Headlined “Stars of Now”, AnOther Magazine’s 22nd issue is a celebration of designers, writers, artists and thinkers best expressing the zeitgeist of the moment; and as ever, these themes and preoccupations play out across the extraordinary fashion
Headlined “Stars of Now”, AnOther Magazine’s 22nd issue is a celebration of designers, writers, artists and thinkers best expressing the zeitgeist of the moment; and as ever, these themes and preoccupations play out across the extraordinary fashion stories to be found within the pages. Ranging from Kristen McMenamy’s ethereal performance for Catherine Sullivan’s 16mm camera, the simplicity of Anders Edström’s shoot in Japan to the serene weirdness of Martina Hoogland Ivanov’s work in a haunted Swedish hotel, the latest issue demonstrates the pioneering creativity that characterises the magazine. Here, Dazed Group fashion director Cathy Edwards selects her favourite images from the issue and the photographers and stylists reveal the thoughts behind their stories.
"For spring/summer 2012, AnOther’s fashion editors turned towards an unconventional aesthetic of qualified romance; tempering glamour and softness with an intangible sense of weirdness"
For spring/summer 2012, AnOther’s fashion editors turned towards an unconventional aesthetic of qualified romance; tempering glamour and softness with an intangible sense of weirdness. Julia Hetta’s portraiture, with its natural light and painterly tone, is set against Cathy Edwards’ entirely modern styling, featuring slick cuts, sportswear fabrics, bespoke latex accessories and bright, poppy colours. For her other stories, Edwards strayed towards softer silhouettes. Working with Ivanov in a near abandoned guesthouse, models were literally embedded into the wallpaper a la Francesca Woodman, overlaid with patterns projected onto the wall by set designer Marin Bergström. For the shoot with McMenamy, the temperate house at Kew was transformed into a ghostly hall of mirrors, stalked by a sinisterly ethereal Mrs Rochester figure in McQueen skullcap and layers of organza ruffles.
Karen Langley styled two contrasting shoots for the magazine, moving from spare Japanese simplicity to louche drama in New Jersey. Working with Anders Edström, the emphasis was on the anonymous, the generic and the mundane. Shot in universally familiar domestic locations, and with each outfit made up of a single garment, this was a masterclass in understated elegance. As Langley says, “it is a rare photographer who is able to fashion so much meaning from such stripped back images.” Moving to the States, veteran supermodel Christina Kruse starred in a story set in a derelict amusement arcade on the Jersey coast, shot by Marlene Marino. Here, the stress was on the creation of an incredibly compelling starring figure, yet one who did not seem entirely out of place in the faded Americana of her surroundings. Using a model with so much charisma as well as a real sense of history meant that the fashion was not only transformative, but made complete sense within the frame of the story. Amid the pimps, the hookers, the trannies and the tramps who roamed the backdrops of the shots, the current of sexuality was undercut with a rather unsettling oddness, very much in tune with the overarching feel of the issue itself. "I thought Christina could be compelling as a woman who makes sense coming from that place", explained Marino on their choice of model. "I knew she would carry it in a graceful, meaningful way, with mood, and layers. She's amazingly collaborative; a consummate professional."
Katie Shillingford took the photography of Horst P. Horst as the starting point for her shoot with Catherine McNeil, using a pale palette, sensual fabrics and a variety of veils to create an eerie Miss Havisham sensibility. Shot by Deutsche Börse nominee Roe Ethridge, the story is by turn undeniably erotic, classically beautiful and wonderfully strange. Continuing a partnership that extends back seven years, Robbie Spencer and Ben Toms collaborated on a beautiful doll inspired shoot starring Sui He. Set designer Emma Roach fashioned a range of plinths to set off the different outfits that range from ghostly bride, through ballet dancer and Victorian revolutionary, to Russian matryoshka doll.
The spring/summer 2012 issue of AnOther Magazine is out now.
Text by Tish Wrigley
