Album of the Week! - Bright Eyes, I'm Wide Awake, Its Morning

A couple of days ago I became re-acquainted with a beloved band of mine called Bright Eyes. They are the perfect sound to listen to when you are indoors on a drizzly day painting or drawing on a creative afternoon.



I was listening to this particular album when painting my final artwork for the HSC back in 2005 and am always reminded of the process and those long days and nights painting away with Bright Eyes softly chiming in the background.

Cassandra Rhodin

Another gorgeous fashion illustrator I have been inspired by is Swedish born Cassandra Rhodin. She uses pencil and watercolour to create wide-eyed, alien-like female forms. If you check out her website at the moment you will see her exhibition "Animal Planet" where the female forms in her work have been teamed with animals such as chameleons, zebras and leopards.

Fashion Illustrator - Judit Garcia-Talavera

Judit Garcia-Talavera is an amazing fashion illustrator based in Barcelona, Spain. Her medium is watercolours and inks creating soft, feminine works of art. I have included some favourites of mine below including one of Dita Von Teese, but have a look on her website for more gorgeous illustrations and follow her on her blog as well!

DIY High Fashion

The days of DIY and handcrafts are coming back and in a big way! Couture houses such as Chanel and Dries Van Noten are even joining in with Chanel creating gorgeous headpieces out of standard printer paper for their Spring 2009 runway show and Dries Van Noten discovering eclectic jewellery from vintage collected bangles. Vivienne Westwood is another designer showing fashion is a mix of the new, old and recycled, from top to toe, realising this concept in her Spring/Summer 2009 collection.

Album of the Week! - Muse 'Neutron Star Collision (Love is Forever)

Muse has to be one of my favourite all time bands. They originally hail from England and have been making incredible music since 1994. To see them live would be an amazing experience as they bring the stage to life with their electric energy, putting together extravagant performances with incredible light sequences being a trademark in their productions.



I could not find an image of the soon to be released album so I added an image of an actual neutron star collision, I thought it looked pretty cool! Their new album release coincides with the release of the new instalment from the Twilight Saga, 'Eclipse'. The title track 'Neutron Star Collision (Love is Forever), which I am sure you all are familiar with by now because it features in the film, is unbelievable and of course a favourite. If you had not hopped onto the Muse bandwagon yet, you will be now because they are incredible artists and never cease to impress. Don't forget their previous work though! I highly recommend the whole album Absolution, every single song on it, check it out!

Below is some more album artwork...

Lady Gaga - A Walking Art Piece

While researching stud work for my collection this year, I came across this fantastically menacing look donned by none other than Lady Gaga. This heavily studded hood looks like some kind of torture device from the middle ages, dripping with spikes, it looks like it would be a huge weight to bare for a long period of time! I liked the harsh contrast between the hood and the cream conservative coat she is wearing.

Below are some more of Gaga's eccentric headpieces...

Iain Crawford's Creative Photography

Iain Crawford is a London based fashion and beauty photographer. Crawford is a visionary in capturing powerful moments in time through his fashion photography.As bright, bold splashes of ink and powder impact his subjects, Crawford captures the intensity and drama of these chaotic moments. His photographs look delicious and edible through his use of vibrant, hybrid colours and exotic textures.






You could imagine there would be a lot of cleaning up after Crawford's photo shoots, imagine how the models must feel!