Friday I'm In Love
Valentines Day Gift Guide 2013 - For Him
“You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” Dr. Seuss
Above (Clockwise) L-R: Underwater Dogs at Waterstones – RRP. £14.99 £11.24, Persol Black Steve McQueen Sunglasses - RRP. £191.67, Wildlife Photographer of the Year Portfolio 22 at Waterstones – RRP. £25.00 £18.75, Biscuiteers L.O.V.E Biscuit Tin – RRP. £38.50, Chocolat Factory Ballotin of Chocolate Kisses and Bites - RRP. £8.99, Classic Pink Burtonwode Boxers – RRP. £26.00, 'Irresistibly Kissable' Card - RRP. £2.75, Izola Botanist Beard Oil - RRP. £25.00
Above (Clockwise) L-R: Condé Nast Travler Photographs 25th Anniversary Collection - RRP. £60.00, Eclectic by Tom Dixon: Orientalist Scented Candle - RRP. £55.00, Taylor of Old Bond Street Pure Badger Luxury Brush and Cream Gift Set - RRP. £29.95, J.CREW Leather-Covered iPhone 5 Case - RRP. £40.00 £23.66, Prestat Zingy English Mint Dark Chocolate Wafers - RRP. £9.99, ASOS Trainers With Banana Print - RRP. £18.00, Chilli with Cool Lime Dark Chocolate Wafers - RRP. £10.25
Above (Clockwise) L-R: South Devon Chilli Farm Three Chilli Bottle Gift Pack - RRP. £13.50, Smythson, 'Note To Self' Manuscript Leather Notebook - RRP. £135.00, Tom Ford for Men eau de toilette - RRP. £45.00, ASOS Brogues With Leather Sole - RRP. £55.00, Cookery Lesson at Jamie Oliver's Recipease - From £15.00-£75.00, J.CREW Tasselled Cashmere Scarf - £95.00, Happy Socks - RRP. £8.00, Magimix Nespresso Citiz Coffee Machine - RRP. £199.00
Valentines Day Gift Guide 2013
Above (Clockwise) L-R: Charlotte Olympia Delphine Suede Platforms – RRP. £595, Topshop Limited Edition Pearl Swing Dress – RRP. £195.00, Diptyque Rose Duet Candle at Space NK – RRP. £42.00, Mimi Holliday Lace and Silk Satin Bow Back Knickers - RRP. £37.00, Lulu Guinness Lipstick Red Snakeskin Lips Clutch - RRP. £295.00
Above (Clockwise) L-R: Topshop Iris Print Dress - RRP. £42.00, Rosie for Autograph Rose Bra and Brazilian Knickers - RRP. £22.50 & £12.50, REN Moroccan Rose Bath Oil at ASOS - RRP. £30.00, Fabulous Frocks at Waterstones - RRP. £14.99 £13.49, Miu Miu Sunglasses - RRP. £225.00, Harvey Nichols Valentines Hamper - RRP. £70.00
Above (Clockwise) L-R: Cowshed Gorgeous Cow Duo Set - RRP. £16.00, Charlotte Olympia Debonaire Heart-Shaped Platform – RRP. £545.00 , Mulberry Double Wrap Star Charm Bracelet - RRP. £150.00, Raspberry Marshmallow Fluff at Harvey Nichols - RRP. £2.30, Chloe Love Chloe Eau de Parfum at Boots - RRP. £48.60, Miu Miu Sunglasses - £225.00, Marc by Marc Jacobs Heart Headphones - RRP. £35.00
Above (Clockwise) L-R: Smythson 'Everyday I Love You' Notebook - RRP. £35.00, Lauderee St.Valentine Macaroons - RRP. £32.00, Voluspa Japonica Candle at Anthropologie - RRP.£10.00, Limited Edition Pink Bubbly Vaseline - RRP. £3.49, Shourouk Necklace at Matches - RRP. £372.00, Olivia Von Halle Lila Sophie Silk Pyjamas - RRP. £330.00, Phoebe Coleman's 'Love Me Tender' Bracelet - RRP. £66.67, Pretty Ballerinas Rosario Heart Pumps - £149.00
Simples
To the Moon and Back
Dreams and Love
'il n'est rien de réel que le rêve et l'amour'
Le Coeur innombrable, IV, Chanson du temps opportun - Anna de Noailles.
('Nothing is real but dreams and love' )
Nick Brandt Photography
Above: Lions Head to Head, Masai Mara, 2008
It was this beautiful and extraordinarily intimate photograph of a pair of loving lions which first introduced me to the work of wildlife photographer Nick Brandt last year.
In 1995 British photographer Nick Brandt (then, a music video director) directed Michael Jackson’s 'Earth Song' in Tanzania and he immediately, rather understandably, fell in love with East Africa and its majestic animals. In 2000, Brandt embarked upon an ambitious photographic project; a trilogy of books immortalizing these animals and the vanishing natural grandeur of East Africa – up close, and very personally.
With a combination of dramatic panoramas of animals featured within epic landscapes alongside more soulful, graphic portraits, Nick Brandt manages to find an intimate connection with his wild subjects that reveal personalities and relationships far more so than any other wildlife photography I have ever seen. The titles of the trilogy of books will eventually be revealed to form one consecutive sentence: 'On This Earth, A Shadow Falls.....' (the final installment is due for publication in 2013.)
“What I am interested in is showing the animals simply in the state of Being. In the state of Being before they are no longer are. Before, in the wild at least, they cease to exist. This world is under terrible threat, all of it caused by us. To me, every creature, human or nonhuman, has an equal right to live, and this feeling, this belief that every animal and I are equal, affects me every time I frame an animal in my camera. The photos are my elegy to these beautiful creatures, to this wrenchingly beautiful world that is steadily, tragically vanishing before our eyes.”
Above Right: Elephant With Exploading Dust, Amboseli, 2004
In 2010, in urgent response to the escalation of poaching in Africa due to increased demand from the Far East (raw ivory fetches up to $800 per kg and rhino horn is worth more per ounce than gold dust) Nick Brandt founded the non-profit organization called Big Life Foundation. With donations, the organisation has placed multiple fully equipped teams of 120 anti-poaching rangers in both Kenya and Tanzania, who collaborate with communities to reduce poaching and conflicts between farmers and wildlife.
Above: Windswept Lion, Serengeti, 2002
Above: Elephants Walking Through Grass, Amboseli 2008
(Leading Matriarch Killed By Poachers, 2009)
Above: Hippos On The Mara River, Masai Mara, 2002
Above: Rhino on Lake, Nakuru, 2007
Above: Giraffes In Evening Light, Masai Mara, 2006
Above: Leopard In Crook Of Tree, Nakuru, 2007
Below: Nick Brandt's next exhibition, in New York from March 29th:
Above: Elephant Drinking, Amboseli, 2007
(Killed by Poachers, 2009)