Mad Video Music Awards 2016

Yesterday evening it was the 13th time for the Mad Video Music Awards, this year sponsored by by Coca-Cola and Viva Wallet!

The Mad Video Music Awards by Coca-Cola and Viva Wallet showed once again why it is the most successful musical event of Greece.
My Music My Story was this year's motto of the awards.

Mad Video Music Awards 2016 by Coca-Cola and Viva Wallet, opened the doors at 18:30, welcoming all those who support the event over the years.
Themis Georgantas, host for 13 years, was on stage to present the event with his characteristic style.

Sakis Rouvas opened the evening with his song "OLA" (Everything)  and a unique show.

Eleni Foureira, Anastasios Rammos and Konstantinos Angelopoulos created an explosive cover of Taste The Feeling, the song written by Avicci for the new campaign of Coca-Cola.

Among the many artists were Elena Paparizou, Despoina Vandi, Anna Vissi, Nino, Kostas Martakis, Katerina Stikoudi and Konstantinos Koufos.

Demy shared the stage with Poli Genova and sang together «If love was a crime», the song took the 5th position at Eurovision 2016 for Bulgaria.

A special moment in the evening was the appearance on the scene of the amazing Imany, accompaniment by a guitar, which mesmerized the audience with her voice and justified the fame that accompanies her as one of the most important new voices of world music scene.

Anna Vissi received a special award for her contribution of 40 years in the music industry.

The official track of Mad VMA 2016 by Coca-Cola and Viva Wallet belonged to Alex Leon.

Before the program with the artists kicked off at the entrance all participants had the opportunity to join the preshow by Mad Radio 106.2 and have fun with the interactive games and gadgets by the sponsors and supporters of the evening, while enjoying their Coca Cola's.

See the award winners on MAD TV.

Photos courtesy of Studio Panoulis.

Elke van Zuylen debuts during 25th Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam

Elke van Zuylen will present her first collection during the 25th Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam.  Her label is called NoNoCake and on the 9th of July she will present the collection "The Shy-Movement: Confusion in exuberant fashion creations".

The collection tells an intriguing story about shyness. There's more to shy people than we see at first. Behind the quiet, serene exterior there can hide an exuberant and colorful personality.

The designs of Elke have been created for women who dare to be themselves, to have something to say and who propagate with their clothing: colorful, tough and feminine.

Elke van Zuylen - fashion illustration

Because of the designers graphic background she plays a lot with prints, which she designed herself.
Elke wants to emphasize  strongly that the collection is a celebration for shy people.

Elke takes her inspiration from the Asian culture, with a penchant for Korea. This is reflected in her collection, which she combines elements of traditional Korean costumes with tough elements. Japanese influences can be seen in Elke's use of the kimono, a garment that is currently seen a lot in the Netherlands.

Can't wait to see it on the 9th of July!

For more information visit www.elkevanzuylen.nl

Marie de la Roche Pre Fall 2016 handbags

Marie de la Roche shows us that a handbag hasn't to follow conventional bag standards. She turns these handbags into pieces of wearable art.

The handbag line focuses on premium artisanal craftsmanship with haute couture details, always expressed in a really fun way. For this season’s inspiration they used the idea of a deconstructed Sultan’s garden emphasized by playful texture elements.

Here a glimpse of her preview 2016 collection.

About Marie
Marie is a dreamer who finds inspiration in the many places she calls home. Her work has been influenced by the different global ideas of beauty and beautification of one self. She found her call in creating complex beautiful forms whilst breaking the mold of what is known as traditional accessories in the luxury market.

Inspired by how handbags are universal and democratic, always adding extra dash to one's magic style recipe, she wanted to create a lovely piece for you to treasure for years to come. And so she set out to create a different brand where everyone gets to be their most exotic and confident self, a brand where its items are so special its owner falls out of any category and instead she becomes universally cool, universally chic, universally more of that who she already is.

Be Bold or go home is Marie's motto, enjoy life and show the world your colors is her ethos, always focusing in fantastic quality and exquisite materials.

For more information visit www.mariedelaroche.com 

Fashion Week Amsterdam brings fashion to the city

From Friday,  the 1st of July through Monday, the 11th of July it is all about fashion in Amsterdam as the 25th edition of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam is scheduled.

The upcoming summer edition is the silver anniversary of the Amsterdam Fashion Week. The first six days of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam will start with the OFF SCHEDULE program that brings fashion to the heart of the city to connect with the general public.

OFF SCHEDULE 
The program starts in The Loft Tower of Amsterdam with Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam Dynamic Store. The Dynamic Store is a unique pop-up store where different designers present their collections, so high-end fashion is accessible to everyone. Furthermore, the dynamic program consists of fashion installations, interactive experiences, and other informational activities. Dynamic store reflects the new vision of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam, a connection between the Catwalk Program and OFF SCHEDULE program.

Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam Dynamic Store will kick off on Friday, July 1st with an interactive presentation of designer Olaf Hussein. Valerio Zeno will leading a panel discussion, in which Olaf talks about the challenges of doing business in the fashion industry.
ALEXANDRA FRIDA also presents her latest collection BEATRICE, which is for sale afterwards.

Olaf Hussein @ Fashion Week Amsterdam - photo courtesy of FashionWeek Nederland

On Saturday, Judith van Vliet presents her latest collection Raw Materials during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam Dynamic Store. The show tells an inspiring story on the basis of the design and the music is accompanied by singer Marle Thomson.
Saturday evening is about Elvira 't Hart. Elvira combines her passion for drawing with fashion and tells how she makes her sketches to portable designs.

Judith van Vliet during 23rd Amsterdam Fashion Week - photo courtesy of FashionWeek Nederland 

On Sunday starts Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam Dynamic Store with a presentation of the new collection NUTS Aike Buiting. Last September Aike impressed  the jury Kunstbende. with her first collection. Now she presents her new collection of used materials and natural dyes, which is designed under the mentorship of Joris Suk of the MAISON FAUX.

The Dynamic Store is open daily from 14:00 to 20:00 on the 16th floor of the Tower A'DAM in collaboration with the designers Acreati, Afriek by Lisa Konno, Aike Buiting, Alexandra Frida, Alix the Label, Anbasja Whites Antoine Peters, Astrid Elisee, Bound Amsterdam Chris van den Elzen, Elvira 't Hart, Fernanda Fernandes, House of Mulani, Ilke Cop, Judith van Vliet, Lisa Konno, Lhana Marlet, Olaf Hussein SCHUIT, VJR Jewels Winde Rienstra . WOW Amsterdam is represented by Tijme Veldt, Ting Gong and Vita Stasiukynaite.

Inspiring fashion events in the heart of Amsterdam
Besides the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam Dynamic Store three other events will take place in Amsterdam. On Monday, the 4th of July there is a special collaboration between Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam OFF SCHEDULE and Foam photography museum. Here David Laport shows his collection with in the background the exhibition of Helmut Newton.

The Hoxton Hotel Amsterdam welcomes on Tuesday, the 5th of July Lola + Lou on record. Lola + Lou invites its guests to experience their brand identity by means of photography, film and illustration. The evening promises a relaxed meeting with founder Malou van den Broek while sipping a glass of Prosecco.

Esther Haamke explores the connections and differences between fashion and other art forms. On Wednesday, the 6th of July Esther presents her collection "Enter Subtropia", inspired by the Japanese Shirushi Banten clothing and coral in the underwater world.
Along with a performance by Kiri Mioqi and video artist Eefje Vaghi Esther transforms her show into a subtropical experience.

Esther Haamke @ 24th Amsterdam Fashion Week

Fashion & Design Festival in Arnhem

In Arnhem until the 3rd of July, 2016, it is all about fashion & design. With events, exhibitions, workshops, lectures, parties and performances.

An interesting exhibition by dutch fashion designer Bas Kosters in Museum Arnhem "I WANT IT TO BE SOFT", a tableau gigant, the Get Fed art fair, fashion shows by ArtEz students, a ladies night, the election of Mister International Netherlands and for the fifth time the Arnhem Stock Days are just a few events of the festival.

During the Arnhem Stock Days more than 130 designers and high-end retailers open the doors of their pantries. For four days, from the 23rd until the 26th of June, you can go for fabrics, haberdashery, samples and prototypes throughout Arnhem. But also for clothing, jewelry, bags and accessories from top designers for great prizes.
Designers are there during the Arnhem Stock Days in all shapes and sizes. Established fashion houses, young fashion and design labels, fresh graduates and high-end Arnhem retailers offer their stocks. Both fashion and product design pass. From hand-made semi-finished product. It provides a colorful offer for the visitor. And that's what the Arnhem Stock Days is slightly different than any other fashion and design markets: an accessible event with high quality.

Arnhem Stock Days

For all the events visit http://www.fdfarnhem.nl/evenementen/! (in dutch)

H&M presents Studio AW2016

Tuesday evening in the center of Athens H&M presented its Studio Autumn/Winter 2016 collection to the press.

The womenwear's collection is all about feminine power, folklore and romance. Elegant and full of unique pieces with details, special cuts and embroidery.

Strongly accented shoulders and a narrow waist, the hourglass, is back.  The long-sleeved draped dresses give a feeling of glamour and softness.  Swedish folklore inspires silhouettes, floral motifs and decorative elements.

"This collection of H&M Studio exudes a new femininity. It's about women's strength and power, with a fresh version of folklore and romance. It is very refined and at the same time very authentic, "says Ann-Sofie Johansson, Creative Director of H&M.

H&M presented also its menswear and kidswear.

During the press preview Tamta, Katerina Papoutsaki and Dimitris Alexandrou were spotted in the newest collection of H&M Studio.
Here a glimpse of the press preview.

Tamta

Katerina Papoutsaki

Dimitris Alexandrou

Alex Kavdas & Penelopy Kapnoula

Athens Photo Festival 2016

Today is the opening of the Athens Photo Festival!

The main exhibitions of the Athens Photo Festival 2016 will be inaugurated today, Thursday the 9th of June 2016, at 8:30 p.m. at the Benaki Museum, featuring 85 emerging and established artists from 25 countries.

Athens Photo Festival is the leading international festival of photography in Southeastern Europe. Exploring critical issues relevant to our times, our programme works within an international, national and local context, encompassing a variety of exhibitions and activities designed to reflect the diversity of contemporary photography, and to create opportunities for exchange of ideas, artistic expression and international engagement.

The 2016 main exhibitions will take place from 9 June until 31 July 2016, at the Benaki Museum, presenting a wide spectrum of works of both emerging and established artists from all over the world. At the core of the festival is a range of events, including international portfolio reviews, screenings, talks and discussions, workshops, and participatory projects. In addition to the main venue-based programme, the festival encourages local community involvement through satellite exhibitions in various locations in the city. The curatorial team aims to develop a programme of exhibitions for 2016, creating a dialogue between different thematic ideas in relation to this year’s theme, under the title [mis/dis]placed.


ARTISTS & EXHIBITIONS

UNSTABLE FIELDS //
Maxim Dondyuk (UA), Nick Hannes (BE), Martin Kollar (SK), Dimitris Michalakis (GR), Pietro Paolini (IT), Emine Gozde Sevim (TK), Issa Touma (SY) / Paradox (NL), Panos Tsagaris (GR), Apostolos Zerdevas (GR)

REFUGEES ROUTES //
Leila Alaoui (FR/MA), Isabelle Arvers (FR), Miia Autio (FI), Andrea Gjestvang (NO), Samuel Gratacap (FR), Sam Ivin (UK), Sofie Amalie Klougart (DK), Dimitris Koilalous (GR), Giorgos Moutafis (GR), Myrto Papadopoulos (GR), Nikos Pilos (GR), Aida Silvestri (UK)

EXTREME ANTITHESIS // Curated by Natassa Markidou
Andrea & Magda (FR), Philip Cheung (CA), Kostas Kapsianis (GR), Aleksey Kondratyev (US/KG), Laurent Kronental (FR), Julien Lombardi (FR), Marinos Tsagkarakis (GR) ·

METAPHORS // Curated by Costis Antoniadis
Roger Ballen (SA), Alvaro Deprit (ES), Alexander Mendelevich (IL), Charlie Simokaitis (US), Paul Thulin (US), Margot Wallard (FR), Marta Zgierska (PL)

LIFE TRACKS // Curated by Demosthenes Agrafiotis
Yoann Cimier (FR), Karolin Klüppel (DE), Alvaro Laiz (ES), Namsa Leuba (CH), Polixeni Papapetrou (AU), Klaus Pichler (AT), Laurence Rasti (CH), Danilla Tkachenko (RU), Miriam Stanke (DE), Sanne De Wilde (BE)

ZONES OF ERROR AND DECAY // Curated by Thanasis Moutsopoulos
Mathieu Asselin (FR), Carlos Ayesta and Guillaume Bression (FR), Alejandro Chaskielberg (AR), Catherine Leutenegger (CH), Kai Loeffelbein (DE), Kazuma Obara (JP)

SITES OF MEMORY // Curated by Penelope Petsini
Artemis Alcalay, Fani Bitou, Io Chaviara, Petros Efstathiadis, Pavlos Fysakis, Stergios Karavatos, Viktor Koen, Nikos Markou, Fotis Milionis, Nikos Panayotopoulos, Avraam Pavlidis, Paris Petridis, Simos Saltiel, John Stathatos, Nikolas Ventourakis, Pasqua Vorgia

YOUNG GREEK PHOTOGRAPHERS 2016 // Maria Antoniadou, Thalia Galanopoulou, Yannis Karpouzis, Elena Kollatou and Leonidas Toumpanos, Chloe Kritharas-Devienne, Mari Masouridou, Maria Mavropoulou, Thodoris Papadakis, Yannis Papanikos, Dimitris Sakalakis, Orestis Seferoglou, Alexei Siozov, Artemis Skeva, Pavlos Stamatiadis, Katerina Tsakiris, Yannis Zindrilis

Opening hours: Thursday, Sunday: 10:00 - 18:00 Friday, Saturday: 10:00 - 22:00.

For more information visit Photofestival.gr 

Vingino opens in Zoetermeer

Yesterday Vingino opened its newest shop in the city center of Zoetermeer. A clothing shop for the young ones, starting with size 62! Cool jeans, colourful shirts, happy socks, swimwear and hot sunglasses! Vingino is a kid's jeans brand full of richness and inspiration.

Fashionable, rugged and distinctive: these three words best describe the new shop in Zoetermeer. Eye-catching details, well-tailored models and innovative washings create a unique look for the jeans collections in the shop.

Besides denim Vingino also has a broad collections of tops and jackets. Supplemented with underwear, swimwear, footwear, eyewear and accessoires.

And I agree with the slogan of Vingino: Quality nevers goes out of style!