Blue Monday?

Today, January 21st is supposedly ,Blue Monday. Statistics show that the third Monday of January is the most miserable day of the entire year?! How are we all feeling this Monday? I hope the snow hasn't ruined your plans too much. 

I thought I'd share some of my all time favourite fashion photography with you all, surely these shots will bring you some joy.

"Fashion has always been one of the most vibrant genres of photography. It's bold, subtle, fun, disturbing, thoughtful and ridiculous! It has reflected, influenced and challenged all kinds of social attitudes: The nature of fame and celebrity, material pursuits, gender stereotypes, attitudes towards sex and the human body etc."

Photography-art-cafe

 Natalia Vodianova portrait by Paolo Roversi

Richard Avedon

He photographed for Calvin Klein, Annie Leibowitz, David LaChapelle, Irving Penn and Robert Mapplethorpe, among many others. 

A slide show showing images of the work he produced that proved to the most memorable of his era:

David Bailey

So I've spent most of my weekend, admiring the beautiful winter scene indoors, hurled up in a warm, cosy blanket , accompanied by several cups of hot beverages! So with no input from the outside world, my ideas and inspirations were lacking, until I stumbled upon Roy Lichtenstein, and was reminded of  his wonderful influence of pop culture in the 60's.

If you guys are also a fan and are need of some retro-tistic inspiration, don't forget to check out "Roy Linchtenstine: A Retrospective" which opens at the Tate Modern on 21 February-27 May, In London. It will be the first major exhibition of his work, since his death in 1997. It will include, some of his pivotal work, including, Look Mickey 1961, Whaam! 196, Drowning Girl 1963 and his monumental Artist Studio series of 1973-4.

Quotes:

"My use of evenly repeated dots and diagonal lines and uninflected color areas suggest that my work is right where it is, right on the canvas, definitely not a window into the world."

"Visible Brushstrokes in a painting convey a sense of grand gesture. But, in my hands, the brushstroke becomes a depiction of grand gesture. So the contradiction between what I'm portraying and how I am portraying it is sharp. The brushstroke became very important for my work."

"I'm never drawing the object itself; I'm only drawing a depiction of the object - a kind of crystallized symbol of it."

"There are certain things that are usable, forceful, and vital about commercial art."

"All abstract artists try to tell you that what they do comes from nature, and I'm always trying to tell you that what I do is completely abstract."

"When I have used cartoon images, I've used them ironically."

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