{"product_id":"ewen-spencer-while-you-were-sleeping-1998-2000-9788862087698","title":"Ewen Spencer: While you Were Sleeping 1998 - 2000","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnd of a century...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the late 1990s, as a graduate from art school, I began making pictures for my beloved \u003cem\u003eSleazenation\u003c\/em\u003e magazine and, in particular, for the infamous listing pages at the rear of the magazine that were called \"Savoir Vivre\" (loosely translated as 'to know how to live'!). The images were made in black and white and were immensely candid, full of characters that seemed to be everywhere at that time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe images on the pages were essentially describing to those who liked to go clubbing what they actually looked like. For those in the provinces who desired the decadent lifestyle of the urban cool, it was a glimpse of what they could eventually look like. For the international reader in the fashion capitals of Paris, Milan, and Rome, it kept them wondering what on earth was going on. London was at the epicentre of a cultural boom. Small clubs, parties, and discos were aplenty in venues from North to South, and I was in a minicab and night bus taking in 3-4 of an evening. My weekends were a write-off, and I slept most of Monday trying to recover. Here are the spoils; while my young son was sleeping, I was involved in capturing a period in time that was filled with love, lust, and messy authenticity, carefree and devoid of today's global, big tech cynicism. Nothing here was perceived or played out. It was done with wide-eyed hope and wonder, and I'm not sure we can ever return to this place, or at least not for a good while.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs my world as a photographer has expanded throughout the capitals of Europe and across the Atlantic, shooting campaigns and fashion editorials for \u003cem\u003eV\u003c\/em\u003e magazine, \u003cem\u003ePOP\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eVogue Hommes\u003c\/em\u003e, I can look at these pictures with perhaps greater objectivity. My son, now in his early 20s, sits beside me and discusses those times and how they differ from today as he negotiates the beginning of his creative journey.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThese pictures aren't about Teds, Skinheads, Northern Soul, Acid House, or Jungle and Garage. They're not about Nu Metal or South London blackout clubs, but they are all here alongside high street carpet clubs because here in the UK, we know how to throw a party. We work hard and play hard, grace under pressure, street style into high fashion. To quote Ray Davies, I ask, 'Where have all the good times gone'?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eI remain friends with many of the characters that were my colleagues at \u003cem\u003eSleazenation\u003c\/em\u003e at that time. Steve Beale and Justin Quirk were the irreverent editorial team eventually cherry-picked by Emap and Conde Nast to become significant editors and creatives, respectively. The photo editor who gave me my break out of art school was Steve Lazarides, who went on a few years later to represent and champion a graffiti artist called Banksy. The magazine's firebrand designer was for a while Scott King, who immediately won awards for his controversial front covers and designs. I clearly remember meeting Wolfgang Tillmans at one of his exhibition openings in Herald Street in what must have been 1999. He raved about the pictures we had been making for the magazine and enjoyed the overall subversive sentiment. I was enthused and still am to this day.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eI'd suggest many of these collaborators work alongside one another to help articulate and visualise this group of pictures into a book. Most of the images have never been seen before, and I believe an international audience would be hungry for the authenticity found in an era that perhaps should have known better. I'm glad we didn't.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47383791796460,"sku":"9788862087698","price":100.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9301013485343.jpg?v=1773380699","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/ewen-spencer-while-you-were-sleeping-1998-2000-9788862087698","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}