Solent Styling Collective
Group lead: Jennifer Anyan/Andrew Markham
The Solent Stylist Collective probes the boundaries of styling and make-up and hair design from theoretical, abstract, conceptual and academic perspectives.
Conceived in 2008, the Solent Stylist Collective seeks to position styling, make up and hair design within an
academic context and to define Southampton Solent University as an authority in styling and make up and hair design with a conceptual underpinning. Interdisciplinary discussion and cross-discipline collaboration are at the heart of the collective’s vision. The collective’s aim is to create a research centre that will support academic research and enterprise activities. The future of the collective sees the solent stylist brand move beyond Solent University, seeking the involvement of academics from other institutions as well as practitioners in associated fields.
2008/09 saw Jenifer Anyan and Andrew Markham present conference papers in Salzburg at the 3rd Global Conference: Persons, love and intimacy. Markham also presented at the 6th Global Conference: Sexualities: bodies, desires and practices. This period also saw Anyan work on the styling of Neeta Madahar’s portrait series ‘Flora’ with a book published by Nazreali press and portraits exhibited at Purdy Hicks (London), The National Media Museum (Bradford), Julie Saul (New York) and Howard Yezerski (Boston).
The collective became involved in an exhibition of Black History Month styled portraits for Black History Month 2010. Well attended by Southampton’s black community, as well as representatives from the City Council, Solent University and Bath Spa University, a small catalogue was produced and included images and an essay by Catherine Wright.
2010/11 has seen Sharon Lloyd deliver a paper at the 2nd Global Conference: Fashion, exploring critical issues and Markham at Writings of intimacy in the Twentieth and Twenty-first Century at Loughborough University. Anyan collaborated with stylist Philip Clarke (assisted by students) on a series of styled images produced using dresses from the Micol Fontana Couture Archive, Rome. Images have been used by the archive and shown on the BBC website.
Anyan is currently working on a commission for the John Hansard Gallery and Art at the Heart Southampton to create an installation for exhibition in September 2011. Both Lloyd and Anyan have begun blogs that explore the areas of image construction, fashion styling, make-up and hair design and the culture of image and this year will see the solent stylist research collective website go live.
The future sees Markham curate an exhibition for LGBT History Month 2011 at The Bargate Gallery, Southampton. He alongside Lloyd and Donna Bevan (performing fashion research group) will launch a new e-publication - The 5th Character. This cross research group collaboration also sees the opening of an academic symposium: Construct – The Body in Flux (April 2011).
Recent outputs/publications: