Japanese born Mari Sarai is best known for her photographs of celebrity friends including Alice Dellal and Daisy Lowe. However, her newest exhibition entitled Naked brings forth a grittier vision, via an empowering take on feminine nudity. She states, “I wanted to express that the nudity of a woman is not limited to fulfillings men’s erotic desires. She is worthy of respect. A naked woman can possess her own style, independence and strength.” Wonderland’s Eunice Jera Lee speaks to Sarai about this latest project and the women in her life.

Tell us a little bit about your work in Naked.
It’s a very distinctive style from what you might have seen in naked pictures before. It’s a female’s eye on female nudity as a celebration of 21st century women. This is not pornography, I tried to create a new style of female nude photos.

How do the women in your life effect and inspire you – as you are very much about women empowerment?
I am born and raised in Japan. I have been to the US to live and now I reside in London. Analysing Eastern and Western cultures, women are very different between Asia and Europe. Asian society and the mentality is very male-oriented. Women are for the men and women’s bodies and nudity are for the man’s desire. I wanted all women to feel free, independent and strong. Those things inspire me a lot.

From Tokyo to Los Angeles to New York to London, how do the women you encounter in each city differ?
Greatly! Tokyo girls are cute and very girly.
American girls are animalistic and strong.
London girls are independent and tough.

Do you prefer shooting women to men? If so, why?
I do prefer shooting women, yes. Because I understand them more than men. And I can make my own mini-me in the shoot.

Who are the most exciting people you¹ve shot?
Amy Winehouse, Florence from Florence and the Machine, Janice Dickinson and Alice Delall

This is your first exhibition in Europe- what do you forsee for your future?
I would love to continue working on my Naked series and let the whole world know about my photographic style and who I am.

Photography: Mari Sarai
Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

View Naked from 16-20th September at Blackall Studios 73 Leonard Street London EC2A 4QS.

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Justin Smith is the creative director and owner of his millinery brand J Smith Esquire. Smith was recently commissioned by the Guoman Hotel Group to create five bespoke hats for the doormen of their London hotel collection, which sparked an exhibition entitled “Guoman presents J Smith Esquire – Five.” The exhibition will run for 5 weeks across the entire Guoman Hotel Group, with concentrated exhibitions at The Royal Horseguards and Charing Cross Hotel this Friday, 16 September.

Explain your design process.
I start with a seed idea, sometimes it’s an idea for a whole collection, how I want to develop a technique with a fabric, like the THREE collection that was all denim, and other times it starts with an idea like, “Wow, that would look good with a parrot on it!’ and I get carried away from there. I live in my own little fantasy world, having it take over for a while by something that inspires me, and go for it. Mostly, it’s the desire to keep learning, growing and keep pushing the millinery craft to the limit.

How long does it take to complete an intricate couture piece like the one you showcased at the exhibition Alta Roma?
For the Couture Parrot Headdress that I showed at Limited/Unlimited at Alta Roma, I worked on the technique for about three weeks to a month, then the actual piece took about two months to make. It’s made from layers of suede, hand cut into individual feathers, to replicate as much as I possibly could the exact measurements of a Red Macaw parrot in real life. It was a great challenge.

Why are hats so important – both every day and in formal occasions?
Hats create a character, they protect you, you can hide behind them, you can shine under them. In the ever changing fashion world, you can create a new look everyday by only changing your hat! When I was growing up, my nan used to say: “Don’t wear your hats indoors.” It’s a respect thing. Hats always symbolise something. I love the tradition of that.

Is there any one celebrity you’d love to wear your hats?
There are a lot of celebrities that have one of my hats in their personal wardrobe! I have to say I am always happy if the person who sees it falls in love with it and wears it with pride.

Are there any other milliners you look up to or admire?
I respect the craft very much, so look up to all milliners, as it’s a real labour of love.

What is this new project with the Guoman Hotel group?
Guoman Hotels came to me and asked if I could make a hat for the doormen of the hotels. Of course I said yes, as I love the uniform aspect, the element of prestige, and this is the creme de le crem of that. They have five hotels in central London, so we set out to make one hat shape that covered all five hotels, but five different trims for the hats for five different hotels. I looked thoroughly into the hotels, and took inspiration from the architecture for the trims. As there were five hats, five hotels, it’s five years of J Smith Esquire, so we decided to do an exhibition to launch the doormen’s hat with a great exhibition to accompany it.

Will the doormen be wearing the hats as part of their uniform from this point forward?
Of course.

Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

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What is your most memorable fashion moment so far?
Meeting with Edward Enninful one-on-one was special to me, I think he’s genius and It’s great that he could relate to me and give me advice on approaching the industry at a young age.

Celebrity or model you’d most like to work with?
I’ve worked with a lot of models I look up to. I feel so privileged to have lately shot the likes of Agyness Deyn, Eliza Cummings, Lily Cole and Jourdan Dunn.

Favourite designers?
I don’t have a favourite designer, I can appreciate and respect all. My taste changes constantly. As does most in fashion.

Did you meet Walter von Beirendonck/what was he like?
I met Walter, he was great, a genius! I’m always obsessing over crazy, fun and out there characters, Walter has no boundaries, his mind goes wild when it comes to work, it’s his life and I relate to and respect that.

How did von Beirendonck’s archived collections influence your photography?
Of course with such cool and wild designs it allows you to have fun with it and play! My favourite! No boundaries.

Favourite haunts in London to eat, shop and generally hang out.
I spend a lot of my time in model agencies (Select), catching up with friends and hanging out – they are like family.

Photography: Damon Baker
Styling: Way Perry
Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

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How did your association with Kenneth Anger begin?  
With ‘Hollywood Babylon’ being the international classic that it has been over the last few decades, that book was my and countless others’ first introduction to Kenneth Anger and his mordant wit. Anger was doing a world tour in 1993 with a stop in Auckland, New Zealand, where i was a student at the time studying art history, and masters film studies with Roger Horrocks, Len Lye’s biographer. The fabulous civic theater hosted a memorable screening of Anger’s masterwork ‘The Magick Lantern Cycle,’ and after standing in a long line of die-hard fans, he signed my black notebook with a silver marker I’d brought along. Professor Horrocks had just introduced us to the radical film work of the American avant-garde, which is really foundational for film studies globally, and I almost levitated when I saw ‘Scorpio Rising’ for the first time (you see I am a Scorpio, and my birthday is on Halloween. Ha!) But on an aesthetic and very visceral level, it was a profound experience. The years passed, I became a Curator and Art Writer, lived in New York, London and moved to Los Angeles in 1998 as Associate Director and Curator for Ace Gallery. In 2003 I proposed writing a feature on Kenneth Anger looking at his influence on contemporary artists who’d adopted the moving image as their medium, for the LA-London journal ‘After all,’ which provided the occasion to interview him in person. Again, the occasion was so memorable – meeting at the Chateau Marmont on Sunset Blvd. Under a large Christmas tree; and there I met this most charming, gracious, interesting, and witty gentleman. I was completely overcome… he allowed me to produce the first new color frame enlargements from his films. The ‘Scorpio Rising’ image was then on the cover…  

Describe anger in 5 words.
The five letters of his name, or in seven letters: THELEMA

Can you divulge what his latest project, “Uniform Attraction” is about?  
Rather than give you my 7-page draft on this substantial new (2008) film (there wasn’t room in the new book for it either), a few summary thoughts here may not necessarily reflect those of the filmmaker or other viewers. The men in uniforms are reminiscent of his 1947 classic “Fireworks,” and indeed the iconic image of the sailor makes prevalent present military economy- very cleverly co-opting TV recruitment propaganda for the marines into self-reflexive critique. The dramatic TV commercials are so theatrical, (even having Kenneth Anger-inspired fast cut editing) and over-produced, they almost seem to aspire to “triumph of the will.” The “patriotic pencils” which are emblazoned with the Statue of Liberty and the stars and stripes- made in china- encapsulates our world in one ironic image…an explosive ending too.

Why did you think a book about Anger was important?
There were two small books in french written on Kenneth Anger in homage, Pierre Hecker is an author in Paris whom I met, and he was incredibly generous to send me copies of his anger correspondence from the Cinematheque Francais and other French archives from Kenneth’s decade in Paris in the 1950s. Some of these letters and press clippings are in the book, with my translations. Celebrated contemporary film director Olivier Assayas also wrote a beautifully written book on Anger, quite passionate in fact, which i also referred to, translated from and quoted in my book. With Robert Haller’s early small monograph of 1980 (which was really the primary source for discussion of ‘lucifer rising’), a great British film institute publication and ‘Moonchild’ were precursors. And yet none had consulted Kenneth in regard to doing a book. As Kenneth had allowed me to make new frame enlargements from his films, many for the first time in color, a visual publication with his cooperation, was a first. His images became central. It was about acknowledging his influence in an art context, moreover, not solely his foundational status as a pioneering filmmaker.    

How does Anger influence / inspire you in everyday life?  
Kenneth Anger introduced me to profound knowledge, the understanding of which is a work in progress.  

What is your favourite or most relevant piece that Anger has done?  
‘Scorpio Rising’ …And ‘Puce Moment’ …And ‘Invocation of My Demon Brother’ … – But if only we could find his very early work from the 1940s, like ‘Drastic Demise,’ and also the lost documentary he made for English TV on Thelema Abbey in the 1950s… Maybe this will provide an opportunity for someone in London to finally track it down.

Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

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Explain this worldwide event occurring on 6 September.
It is an event organized by Benetton that is a simultaneous event in its concept stores in Istanbul, Milan, Munich and on the web.

Tell us a little bit about your piece, “Lana Sutra” and its relevance with Benetton.
Lana Sutra is a project born by Fabrica, the communication centre of Benetton Group. Working at Lana Sutra has been like going back to my youth, when I attended Arts in Cuba. We studied Paintings, Sculpture, Engraving, but at that time I was already conscious that I was not really interested in a single discipline. I would have liked to do something more: a mix of everything. And at Fabrica with Lana Sutra I’ve had the opportunity to transform this thought into something real.

I’ve always loved the pure concept of mixture, of races as well as of different cultures, and this is what I found again in Benetton and in its communication. In the district where I spent my childhood there were people from all races and cultures, all together at the same school, just as if they were in a Benetton campaign. I like to think that LANA SUTRA is about all this: it speaks about coexistence and living together.

You work very closely with Benetton, including the magazine, Colors- how has your experience been with the brand?
I began collaborating with Fabrica, Benetton communication research centre, in 2002, when I produced three social communication campaigns commissioned by the World Health Organisation: “Violence”, “Road Safety” and “World no Tobacco Day”. Fabrica is a wonderful space to develop your own projects and ideas, because you have the great chance to discuss your thoughts with lots of other artists from all over the world. It’s an extraordinary melting-pot where you can think about new ideas, this is why I love it here.

United Colors of Benetton has always celebrated the idea of uniting different cultures and races- what does the brand mean to you? Why is it relevant today?
United Colors of Benetton for me is the icon of color, wool, mixture of cultures, religions and reaces. I’m a human being and I don’t believe in borders. I think the world belongs to everyone born on Earth. This is my planet, our planet. I like to think that is what Lana Sutra talks about: of the universal love that cancels diversity.

Can you walk us through your creative process from the birth of an idea to conceptualizing?
Fabrica itself is a melting pot where you can always find new influences and inputs. For example, Lana Sutra comes out of my desire to mix arts and communication, paintings and sculpture: in other words global coexistence and universal love. It’s an ode, a homage to “hybridisation”. Ever since I left Cuba I’ve been with girlfriends from other countries with different cultures, religions, lifestyles. My relationships are like an artist’s palette. For example, my girlfriend and her approach and way of doing things could be metaphorically blue, while I was red. Together, we were the interaction of these two colours.

From this personal experience I began thinking about Lana Sutra: a series of installations representing the moment of pure love and coexistence. The plaster casts have been modelled on real human couples embracing. It was a very long process requiring a huge amount of work. But I liked the idea of real people. I wanted their passions, what makes them tick, their eroticism and fatigue, flesh and sweat to become one with the material. I wanted them to be totally reflected in the sculptures.

How important is the use of different colours relevant in your work and to the brand of Benetton?
The use of colours is very important for this project. Observing each installation, each body has a very well defined colour, a symbol of their personality and cultural background. But the pure love between them is what melts the two colours together, creating a new colour. It’s what always happens with human beings: love is the only feeling in the world that makes people forget about their differences and melts them together as one.

Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

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Explain your design process.
My creative process is very insular. I try to capture that child like imagination and innocence that you have when you are young and not influenced by the world around you. I think footwear should be original and not what fashion dictates. In a world of so many people, it is important to be individual. My starting point is often my finger tips. When it comes to sculpting a new shape, I use plasticine as I did when I was a kid. The smell of plasticine alone is enough to get the creative juices flowing. My hands are as important as my eyes.

What attracts you to shoes?
I think shoes were flowing through my blood from the start. I used to walk around in these cardboard shoes that I made for myself as a child. Toilet roll heels of course. I was quite prolific actually – sometimes robbing the good roll of its core so I could continue to make, make, make. The sculptural quality of footwear is still exciting. I also think their position as the foundation or pedestal for all other fashion is key.

What is the shape of shoe you like to work with most?
I describe my shoes as shadows. Since the beginning over 10 years ago, I started to cover the heel with leather all in one piece. Like a shadow, the line of the shoe is all about the perimeter and this is the shape I like to deal with – the upper and the heel in one.

Describe your style in 5 words.
The thinking woman’s luxury shoe.

Tell us how this collaboration with Dan Miller came about.
When James Brett from Museum of Everything approached me to do a shoe it was of course yes. I love what James has started and his Artists work is incredible – however Dan Miller’s work stood out to me. At first glance it was his child like repetitive marks which I always find so pleasing. Then it was the way the drawings dragged you into them to try and find a message or meaning. Good design is very much like this for me. There is a lot to discover in the details

How do your shoe designs work into the aesthetic of Miller’s work?
Millers work is very graphic. When split between a left and a right foot, the print becomes asymmetrical which I think is so underused in design. The juxtaposition of his wall hanging versus a moving horizontal piece of footwear is also fitting to our joint need to question the norm.

Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

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25-year old artist, Becky Boston is a spunky Stockwell native whose paintings caught the eye of Gallery 320 owners. After winning the competition ‘Mindsoup,’ her work is exhibiting at the space for a month. Her paintings are a colourful range of oil and acrylics for sale- prices start at £250. We catch up with her at the opening day of the show:

Tell me a little about your new work.
The collection that I have exhibited at Gallery320 are figurative portraits of the people who inspire me in my life that I see day to day, or in some cases I just stumble across. These include intimate relations, voyeuristic observations, beauty and my surroundings.

How long does it take to complete a piece of work for you?
Anything from three hours to three weeks.

What are your greatest inspirations for your paintings?
As a figurative artist..it’s all about capturing a mood or an aspect of a person’s character. As well as being inspired by great artists and musicians. Kitty Daisy and Lewis, Joan Jet, Ed Ruscha and Francis Bacon are to name a few.

How much do the women in your life play into your pieces?
I have had so many positive female influences in my life which definitely feeds into my work and the community which I feel part of. It’s important to me but I don’t see my art as having an exclusively gay perspective as that would be very restrictive as there is so much more to life.

How did this exhibition at Gallery 320 come about?
The owner of the gallery runs an annual competition ‘Mindsoup’ which gives an opportunity for aspiring artists like me an opportunity to hold a one man or women show and I was lucky enough to have won the competition this year to exhibit in his gallery for a month for free, I am grateful for his support.

Are you working on any exciting projects we should know about?
I would really love to do a collection inspired by cultural American themes and return to Oklahoma where I studied.

I heard you sold some paintings, which ones did you sell?
I was very happy that I sold two paintings, a watercolour of my sister Rachel blowing a smoke ring, and then the other of two girls sunbathing inspired by a visit to Sitges last year.

Photography: Sophie Allen
Words: Eunice Jera Lee

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Tell me a little bit about your collaboration with Fred Perry.
It came about because apparently they tend to do a series of special designs, limited editions. And somebody knew somebody at Fred Perry, who also knew somebody at The CCA. I was on their list of collaborators and that’s how [the collection] came about.

Does the brand Fred Perry have any personal meaning to you?
It used to, in my self-portrait, that was meant to be a Fred Perry shirt, but it’s a rip off, it doesn’t have the motif on it. But I used to wear shirts like that so Fred Perry is a brand that I have interest in.

Both you and Fred Perry have close affinities to British pop music, is there any influence in this collaboration?
I don’t think so. I think the motifs are used over the years but I don’t think any of them are directly linked. I think its about a level of society, a level of interest of what art was like thirty years ago, forty years ago, fifty years ago.

How many pieces are in the collection?
Three shirts and the link was to make them red, white and blue so the set was kind of patriotic. Good patriotic, not bad patriotic. So that was the link and they have similar motifs.

What’s the significance of the badges?
When I was young, people didn’t wear badges- they might wear one badge saying they were in the golf club. That was a kind of aesthetic breakthrough to be wearing badges now. That’s the main link to now- I have a large collection of badges, I’ve always been interested in them.

So how long have you been collecting badges?
Since then points to his self portrait. So ’61…50 years. In the art piece, those were the only ones I had so in the beginning of the collection. So in those years, we talked about the fact that it’s like talking, its giving you information so we can sit here and you can read my badges and get to know my likes through my badges.

Is there any other brand or designer you’d like to collaborate with?
Well, I’ve probably done it. I collaborated with Levi’s in Japan, limited edition. I’ve worked with Stella McCartney, who’s my goddaughter in fact, I’ve done designs for her. And just interestingly, there’s a recycling company I’m doing things with- we’ve done a kind of a baseball boot. So in a way, I’ve done everything I’ve wanted to, but who I’d actually like to work with now is Tom Ford, maybe?

Do you think fashion and art are important to each other?
I’ve always been interested in fashion, being married to [painter] Chrissy [Wilson] and my daughter’s 24. I’ll always be aware of fashion, we go to Stella’s shows in Paris, and Betsy Jackson is a friend so fashion will always be important to me.

Interview by Eunice Jera Lee

http://www.fredperry.com/laurel-wreath-collection/blank-canvas/peter-blake/

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How many people are involved with Sexbeat?
SEXBEAT is made up of myself, Paul Lilley (events coordinator at the Shacklewell Arms), Steve Rose (Transgressive Records) and Luke Jarvis (Bella Union Records).

Who came up with the idea for the group? How did it start?
We wanted to be a part of, and help shape a very organic and exciting music scene. The movement has grown significantly and we are now in a position to put together some really exciting events and releases.

What is Radfest and what role does it play in the scheme of London festivals?
RADFEST has evolved over the years. Its initial concept three years ago was to celebrate the burgeoning DIY scene of London and focused on breaking bands such as Male Bonding and Mazes, who have gone on to sign to Sup Pop and Fat Cat records respectively. Last year the event progressed to two rooms and incorporated US bands and a screen print poster fare. This year the event has expanded to a 1000 capacity venue with cult indie pop band The Wedding Present playing above a very diverse line up of bands including thrash metal, shoe gaze and hardcore, a fanzine library and pop up record store. The event bucks the trend of the outdoor festival and houses itself in a location as interesting as the bands playing it.

With Sexbeat being founded in East London, why does Radfest take place in Peckham?
Peckham represents a forever evolving art and music scene right now and really comes alive in summer with a whole host of interesting events. The Bussey Building where RADFEST is taking place is a converted factory which also houses the culturally significant Hannah Barry gallery as well as countless artist studios.

Explain the collaboration with Nudie Jeans.
Nudie Jeans took an interest in our events over a mutual passion in similar music and wanted to support this. We are looking to take the concept to the road with a nationwide UK tour later in the year.

Who is your favorite band playing that day?
We were overjoyed to book The Wedding Present. Their albums George Best and Bizaro are still incredibly influential to this day. It’s going to be an unforgettable experience watching a band of their stature in such a comparatively intimate venue.

What do you most look forward to on the day?
Caribbean food on the roof garden!

The Bussey Building, 133 Rye Road, Peckham SE15 4ST from 2pm-11pm.
Advance tickets are £10 and available through wegottickets.com/sexbeat

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The first biography to be written about Alan Moore brings an in-depth look at the comic’s life and career with never before seen images from his personal archives. From his youth to his entrance onto the comic book scene, the book touches upon sexuality, passion, politics, life and death.

For comic book fans, Alan Moore: Storyteller is a must buy- including never before seen scripts for V for Vendetta and other materials that have never been published.

For the nonconformist, the biography tells the story of a successful comics book author breaking into the music, contemporary fiction, performance art and magic industries. The book is complete with a CD including Moore’s performance art and songs.

Words: Eunice Jera Lee

Available in stores Friday 22 July 2011- Retails for £25.

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