Love Obama fashion baby

How wonderful to see all the African influenced designs at New York Fashion Week, especially so many Barack Obama inspired pieces.

It makes a change after the campaign t-shirts, baseball caps and curiously unmemorable memorabilia to see some stylish and collectable fashion by top African-American designers – like Lola Faturoti, the Nigerian-born fashion designer, whose uniquely timeless and iconic commemorative Obama Dress is available to order at ShopCurious - as presciently reported by Hilary Alexander on the Telegraph’s website.

What I’m curious about is why no commemorative garments were designed for our beloved leader Mr Brown. Perhaps there’s a Jeremy Clarkson of the fashion world who’d hazard a guess as to why that might be?





I strongly suspect that Gordon Brown doesn’t quite have the style and charisma of President Obama, let alone the mesmerizing voice. And I suppose that not actually having been elected might have something to do with his lack of glorification by the art world?






Nevertheless, in my opinion, Obama’s popularity has got a lot less to do with hero worship and a lot more to do with hope. Okay, so Obama’s got a great bod for a man of a certain age – think Charlton Heston in Ben Hur, but he’s also become an icon of hope.







I loved Rowan Moore’s description in the Evening Standard of the Shepard Fairey poster for Obama’s campaign, as shown next to the Big Brother logo at the Design Museum ‘Designs of the Year’ exhibition: “One represents the selfish, decadent, shallow, cheap world we hope is passing into history. The other is serious, aspiring and hopeful ..”

I’m certainly full of hope.

Are you?

Food for thought

On to New Designers part 2, covering the likes of product design, furniture, graphic design, illustration and architecture, with exhibits from students throughout the UK. There was so much talent out there and some really creative and original ideas were in evidence. I was totally overawed. I've chosen to give a snapshot of a few of the things that were curiously amusing - with the serious message that new designers are often young graduates - who, whilst hoping to be iconic designers of the future, are only at the beginning of a long journey. This blog is mainly about what goes into our stomachs, because food simply has to be on all our plates every day and it's big in the press too, which seems to count for everything these days - so you're probably best blaming them rather than the government for food price inflation - and for inspiring so many food-related ideas at New Designers. Perhaps even Gordon Brown, a man with a certain amount of experience, who gave the opening speech at New Designers last year, could learn a thing or two from this educational designer plate for bulimics (above right). Waste not, want not! Whilst Gordon masticates on corn stuffed with caviar, kelp-flavoured cold Kyoto beef and diced fatty flesh of tuna (let alone the next five courses, no wonder he looks a slightly unwell), ShopCurious considers what's potentially on offer to the rest of us from new designers who will be shaping the way we eat tomorrow: Zeke Abry from Leeds Metropolitan University has come up with the idea for a kitchen-based 'information centre' designed to promote healthy eating, with calorie consumption and dietary advice, plus help with creating shopping lists (in conjunction with major supermarkets of course) and handy tips for meal preparation. What I really liked about this idea was the ability to film your (excuse the Americanism) 'mom's home-cooking' for posterity and keep it on your information centre - I do hope he thinks up a more inspiring name for this. What's more this device also doubles up as a baby, or perhaps an emo monitor in the meantime (right). There's multi-tasking for you. Is this a man vs. women thing or what? Girls, I suggest you start growing herbs out of your purpose built kitchen table immediately: Adele Bird, left, has created the very thing. Our curiously corpulent future (dismissing any possibility of global recession, food shortages and mass starvation) sparked the imagination of a number of designers and one design that caught my eye was Nicholas Morris's rather prettily designed hydro cycle (left), the base of which is half filled with water. It's rather like a modern version of the pedalo, which could be used in swimming pools and lakes to kick start kids into action, if they're not too busy sharpening their knives. And those were also on display. Though these unusual designer cactus knives by Andrew Seward (above and left) at least have a sense of humour. As do the designer beer mats by Jamie Wood (right and below left). If all else fails, one could always live on beer. A popular favourite with everyone from young graduates and new designers to Gordon Brown alike. Will you?