Swimming Pools II

A Universe In The Ocean

  “That was the most amazing, the most incredible moment of my life; as if I had been offered a trip to the moon … I thought of nothing else for months before it happened. Afterwards, for weeks I couldn’t talk about it without crying. I’m still not entirely over it … It was so beautiful and so intense, it changed me forever.”

Producer, journalist and film director of wildlife documentaries Claire Nouvain's speaking of her experience when she was invited on board the submersible Johnson Link-1 to travel down 1000 meters below the ocean in the Gulf of Maine part of the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution.

From this life changing experience she set out to produce this beautiful book on the incredible universe that lies in the Abyss of our Oceans. A mind opening book of 220 mesmerizing photographs of marine life that has never seen before by most of us.

With an average of depth of 3800 Meters, the oceans offer 99 per cent of the space where life can develop on Earth. The Deep Sea occupies 85 per cent of this space, and thus forms the planets largest habitat. " And what do we know about it? Compared to what remains to be discovered practically nothing."

One of the major discoveries is that the depth is full of lights. There is no light from the surface,  so creatures make their own, as many as 80-90 per cent of the animals are bio luminescent. Like fireflies they light themselves to collect food, to attract pray, to confuse predators and to signal potential mates.

Wow how fascinating is all this, am sure we won't find Nemo down here. This book will be a future classic, thank you Claire Nouvain  and all the scientists for opening our eyes to the magic of this planet.

Enjoy xo

Sources,

www.thedeepbook.org

www.literaryreview.co.uk/robinson_05_07.html

L'Apartement de Monsieur Lagerfeld

«Je voulais un appartement avec du verre et de la transparence partout …

Ici, pas de couleur, car je suis entouré de couleur en permanence. Je préfère vivre dans un environnement neutre.»-KL

 I wanted an apartment with glass and transparency everywhere … And there is no colour here, because I am constantly surrounded by colour. I prefer to live in a neutral environment.

Photos by Karl Lagefeld

www.admagazine.fr

www.karl.com/fr

SURFING ON ART

Into the Waves, found via Pinterest.

Border Lines in Collaboration with Stephen Bowers

Trio Back

Matthew McConaughey's Airstream via Architectual Digest Photo by Jim McHugh

Paulownia Planing Hull in Collaboration with Gerry Wedd

Paulownia Planing Hull Detail in Collaboration with Gerry Wedd

California Surf Mobile via Pinterest

Paisley in Collaboration with Quentin Gore

Paisley Detail in Collaboration with Quentin Gore

1969, LeRoy Grannis surfing Hermosa Beach . Photograph © LeRoy Grannis.  All rights reserved. via The Selvedge Yard

Swastika 

 Floral Fish, One True Religion & Gun 

Vintage Surf Shop Via Tumblr

Burnt Fish

Burnt Fish Detail

Paddle back to your boat and spot the little shark, sadly no credit. Found on Pinterest via Roxy Europe. 

Finless Double Ender

Finless Double Ender Detail

1966 Iconic Documentary Surfing  film by Bruce Brown

Smoker

Antipodean Willow Mini Simmons in Collaboration with Stephen Bowers

Magic Sunset Ride, makes me think of Dreamland. 

"Out of The Water, I am Nothing" Duke Kahanamoku

One day I was walking on the street and I saw poster with the most vibrant colours with silhouettes of  men carrying surf boards and written across were the words "The Endless Summer ". I have such a passion when it comes to anything to do with the water, beach or sun that  I got the poster to put on my bedroom wall at school and  then rented the film. I was mesmerised and that was how my love for surfing began. The very funny thing is I do not know how to surf ( I did a little windsurfing) but that does not matter to me, I love the culture of it, the life, being in tune with the ocean riding those waves. It is so beautiful to watch, my favourite place to go and take it all in used to be a spectacular beach in Bali called Dreamland,  as it was perfectly named by the surfers. Sadly this magnificent beach was destroyed by the Indonesian Government but that is another story.

Back to present day I stumbled across the most beautiful image of a surf  board. I was not sure if it was a board or a piece of art, but had to find out who made this beauty.

Walker Surfboards designed and handmade by Artist Peter Walker in Adelaide Australia. He began his impressive career at The Tasmanian School of Art and worked in his own studio in Tasmania for 14 years . Then moved  to Adelaide to head the Furniture Design Studio at the JamFactory Craft & Design Centre. In between and after he headed so many departments that I cant keep track, including 10 years as Associate Professor of Furniture Design at the Rhode Island School of Design in the USA. The list is endless, obviously a very talented man. Combining his other real passion of surfing  with his artistic talents he produced this beautiful line of unique surfboards and collaborating on some with renowned artists Stephen Bowers,Quentin Gore and Gerry Wedd.

I love them, one day I will get one , need to find  a place to put it maybe its time to move to the beach or walk around London with one, now that would be a funny sight. 

I have included some links to articles about Peter and there is also more technical information, board designs & how to order on the site. You must buy one now! 

All Walker Boards Photographs by Grant Hancock, courtesy of Peter Walker,

Other images sadly were on the internet without credit.

Walker Surfboards

Further Reading ,

The Age Article 

Megadelux Article 

Amaridian

Amaridian is the symbolic combination of two words, the Zulu word " Amadlozi" meaning "Ancestral Spirit" and the word "Meridian" the imaginary lines that traverse the Globe.

This wonderfully named Gallery by South Africans Mary Slack and Fraser Conlon is based in New York city. Their vision  educates us on the immense talent of the African Continent, very tribal yet modern at the same time.

Anyone who has ever been to Africa falls in love with the place, the magic, the people, the colours, the animals, the music and now you can also fall in love with these artists thanks to Amaridian.

Thank you Africa for all your wonderful gifts. xo

All Photos  and more information on all the artists via,                   www.amaridianusa.com

"DEMON CHEF" ALVIN LEUNG'S X-TREME CHINESE CUISINE..

HIS TWO MICHELIN STAR HONG KONG RESTAURANT BO IS OPENING IN LONDON'S MAYFAIR IN DECEMBER. NOW THAT WILL BE AN EXPERIENCE!

VIDEO BY RYAN HOPKINSON ON NOWNESS

The Incarnations of Kimiko Yoshida

LOUIS XIV AS THE RISING SUN IN "LE BALLET DE LA NUIT" AT VERSAILLES. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY PACO RABANNE

SULTAN SALADIN THE GREAT. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY PACO RABANNE

GODDESS OF WAR ATHENA BY KLIMT. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010.   COURTESY PACO RABANNE

WISE KING MELCHIOR BY MANTEGNA. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY PACO RABANNE

THE GOLDEN BRIDE FROM FEZ, SELF-PORTRAIT 2005. COURTESY OF THE ISRAEL MUSUEM, JERUSALEM

QUEEN OF FRANCE MARIE DE' MEDICI BY RUBENS. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY PACO RABANNE

EL CONQUISTADOR HERNAN CORTES AS EL DORADO. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY PACO RABANNE

LAST SAMURAI KATSUMOTO. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

THE TORERO BRIDE WITH A BLACK SUIT OF LIGHTS , REMEMBERING PICASSO. SELF-PORTRAIT 2006.

ASSOMPTION OF VIRGIN MARY BY TINTORETTO. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

SAINT AUGUSTIN BY EL GRECO. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

WOMAN OF ALGIERS BY DELACROIX. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2007-2009

PHARAON BY GUSTAVE DORÉ, SELF-PORTRAIT, 2007-2009

SISTINE MADONNA BY RAPHAEL. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

KING OF FRANCE FRANCOIS I BY JEAN CLOUET. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010.COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

JUDITH BY CRANACH THE ELDER. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

THE CAPRICIOUS GIRL BY WATTEAU. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

ZAPATA BY DIEGO RIVERA. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

QUEEN MARIANA OF AUSTRIA BY VELASQUEZ. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

HECATE, THE GREEK GODDESS OF THE MOON AND THE SPIRIT OF THE DEAD, BY WILLIAM BLAKE. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010

DON QUIXOTE BY PICASSO. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2010. COURTESY OF PACO RABANNE.

THE SILVER BERBER BRIDE, MOROCCO, EARLY XX th CENTURY. SELF-PORTRAIT 2005. COURTESY OF THE ISRAEL MUSUEM, JERUSALEM

THE MEXICAN BRIDE,  SELF PORTRAIT 2012

THE RED EGYPTIAN BRIDE (HARRY WINSTON). SELF-PORTRAIT, 2008

THE BRIDE GRAND COMMANDEUR DE LA LEGION D'HONNEUR. SELF-PORTRAIT 2006

THE RED PALESTINIAN BRIDE , EARLY XX th CENTURY. SELF-PORTRAIT 2005. COURTESY OF THE ISRAEL MUSUEM, JERUSALEM

THE MAO BRIDE RED GUARD RED. SELF-PORTRAIT, 2009

"A fundamental part of Japanese culture is linked to the notion of disappearance.

Unlike the West, in Japan we use makeup in order to disappear, to erase our identity. The basic idea behind my makeup is tied to the geisha’s traditional use of a ghostly-white makeup, called ” doran ” which leaves only the outline of her eyes and bright red lips visible. Makeup in Japan is not perceived as a way of making a woman become more beautiful, but rather as a way of transforming her into an abstraction of a woman. She becomes an “idea of a woman “, rather than an “ideal woman.” It is a way of dying." text by Barbara Oudiz

Transformation, Metamorphism, Shape Shifter. These are the words that come into my mind when I look at Kimiko Yoshida and her impacting self portraits. All the pictures use always the same setting, same subject, same lighting, same framing. She does her own make-up, lighting and design using a Hasselbald camera with no retouching or editing. 

I find these images so deep and mesmerising, the Series "Painting, Self- Portrait" where she transforms herself into people from famous historical portraits with pieces from Paco Rabanne's Haute Couture collections works of art in themselves are my personal favourites. 

Do go to her website and see her extensive portafolio of work I had a hard time not putting all her work on this post, then this would just be pages and pages long. I spent hours reading, there are also lots of in depth articles on her and great interviews, Kimiko you are a fascinating lady!

Am hoping that she will do a show in London someday soon. 

All images Via Kimiko Yoshida

Guido Mocafico

Lampropeltis getula nigrita

Roses

Boiga dendrophila melanota

Nature Morte aux Huîtres

Vipera Wagneri

Audemars Piguet Tourbillon répétition minutes squelette

Dendroaspis viridis

Salmopoeus irminia

Naja nigricollis

Bouquet de tulipes

Vipera aspis

Smith & Wesson 44 magnum

Vipera Ammodytes

Snakes, Guns, Spiders are not my favourite things in the world. Would not want to be at close range with any of these things. Flowers, food and watches on the other hand  are always part of my life. Guido Mocafico does convert my terrified view into one of beauty and awe, nature dangerous as it may be is designed to perfection just as a gun can be admired of its incredible craftsmanship. Not sure if I would hang some of these images in my bedroom but anywhere else the visual impact they make is mesmerizing.

Hypnotic xo

GUIDO MOCAFICO Italian, born in Switzerland in 1962, lives in Switzerland and works in Paris. Guido Mocafico studied Photography at Vevey school in Switzerland. Specialized in still life photography, his most recent images are published in magazines such as Numéro, Numéro Homme, Paradis, V Mag, Vogue US, Vogue France, Men’s Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, The Face, Wallpaper He works for major brands such as Gucci, Chanel, Clarins, Shiseido, YSL, Clinique, Dior, Bvlgari, Armani, Hermès. Alongside his commercial and advertising activities, Guido Mocafico has developed a series of long-term personal projects, destined to be published in books and shown as exhibitions.

His work can be found at the following Galleries,

Hamiltons Gallery 13 Carlos place London W1 K 2 EU U.K. T / 020 7499 9493/4 www.hamiltonsgallery.com

BERNHEIMER FINE OLD MASTERS E.K. BU Fine Art Photography Brienner Str. 7 80333 Munich Germany T / +49-89-226672 www.bernheimer.com

All photos sourced via,

www.guidomocafico.com

Master Illustrator Antonio Lopez

  This is the hot book of the month of the Master Fashion Illustrator Antonio Lopez.

He was born in Puerto Rico on Feb 11th 1943 but raised in Harlem. His mother a seamstress would ask him to draw flowers for her embroideries and he also helped his father who made mannequins to apply make up and stitch their wigs. At the age of 12 Antonio was awarded a scholarship to the Traphagen School of Fashion that had children's programmes, then in high school he was encouraged to attend the High School of Art & Design. His studies continued at The Fashion Institute of Technology. His career as a fashion Illustrator was born, and his talent was immense.

In the early 60's he began free lancing after working in newspapers for fashion Magazines such as Vogue, Harper Bazaar, Elle and Andy Warhol's Interview. In the 70's he moved to Paris with his creative partner Juan Ramos , the duo became a dynamic force in the world of Fashion. With their innovative rich Illustrations ,  Karl Lagerfeld, Gianni Versace and Yves Saint Laurent were just some of the designers who collaborated with them. Lopez launched the careers of models Jerry Hall, Jessica Lange, Grace Jones and others.

This is just a small round up of the talents of Antonio Lopez, this book is filled with his illustrations, paintings, mixed media journals and more. He lived a very creative , fun, and full life, and charmed so many. His legend is encapsulated in this wonderful book,Well done to the Authors Mauricio & Roger Padilha and Rizzoli publishing house who  reignited his mastery for all of us who did not get a chance to know him.

Hope they do an exhibition London of all his work. The book can be ordered on Amazon, not yet released in England.

What an Illustrious Life  xo

Images via

www.theantoniolopezbook.com

Namibia by Sebastiao Salgado

visionofsplendor.com

The Splendor of Motu Tane

" Never before had I seen waters the color of the rainbow or like fireworks, springing right out of some maddened imagination, or from Gaugin's own palette. Waters the color of bronze, of copper, gold, silver, mother-of-pearl, pearl, jade, emeralds, moonlight or the aurora borealis. The stars themselves seemed to have fallen to the sea, scintillating brilliantly on the lagoon's surface, in bright sunlight, who could find the right words,what poet images,what painter even colors , to describe the scene? I give up."

Paul Emile Victor, a French Explorer's impression on seeing Bora Bora for the first time from the cockpit of an airplane in 1958. He retired to Bora Bora and lived in Motu Tane.

Motu Tane island lies across the channel from Bora Bora, owned by renowned french make-up artist François Nars with interiors by Christian Liagre. This stunning island can accommodate up to 20 guests and is rented to only one party of guests at a time.

The island has all that you would expect, a chef to cook divine and fresh meals, in the garden under hundreds of coconut tress, beach barbeque's, torch-lit dinners and Tahitian feasts with those incredible dance groups. Snorkeling the crystal clear waters to discover the phenomenal array of colors, local massages with the unforgettable fragrance of Monoi oil, paddle board, windsurf and even for those who can't bear to live without there is a gym and flat screen tv's in the rooms.

From the pictures you can just use your imagination on how unforgettable this place would be. I would just stare at the the beauty all day long, swim,eat, sleep and have a big perma smile all day and night. One on my list of places to see, still have not done Polynesia and this would be just perfect, anyone interested in renting it? The only shock is the price but understandably, its a trip of a lifetime, see the website for more info.

Bon Voyage xo

Resources,

www.motutaneisland.com

www.narscosmetics.com

www.vogue.com