Issue 4 now available!

I'm excited to announce that The Fashion Illustration Gallery (F.I.G) have revealed the new issue of Decoy today, which is available exclusively through their online shop.

The striking Matthew Bell of Elite Models wears Matthew Miller SS13, illustrated by myself, with photographic assistance from Neil O'Keefe and grooming by Noriko Takayama.
As you can see, the new issue is blessed with an incredible line up of some of whom I consider to be the most talented illustrators in the industry. More details will follow later today on F.I.G's site, with previews of all the new works, focusing on the London Mens Collections.

Issue 4 launch details

With only one week to go, the new issue will finally be available from the 28th! As mentioned before, I'm saving all details for the exclusive preview that F.I.G - The Fashion Illustration Gallery will launch on the day, from which it will be available and then also at the launch. Hope to see you there!

Tara Dougans, Couture Spring Summer 2013

Tara's striking new series of works covering the couture fashion week, quite possibly her most accomplished yet, are now live on Showstudio's site.

Tara is known for her painstaking hand drawn detail and obsessive rendering of intricacies, and these are no exception, taking her a total of three weeks from start to finish, which included a livefeed on showstudio's site of Tara working away during some of those long 12 hour days. 

Exploring gif animation once again as her final result, Tara's illustrations of her weeping widows perfectly encapsulate the obsession with detail and scrutiny that has always been the focus of Haute Couture, focusing on minute details such as hand drawing hundreds of sequins on a Chanel look. It's no surprise that Nick Knight has taken such an interest in Tara, personally requesting her to be a part of Showstudio's fashion week coverage. (I'm also proud to say that she is providing the exclusive new centerfold for Decoy issue 4). Showstudio infact are bringing in a different illustrator for each week of the shows, so far there has been Hellen Bullock for Menswear, Tara for Couture, Candybird for New York Fashion Week and now Amelie Hegardt is covering London Fashion Week. To view more information about the project, head to to Showstudio here. 

www.taradougans.com

www.showstudio.com

www.taradougans.tumblr.com

A Magazine curated by Stephen Jones

Milliner Stephen Jones is the latest in a long succession of high profile curations with Antwerp's A Magazine Curated By, the magazine that works with a different designer for each issue. Previous issues have included the likes of Rodarte, Ricardo Tisco and Haider Ackermann.

Comme des Garçons Women's Spring 2012 Look 29, by Howard Tangye

Stephen chose to have the issue illustrated throughout, including a pullout illustration calendar (which I'm honoured to have new work featured in). Talking exclusively to Style.com, Jones said "I like a magazine that looks like a magazine. It's not a book. I didn't want it to be page after page of slightly meaningless photographs. That's why I thought illustration. I love illustration, I draw every day, and that's the way designers communicate, through drawing."

"Dita in a Top Hat", by David Downton.

The beautiful cover illustration, a tribute to the late Anna Piaggi, is by Gladys Perint Palmer, and the issue features new work by a grade-A list of revered talents, including David Downton, Howard Tangye, Donald Urquhart, Richard Gray and Dior's Peter Turner, amongst others.Other highlights include ten of Stephen's personal favourite drawings, and unseen collage drawings by Raf Simons.

Vivienne Westwood Fall 2010 Look 53, by Richard Kilroy 

Issue 12 will launch at Bookmarc during Paris Fashion Week. To read the style.com exclusive, click here.

"Upstage Downstage," a portrait of Leigh Bowery by Donald Urquhart.

Issue 4 coming soon. . . .

The new issue will finally be available mid February, but I couldn't resist teasing some of the fantastic new work available in the issue. Including new work by myself and five of my favourite illustrators who I'm inspired by, issue 4 is the first of Decoy to be in a true magazine format.

I'm also incredibly grateful that the prestigious Fashion Illustration Gallery (F.I.G) will be announcing details of the issue once it is available, alongside showcasing some of the works on their site, so stay tuned. For now, have fun guessing who the illustrators are . . .

Rene Gruau, Portraits Of Men, by Assouline Publishing

BY RÉJANE BARGIEL AND SYLVIE NISSEN 9½ X 12 IN – 24 X 30.5 CM 260 PAGES | 250 ILLUSTRATIONS HARDCOVER WITH JACKET

I've been rather late on posting about this one. I wasn't even aware of the book until I saw it on Mr Porter two weeks ago, but apparently it has been out since November(?!). Assouline are known for being a brilliant and well respected publisher, so I'm not quite sure as to why this book has not been promoted more. Maybe I have just been living under a rock the last two months, buried in work, I don't know.

That aside, it's fantastic to finally see a dedicated book to Gruau's menswear illustrations. When I was asked to respond to his mens work for the Dior Illustrated exhibit at Somerset House, only a little over two years ago, even then I found it difficult to find much of it online. Since the exhibit and also one including Gruau's works at the Design Museum, it completely revitalised interest, culminating in considerable amounts of his work appearing online, frequent referencing in press, and a selection of his mens illustrations exhibited at the Paul Smith art store in London, put together by F.I.G in collaboration with Paul Smith. As I have yet to physically see the book to review it properly, I've included all the available spreads that are shown online along with a few press images (my copy is in the post). Of course, much of this is in the older post I made on Gruau's male imagery a while back, but there still manages to be some work that is fresh to my eyes.

I should point out, ALL books on Gruau seem to sell out quickly and accrue in value quickly too, so if you are thinking of purchasing, don't hesitate too long. . . .

Accompanying press release from Assouline:

Primarily known for his colorful and vivacious portrayals of women, René Gruau revolutionized the concept of masculinity in fashion imagery and advertising from the 1950s to the ’80s, depicting the modern casual, confident man with humor and sex appeal—including images of partial male nudity that were considered shocking at the time.

“Since the 1940s, the name of René Gruau has been associated with the world of fashion. Particularly affiliated with the house of Dior, for which he created some of the most iconic images in the history of fashion and beauty, Gruau also lent his unparalleled style to some of the most creative magazines of the era and to numerous advertising campaigns. Beginning in the early 1960s, he revolutionized the image of the modern man, who he depicted with a mix of humor, sex appeal, ease, and elegance. In 1956, he offered his creative services to Christian Dior for his “Dior pour hommes” collection. His work led him to meet the most avant-garde fabric manufacturers of that time, such as the house of Dormeuil, who were at the forefront in developing new materials. This previously unpublished work, taken from several of Gruau’s personal sketchbooks, is present in this book for the first time—a true lesson in fashion history.”

Michelle Dockery for Vanity Fair, February 2012, by David Downton

Text originally by Laura Jacobs for Vaniy Fair. Styled by Jessice Diehl.

It's all in the gaze. "She thinks before she speaks," says actress Michelle Dockery of Lady Mary Crawley, the character she plays on Masterpiece's hit Downton Abbey. "From the get-go mary has always been someone who thinks." The same can be said of Dockery, who recently spent an afternoon at Claridge's in London with the celebrated illustrator David Downton, master of the light touch that goes deep. "The sense I had of Michelle," says Downton, "is of somebody that is very intelligent and very 'watchful' ... no, 'watchful' is the wrong word. She's alice to life, to what's going on."

For three hours the artist sketched, the actress wore Givenchy and Balenciaga and Oscar de la Renta, and the two “Downtons” talked while a face was captured. Regal in the cheekbones, between-the-wars in her aloof beauty and that arched eyebrow, it’s a face that can go icy in an instant or warm like the dawn. “She has that thing of being classic and contemporary,” explains Downton, “that very strange mix where she looks at home, at ease, in period. But there’s also a glimmer, a spark.”

Tina Turner in Gianni Versace, by Thierry Perez, 1992.

It's been a rather slow month for posts as I concentrate on commissions, the new issue of Decoy, my book, and eating my own weight in christmas snacks. However this little delight surfaced on Tumblr this morning that I've never came across before, and it ought to be shown. I consider myself to know quite well which pieces of Thierry's work is online, and know there is a vast amount that isn't up, high quality or not. So it's great to discover this gem, Tina in Gianni Versace Spring Summer 1992.

Don't forget the huge post on the rest of Thierry's work here.

Peruzzi vs Versace

Baldassare Tomasso Peruzzi 'Crouching Figure of Atlas' (Italian, Ancaiano 1481–1536 Rome).
Herb Ritts - Gianni Versace ad, 1991.

Always fun to notice similarities . . .

Gary Card - 'Inflate Redux' for Dazed & Confused ipad edition.

An exclusive for Decoy, Gary showcases the original colour format works for 'inflate redux', a series of illustrations commissioned for the ipad edition of Dazed & Confused, originally published back in october 2010 in black and white. Love Gary's eye for colour and his ink use in these.


"A couple of years ago I designed costumes for an experimental editorial for Dazed and Confused with Anthony Maule and Robbie Spencer, making our models into strange amorphic, distorted creatures by over padding and layering clothing with my bizarre latex costume pieces. I was delighted when dazed then asked me to re-interpret the shoot by illustrating the shoot for the i-pad edition of the magazine."

To view more of Gary's illustration, click here.
To view the original editorials, click here.

A Dark Fantasy - Homme Style Magazine issue 5, December 2012.

A few illustrations I produced for a Spring Summer 13 catwalk report in the new issue of Homme Style, Nicklas Kingo reimagined posing in Mugler being a personal favourite. Some works are also double page foldouts! Also included here is a look from the Prada show which became an outtake.
To view more of the issue, which features Tony Ward on the cover, one of my all time top hotties, go here.