Hotbed of vintage colour

As the temperature in London rose dramatically over the weekend, Wayne Heminway’s Vintage 2011 at the Southbank Centre provided added rays of sunshine. I don’t think I’ve seen so many smiling faces at the Royal Festival Hall since Robert Mayer’s concerts for children many years ago.

On Saturday, there was a lovely juxtaposition of quirky retro style mixed with ‘60s Pop Art, ‘70s psychedelica and ‘80s disco. The result was a cacophony of colour - and trends indicate that this sort of effect is likely to be a big influence for the coming season.



























From juke boxes to glitter balls, the vintage vibe was curiously colourful across the board. Even the 1940s styled Clore Ballroom (above left) looked ultra-fashionable. In some ways it was a natural extension of the exciting new wave of design unleashed at the time of the original Festival of Britain. But it was also a contemporary continuation of the unique mix of cultures and talents for which our British Isles are so famous.

I was intrigued by the way men and women dressed for the occasion. The 1950s male ideal of 'health and strength' (see below) didn’t appear to be in evidence, but there were certainly some uber-cool disco dudes on the scene...
























Along with plenty of authentic retro fashion...




















And I loved the old fashioned interiors, some of which were created using items from the Hemingways’ private collection.




















Mr Hemingway was on fine form as he introduced the Soul Revue (more on this in a forthcoming post). Though perhaps he could have done with a little retro styling?




















Skylon's bar created vintage inspired cocktails to celebrate the festival... I'll leave you with the wonderful view from Skylon at sunset.
















By the way, gentlemen wishing to get the ‘hot vintage’ look might like the fabulously funky retro silk tie by Pierre Cardin at ShopCurious (shown above).

Do you?

PS See more vintage men’s fashion in my latest RetroProgressive post on swimwear at The Dabbler.

Earth, wind, fire and water (part II)

After my amazing trip down the river to reach the O2 Arena (see previous post), I didn’t think things could get much better. But I’d never experienced Earth, Wind and Fire live before.  I don’t really know too much about the band, except that they’re awesome musicians –  Daryl Easlea rightly describes their first album, That’s the Way of the World, as a ‘spiritual soul masterpiece’.

Oh, and they wear fabulous ‘70s style disco costumes. Or at least they used to. I found a few pictures of the group from the late 1970s and early ‘80s, when their look was a sort of tribal fusion – mixing funky African and American Indian influences with the Elvis-style flare-legged jumpsuit look (we’ve some similar vintage flares at ShopCurious).

Then I stumbled upon a breakfast television interview with members of the band, where they’re looking decidedly conventional. In fact, Ralph Johnson is actually wearing a suit!

I also recall a very curious piece of information relating to the band… When I was at university, one of my fellow students visited her doctor complaining of feeling depressed. He didn’t prescribe any drugs, but suggested that she should listen to as much of Earth, Wind and Fire's music as possible.

You may not be as devoted a groupie fan as I am, but I thought the concert was awesome. Here are some clips. The first video is of supporting band, The Brand New Heavies, who were pretty damned good too. After a while, my hands got a little shaky from holding the camera above my head for so long. But it’s worth persisting with the second clip to hear Philip Bailey and a curiously cool sax solo.

Anyway, if you were feeling a bit down, I hope you’re now a little more uplifted?

Are you?