The Paparazzi

I'm becoming somewhat a stalwart devoter to Scott Schuman's work, regardless his attitude in general. Whether he is too confident or plain cocky, it's up for a debate. And may I add, I don't know him personally - so I'm restraining myself from any premature judgement...

Words and images by Hafidzudin Zainal

CAMERAderie: The last bit of Milan

I have safely arrived in Malaysia two days ago and in between dealing with jet lag, post-shopping depression and mustering strength to return back to work, I am trying my best not to slack off from blogging. I know you guys are anticipating for more Paris updates, but examining a collection of images from the entire journey it turned out that there are certain Milan photos, that I think will be interesting for this final CAMERAderie segment of Milan Fashion Week.

I'm borderline stalking Scott Schuman as I bumped into him creepily saw him from afar - not only at almost every show in Milan, naturally, but in the train, on our way to Paris as well. But of course my awkward shyness deterred me from saying hi (although Arman and other individuals have reserved comments about his attitude, I still find images from The Sartorialist inspirational and have been among one of the guides for Dunia Fashyon since the blog's inception)... 

I accidentally papped the Sartorialist at work outside Emporio Armani show. I'm waiting for the image of the man photographed to surface in Schuman's blog so I can feel pathetically in sync with him or something.

And Mr Sartorialist is the best because...

He made my heart skip a beat when I saw these pictures... Neutral and solid colors, proportions and simplicity - three fundamental elements that made me hooked to his fantastic imagery.

Exhibit A - The beard, the summer pinstripe suit and shorts those siccck thick lace-ups and a peek of crimson ankle socks. Handsome!

Exhibit B - The striped boat-necked long sleeves, the round glasses - very classic French (is it?). The double belts adds interest  to a rather simple style.

Exhibit C - The most delectable image here! Grey and blue NEVER fails methinks. The breezy neutral cardigan and the hat is perfect for Summer. And the stripe at the side of the beautifully tailored pants just reminds me of military wear, plus her posture at a glance resembles one from the marching band ready to blow the horn :)

Ah, me and my ridiculous imagination....

Graphic readings at Basheer's

I told you in the previous post that  I had a few activities done, which included going to this  cool bookstore in BB Plaza Kuala Lumpur. It's quite an embarrassing issue considering the fact that I only realise its existence merely just now, and it's literally situated next to Buntil!

I quickly made a conclusion, upon entering the shop, that they mainly focus on design/ architecture / fashion books. My gaze quickly rested on the enormous white Visionaire Box, which contains 3 graphic Lacoste polo T-shirts. The price? Approximately RM 850 post discount.

I like the one with the purplish leafy print (yes my color vocabulary is so limited I had to use -ish to describe a color). The one with the images of buildings in LAs Vegas is quite interesting as well. And the shirt with the vulgar naked lady? How artfully distasteful...

I spent almost an hour browsing the amazing collection of international design books (they also stock publications in foreign language e.g in German and Swedish ) . Quite a shame that there was a lack of local publications - is it a coincidence that Basheer concentrates more on global design, or does Malaysia really not have a strong design community? All that I saw was a measly old-school Malay arts and crafts book, and a LECTURE book, mind you, by this renowned local architect Hijjas Kasturi published by the International Islamic University of Malaysia.

It could not be more rewarding than perusing for such a long time, and suddenly stumbling upon The Facehunter book in the fashion section! I really did not think for a second the store carries books this obscure in Malaysia (I even doubt Kinokuniya in KLCC has this, please correct me if I'm wrong).
It's a good thing that after the Sartorialist book craze has subsided, the excitement has been heightened back by this spanking new book...

It's quite obvious that Facehunter's view on street fashion is a 360 degree turn from Mr Schuman's. The mood from Yvan Rodic's photography and even the layout of the images itself provokes a different feeling,which is not any better or worse than in The Sartorialist book. I remember Mr Rodic says in one interview that his taste is different - he thinks Schuman's images are more business and polished. I especially like how he has a theme for every pair of photo (eg: the hair / the check prints / the dogs). But to compare Schuman and Rodic is like apples and oranges really. Both photographers have their own taste and style, the photos of which I enjoy looking at and celebrate anyway.

And what else do you say? Of course the personal style section!
I wore this flimsy linen blazer (a lady's one of course) with Matinique tee inside - this V-neck I haven't worn for quite some time, when I took it out of the cupboard it was musty and smells like fungus, but I wore it anyway..gross I know.

Next - accessories my dear - a Forever 21 flower hair clip turned into a brooch. And, last but not least, this siiick high-waisted pants from ZARA (a woman's size XS I'm not kidding you!) I wonder how much weight have I lost since the past six months starting my job as an intern doctor...

Well, now please excuse me while I have a cup of iced Milo and an hour to browse through Facehunter the book...