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Review by Jas Bhachu Following on from a successful debut exhibition at Jealous Gallery in Shoreditch earlier this year, 12-14th April, Semi Skimmed Gallery boasts another excellent international line-up for this second show. Featuring favourites returning from the debut exhibition include Annatomix (UK), Carl Cashman (UK), Cain Caser (UK), Euan Roberts (UK), Nick Flatt (USA), Paul Punk (Germany), Rachel Strum (USA) and Tim Fowler (UK). New additions to the line-up include Ange Bell (UK), Benjamin Murphy (UK), Benjamin Cook (USA), Born To Kiln (UK), Muretz (Brazil), My Dog Sighs (UK), Straker (Australia), Super Future Kid (UK), Terry Hoff (USA), That Lazy Edwin (UK) and Tiffany Cole (USA).  Semi Skimmed Gallery was established by artist Carl Cashman in 2018. A Gallery run by artists for artists, Semi Skimmed aims to great a better experience for exhibiting artists. Artists keep a higher percentage of the sale price for their work, with the gallery, unlike most other, ‘skimming’ less of the profits, hence the name. The upcoming exhibition seeing exhibiting artists from around the world, from urban art staples (My Dog Sighs, Annatomix, Carl Cashman), pioneering graffiti artists (Muretz, Straker, That Lazy Edwin), experimental portrait painters (Ange Bell, Tim Fowler, Tiffany Cole), comic surrealists (Super Future Kid, Euan Roberts), abstract colour masters (Cain Caser, Benjamin Cook, Rachel Strum, Terry Hoff) as well as tag team photorealists Nick Flatt and Paul Punk, conceptual glass sculptors Born To Kiln and electrical tape aficionado Benjamin Murphy. All artwork is for sale, giving you a chance to own some affordable artwork by artists at the forefront of contemporary art. For catalogue and advance sales email : semiskimmedgallery@gmail.com Opening night is Thursday 6th September, 6:30PM - 9:30PM, RSVP: semiskimmedgallery@gmail.com
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 By Sara Darling So autumn is finally here and that makes me excited about new shoes. Even though it's not quite cold enough for a Moon Boot (they pride themselves on keeping your tootsies warm in temperatures as low as -35° C), these babies are definitely on my radar.  With a vast range of colours, including metallics, faux fur, flamingo print and applique, the AW18 collection offers something for all tastes; They even do versions for your Mini Me!  Starting life after the 1969 Apollo 11 Moon landing, founder Giancarlo Zanatta saw the potential of the practical design, and the hero product is now a must for every fashionista. Available at: ASOS- Net-A-Porter- Selfridges- Coggles #IWANTTHEMOON   Article: Sara Darling Summer’s over and it’s time to get back into a routine. Switch on to autopilot, grab your bag, kit, lunch and coat and blend in with the rest of the rat race to make it to class on time…. But going back to school doesn’t have to be a bore with these funky threads from Superdry. Make a statement with your sartorial choices, and stand out from the rest in the new collection which takes inspiration from the New York’s underground scene in the eighties with clashing colours, neon and camo print jostling for attention.
Way back in the eighties, when hip hop was popular, and parents just didn’t understand, the cool kids couldn’t get enough of it, and Superdry’s inhouse design team have created their 21st century take on 80's New York club culture. Basically offering the coolest outerwear, streetwear and bags, this side of Brooklyn! Whether you want to pile on a puffa or wrap up in a wind cheater, or a fan of faux fur, the back to school outerwear range is massive so you can still make your mark; and the range of bags and backpacks, hoodies, sweaters, and Ts, mean you can express yourself whatever your squad.  Made to last, the classic styles mean you won’t have to worry about going out of fashion, and you can concentrate on more important things, Like homework! Perfect for B-Boys and Girls, you’ll get A grades for your Superdry style. SUPERDRY
55's SUPERDRY back to school edit
Interview and Review by Jas Bhachu If we are sure of anything, it is that our good friends over at Delphian Gallery know how to curate incredible art. So when they informed us of Florence Hutchings' first solo show 'Seating Arrangement' coming up; we knew we needed to find out more.  For those who don't know... Florence Hutchings is an exciting emerging artist currently undertaking a Painting degree at Slade School of Fine Art. Recently awarded the Lynn Painters Stainers Prize (2016-2019), and included in the upcoming 'Kaleidoscope: A Decade of New Art' at The Saatchi Gallery next year, she is known for creating colourfully bold and playful works depicting, tables, chairs, and other interior configurations. I had the pleasure of interviewing Florence during the pre-show mayhem so we could get to know her a little better. There is a real confidence in your use of colour in your work. Is there a methodology behind that, perhaps an emotive connection to how you are feeling at the time? For me colour is a real trial and error process, my paintings go through lots of layers and processes for me to feel at ease with the colour palette. To use colour, it’s really important to look at other artists, people like Matisse, Gillian Ayres and Bonnard have been a massive inspiration for me when it comes to colour. I love the boldness in their work - the colour glows and has a vivacity, this is something I aim to achieve in my paintings. Although I love colour I also feel a limited palette is important, I enjoy making paintings and drawings and only allowing myself to use two or three colours, exploring all the shades those colours have; this has been really important for me to learn about the spectrum of colour. You have your first solo exhibition ‘Seating Arrangement’ coming up at the Delphian Gallery next month. Could you summarise to our readers what to expect from this collection? The body of the work in this show mainly consists of paintings and drawings I made over the last month; so they’re really recent works. I tend to work within a variation of a theme and explore a subject matter intensely. This series of work started with a body of A6 drawings of all the chairs in my flat, these were the drawings I worked from to create the paintings and the works on paper. I enjoy the subject matter of a chair as the chair creates a space around it- it means sometimes within the work the carpet or the window appears to have more of a dominance than the focal matter itself. I have a mixture of really large and small work in this show as well as framed drawings. I wanted to approach each piece with a fresh approach so that although all the works have a similar subject matter they still all have a different character. Developing your personal practice can be all time consuming both physically and mentally; do you find time to ‘switch off’? Making work is a very time consuming thing, even when I leave the studio I still can’t stop thinking about something that is bothering me in a particular piece that aspect of it can be really difficult to switch off. But most of the time even when I am watching TV at home or just somewhere out of the studio I’m usually drawing or looking at art books or seeing galleries. That’s a side of it I don’t mind not switching off all the time that’s an aspect I really enjoy. You have a large following on your social media outlets. How do you find having this level of exposure and does the public’s response have an effect on your practice? I’ve found Instagram a really great thing, I’ve got shows from it and met a lot of great people and found some amazing artists on there who inspire me a lot. But in terms of it effecting my practise I don’t think it does at all. I would still be making the work I am today if that platform never existed, I make what I feel integral to make, it’s not made for other people.
Private view on Thursday, September 6 at 7.30pm - 10pm Delphian Gallery at theprintspace 74 Kingsland Road, London E2 8DL Further event details can be found here  By Sara Darling - Photos Christopher Sims It’s always rather cosmopolitan going out for a rooftop dinner in London on a school night! It seems very Sex and The City….And with cocktails and amazing views of the city and a’ DJ actually playing songs I recognised...Tuesdays have just become my new Sundays!! Heading to the swanky (I am loathe to say trendy, although it has that vibe too) DoubleTree by Hilton in Tower Hill, I did not know quite what to expect…It is slap bang in the middle of the City and not my usual stomping ground. But as soon as I had bypassed the predictable wine bars spilling out suits sipping after work Chardonnays, and American tourists taking selfies with the Beefeaters, side-stepping into the DoubleTrees was a breath of fresh air. You don’t need to linger with the holiday makers in reception, as the rooftop bar has its own access and a lift will whizz you up to the twelfth floor, where you enter an entirely different dimension from the city it overlooks. Savage Garden restaurant and bar has adopted an eighties Californian vibe. Plush curtains, banquette seating and an inventive cocktail list, along with the house specials, allow you to feel grand even if you weren’t expecting to! With upbeat waiting staff to talk you through the pretty self-explanatory menu- which is split into small plates of exotic seafood treats including charred octopus with fennel, tempura oysters and black sesame prawn toast, veggies have options of goats cheese croquettes and plantain chips, my date and I were advised to share... Easily devourable in small bites, our starters and which were remarkably filling, and we took our time enjoying them as much as the view. Choosing a main was more of a mission as there wasn’t a huge range for vegetarians. But we plumped for char grilled cod, aubergine burger and roasted cauliflower. An exotic fusion in anyone’s eyes! But if you eat meat, the menu got even more flamboyant with charcoal bun beef sliders, pork tomahawk with black pudding fries and coconut beef short ribs.
Mixed down with experimental cocktails such as Wild Poison and Devil’s Advocate and a 360 degree view, made for a giddy night! Overlooking Thames and the Gherkin I am surprised this is not a tourist trap, but the clientele on this particular night seemed to consist of date nights and a groups of friends in the bar which intriguingly seemed to be enjoying a stream of “feasting savagery” plates- small sliders and tasters on platters for sharing. Whether you are here for the food, music, cocktails or view, this is a hidden delight in the city. And it’s a great place to enjoy London’s urban jungle in it’s own savage garden, and even brave the Wildside Terrace. I’ll be back for Christmas party season! Cocktails are around £14-£18; dishes vary between £6 and £25 (excluding the sharing options).
For enquiries, contact
Savage Garden Bar 7 Pepys St, London EC3N 4AF Savage Garden London Twitter / FB / Instagram: @SavageGardenLDN  NAKIN SKIN CARE - TRIED AND TESTED BY SARA DARLING With the summer that we’ve been having, my skin is getting pretty dry and weathered. Even though I use sunscreen (natch) my delicate visage has never been in and out of the salty sea so much! So a bit of TLC on my face is just what I needed... Cue a delivery of Nakin age-defying face creams, which smell just as fresh as they look with classy, minimalist packaging. Promising natural skincare that is designed for sensitive skin AND backed by science, I was keen to give the lotions and potions a whirl. I am a big believer that Mother Nature knows best, and the small but perfectly formed range of eight essential products are stuffed full of familiar sounding ingredients. The brand takes the best of Green Tea (an antioxidant), Pomegranate (great for sun damage) and Rosemary Leaf Extract (to protect collagen and essential elastin fibres) but I was most intrigued by Hydrolyzed Hibiscus Extract (known as 'natural botox' thanks to its powerful anti-wrinkle properties).  Lightweight, and easy to use (you don’t need much from the pump dispenser), I tried Nakin Natural Anti-Ageing Performance Face Serum. Rich in hyaluronic acid – the latest buzzword in beauty, it promised to hydrate and plump ageing skin. With all the weather damage I had encountered, I am always keen to boost my skin’s hydration, and tackle my sun lines.
Light and easily absorbable, it is advisable to target areas you want to focus on, so I honed in on my laughter lines around my eyes, and smile lines! There’s no denying I like a giggle… After a couple of weeks twice daily use, I could actually see my face looking softer with a less liney. No more tired and dull skin for me! With face oil containing, jojoba, this is perfect for calming and hydrating and soaked in without feeling greasy; And the Active Dew face cream for everyday use left my skin plump, super soft and hydrated- which didn’t make me feel quite so guilty when i went out for a sunbathe. The holistic approach of the products means that all products are cruelty free with no nasty chemicals. Going back to basics and using the traditional remedies such as Pomegranate, Cassia, Baobab and Argan, is the perfect combination for boosting hydrated skin, and preventing signs of ageing without a needle or a super high price tag! FIND OUT MORE AND SHOP THE RANGE HERE Review: Jaswant Bhachu When design innovation pairs with optimum health, it would be rather ridiculous to turn a blind eye. So when the 55 team were approached by Kite Eyewear to review their new ranges; we knew we had to take a closer look…all puns intended!  Kite’s longstanding partnership with Zeiss, the finest prescription lens crafters in the world, continues with the launch of a world first in prescription eyewear – UVProtect. They believe that eye care and a stylish frame should run hand in hand, therefore all prescription lenses will now be equipped with UVProtect technology at no extra cost. Zeiss UVProtect are the world’s first truly UV protected clear prescription lenses, providing you with the clearest vision possible while keeping your eyes at their healthiest.  Their aim to give their customers confidence in their eyewear as well as helping them look their best whilst living a happy and healthy life. We reviewed some of the collections on offer and were seriously impressed. The vast range of styles and colour ways from classic shapes to trend-led collections are perfect for giving customers a chance to express their personality and style through their eyewear.  Eye test’s are available in-store, offering cutting-edge eye scanning technology to ensure you have the most accurate prescription possible. Norwegian synth-rockers CURVS show their fantastic ability to create eerie yet compelling music with their debut album ‘Hauntropics’ out now via Fysisk Format. Inspired by stays in the tropics and the inclination to corrupt musical genres, ‘Hauntropics’ was born out of homemade compressors, rare pre amps and echo valves coupled with old drum machines, odd strings and analogue synths from Japan. Childhood friends Hjalmar Myksvoll-Singh and Øystein Redalen own their own studio, converted from a potato cellar in Norway. Free rein during recording and inspiration from a multitude of genres ranging from krautrock to electropop has given Hauntropics its rich, psychedelic and indefinite sound. Infused with driving guitar riffs and pumping bass synths, this record treats its listener to progressive electronic music reminiscent of French house artists like Kavinsky one minute, and propulsive Nirvana-esque punk the next. Their masterful production allows this record to flow naturally and enables the listener to share in their vision. Lead single ‘Bamboo Town’ intrigues with glitchy, delayed drums and devilish guitar and bass parts. Along with the mysterious, atmospheric sound effects sewn into the track, the unrelenting bass and spectral, haunting production give this track a Mini Mansions-like quality. Hjalmar and Øystein were almost entirely responsible for the recording and production of the album with mixing support from Nick Terry (The Libertines, Klaxons). They are joined live by Casiokids drummer Joachim Amundsen Trana and bassist Lasse Saurbrey.dit. http://www.curvsmusic.com/ https://soundcloud.com/curvs  GIN AND ART IS THE PERFECT COMBINATION TO STIR CREATIVITY BY SARA DARLING What’s more refreshing on a long hot summer evening, than a refreshing G&T? And if you mix gin with art, you can come up with some extremely creative results. Premium gin brand, BOMBAY SAPPHIRE is leading a global mission to ‘Stir Creativity’ which is set to inspire everyone to engage with their creativity and unlock their creative potential with events taking place around the globe this summer. For a limited time, a unique living gallery has been created in a unique destination in Shoreditch, London. Not only can you sip delicious gin based cocktails, you will be taking part in real-life art installations, and trying out your own creative personal twists on BOMBAY SAPPHIRE gin cocktails from the bar. You are also actively encouraged to funk up your own creations with edible paint and glitter! The London ‘CANVAS’ is showcasing the work of 12 emerging and established, international artists, including signwriter and glass gilder Alex May Hughes, illustrator and designer Josh McKenna, and graphic artist Supermundane, who is joined by fellow creatives and artists from Spain, Germany and The Netherlands. With movers and shakers from the art, film and fashion world attending the launch night party, they mingled with the artists, who were transforming the spacious venue, into a living work of art using the floors, walls and furniture as their canvas. With a large gin on entry, the ‘Tonic Wall’ set the scene; Four flavoured tonics laid out in a maze of piping for you to choose your preference. Ranging from spicy to fruity to sour and refreshing, you were invited to finish them off with garnish from the pick-your-own garnish garden, before mingling with the guests and artists at the event. With nightly DJs and comfortable seating, this is a new kind of pop-up bar, which if you like gin or art, you will want to join in and stir your creativity, and be part of the movement. Tickets are priced at £10 and can be purchased by visiting www.bombaysapphirecanvas.com. Where: N&C Showrooms, Shoreditch High Street When: 18th – 21st July 2018 As part of the global mission to Stir Creativity, BOMBAY SAPPHIRE will donate all ticket sales proceeds from the CANVAS London event to charity Developing Artists.  BY SARA DARLING Every girl deserves some diamonds, and 64Facets is the name to know for diamonds that are the perfect gift to you from you! Launched in the USA in 2016, the creators behind 64Facets know how to transform beautiful diamonds into delicate, ready to wear jewellery with an honest price. Creating jewels under five main categories: Ethereal, Scallop, Bridal, Pave and One of a Kind, means that there is something for every taste. Whether you are looking for something romantic (the rose-cut Scallop collection will be up your street) or the Pave collection consists of brilliantly cut micro pave diamonds set into versatile pieces which make a super shiny statement piece; And the Bridal range offers all manner of engagement rings. However if you have something special in mind for yourself or someone you love, the 64Facets team will be happy to work with you to design the jewellery of your dreams! With the diamonds being sourced from responsible trade partners who follow the Kimberly process, the magic happens at a family owned atelier in Surat, India. So if you are looking for a perfectly cut, beautiful polished diamond, you don't need to invest thousands of pounds, check out the 64Facets site for inspiration. Prices start from £3,000 Shop the collection here |
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