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Ashley Heath

Arena Homme+ Fall 2011 Covers by David Sims [Pictures]
david sims

First Look — David Sims's Punky, Digitized Covers For Arena Homme+

>> "I feel the men's magazines lack energy.
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Arena Homme+ Fall 2011 Covers by David Sims [Pictures]

>> "I feel the men's magazines lack energy. Everything feels so affected and fey and not real somehow," Ashley Heath, Arena Homme+ editorial director, proclaims. "These new covers are just an attempt to do something a bit different and eye-catching on the newsstand."

The magazine's two Fall 2011 covers — the issue hits newsstands tomorrow — are a hint at the 30-page portfolio inside, which David Sims shot, employing his friends, assistants, and models who caught his eye. "[The covers] come from this quite raw, punky, digital space," Heath explains. "I feel there's more reality in David playing about with shapes and colors and cheap computer effects — deconstructing fashion photography if you like — than there is in the status quo . . . You look at a painter like [Gerhard] Richter and how brutal he is; he'll switch from a beautiful canvas to thinking, 'How can I do the total opposite of that?' I think there's an element of that with David Sims's new work. He's handing in stunning fashion images to Grace Coddington [at Vogue], then working on playful, experimental stuff for Arena Homme+."

Arena Homme Plus Fall 2011 Arena Homme Plus Fall 2011
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POP Covers for Fall 2011 - Marina Abramovic and Freja Beha
pop magazine

The Four POP Covers of Fall 2011, Featuring Marina Abramovic, Freja Beha Erichsen, and Georgia May Jagger

>> For Fall 2011, POP is having a Marina Abramović moment; the magazine tapped the performance artist to collaborate and appear on all three covers of the new issue — one of which also features model Freja Beha.
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POP Magazine Autumn/Winter 2011

>> For Fall 2011, POP is having a Marina Abramović moment; the magazine tapped the performance artist to collaborate and appear on all three covers of the new issue — one of which also features model Freja Beha. "We'd been wanting to do a cover project with Marina for a while now," editorial director Ashley Heath explained. "The link-up with Freja seemed very right somehow. The dark hair/dark sexuality angle, and the fact they're both uncompromising and very choosy in what they do."

 

Shot in high-contrast black and white, each of the three Marina covers feature a different vignette — in one, the artist poses with a mini version of herself; in another, the mini-Marina looks solemly over Freja's shoulder. The third cover — a limited-edition hardback — features only Marina's upside-down face, in full mime-style makeup.

 

Click through to see all four of the new covers and to get the inside perspective — as provided by editorial director Ashley Heath — about each one.

 

Images courtesy of POP

 

POP Magazine Autumn/Winter 2011 POP Magazine Autumn/Winter 2011 POP Magazine Autumn/Winter 2011 POP Magazine Autumn/Winter 2011
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See All Four Covers From Max Pearmain and Ashley Heath's New Edition of Arena Homme Plus
steven klein

See All Four Covers From Max Pearmain and Ashley Heath's New Edition of Arena Homme Plus

>> With its new editorial team, the biannual Arena Homme Plus has become something of a brother publication to POP — they now share the same editorial director, Ashley Heath, and the magazine's new editor in chief, Max Pearmain, used to be acting menswear editor at POP.
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>> With its new editorial team, the biannual Arena Homme Plus has become something of a brother publication to POP — they now share the same editorial director, Ashley Heath, and the magazine's new editor in chief, Max Pearmain, used to be acting menswear editor at POP.

Heath and Pearmain's first edition of Arena Homme Plus hits newsstands next Monday, April 11 in the UK (and Monday, April 18 for the rest of the world), boasting four different covers, one each playfully dubbed "Stephen," "Stevie," "Steve," or "Steven."

"The men's fashion magazine market has become so staid and predictable," Pearmain notes of his vision for the magazine. "It was actually more inspiring in many ways 15 years ago when there was just L'Uomo, Vogue Hommes, and Arena Homme Plus . . . We wanted to inject some surprise and some passion and some playfulness back into this world."

Pearmain himself styled New Order's Stephen Morris for the "Stephen" cover, artist Clunie Reid created scrawling artwork for the "Stevie" cover (left), David Sims photographed the "Steve" cover, and Steven Klein, of course, captured the "Steven" cover. The Klein version of the issue — or Homme+ PLUS as it has been christened — comes with 45 extra pages of more "hardcore" content. Some of it has already been posted online (NSFW) and will only be sold in selected independent retailers and online.

The move back to Arena Homme Plus is something of a coming home for Heath, who used to edit the magazine himself: "It's been fun to return. I really built that magazine on blood, sweat, and tears back in the day, so it was great that David Sims, Steven Klein, and others from the glory days returned and contributed such strong, strange work. There's this sense of travel, of art and design, of the way the world is changing . . . We changed the paper stocks a bit and did that 'special sections' thing I'm into recently. The magazine is still niche, but it will appeal to a broader cross-section of stylish men."

Alongside contributions from Sims and Klein, the new issue also features work by Wolfgang Tillmans, Collier Schorr, and Ari Marcopoulos.

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Dasha Zhukova Has Resigned as Editor of POP Magazine
katie grand

Dasha Zhukova Has Resigned as Editor of POP Magazine

>> Dasha Zhukova, who joined POP as editor-in-chief in February 2009, has resigned from the position, reports Hilary Alexander.
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>> Dasha Zhukova, who joined POP as editor-in-chief in February 2009, has resigned from the position, reports Hilary Alexander. No further details have been released. [@HilaryAlexander]

UPDATE: A POP spokesman says Zhukova is leaving to focus on digital publishing projects in the arts, and the magazine will now fall under POP editorial director Ashley Heath. “My time at POP has been a transformative experience that I am extremely proud of,” Zhukova said. “It has afforded me the chance to collaborate with some of the greatest creative minds in the world and I’m thankful to Ashley Heath and Bauer Media for the opportunity. I’m now excited to move on and build something from the ground up.” The spokesman added that Zhukova’s final issue had twice as many advertisers and nearly three times the ad pages as when founder Katie Grand was editing the magazine. [WWD]

POP Plays With Logo, Launches New Website
pop magazine

POP Plays With Logo, Launches New Website

>> POP magazine's official relaunch with Dasha Zhukova at the helm doesn't happen until September, but they just launched a new website, ThePOP.com, that offers a few clues about what's to come.  Last time we checked, the new team was planning on keeping the logo the same, but up on the site's holding page is a new rendition by former i-D art director Scott King.
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>> POP magazine's official relaunch with Dasha Zhukova at the helm doesn't happen until September, but they just launched a new website, ThePOP.com, that offers a few clues about what's to come.  Last time we checked, the new team was planning on keeping the logo the same, but up on the site's holding page is a new rendition by former i-D art director Scott King.

Also posted is a "manifesto" for the magazine, which details that the new website "will provide a fascinating insight into the creation of each issue but, more importantly, it will reflect the POP team's creative outlook and ongoing projects. . . . [It] will be both an online content platform for the magazine, as well as a mixed media carrier and blogging network for POP’s chosen contributors, guests and partners."

This is already a change for the magazine — the last era, under Katie Grand, had very little online presence.  The manifesto lists that the website will be launched in early Summer, and POP's editorial director Ashley Heath confirmed by email that it "will be far more fully fleshed out in the next few weeks" — in the meantime, they're taking emails for newsletter updates.

As for the logo . . . »

Daphne Guinness Drops POP — Mostly; Ashley Heath Talks Supposed Dasha Drama
pop magazine

Daphne Guinness Drops POP — Mostly; Ashley Heath Talks Supposed Dasha Drama

>> Even though POP magazine doesn't officially relaunch until September, it's a hot topic these days, especially with the supposed drama of Dasha Zhukova's appointment as the new editor-in-chief and Daphne Guinness's worry over being announced as part of the editorial board.  Today, Daphne blogged on the matter, calling the reports "so FUNNY .
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>> Even though POP magazine doesn't officially relaunch until September, it's a hot topic these days, especially with the supposed drama of Dasha Zhukova's appointment as the new editor-in-chief and Daphne Guinness's worry over being announced as part of the editorial board.  Today, Daphne blogged on the matter, calling the reports "so FUNNY . . . . It was flattering but not true I am afraid.  A complete misunderstanding!"

We caught up with POP's editorial director Ashley Heath this morning — he confirms that Daphne has asked not to be on the editorial board, and is instead "working on a very interesting and exciting special project for us."  Also on the plate for discussion — POP's logo: to change or not to change, first cover clues, and when the freelance fashion and creative teams will be announced.

What do you think about the reception Dasha's appointment is receiving in Milan?

"The reception from the fashion industry towards Dasha has been universally positive. As soon as she talks to anyone the fact that she is extremely intelligent, cultured, driven and positive becomes obvious. Dasha has a very strong sense of style and a strong point of view on the modern world and on magazines. She is incredible in every meeting. The advertisers are thrilled about her appointment, but then they realise an intelligent international perspective is key now. But I've no idea how the rest of the magazine media responded to the announcement. Editors and journalists aren't exactly known for their universal goodwill are they? But the front row figures I care about all grabbed me and said, 'Wow, this is really interesting, this is actually an exciting prospect.'"

Daphne's "indicated that being a part of the editorial board is not a good idea" »

POP's Got a New Editor-in-Chief: Dasha Zhukova
pop magazine

POP's Got a New Editor-in-Chief: Dasha Zhukova

>> POP has a new editor-in-chief to replace Katie Grand — as rumored, it's 27-year-old Dasha Zhukova, who has no previous editorial experience but is well-known in the fashion and art worlds as designer of Kova & T and founder of Moscow's largest exhibition venue, the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture.
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>> POP has a new editor-in-chief to replace Katie Grand — as rumored, it's 27-year-old Dasha Zhukova, who has no previous editorial experience but is well-known in the fashion and art worlds as designer of Kova & T and founder of Moscow's largest exhibition venue, the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture.  

Ashley Heath, who originally conceived and co-launched POP with Katie Grand in 1999-2000, will serve as editorial director, helping Dasha with the reinvention of the magazine, the launch of a new website, a new London office — Katie Grand complained about the old POP offices regularly — as well as fostering an installation space in Berlin and a partnership with The Saatchi Gallery in London.

The magazine — first issue launches Sept. 1 — appears set to be more focused on art in addition to fashion than it was under Katie Grand's direction — according to Zhukova's statement: "We are working hard on a complete revamp of the magazine in order to provide a broader point of view focusing also on art, contemporary culture and the globalisation of all things pop-related."

Apparently "names of old-school editors, creative directors, and even pop stars and fashion designers were thrown around" before Dasha was settled upon, but now the focus is on recruiting a freelance team, which Ashley and Dasha interviewed together.  No word on whether Dasha's best friend Olympia Scarry will serve as creative director as rumored, but an editorial board is already in place to provide guidance and inspiration, including Daphne Guinness; art director Julia Restoin-Roitfeld; artist and film director Sam Taylor-Wood; design critic Alice Rawsthorn; artist and art director Peter Saville; Rebecca Wilson, head of development at Saatchi Gallery; and David Davies, managing director of POP.
*image: source