the back of the sofa, for that matter. The resulting creations, of the ilk featured on the following pages, have been fashioned by four of the current best Men-Who-Make-Things - namely Gary Card, Tony Hornecker, Husam El Odeh and Nasir Mazhar - and are less-so conventional accessories and more like attention-grabbing stage props. These can transform your image or your home into a series of theatrical gestures that leave dreary copycats meowing with envy, and happy-to-be-identikits utterly indignant.
If you look back in time, you would find this commendable cottage industry kind of spirit in the early '70s days of Vivienne Westwood, cutting out T-shirt patterns - minus any formal fashion design training - on the kitchen table, and adorning them with boiled-clean chicken bones. Likewise, in the '80s, Leigh Bowery making club looks for himself and his coterie from the hideously synthetic '70s fabrics and trashy tat which he found gathering dust in East End fabric shops, or Judy Blame - still going strong - carving out a unique reputation as a jewellery designer, by using deliberately non-precious materials and overcoming a lack of technical expertise with a gung-ho punk rock attitude.
In more recent times, forward-thinking stylists have routinely incorporated the collaborative efforts of the modern-day artisan - with all manner of oddball accessories, humongous head pieces, or custom built objects to-D.I.Y-for duly appearing in their editorial or commercial work, capturing a wider need for something other than what is obvious.
Having worked with most of the four talents being featured herein, at various stages across the past few years, stylist Nicola Formichetti defines them as being, "A bit Dada, and a bit Mad Professor. You can have an idea, then work with someone like Gary, for example, and the idea becomes amplified and is taken to another level." Formichetti, whose own home plays host to various Gary Card and Tony Hornecker's madcap creations, further enthuses, "These guys are really into what they're doing - which is something that's unique and fun, and what's great is that they just love making stuff! I have different relationships with them - depending on what we're working on at the time, you could describe them as being prop makers, or accessory designers or set designers... it changes with each specific project."
Thom Murphy, responsible for the accompanying images, reveals, "I originally studied 3-D design at college, so I have always been interested in props and handmade things and often used them in fashion shoots and shows for designers like Siv Stoldal and Cassette Playa or for brands like PUMA and Nike. 1 have also commissioned companies such as Inflate on several occasions, resulting in inflatable shirts and inflatable bow ties - all very practical!" Throughout his 20-odd years as an in-demand menswear stylist and art director, Simon Foxton, Consultant Fashion Director of i-D, has seen the fashion pendulum swing back and forth - from kooky and cluttered, to sober and restrained, as he attests. "The obvious move from conspicuous consumption and label-rutting of the '90s, to the present idiosyncratic, more experimental mood was bound to happen," he elaborates. "I think the fashion comet is at present moving through a 'belt of fun' and we should all enjoy it while it lasts. The last time it traveled that way was in the '80s, and what a fantastic time we all had then! The idea of going out and dressing-up is again seen as a creative pastime - the balance of power, in creative terms, has shifted from the design studio and back to the nightclub. So this is a time to be unique, it is a small window in the vast mundane diary of life... I urge you to grab it!"
What does he mostly do? He designs and makes all sorts of fantastic headwear.
Where did he learn his trade? He didn't actually have much formal hat making education, but instead just undertook a few one day-per-week courses. He learnt mostly from just making and experimenting, in addition to working for a theatrical maker.
What was his first ever job? A stint of training at Vidal Sassoon.
Who does he work with? He has recently been working with stylists such as Jane How, Thom Murphy, Nicola Formichetti, Patti Wilson, Edward Enninful, Sarah Richardson, designer Gareth Pugh whilst Madonna recently wore a headpiece on a recent cover of Dazed & Confused.
What's the best thing anyone's ever said about his work? A decibel-defying cry of, I love it! I love it! I love it! I fucking love it!'
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? Well, no-one has ever said anything bad to his face - which he thinks is probably because most humans simply aren’t that honest.
Which materials does he like to work with? He tries not to limit himself. He is constantly finding interesting new materials and crafty bits that he just knows are going to come in useful one of these days.
What would his ultimate dream commission be? At the moment he would love to re-design and make all the headwear for the next Olympic games.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? He would be leading a very, very simple life.
Where does he want to be in ten years' time? He hopes to be supping cocktails on a beach in Jamaica.
—
Who is he and where can you find him? GARY CARD is 26 years old, lives in Hackney, and has a studio in the same Dalston building as fashion designer Gareth Pugh and artist Mathew Stone.
What does he mostly do? He is a prop and costume designer who works mainly within fashion editorial and music videos.
Where did he learn his trade? He trained to be a theatre designer at Central Saint Martins and graduated about six years ago.
What was his first ever job? His first ever job was as a grill chef at a Beefeater restaurant, or was it as a labourer on a building site? He can't quite remember, but both things were utterly horrible experiences though.
Who does he work with? He works with Nicola Formichetti a great deal, and has just done a project with Solve Sundsbe. He does a lot of stuff with amazing up-and-coming photographer Jacob Sutton. He often works with Carri Mundane, not to mention Matt Irwin and Katie Shillingford. Then there is Ferry Gouw from Semifinalists - they make many music videos together, and clients so far have included the likes of Bloc Party, Simian Mobile Disco and Lightspeed Champion. He has also worked with Uniqlo, Dover Street Market and Wrangler. Blimey!
What's the best thing anyone's said about his work? His boyfriend is his harshest critic, so when he says he likes what he's doing, Gary is happy.
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? A record company binned a video he'd been working on for about a month because they considered it too wacky. He was gutted.
Which materials does he like to work with? He uses a lot of wire, card, poly board, foam, fabric - plenty of cashmere at the moment, in particular - and masking tape gum strip, wood... that kind of thing
What would his ultimate dream commission be? He wants Prince to call him up and ask for some kind of insane costume for his new album cover. Gary reckons he could save the pop legend's image. Other than that - a crazy puppet opera, or a new Batman movie would be good.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? He'd probably still be an illustrator - that's what he was doing for five years prior to doing this.
Where does he want to be in ten years' time? Laughing hysterically from the balcony of his L.A mansion, having just heard that he'll be designing the new Prince musical!
What does he mostly do? He reckons his work has become an extension of the way he lives.
Where did he learn his trade? He never formally studied - it felt too constricting - but worked for years in the events industry as a set dresser, which gave him lots of proper set-designing skills.
What was his first ever job? His first full time job was at Pizza Hut, in Streatham. He left, though, as it began to put a strain on his social life.
Who does he work with? Stylist Thom Murphy, designers Siv Stoldal and Mihara Yasuhiro. Tony built a moon station and moon buggy out of rubbish for the launch of the PUMA by Mihara shoe range. He works a lot with photographer Benjamin Alexander Huseby, and is going out to Norway to work on an art piece for him entitled The Rise and Fall of the House of Egypt. Tony also works with Kylie Minogue, oh and the video to The Priscillas most recent singleSuperhero was shot in his remarkable workshop/shack, by the way. Wow!
What's the best thing anyone's ever said about his work?He was very satisfied when someone once asked, "What is it?'
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? He was less satisfied when someone once asked, Er... is it finished?
Which materials does he like to work with? He tends to use things he finds on the street or in dodgy markets. And wood, lots of wood. He loves making things out of wood.
What would his ultimate dream commission be? Probably a film set where he was able to build an entire town out of scraps of wood and rubbish... cars and skyscrapers, fairgrounds and trees, people, dogs and lots of shacks. He loves a good shack, does Tony.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? He might be a farmer in Nicaragua, or something.
Where would he like to be in ten year's time? He wants to own his own shack, preferably somewhere warm - while still getting the chance to play and work and live.
—
Who is he and where can you find him? HUSAM EL ODEH is 29 years old, lives in Old Street work and works from a studio in Hoxton.
What does he mostly do? He describes it simply as playing with materials and ideas - and getting paid for it.
Where did he learn his trade? He studied German Literature in Frankfurt, Fine Art in Berlin and Chelsea, then Jewellery at Middlesex University.
What was his first ever job? Selling ice-cream on his school holidays
Who does he work with? He has regularly worked with designer Marios Schwab, since his degree show. Husam has designed a range of jewellery for Siv Stoldal and undertaken various projects with Topman, as well as producing a special range for Kickers. Further collaborations and contributions included the B-store artbook, launched duringcLondon Fashion Week in September 2006; Ann-Sofie Back's spring/summer 2007 show; a range of hair pieces for Mihara Yasuhiro's autumn/winter 2007 collection, and body pieces for his spring/summer 2008 menswear show in Paris. He put up an installation at L'Eclaireur during the Paris menswear shows in June. He has also produced various editorial designs for stylists like Thom Murphy, Patti Wilson, Jane How and Nicola Formichetti.
What's the best thing anyone's ever said about his work? Some geezer at the railway station in Milan complimented a VW pin he was wearing. He loves it when random people who don't care about fashion can relate to his designs.
What's the worst thing anyone's ever said about his work? He hates it when people feel they need to compare his work to other things - especially when they are comparing it to a rip-off of his own work.
Which materials does he like to work with? A mixture of metal, plastics, fabrics, leather... anything that catches his eye, really.
What would his ultimate dream commission be? Being given a material, and doing whatever he wants with it - ideally for lots of cash.
What would he be doing if he weren't doing this? It would still be this, in some form or another. He tried giving it up before, but he just couldn't do it.
Where would he like to be in ten years' time? He would enjoy sitting in a glass office, smoking cigars, and giving instructions over the intercom.