Street Photography

Monday 18 April 2011

PONYSTEP MAGAZINE

Issue one of Richard Mortimers Hotly anticipated biannual fashion Magazine Ponystep. Pandemonia features in a four page article.

Ponystep


LADY IN (MARLBORO) RED
Ponystep
Photography Jenny Van Sommers
Text by Hynam Kendal

Exerts from magazine

The walking, talking, squeaking work of Art.


YOU'LL RECGONISE PANDEMONIA, the colourful creature and Fashion Week mainstay who, at seven foot, towers above her socialite peers at store launches, première events and celebrity soirées. Bold, buxom and beautiful, not to mention made completely of man-made fibre, she was created – created here being the operative word – to be noticed.


She's “all surface and no substance”

A scion of modelling etiquette, she lives for the camera. “I want people to see what I am doing,” she says of her love of the camera. Does the attention validate Pandemonia? “It sure helps “, she smiles.

“I go to lots of parties for the launch of new products,” she says. “Products are the new superstars.”


Pandemonia takes Poneystep through the A to Z of stars. Julia Restoin – Roitfield, Daisy Lowe, Jaime Winstone, Pam Hogg, Peter Blake, Lily Cole, Anna Dello Russo, Kate Garner, Daphne Guinness. Revealing all on the Alex Reid/ Katie Price incident.

Sumptuous large format photography taken by award willing still life photographer.Jenny Van Sommers.


Ponystep issue 1. (324 page magazine)

Staring...
Giles Deacon, Janice Dickinson, Roland Mouret, Mark Ronson, Katherine Hamnett, Jerry Hall, Kylie Minogue, Gareth Pugh, Divineincest, Phil Poynter, Yohji Yamamoto and much more.


Kylie Minogue Jerry Hall

Saturday 16 April 2011

A chat with Marco Santaniello

Pandemonia
Milan-based pop artist and fashion designer, Marco Santaniello, chats with Pandemonia about the work he has been inspired to create based on the living art piece.
 
Work by Marco Santaniello is being currently being exhibited Combines XL Gallery, Milan and will be on show at PHILLIPS LOUNGE, Montreal- Canada, in next September.
 

Pandemonia: How did you hear about my work

Marco Santaniello:
I’m a big fan of the Internet world, so during my searching I found you through one of my Twitter contacts. I found your art absolutely new, contemporary, amazing and colorful, so really in-line with my POP VIEW.
 

P: I’m Flattered. Tell me about your work.
 
MS: I started by doing Pop Art-style Portraits of fashion bloggers and when they put my images on their Facebook and Twitter profiles, I saw that, at a first sight, I could make a really new kind of Pop art. Probably influenced by my love for the Rubik’s Cube, I created my “trademark”- the rainbow behind every portrait. We are all beautiful; we’re all superstars with my wall behind.

ChicmuseTerence SamboStefano Guerrini Fashion bloggers Terence Sambo, Stefano Guerrini and Chicmuse

 
P: Do you think social media will make the role for conventional superstars change?
 
MS: I do think Social Media is so good for characters and new-born superstars like us. For too many years people like us suffered because there was no way to be noticed except television and magazines. Now, one has a chance. If he or she lives under a bridge, if you’re really talented today, and of course if you’re good at doing some viral marketing of yourself, you do will get noticed. That’s why we’re talking about PoP art today.
 

P: So you’re a Pop Artist, What does Pop mean to you?
 
MS: I don’t really think, as many artists do, that making art must have a specific “strange and mysterious “ meaning. I think Art could be a causality or just something that could grow up in a natural way. Anyway, I think that Pop Art must be an available thing not just for a “lobby” of intellectual people but I want to create a new form of communication between the Artist, me in this case, and the person who wants to have one of my pieces.
 
 
P: I'm so flattered that you drew a picture of me. Can you tell me about the image?
 
MS: Well, I decided to make your pop portrait mainly for the reason I gave you before. I found you fantastic and really interesting. Your image definitely caught my imagination. So here we are now talking about Pop. I love really new things, I always try to make something new. Also in my fashion design, as u may know I created the T-skirt, my fashion patent, a t-shirt that u have to wear upside-down; the result is a sort of Turkish trousers.
 
 
P: How do you chose your subjects, what's the criteria.
 
MS: I’m a pacific anarchist in life and also when I decide what to do or what to make, so all my choices just come in my minds in a moment, then I create.

 
P: What is a pacific anarchist?

MS: My brain is really wild, totally anarchist and I love the activism, but the word has negative connotations, that’s why I decided to put the word Pacific before it – I’m about peace & love.
 
P: Who's your favorite pop star?
 
MS: It might sounds common but I kind of love what
Andy Warhol did at that time and I’ve always been fascinated by his idea of The Factory. Anyway, he made many “mistakes”, I’m talking about the fact that at the end he created more a drugs community then a real factory, but It was just Genius.
 

P: That was decades ago now, is pop art still relevant? Does it have a different role or is it still very much the same?

MS: You know, When Pop Art happened, it was 1956 - such a different period from now. Of course at that time it was a superb surprise but people didn’t get it for a long time. Is really far too easy to fall in the cliché Andy Warhol, Liechtenstein,etc. for pop artists nowadays, but I think we’re finding new kind of Pop Art.

To see more of Marco Santaniello go to www.marcosantaniello.com

Edited by Laura Havlin

Friday 15 April 2011

MTV Push & Calvin Klein launch party

Pandemonia spotted at MTV & Calvin Klein party

Style break down.

Hair - Inflatable Platinum blonde.
Dress – Chevron cartoon rubber dress.
Shoes – Plastic mules
Accessories - Black gloves & plastic sunglasses.
Puppy – Inflatable pet
Calvin Kline
Last night saw Village Underground in Shoreditch play host to hundreds of London’s trendiest for the MTV Push and Calvin Klein launch party. It was a night hosted to showcase the talents of rising young artists and to launch the new Calvin Klein lifestyle range.

And what a banging party it was! From the uber cool fluorescent lights to the energetic performances, MTV showed they sure know how to put on a party. Katy B gave us a brilliantly energetic set where she performed some of her hits including: Broken Record, Katy B On a Mission and Lights On. The pint-sized singer was also kind enough to tell us that her new single will be Easy Please Me, a dubstep infused track from her new album.

Originally scheduled to perform was London rapper Professor Green, but his no-show was most likely due to the fact that he was struck down with tonsillitis earlier this week. Fortunately, MTV were able to find a replacement in the form of rising MC Wretch 32 who, quite coincidentally, had lost his voice. Nonetheless, he gave the audience a quick performance of his smash hit Traktor.

When we caught up with him after his set, he seemed to be in high spirits despite having to mouth most of the conversation. Also performing was US export Alexis Jordan who had the crowd singing along to her infectious hit Happiness. Despite only being 17, Alexis showed that she is talented enough to deliver strong vocals live.

Keeping us dancing all night long was DJ Peaches Geldof along with host and supermodel Lara Stone . Lara is currently the face of Calvin Klein, who has been busy with their pop-up show at the Old Truman Brewery. Plainly designed with screens showing their global campaign and a vending machine of clothes, the pop-up shop is a taster of the fashion houses new lifestyle range.

It seems many party-goers appreciate the new range, as there were queues of people all night waiting to film their own campaign in the “ck one box.”

The Push party was certainly a star-filled event with celebs such as David Walliams and Jameela Jamil turning up to show their support to the performing artists.

A good night was had by all.



Photo www.girlalamode.co.uk

Text www.musicrooms.net

Thursday 7 April 2011

Muffinhead

Muffinhead of Banzai! NYC interviews Pandemonia.

Pandemonia in Full Swing!!!!!!! An Interview with the U.K.’s Premier Couture Provocateur…


Banzai

M: What are you hiding?

P:
Oh, only just about everything.

M:
Oscar Wilde once said, "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth."
What truth are you expressing to us?

P: That's an interesting quote of Oscar’s. In my experience, I find people will say all kinds of stuff anomalously.

You know, even if I wore a mask I think everyone would recognise me right away. I recently started doing the big sunglass thing to avoid the attention of the paparazzi and it just made things worse.

So what am I expressing? I am an artist exploring the usual humanist themes: Who we are and how to represent the modern world. You talk of truth; for me truth implies absolutes, my work is continually evolving.

M:
You have such a great penchant for serving sleek, even precious surfaces in your work. Are you not particularly interested in taking your audience beyond the immediate facade?

P: Life is full of façades. -sleek, shiny and perfect; I'm simply dishing up what they all want. I can't take people beyond the immediate but I can offer them a mystery.

M: Most artists are Machiavellian in their pursuit of fame. It is the artists' equivalent to power. If fame does matter, why does it matter and does it matter that you become famous?

P: I guess it depends on the individual artists motive.

For me, fame is a device. Our culture is obsessed with celebrity, if you want to communicate something it’s best to be endorsed by one or better still be one. Celebs wield a lot of influence through image and role model.

My work is a parody it questions our role models. I'm a fake celebrity; you could even say a false idol. Glossy magazines are the purveyors of myths and dreams. This is the most appropriate place to show my work. It communicates my ideas directly with a receptive audience. My Artwork is being exhibited in situ and functions within the media.

M:
What is more truthful: that the fake is chic or that reality is so brutal that anything else will do?

P: It’s neither, we are just compelled to follow our nature. Fake chic can be brutal and we are driven to improve on reality. The West has always been interested going beyond reality. Look at ancient Greece, they were doing it then and we are still doing it now. In sculpture, they exaggerated the body to make it more beautiful, even removing some bones. We just do the same now though surgery and digital imaging. Our culture and aesthetics may be different now, but we still have the same motivation.

M: Tell me the most beautiful daydream or vision you've ever had...

P: I say, ‘Why dream when you can make it reality?’ Dreams are your aspirations. If you follow them, they might come true. You’re seeing mine slowly revealed.

M: Please come to visit New York soon, will you? You can stay in my apartment if you like and we could go spend countless hours at Dylans' Candy Bar, ok?

P:
I would love to visit the Big Apple. If we went to Dylans' I might never step of that roundabout.
Thank you for your generous offer. Watch out for that knock on your door.

Wednesday 6 April 2011

Debut Contemporary

Pandemonia attends Art Gallery opening in London's fashionable Notting Hill Gate.

THE JENNIE & JESSIE GUNHAMMAR LUPUS TRUST
Charity Auction of artworks curated by Samir Ceric.


Where: Debut Contemporary, Notting Hill Gate.
When: 6th of April

Debut ContemporaryWooing the public, Pandemonia poses for photographs.

Debut Contemporary
Getting interviewed she talks about her forth coming sculpture show.


Style break down.

Hair - Inflatable platinum blonde with added low lights
Sun Glasses – Black plastic glasses.
Clothes – Cartoon blue dress
Shoes – Blue plastic mules
Puppy – Matching Inflatable pet

Tuesday 5 April 2011

Zeitgeist

Larger Than Life
An Interview With Pandemonia
April 5th 2011



A permanent fixture on the front row, Pandemonia is top of the list for fashion invitations and high profile industry events. Glamourous and ageless, her unique style, infamous inflated locks, and colourful personality have sky rocketed her to fashion fame, and lead to countless appearances in blogs, television programmes and glossy publications.

I caught up with the 7ft blonde bombshell and post pop, conceptual artist Pandemonia to talk about fame, fashion and what it's like to be full of hot air.


Miss Pandemonia, you have become something of an international "It" girl in the fashion community. What publications have you been interviewed for and featured in?
I've been in all sorts, let me see… iD, Vogue, Vanity fair, The Sunday Times, Grazia, Ponystep and many more, not to mention the blogs. Even when some magazines only print an image and few words, my work still communicates loud and clear. They say an image paints a thousand words and lucky for me I print well.

What's the most fabulous event you've attended or been invited to?
That's a hard question as I've been to so many. My favourite was the Acne fashion show at Kensington Palace last year. It was very grand. Someone posted a brilliant picture of me greeting the press, it totally captured the occasion.

What's the weirdest?
Weirdest... hmm let me see. Momentarily chatting to Pamela Anderson at the film premier of 'The Commuter Party.' It was a bit like looking in the mirror.

I saw you on the front row of many London Fashion Week shows. Which was your favourite collection for Autumn/Winter '11?
You noticed me? I did make it to several of the shows this year. My favourite was Pam Hogg's, Ziad Ghanem was a close second though. I really like Pam’s style and the music carried it well. My favourite show of all time was Charlie Le Mindu's collection from last September.

Which trends will you be embracing?
“Fake Chic” its my cartoon couture trend.


Anna Dello RussoLondon Fashion WeekCharlie Le Mindu

I recently saw an interview with Dolly Parton where she said she wouldn't leave the house, even if she was being rushed to the hospital, without lipstick and a wig. You always look so fabulously put together, do you ever have days when you dress down?
Good for Dolly! I'm what they call a “ready made,” my lips are stuck on and my hair's always buoyant. Image is everything, it's so important to keep up appearances. You should see my wardrobe it's very extensive. I have something for every occasion.

Being as your favourite fabric is latex, do you find it hot in the summer months? Where's your favourite place to go on vacation?
I like the Alps, the air is so fresh. In those hot summer months its cool enough up their to keep your head on straight.

Do you prefer a one piece or two piece?
At the moment I prefer a one piece, its more elegant. I think a two piece can be a bit fussy. It depends on whether you have the figure for it.

Pandemonia's style is so imaginative and innovative, do you ever see fellow admirers copying your look?
I haven't met anyone copying me yet, although I am sure there are some trying. My work is very distinctive and the concept unique. Physically it's hard to reproduce because my patterns are so complex and there aren't many people with my stature. Pandemonia’s larger than life.

You have experimented with several different hair colours in the past. As a fellow blonde I have to ask, since going platinum have you attracted more attention and, of course, had much more fun?
I think there's a direct correlation between the lightness of your hair and the amount of fun you have. I'm sure you have noticed that when you get photographed the blonde’s stand out and the brunettes, well, just fade into the background. All the top Hollywood actress’s were blonde too you know.

Miss Pandemonia is everywhere! Can we expect to see you attending Paris Fashion Week soon, or better yet on the runway?
Pandemonia loves Paris, Sadly I was just too busy to attend the shows this year. As far as strutting down the catwalk myself I say why do the runway, when everyone can see you all the time on the front row?

You've mentioned on your blog that one of your dreams was to have an art studio on the seaside in France. Is that still your dream?
Yes I would like that so much. You know the south of France is real Poodle Country. Maybe I could also go into breeding pedigree dogs too. Snowy needs a friend.

What plans do you have for the future?
I am working on my art exhibition. It’s going to be a blend of modern art, fashion and satire. We are finalising dates of this September. You must come!



Origional article Zeitgeist.
Words by Tracy Kawalik
Images courtesy of Paul Paul Persky and Pandemonia

UK Coffee Week

UK Coffee WeekWhere: Grand Ballroom. The Langham
When: 5th April
Drinks: Hardy s wine.
Champaign supplied by Xerox
Cocktails: "Coffail" Russian Standard Vodka
Dress Code - Glamorous Cocktail Attire


Pandemonia has a Coffee Cocktails at the Langham and catches up on all the gossip with hair dresser to The Queen , Ian Carmichael.

The Gossip: “No mention of the blue rinse.”, Pandemonia commented.

Style break down.

Hair - Inflatable Platinum blonde.
Dress – Chevron cartoon rubber dress.
Shoes – Plastic mules
Accessories - Black gloves & plastic sunglasses.
Puppy – Inflatable pet

The Event.

Exclusive Red Carpet event in the majestic Grand Ballroom of The Langham, Hotel London. Courtesy of the Allegra Foundation and United Coffee, guests were invited to this special event to raise awareness for Project Waterfall, and the launch of the official charity song ‘Coffee’. Performed by amazing new artist Sam Smith - Also in support for Comic Relief.

Notable guests included.

Sharon Marshall, Louis Mariette, Pandemonia, Ian Carmicheal, Anthony Papas, Lord and Lady Rosie Roberts Davidson, Lizzie Cundy, Nick Ede, Julian Bennett, Lewis-Duncan Weedon and Leee John Singer.

The Charity.

Project Waterfall in partnership with Wateraid, will provide clean water to coffee-producing countries in Africa where UK Coffee Week aims to raise £1million to make a life-changing difference to up to 100,000 people.


Photos Piers Allardyce