East End Graffiti

East London Graffiti, old and new. Although the new will probably be old by next week...

Trend Alert - Jamaican takeover / Usain Bolt vs.London

Jamaica is going to explode. And not just out the blocks this summer. The vibe has been building since the 30th anniversary of Bob Marley's death last year. Next week the documentary Marley is released (see previous post) and there is a definite upsurge in reggae samples and re-mixes (heard loads on the Craig Charles Funk and Soul show, with Sam Redmore and The Reflex putting out some awesome re-mixes).

Then, of course, the second most famous man to come out of Jamaica, takes centre stage in London this summer...

The worlds eyes and ears are on Jamaica this year, it's a good thing they look and sound so good.

Bob Marley in London

A tenuous link to London maybe, but this guy gets me through my morning commute most days. Nobody calms the soul like Marley. i feel positively centred after the first bar of three little birds.
As you probably know, Marley spent a lot of time in London. I went looking for this plaque the other day in Camden, after reading about his 'footprint on London'. 

Now, i'm quoting a quote of a quote here, when i write that Marley believed London was his 'spiritual home'. I was surprised by that, but i will take it anyhow. I tried so hard to find a photo or some footage of him playing football in Battersea Park, but had no luck. hmmm. There might be something in the new documentary that comes out next week. Check out the trailer. It looks awesome. i feel like i've been waiting forever for it to come out.

Ca4la

I need more hats in my life. And this is where i'm going to buy them from...

Ca4la (pronounced Ka-shi-la) is a Japanese brand that brought their fabulous designs and collaborations to our shores, via shoreditch in 2006. The shop fit was pretty cool - i was strangely drawn to the dapper boar.

Cecil Beaton @ the V&A

There are only 12days left to go see Queen Elizabeth II by Cecil Beaton at the VandA...Not that these images are in the exhibition, but i just love the way he put his sketchbooks and proof pages together, so i'm using them as a loose connection. Beaton could do it all. 

The exhibition is well worth seeing and will act as a great warm-up act for another fabulous VandA show in May (as well as the actual Diamond Jubilee, of course) - Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950...

Sinister Fairytales

The Stuff of Nightmares @ Museum of Childhood. The Brothers Grimm's Fundevogel, seen through the eyes of Caley Primary School, Morpeth Secondary School and Tower Hamlets College.

...by Paris based photographer Thomas Czarnecki

the battle to be the fairest fairytale film of all this summer...

Angelina Jolie in Maleficent (Evil villain in Disney's Sleeping Beauty), set for release March 2014