Fashion

Martin Margiela (1957)

Growing up as a teenager in Glasgow during the 1990s Graeme found a haven in a clothes shop called The Warehouse in Glassford Street, Merchant City which brought international brands to the city for the first time in an innovative commanding retail space set over five floors. It was conceived by David Mullane of W2 and offered brands such as John Richmond, Katharine Hamnett and Nick Coleman. At the same time other stores like Ichi Ni San and Dr. Jives continued to attract a loyal following before landlords and business rates cut short most entrepreneurial aspirations, or at least drove them South.

Martin Margiela continues to be hugely influential for me. For one of his earliest shows (Spring/Summer 1990) Margiela turned a neglected playground in Paris' 20th arrondissement into a runway (see photographs above). Margiela enlisted hundreds of children in surrounding schools to make the show invitations. Local families had front-row seats; no guest-list, no VIPs. Models stumbled down the unlined, uneven runway often with their faces partly covered so that image rights were void. Margiela was a maverick of fashion and remains enigmatic despite having long since departed his eponymous Maison Margiela label.

Further detail on this groundbreaking runway show can be found in this excellent profile piece by Richard O’Mahony in The Gentlewoman magazine No.13 (Spring & Summer 2016): https://thegentlewoman.co.uk/library/margiela-the-show or watch the footage here.

Video footage (0:12 - 0:24) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrokxXBG044 

I have long supported a charity called Made in Carcere which offers prisoners a chance to produce products using waste and recycled products. I have offered sewing and embroidery classes to students and continue to make, alter and create my own clothes and accessories.

Art

Cy Twombly (1928 - 2011)

Through Twombly I rediscovered my interest in the Greek classics (I would recommend the Module A219 Open University course). To many, his work is viewed as child scribbles with little substance but he was steadfast in his commitment to documenting the history of war, it’s terror and violence, through his painting and sculpture. I have travelled to Gaeta in Italy where Larry Gagosian built a gallery specifically for him. A great place to start researching Twombly is the Cy Twombly Founation.

http://www.cytwombly.org/

Article :https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/06/arts/cy-twombly-american-artist-is-dead-at-83.html

Writer

Patricia Highsmith (1921 – 1995)

Patricia Highsmith was an American novelist and short story writer best known for her psychological thrillers.

She wrote 22 novels and numerous short stories throughout her career spanning nearly five decades, and her work has led to more than two dozen film adaptations. Her writing derived influence from existentialist literature, and questioned notions of identity and popular morality. She was dubbed "the poet of apprehension" by novelist Graham Greene.

Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted for stage and screen numerous times, notably by Alfred Hitchcock in 1951. Her 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley  featuring the character of Tom Ripley has been adapted numerous times for film, theatre, and radio. 

Despite literary success, she famously preferred the company of animals to that of people and stated in a 1991 interview, "I choose to live alone because my imagination functions better when I don't have to speak with people." 

She left her estate, worth an estimated $3 million, and the promise of any future royalties to the Yaddo colony, where she spent two months in 1948 writing the draft of Strangers on a Train, after being recommended by Truman Capote.

Publisher

Bloodaxe Books (1978 - )

Bloodaxe Books is a fantastic British publishing house which was founded in 1978 in Newcastle upon Tyne by Neil Astley (who is still editor and managing director). https://www.bloodaxebooks.com/

One of Bloodaxe’s most significant achievements has been to transform the publishing opportunities for women poets, spoken-word and poetry in translation.

Their focus is also to introduce contemporary poetry to new readers and they have worked with reading groups and public libraries across the United Kingdom.

Independent and non-profit they publish up to thirty new titles a year by a bold and diverse range of new and established writers from all over the world.

Radio

NTS (2011 - )

NTS Radio (also known as NTS Live or simply NTS) is an online radio station and media platform based in Hackney, London. The station was founded in April 2011 by Femi Adeyemi and produces a diverse range of live radio shows, digital media and live music based events.

It is dedicated to supporting exciting music and culture through online radio and events. NTS uncovers the best of the musical past, celebrates the present and cultivates the future of the underground music scene, and prides itself on being open-minded and experimental. https://www.nts.live/

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/apr/03/nts-london-radio-station

Television Series

Boys from the Blackstuff (1980 - 1982)

An astute social commentary about life in recession-hit Britain (Liverpool) during the Thatcher era. The main character ‘Yosser Hughes’ played by Bernard Hill left an impregnable impression on me as a teenager. His role as an idealistic man on the point of a mental breakdown because of high unemployment, lack of social support and ignored mental health issues was heart-rendering and tragic.

The series paved the way for the careers of writer and director Alan Bleasdale (GBH), producer Michael Wearing (Our Friends in the North), actor Pete Postlethwaite (In the Name of the Father) and actress Julie Walters (Educating Rita).

Film

Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1945-1982)

Rainer Werner Fassbinder was influential to me because he was so prolific. From the interviews and recollections of him, he never cared what anyone thought of him. He seemed so refreshing yet his aura and self-destructive personality was much the opposite. Fear Eats the Soul (1974) is a personal favourite. He was one of the first film-makers to renew working with the same crew of actors and staff. One of the reasons I am currently working and living in Germany is because of his influence. Only a handful of film directors working today (Michael Haneke, Lars von Trier, Dardenne brothers) can expect to provoke an audience the way that Fassbinder did, and in the way that the magic of cinema intends to do.

https://www.fassbinderfoundation.de/berlin/

Sport

Peter Nicol (1973)

Born in Scotland, Nicol is widely considered to be one of the most outstanding international squash players of the modern era. During his illustrious career he won one World Open title, two British Open titles and four Commonwealth Games Gold Medals, yet it is his defection in 1996 to represent England instead of Scotland which garners most attention https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/squash/53266738 . He was also the first British squash player to hold the World No. 1 ranking (1998). The rivalry between Nicol and Jonathon Power from Canada was one of the games most entertaining rivalries (as much as Jahangir and Jansher Khan), with both players offering a completely different style and technique to their game, akin to Borg and McEnroe (tennis), Hendry and O’Sullivan (snooker), Snead and Hogan (golf).

Teacher

Victor Jara (1932-1973)

Victor Jara was a Chilean teacher, theater director, poet, folk singer-songwriter and political activist who was tortured and killed during the start of the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet in 1973. Jara developed Chilean theater by directing a broad array of works, ranging from locally produced plays to world classics, as well as the experimental work of playwrights such as Ann Jellicoe.

Jara grew up poor, naturally gravitating toward theater and music whilst becoming part of a movement known as nueva canción, or new song, which infused traditional Latin American folk music with politically and socially inspired lyrics. Ultimately his activism, popularity and ardent support of the Salvador Allende government made him a marked man once the military seized power on Sept. 11, 1973.

His life, death and political afterlife shape the video documentary from Retro Report, whose mission is to examine major news stories of the past and show how they inform the present.

Jara became an iconic figure for artists around the world who found him a source of political and cultural inspiration, even to this day.

Theatre

John McGrath (1935 - 2002)

A phenomenally prolific writer, director and producer who worked in theatre, film and television, McGrath’s huge output was also extraordinarily unified. As a passionate socialist he believed strongly that the function of art was to reach as many people as possible, to heighten individual awareness and to help change society for the better.

In 1971, in Scotland he set up the theatre company ‘7:84’. Its name derived from a fact, revealed in the Economist, that 7% of the nation owned 84% of the country's wealth. The company's avowedly socialist aim was to take popular, political theatre to venues shunned by the established national and regional companies.

His passion for popular theatre that addressed serious issues led Graeme to study theatre as his first degree in London.

Magazine

Inventory Magazine (2009 - 2016)

Despite a short shelf-life of just 13 issues in 7 years, Founder Ryan Williams aim with the iconoclast ‘Inventory’ magazine was to offer a unique and global perspective on design, craftsmanship and culture. The focus was on the brands, designers and artists whose bodies of work reflect a commitment to quality and longevity, and a desire for innovation.

Working with established and emerging photographers, stylists and writers, the magazine placed equal emphasis on accomplished journalism and beautiful imagery, and represented contemporary icons alongside future influencers.

Shakers and ravers given airspace included; Hiroki Nakamura, Willo Perron, Nigel Cabourn, Margaret Howell, Maurizio Donadi, Yuki Matsuda, Mike Harris, Andrea Canè, Takashi Tateno, Raif Adelberg, Dean Edmonds, Hirofumi Kurino, John Gluckow, Kenneth Mackenzie, Oliver Payne, Adam Silverman, Arthur Erickson, Erik Brunetti, George Nakashima and Scott Sternberg.

Shop

The Bureau (1989 - )

The Bureau in Belfast is a warehouse-style menswear shop cum hang-out area. Excellent customer service, brands and attitude from the staff.

https://www.thebureaubelfast.com/

Music

Thelonious Monk (1917-1982)

Jazz pianist Thelonious Monk used to dramatically stop playing during his performances and begin to dance. He attacked the keyboard with abandon and delighted in playing all the wrong notes. Poet  Philip Larkin famously dismissed him as "the elephant on the keyboard". Without Monk, there would be no Keith Jarrett or other avant-garde musicians who continue to experiment in music.

Video Thelonious Monk Dancing

Article by David A. Graham https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/10/thelonious-monks-quiet-slow-conquest-of-the-jazz-world/542937/

Politics

Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)

Teddy Roosevelt brought a new energy to the White House and stirred up staid politics and set-in-their-ways politicians to rejuvenate America. He was also a dedicated conservationist, setting aside some 200 million acres for national forests, reserves and wildlife refuges during his presidency. I personally admire his pursuit of the ‘Strenuous Life’ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Strenuous_Life

One of my favourite quotations is from a speech he gave in France on April 23, 1910 which became known as the ‘The Man in the Arena’:

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory or defeat.”

Journalist

Hugh McIlvanney (1934 - 2018)

Hugh McIlvanney was a Scottish sportswriter who covered boxing and football for nearly six decades. The Press and Journal described him as "a giant with a genius for transforming sport into literature". A master craftsmen, he was revered as perhaps the most distinct, widely cherished sportswriter Britain has ever produced (although he was equally apt covering horse-racing and gambling). McIlvanney’s peerless legacy will be defined by the association with the great Scottish football managers – Busby, Stein, Shankly – that he explored and illuminated in his work. His work was always marked by a powerful sense of character, place and a vivid internal life. His ink blood carried to his brother William McIlvanney, a distinguished crime writer (1936 - 2015). I could never play football or dared to box, but I loved reading his sparkling insight and lyrical descriptive prose from a few short pars to the two-thousand-word full gauge, writing that still resonates decades on. He was also awarded the CBE in 1996 and is a member of the coveted Boxing Hall of Fame. He is the only sports writer to be voted Journalist of the Year at the British Press Awards. He was named British sports writer of the year seven times. A wonderful documentary which highlights his unforgettable gravel voice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blMK29PudKk

Design

Droog (1993 - )

“Was Droog Design a generation of young designers? That’s what it appeared to be. Or was it a movement? Not really. A collective, perhaps? A label? A manifesto? It was none of the above and all of them at once, but never at the same moment – certainly not for the long term.” – Wim Pijbes in “Renny Ramakers – Rethinking Design” by Aaron Betsky, 2019.

Droog was started in 1993 by art historian Renny Ramakers and designer Gijs Bakker. The designs often using everyday, recycled materials where simple yet humoristic – literally ‘dry’; ‘Droog’ in Dutch.

Over the years, Droog became less about things and more about ideas. They currently operate a hotel, restaurant, shop and art gallery from their headquarters in Amsterdam. https://www.droog.com/

Rap

Gang Starr (1986 - 2003)

Gang Starr was an American hip hop group, consisting of DJ/producer DJ Premier and MC Guru. Gang Starr are considered one of the best MC-and-producer duos in hip hop history as well as for being one of the first pioneers of jazz rap.

During their career Gang Starr helped pioneer the New York City hardcore hip hop sound.

Comedian

Lenny Bruce (1925 - 1966)

An American stand-up comedian, social critic, and satirist. Bruce, during his short life was renowned for his open, freestyle and critical form of comedy which contained satire, politics, religion, sex, and vulgarity.

Never popular himself (he appeared on network television only six times in his life)—because he was too cryptic and too scatological for popular taste—he nevertheless influenced a whole generation of comics and became a voice of the ‘counterculture’ within mid-1960s America.

Delivering his eulogy, which is featured at the end of the excellent documentary Lenny Bruce Without the Tears, the Rev. William Glenesk said:

“He was in a sense an evangelist, on a street corner. He was a man - up tight against an artificial world... who shattered its facades, and its hypocrisy, and - if you will pardon the phrase which seems to become a cliche - he saw life as it is.”