MARTINE VAN 'T HUL

            I stumbled upon pictures of Martine Van ‘t Hul’s embroideries completely by accident. I love when that happens. Discovering such a treasure chest is such a delight.

            Memory and modernity are held together at once in the work of Martine van ’t  Hul, a fabric and couture designer whose contrasting use of synthetic and hand made fabrics evokes a particular notion of time – a time that is both nostalgic and forward-looking, timeless and ephemeral. 

            After her MA graduation at the Fashion Institute in Amsterdam in 2002, she started working in Milan for fashion designer Ronald van der Kemp. After a year she began as a freelance designer and found herself working for different companies like Larus Miani, a big Italian fabric company. Working as a freelancer enabled Martine to make her own work the focal point. Her specialty and passion lies in fabrics and embroideries. She loves to design embroideries, and plays with the idea of handmade versus production techniques. Martine launched her first collection in 2000. It is an infatuation with delicately embellished fabrics that has remained at the heart of her work as a designer. It was named Mi-Confectioné, a term that was introduced at the beginning of the 20th century, which means 'half-produced'. Her vision for each garment is that the wearer adds to the design process with their individuality, completing the work that has been started by the designer.  This concept has become a part of her signature, as she still likes to play with the thought that something remains; forgotten and unsaid.

            Martine Van ’t  Hul designs embroideries which can be both hung on the wall and are portable such as enlarged applications or brooches. They are characterized by the tone-on-tone use of colour, the contrasting combination of materials, the picturesque manner of embroidering and the idea of “forgotten and unsaid”. The intricacy of the detail in Van ‘t Hul’s fabrics, which have included complex layers of fur, feathers, sequins, beads and lace, contain multiple references as she pilfers, pirate-like, from a chocolate-box assortment of periods, layering one upon the other. Unfinished patterns, loose wires, stacking of beads and sequins give the impression that it concerns intimate treasures in ancient times.

            For more pictures of her work, please visit her website:

            www.martinevanthul.com

Sayaka Maruyama and Tomihiro Kono

  

       Recently, a friend of mine introduced me to a couple of wonderful Japanese artists. Sayaka Maruyama and Tomihiro Kono. Working on artistic projects under the collaborative name of 'Neon O’Clock Works', the pair explore photography, film and installation.

         Sayaka Maruyama is an artist that uses various techniques in her artwork. She draws, paints, designs and edit films, but most of all she photographs. A graduate of Tohoku University of Art and Design, she became spellbound by the allure of trick art, which allows one to quasi-experience a surreal sense of 3-D, and in the past came to express surreal discoveries and surprises through visual tools. She prefers to create works mainly on the subject of the mysteriousness of visual sense and events, where she tries to express her originality by combining fine art and photography.

         Tomihiro Kono has been working as a hair stylist and head prop artist for ten years. One of a handful of stylists to really transcend the role of hairdresser, and enter high fashion scissors blazing. Since their move to London in 2007 he has mainly been working as a session hairstylist for fashion editorials, music, runway shows and advertisement. While doing that he began making various kind of head gear with different materials. His styles are influenced by 1920-30s Dadaism and Surrealism. 

         The two artists first collaborated in 2004 while still living in Tokyo. Maruyama began working as Kono’s assistant, drawing illustrations to accompany his photography. They clicked, and soon formed a professional and personal partnership. Three years later, the couple decided to relocate to London to try to find more opportunities and to reach a wider audience. 

         Working from the split level studio which doubles as their home in northern London, the duo create fantastical headpieces which have been used in numerous fashion shoots and music videos – think cascading crystal chandelier headdresses and crowns made of ostrich feathers. They also design bespoke wigs and stage props, produce whimsical short films and have an impressive photography portfolio. 

        If you want to see more of their work, visit their websites:

            www.syk-jp.com

            www.tomihirokono.com

            There is also one of their short films on YouTube:

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdnnY6WQSEU