Unbiased Label – Détails, épisodes et analyse

This episode is a McQueen I Voss I S/S 2001 runway show review with the incredible London based John Matheson aka @McQueen_Vault.

John, who has been curating is private McQueen archive for over 25 years, has contributed to many fashion discussions, publications, and exhibitions including LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) and NGV (National Gallery Victoria, Melbourne).

If you love Lee Alexander McQueen, then this conversation is for you. I hope you enjoy and please share your thoughts!

***WARNING: Video contains images that may be considered sensitive ***

Runway Video Courtesy of Alexander McQueen YouTube channel. You can access it HERE.

#leealexandermcqueen #alexandermcqueen #mcqueen #mcqueenvault #johnmatheson #unbiasedlabelpodcast #zarakorutz

This episode is a conversation with two culture makers based in London-- Terence Eben (Tee) and ⁠Franklin Fresh⁠.

Tee built streetwear brands in the U.S. from back in the day in the 1990s. He has always played a role in bridging culture from the early days of hip hop emergence.  Tee's brand NEVER FADE focuses on marrying social agenda and design philosophy, with a focus on creating a label as an advocate for the global millennial generation. Franklin Fresh found his way to fashion as a stylist who partners with Trap Star as a brand collaborator. Franklin is also a musician and visual artist.

Follow Franklin Fresh's Spotify page HERE.

#fashion #streatwear #culture #hiphop #virgilabloh #music #musicandfashion

This episode is a conversation with Dr. Carolyn Mair who is a London based author, educator, speaker, consultant, Charted Psychologist and Fellow of the British Psychological Society.  

In 2012, Dr. Mair developed the Psychology Department at London College of Fashion and created the world's first Psychology for Fashion Masters degrees (MA and MSc).  In 2018, Dr. Mair published The Psychology of Fashion.  The idea of 'fashion psychology' has now become a growing global phenomenon thanks to the original work by Dr. Mair who is constantly in the press all over the world including The Washington Post, Vogue Business, NBC News, WWD, The Observer, ELLE, The Guardian, Harper's Bazaar, and The Atlantic to name a few.   

Follow Carolyn on social media, particularly Twitter @Carolyn_UK and Instagram @Psychologyforfashion 

A heartfelt thank you to Soho Radio Studios in London. 

This episode examines the Chanel 2022/23 Métiers d’Art runway show that took place on December 6, 2022 at the former “Palais de Justice” Hall in Dakar, Senegal, West Africa. Beyond cultural and artistic inspiration, I was curious to unpack this show, but given of my own limited Western perspective, I thought it most appropriate to seek answers from a local Senegalese who attended the show which led me to past Unbiased Label podcast guest Milcos Badji who is a Senegalese fashion designer from Dakar. The design ethos of Milcos is deeply connected to heritage with research at the center of his artistic process.  Nio Far by Milcos is unisex and handmade brand, and orders can be placed on-line at https://www.niofarbymilcos.com. 

Please join me as I talk with Milcos via zoom from his home in Senegal about his experience of attending the Chanel fashion show in Dakar. We discuss his thoughts and perspective on the show from the Senegalese lens including location, guests, music and fashion. I hope you find this conversation as enlightening as I did in terms of culture, history and perspective.

#Chanel #Dakar #Senegal #Fashion

This episode is a conversation with Nigerian Fashion Journalist Elvis Kachi. Kachi has been published in many magazines and news outlets including Vanity Teen, BBC, Guardian, BusinessDay Nigeria, Essence, and Quartz to name a few.

His reporting focuses on conversations with fashion designers whose work is changing the stereotypical ideologies of African fashion and breaking gendered norms.  Most recently, Kachi's work highlighted how transgender Nigerians could be jailed for cross-dressing if a proposed bill becomes law. The amendment – currently in parliament – would make it illegal for a person to wear clothes that do not match their gender assigned at birth.

This episode is published to coincide with African Fashion Week Season with Legos Fashion Week taking place on October 26-29, 2022. Please join me as talk with Elvis from his home in Lagos, Nigeria. We talk about his journey to becoming a fashion journalist, African fashion designers, and the restrictive Nigerian culture on gender and sexuality.  If you love fashion journalism from the African perspective, then this conversation is for you.

Gaurav Monga is a writer and teacher originally from New Delhi. He is the author of Tears for Rahul Dutta (Philistine Press, 2012), Family Matters (Eibonvale Press, 2019), Ruins (Desirepath Publishers, 2019), Costumes of the Living (Snuggly Books, 2020), My Father, The Watchmaker (Hawakal Publishers, 2020) and The English Teacher (Raphus Press, 2021). Gaurav's work has appeared in numerous literary magazines, including B O D Y, Fanzine, Juked, Tammy Journal, Spurl Editions, Queen Mob's Teahouse, Birkensnake amongst others.

Gaurav teaches English, German, literature, epistemology and creative writing, and has taught at schools and universities in India, Nepal, Switzerland, Dubai and the Czech Republic. Gaurav taught himself German to read the works of Franz Kafka, and is currently translating selected works of Robert Walser, Peter Bichsel and Paul Leppin from German to English. He is a member of an international art and lifestyle movement called Neo-Decadence.

This episode is a conversation with Beau McCall aka “The Button Man" who is a New York-based cultural tastemaker & visual artist that creates wearable and art by applying clothing buttons onto up-cycled fabrics, materials, and objects generating discussion on topics related to pop culture and social justice. 

McCall has been featured in the NY Times, Associated Press, NPR, and L.A. Times. His visual and wearable art has been included in many exhibitions and is held in the permanent collection of public institutions and by private individuals including the Museum of Arts and Design (New York), Philadelphia Museum of Art (Philadelphia), Victoria and Albert Museum (London), The Museum at FIT (New York), to name a few. 

In 2021, McCall released his debut artists’ book titled, REWIND: MEMORIES ON REPEAT, commissioned and published by SHINE Portrait Studio—that honors the legacy of ten of McCall’s deceased friends through collages composed of archival photos and images from his button artwork. The collages capture the late 1970s to the mid-1980s, from Philadelphia to New York, during the LGBTQ+ rights movement, the height of disco music and the AIDS crisis.  In 2024, McCall will debut his first-ever retrospective titled, Beau McCall: Buttons On! at Fuller Craft Museum. 

This episode is a conversation with John Matheson who is a London based Alexander McQueen enthusiast, archivist and owner of the Instagram account, @McQueen_Vault.

John has contributed to many fashion exhibitions, discussions and publications including Show Studio. Over the past two years, John has been working as a consultant on Alexander McQueen exhibitions with museums LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) and NGV (National Gallery Victoria, Melbourne).

Please join me as I talk with John about his passion for McQueen, the history of his archiving and his contextual viewpoints on fashion. If you love Alexander McQueen, then this conversation is for you. I do hope you enjoy!

This episode is a conversation with Colleen Hill, Fashion Author and Curator at The Museum at FIT. Colleen holds an MA in Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice from FIT and is currently a PhD candidate at London College of Fashion. Her most recent exhibition Reinvention and Restlessness: Fashion in the 90s (2021) is on exhibit until April 17, 2022.

Colleen has authored or coauthored many books on fashion and contributed to numerous other publications including her latest book Reinvention and Restlessness: Fashion in the 90s (2021) which examines 'Nineties fashion--from grunge, to Clueless's Alaïa, to Margiela's new couture--is an essential reference point for contemporary style. This book, created in tandem with an exhibition at The Museum at FIT, documents the changing culture, attitudes, and creatives that ushered in our visual age' (Rizzoli).

In this talk, Colleen and I discuss her exhibition and book Reinvention and Restlessness: Fashion in the 90s, the art of curating, and workings of the Museum at FIT.

This episode is an unedited talk that I recorded over the summer with my friend and life guru Mukul Bhatia. It's a raw and vulnerable conversation with my puppy Bijou barking in the background. I talk with Mukul from Bali about all the important topics that intersect with living in a Post-pandemic world including sustainability, fashion, consumerism, society, trauma, relationship, and personal growth. 

Mukul Bhatia who is an award-winning visual artist from India based in Bali focused on sustainability, travel and fashion.  Mukul has been featured in Forbes, The New York Times, GQ and TEDx, and winner of Cosmopolitan India’s  2020 Blogger Award for ‘Sustainable Fashion Influencer of the Year’.  

This episode is dedicated to the legacy of Virgil Abloh (1980-2021) who sadly passed away this week at the young age of 41. 💔 Virgil was a prolific zeitgeist cultural communicator and forever left his footprint on the world. His visionary work intersected many spaces including art, media, fashion, design and music. He didn't prescribe to bias, boxes, labels or limits; but lived and created with freedom of thought that birthed a new cultural code rooted in acceptance, kindness and inclusivity.

Virgil left a legacy built by a superhuman work ethic filled with risk, failure, success, collaboration, accessibility, conviction, criticism, friendship, love, passion, vision and clarity. He opened doors and paved the way for future generations because he believed that his voice as a black man needed to be heard.

I had the privilege to hear Virgil speak during the 2018 Vogue Paris Fashion Festival and these are my notes from his talk:

Youthful outlook of Paris.
Friendship.
Organic.
Authentic.
Transparent.
Design for a need to exist.
Intrigue.
Controversial.
Collaboration.
Transparent-shows who you are--Is harder and takes more time.
Transparency allows for people to make a connection. Creates a dialogue. Meeting someone half way.
Understand the ecosystem we live in.
Blurred lines.
Luxury is old word-new word is coveted!
Emotional connection is the NEW luxury!!!
Youthful approach with respect to Heritage.
Adapt to environment and not industry.
Image and text based culture.
People see when things are fake.
Biggest success is when organic happens!!
Advertising is about relevance and importance.
How do you create Desire?
Fulfil dreams.
Cutting corners cuts artistic vision.
Branding and iconography signifies history and importance.
Bestow meaning.
Art & fashion collaboration.
CORE-has beating heart.
Experience over transaction.
Untraditional ideas may be relevant and update the industry.
What is exciting and relevant?

Thank you for dedicating your life to being a cultural change maker. The world desperately needed you, Virgil. Rest in peace.