Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Movie Review-vie: Populaire.

From when I was very young my parents have brought me along to countless international film festivals so I quickly learnt how to perfect the skill of reading subtitles quickly enough to keep up with a plot. I soon realised that in my perfect world I would live in Paris and it would be the 50s. 

There was just something that always got me hooked when the French Film Festival would happen in Melbourne. I loved the music, the costumes, the colours and the scenes of the Seine. There was something else too: the women. 

From an early age I realised there was something distinctly different about the how women were portrayed in French films. They were multifaceted: they were real, they were animated and they were strong, happy, angry, passionate, seductive and bashful. They weren't afraid to speak their minds  or spontaneously kiss someone they really, really loved. They were smart and they stood for what they believed in despite other people's judgements.

I feel in love with these leading ladies of the French screen - Audrey Tautou, Brigitte Bardot, Lea Seydoux, Berenice Bejo and Marion Cotillard, to name a few. These women and their films are beautiful. 

So the other night, when I was restless and a little bored, I knew I could count on the French cinema to entertain me and I stumbled on what I now consider one of my favourite movies: Populaire- A movie about a typewriting competition.

Perhaps the cutest and quirkiest movie I have ever watched, from Regis Roinsard, staring Deborah Francois as Rose and Romain Duris as Louis. 
It was like a french version of My Fair Lady but with typewriters and alot more european sass. 
The films is like a dream and it made me want to run away to Paris. That's all I'm going to say about it because I want you to watch it and run away with me. 

Rated: 5 Macarons + 

- Alessandra. 







* Mosaik does not take credit for the images used in this article

Thursday, March 26, 2015

The Essendon Market For Designers and Creators

I love a local, community market. I love knowing that I've bought something that has been homemade with love. I love supporting passionate student designers; and I really love doughnuts. With just two days to go, The Essendon Market for Designers and Creators is set to tick all those boxes for me.

With over 70 stalls on offer, the Essendon Market will feature a wide variety of handmade clothing, accessories, home decor, gourmet food, and a student design space. Some of our very talented Mosaik team members will also be featuring their crafts at the market! It's all about supporting local artisans who are passionate about creating quality products with heart. 

You can check it all out for yourself this Saturday, the 28th of March from 10am to 3pm, at Ukraine House, 3 Russell St Essendon.  But until then, I'll be here thinking about those mini doughnuts ... 

- Miriam

Encouraging local design and crafts, The Essendon Market has been generous enough to offer student stall spaces, available at an affordable price – this is what is allowing us (The Little Market Stall) to debut and present our works to the local community for the first time ever! ‘The Little Market Stall’ is a collaborative project that presents the works of Beth Mazzarella, Jacquelyn Ryles-Smith, Nicole Comelli and myself. 

Each of us are university students who study Industrial Design, Nursing/Midwifery and Secondary Teaching – and with a vast array of ideas and styles, we will be offering a range of cute and colourful bits and pieces ranging from jewellery and badges, to fabric pouches, cards and wooden DIY pencil cups! We are so excited to take on this new adventure and learn how to run a small-scale project, expanding our exploration of materials, finishes and crafting methods. Hope to see you there!

- Christine 


Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Mister Nice Guy's Bakeshop

When one thinks of 100% vegan baking, it's natural to think there may be a compromise on flavour, but at Mister Nice Guy's Bakeshop you can have your ethical cake and eat it too. 

At this gem of a bakery, the goods vary each day - for me, half the fun is walking in and discovering what's going to be on offer. It's lavender frosting, double layer cake one day, and key lime pie the next, and this is in addition to their wide variety of cupcakes, cinnamon scrolls, polish babkas, bagels, and more.

They also make cakes to order for special occasions.  There are over 50 flavours, so whatever your tastes you are sure to find one that speaks to you. The real problem is stopping yourself at just one, especially when you have to pick between 'Margaritaville' and 'Unicorn Milkshake'. I'm not kidding when I say I have ordered myself two birthday cakes this year.  

Mister Nice Guy's Bakeshop has such a lovely community vibe, and its organic, fair trade stance makes it all the sweeter. You can find it located at 151 Union Road, Ascot Vale. There's lots of on street parking, and it can also be reached by taking the no.57 tram line from Highpoint or the CBD. 

- Miriam


*Mosaik does not take credit for the images used in this article

Monday, March 23, 2015

VAMFF: National Graduate Showcase Presented by Target


The National Graduate Showcase, presented by Target, is hands down the most exciting runway of the festival. The energy was bouncing off the walls in the small shed in the Docklands. Media, industry representatives, fashion teachers and students alike flock to this event. Not only is it a showcase of the student’s collections, but attending the event is a fashion statement in itself. This is the event where the public lets their hair down and true fashionistas are found. Observing everyone’s outfits is almost half as exciting as watching the actual show.

12 students from universities all over to Australia are chosen out of hundreds to have their final collections displayed on the runway. One designer is then chosen by a panel to work in collaboration with Target to create a range to sell in their stores nation wide. It’s a fabulous opportunity for these next generation Australian fashion designers, not only to display their work, but to also get their foot in the door of the fashion industry. Here is a peak at all their beautiful collections from the night’s runway.


Monique Duggan, Optic
60s pop art inspiration, hand painted digitally manipulated neoprene, and organic silhouettes to contrast hard lines have been used.



Megan McGrath, Straight Outta Compton
Street hip-hop influence, lots of colour, embellishment, glitter, graphics and dramatic oversized garments.



April Yap, CTRL-C
A representation of the visual culture of China Town, where prints have been have been derived from her own photos and the checks which come from the transparent layer on Photoshop.



Eric Deluchi, Holonymy
Creating a relationship between garments, and the illusion of two garments being one.  There is an emphasis  on wearability and simplicity. 


Alexandra Hackett, A.L.C.H
Notion of a retail store and everything inside of it, through use of materials such as dye tags and price tags. Focus on crime and surveillance with cheeky slogans and text.



Vanessa Emirian, Circulate
Obsession with the circle, from the silhouettes that create 3D sculptural garments to the hand cut circles which were used for needle felting the material. 



Sofie Teh, dePomp
Influenced by traditional Vietnamese culture, mixed with fun prints and colours. Focus on lengthy process of creating hand painted silk fabrics.



Rachael Zheng, L I L T
Looked into the work of photographers, such as Ellsworth Kelly, to create easy luxury garments that can be draped and tied around the body. Bold placements of colour create a contrast.



Donald Chung, Resist and Exist
Inspired by the military and propaganda culture in Korea, and communicated through monochromatic colour palettes and the boldness of fluro red.



Felicity Gleeson, Trace
Beautifully crafted fabrics which have a natural feel represent the beauty in imperfection, in combination with organic silhouettes.



Lauren Acciarito, Flor
The idea of foam and its spongy consistency has been combined with a digital floral print to create abstract forms. Femininity has been mixed with masculine elements.



Natalie Kieleithner, Tacenda
The sensory deprivation of blindness was the influence. Red is said to be the first colour lost when someone is turning blind. Perforation, laser cutting and braille have been used to heighten touch sense.


I wish all the best of luck to the finalists, whoever wins is well deserving of such a wonderful opportunity.

- Sarah

 *Mosaik does not take credit for any of the photographs in this article. Photographs by Lucas Dawson


Thursday, March 19, 2015

VAMFF: Premium Runway 5 Presented by Harper's BAZAAR.

It seems the Boho girl was made Melbourne chic in the VAMFF's Premium Runway 5, with a hint of 70's flare somewhere between the black on black ensembles. 

Before the show started, my mum whispered to me the phrase "I will stop wearing black when they invent something darker..." which seemed to describe the night perfectly. As I listened to her my eye quickly gazed over everyone sitting on the opposite side of the runway, all of whom were wearing black.

It is true what they say, Melbournian's love black and it seemed that the global trend of 70's chic, hugely adopted by Gucci (among other fashion houses), had been altered for us. 

It appeared consumers were first in mind with some of the collections, leaving very little room for risk and creativity, causing the designs to be disappointingly predictable. A repeated use of silhouette and very minimal thought put into textile design left a stale air of the boring and overdone. 

In saying that there were a few highlights, especially Christopher Esber's leather detailing and use of texture. 

- Alessandra 









 Yeojin Bae:
























*Mosaik does not take credit for any of the images in this article 

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

VAMFF: Premium Runway 2 Presented by Frankie Magazine .


Melbourne Fashion Festival (VAMFF) is probably my favourite time of year in Melbourne. The city and its surroundings becomes a showcase of all things fashion, and the Docklands comes to life with fashionistas, lights and glamour. 

Showcasing the A/W15 collections of Kuwaii, Alpha60, Kloke, búl, Limedrop and Gorman; the Premium Runway 2 presented Frankie Magazine, did not disappoint.

Opening the runway was Kuwaii, which has a strong focus on layering and colour. The layering of dresses and t-shirts over long sleeve tops, and skivvies under chunky jumpers of the same tonal palette created a laid back, casual look. The combinations of cobalt and frost bite blue, peachy coral pinks and the hues of grey and black created an exciting collection that transitions from Spring/Summer to Autumn/Winter beautifully.



Alpha60 's collection is all about the form and detail. Flowing wide leg playsuits, oversized dresses, and calf and ankle grazing hemlines were teamed with scale and leaf detailing and layered gathering. A strong use of greys and black is by interrupted by their organic use of rustic blues and tulip pink. 


A new addition to the line up this year, Kloke, created a very practical and interchangeable collection. Once again, there was a strong emphasis on layering, however this time it was fine knitted jumpers over dresses, cardigans teamed with dress, and pants and short and long sleeve shirts under boxy jumpers. The use of earthy brown tones against the crisp white, cool grey and jet black creates an effortless look.



búl combined raspberry pinks, icy and teal blues alongside tones of grey and white to create an A/W collection that was bold and classic. Their silhouettes were contemporary and uncomplicated, which created a sleek, sophisticated look once paired with the bold colours.


The contrast between light and dark, day and night made Limedrop’s collection captivating. Opening with crisp white outfits paired with their signature print making capabilities, their designs resembled a daytime skyline, their collection then turned to all jet black outfits with a print that now reflected a cloudy night sky. Sheers, floating lightweight fabrics created a beautiful sense of movement, reflecting the sky like qualities of the patterns.


No matter the season, Gorman collections are always full of colour and exuberance. Royal blues, bubblegum pink, tangerine orange were just a few key colours. It also wouldn’t be a Gorman collection without a few patterns; an organic, colorful floral design, and an intricate, pastel snake pattern made an appearance on the runway. Their pieces this season are sure to add excitement to any winter wardrobe.


Overall, A/W15 is set to be an exuberant season, with a key colour palette of tones of pinks and blues paired with classic, basic colours. Layering of classic silhouettes is a must, but the real key is to have fun with fashion and make it your own.

-Sarah

*Mosaik does not take credit for any of the images in this article 

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Serial: The Podcast.

The thing about a cold case that always gets me is the suggestion of someone's innocence, the idea that perhaps all those years ago a mistake was made, someone was wrongly accused, unjustly convicted, and maybe that's the hook ... or at least its the reason Serial: The Podcast is the number one podcast in the world right now.

From the creators of the ever successful This American Life, hosted and reported by Sarah Koenig, Serial presents a story - a true story - told over the course of 12 episodes, it begins: "It's Baltimore, 1999. Hae Min Lee, a popular high school senior, disappears after school one day. Six weeks later detectives arrest her classmate and ex boyfriend, Adnan Syed, for her murder. He says he is innocent - though he can't exactly remember what he was doing on that January afternoon."
Syed was eventually convicted of Lee's murder and has been in Maryland Correctional Facility for the past 15 years, all the while maintaining his innocence.

As I listened to the podcast I was at war with myself the entire time:  is Adnan really innocent? or is he a pathological liar, and murderer? Nothing is clear, and this ambiguity haunts the entire story. 

There is a constant shadow of doubt that clouds this case. There is no confirmed timeline of events, no clear motive is established, witnesses were ignored, evidence was discarded, no one seems capable of murder and yet nothing seems like the truth. But Hae Lee did die and someone committed that murder. 

As Koenig states at the start "someone is lying"... or maybe they all are.

Even after you finish all twelve episodes you still find yourself helplessly searching for the truth. I scrolled through the subreddit that was created for people to discuss the podcast, everyone online was arguing over evidence, timelines, theories and facts. I don't think there has ever been a meme more accurate than the one ft. Matthew McConaughey (see below). I could not stop talking about it. Every night for a week I presented a new theory to my family over the dinner table or messaged B with another series of questions about the case. 

But I think no matter how much we discuss it, or fight over it, in the end these were just high school kids, doing high school things, and then somewhere among it all there was the intent to kill.
A girl leaves school and she is strangled.
Buried in a shallow grave. 
A 17 year old boy is arrested. 

- A




*Mosaik does not take credit for any of the images used in this article*