Ksubi Eyewear & Kane Skennar. A Fashionable Match.

above: images from three different Ksubi eyewear campaigns, all shot by Kane Skennar

In addition to their apparel and eyewear, Australian fashion brand Ksubi combines fashion, culture, art and music. Their irreverent runway antics at Australia's Fashion Week (like releasing live rats onstage) their late night parties, published books, art installations and music events distinguish them from other fashion brands.

Known mainly for their denim apparel that appeals to celebs and hipsters alike, I find their advertising photography - specifically for their eyewear collections over the past several years- is often as compelling, if not more so, than the actual products.

Their latest eyewear collection for 2011 -- Eye, Eye -- features 11 new pairs of eyeglasses with an industrial style and fashionable appeal. And the photographs make them even more attractive.

While Ksubi eyewear and the ad campaigns are often blogged about, the unsung hero, who is rarely mentioned, is Australian photographer Kane Skennar. Close friends with the Ksubi team he shot this most recent ad campaign as well as the "Book Club" Collection of Ksubi Eyewear from the previous year and other Ksubi eyewear ad campaigns, including the notorious Dickheads campaign (shown later in this post).

2011 Ksubi Eye Eye campaign, shot by Kane Skennar in 2010:







The above campaign was styled by in-house creatives at Ksubi. The models featured are: Heidi Harrington (South African/ Australian), Rose Smith (a new model from Perth), model of the moment, Bambi, and two male models who are friends of ksubi and long-term ksubi ambassadors, Dion Antony, and 19 year old Jann Cruraszkiewicz from Melbourne making his modelling debut.

Ksubi Book Club campaign, shot by Kane Skennar in 2009:




Another Ksubi eyewear campaign, shot by Kane Skennar (year unknown):





One of their most hilarious ad campaigns for Ksubi shot by Skennar featured eyeglasses on male genitalia, turning the male member from a penis to a proboscis. These images toured as a photographic exhibition ‘Magnum Opus’, shown in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Paris. The exhibition highlighted the ‘Ksubi for dickheads’ sunglasses range, and was also be seen in LA and NY.

The 2006 Ksubi for Dickheads campaign shot by Kane Skennar:







Kane Skennar has an impressive portfolio with editorial, beauty, portraiture and more photography. See his work here.

Ksubi, who is best-known for their denim apparel, music affiliations and art installations (and sadly, for their financial troubles), was co-founded and directed by surfers Dan Single (who also goes by the name of Dangerous Dan in the Sydney based DJ six-piece "Bang Gang"), George Gorrow, Paul Wilson and Oscar Wright in 2002. Initially the brand was named Tsubi, but was sued in 2006 by Tsubo and as a result, changed their name to Ksubi.

a big thanks to Ksubi and Kane Skennar for the information and images.


Ksubi

If You've Never Seen The Eyewear of Linda Farrow, You Could Use Some Glasses.

Anyone who's a true fashionista is already familiar with Linda Farrow's collection of luxe, vintage and limited edition designer sunglasses. They appear in the chicest of boutiques and on the runway models of the hippest designer's shows, fashion mags and more. If you've never heard of Linda Farrow or their eyewear, then this will be a treat for you.

First, a little background for those of you who do not know of Linda Farrow eyewear.



First established in 1970, the Linda Farrow brand of luxury eyewear rose quickly to acclaim amongst stylish Londoners and the international jet set. Originally a fashion designer herself, Linda Farrow was one of the first to treat sunglasses as fashion, producing collection after cutting-edge collection, her finger always on the pulse of the times. A tireless experimenter, Farrow pioneered many of the shapes and styles that remain au courant today. Exploring the use of screws on frames, for example, Farrow developed the avant-garde wraparounds that became Yoko Ono’s trademark style in the 70s. Farrow’s relentless pursuit of luxury, innovation and cutting-edge design continue to mark the brand almost forty years on.


Above: Simon Jablon

It was in one of their warehouses in London that the artistic director, Simon Jablon, son of the legendary designer Linda Farrow, rediscovered old models of original sunglasses created in the 70s and 80s by his mother. In April 2003, Linda Farrow Vintage was launched.

They now carry three collections; only a few of which from each line are shown below.

The fine jewellery collection which are glasses whose frames are made with precious metals, diamonds and other gemstones:




A few from The Luxe collection:




And some examples from the Vintage collection:







The Linda Farrow Vintage range consists of 2000 models, which includes styles produced in limited edition of only 500 copies. The glasses are sold in their original packaging, through exclusive and international distribution.

But what I find more interesting than their three lines are the collaborative efforts with other fashion designers and the sunglasses worn by the runway models during fashion shows.



Above: Models sporting Linda Farrow designs at the runway shows


Above: Model wearing the collaborative effort of Linda Farrow and Jeremy Scott

Linda Farrow Vintage has launched several collections in collaboration with brands such as Giles Deacon, House of Holland, Dries Van Noten, Peter Pilotto, Yohji Yamomoto, Ponystep, ACNE, Basso & Brooke, Bernhard Willhelm, Buddhist Punk, Eley Kishimito, Jeremy Scott, Sophia Kokosalaki and Linda Farrow Vintage for Tsuba.

Many of these were designed for select fashion designer's runway shows, below are some of my favorite collaborations with fashion designers:

With Bernard Wilhem:







With Jeremy Scott:







With Luella:


Above: Model wearing the Linda Farrow Luella Cat glasses on the cover of Mario Testino's book





With Rodarte:




With Erickson Beamon:







Learn more and see more at Linda Farrow Vintage

Today, Linda Farrow Vintage and its original concept, Linda Farrow Gallery, are produced exclusively for other designers, and are present in more than 300 outlets. Several styles (not all) can be found only at specific boutiques like Harrods (London) Joyce (Hong Kong), Le Printemps (Paris), Harrods Men's Department (London), L'Eclaireur (Paris), Maria Luisa (Paris), Penelope (Italy), Quartier 206 (Berlin), Jeffrey (New York) and Isetan (Tokyo).


Linda Farrow
51, Calthorpe Street - Unit A
WC1X 0HH London, Great Britain
T : +44 (0)207 713 1105
F : +44 (0)207 713 1106
www.lindafarrow.co.uk