When we talk about trend forecasting to clients and students we always emphasis the importance of high/low culture. On any given day in the USP studio conversations can range from prime minister’s question time, to what’s on at the Tate Modern, to the latest episode of the Kardashians (there is a lot of Kardashian chat). Awareness of cross-cultural references, being a little bit nosey and not being a snob, are all key attributes for a good trend forecaster. Sharing and discussing our inspiration helps us formulate our ideas and eventually add them into our creative process.
Working from home can be a real challenge for creative teams as Zoom/Teams etc. don’t allow for those seemingly inconsequential conversations that can escalate into bigger ideas. Staying creative in difficult times can be tricky, as budgets are cut, emphasis is on commerciality and taking risks is discouraged.
With all of this in mind, we will be discussing the role of trend forecasting and how it has changed over time – evolving from an underground secret society (we like to call ourselves the trend illuminati) into something everything thinks they can do. We don’t think it’s actually either of those things, but it does take certain skills and processes to make it work effectively – and we are up for sharing them with you in our upcoming webinar on November the 17th. You can register here.
In the meantime, here are are a few of the high/low things we have been discussing lately.
- KARDASHIAN KULTURE
Kardashian Kolloquium on Instagram and TikTok is the kind of highbrow thinking applied to lowbrow ‘kulture‘ we are obsessed with. MJ Corey is a psychotherapist and writer based in New York, who uses material from the show to draw conclusions about American society, the entertainment industry, the cult of celebrity and today’s media landscape. Her analysis of reality television through the lens of sociology and philosophy offers an academic approach to content that can often be dismissed as superficial, thereby legitimizing it in an understandable way.
And while we are on the subject – wasn’t the sisters dressing up as their best Kris Jenner for her 67th birthday party the most iconic thing ever?
- REAL HUSBANDS OF BEVERLY HILLS
Colour Editor Laura is a huge housewives fan – massive – she watches them all – in fact we were a little worried her obsession went too far when she was on mat leave and started calling her baby Giggy (if you know you know). RHOBH (Real Housewives of Beverley Hills) is her OG go-to and she has turned quite a few of the team into fans too. Our favourite family are the Umansky/Richards who seem relatively wholesome for Hollywood royalty – Kyle is Paris Hilton’s Aunt and that’s all you need to know. But our hearts lie with her husband, Mauricio Umansky, who seems like the perfect man – handsome, kind, loves his family and of course rich, very rich.
Not just any old husband of a housewife, he now has his own reality show, Buying Beverly Hills featuring his estate agency – quirkily called The Agency (!) – and its cast of characters. Think Selling Sunset, but with people you might actually want to sell your house – well some of them maybe. Poor Alexia (one of Kyle and Mauricio’s daughters) is trying to prove she’s more than just a little rich girl who doesn’t know how to do a days work, whilst step-daughter Farrah Brittany – who currently holds the record for selling the highest number of homes in the USA that cost above $20 million dollars – is a little less fun and a lot more spikey – and not just because of her extensive fillers.
- HEARTBREAKING DRAMA
On more of an intellectual level, Mary who also works on colour has been loving Somewhere Boy on C4, a story about a boy kept cloistered in a remote house for 18 years. Blending gothic, thriller and family drama. Beautifully shot, wonderfully acted and poignantly told, you will definitely want to binge watch this one.
- INSTA INSPO
Instagram is obviously one of our main sources of inspiration and we are constantly sharing our favourite feeds.
Lately we have been loving…
– Fashion Illustrator & Print Designer @helendebullock‘s work with luxury brands, in particular her mark-making workshop with Chanel – we love the freedom and expression of her drawings.
– @emmajanepalin‘s tour of @lindsey_isla and @georgepelham’s house. The clutter free, pastel-hued walls, contrasted skirting, two-tone details and bright woodwork create a colourful sanctuary and super-stylised decor.
– @alissanienke studio create materials and installations that enhance and positively influence your mood through playing with the different senses. Their sensorial Spaces for Well-Being was one of favourite exhibitions at Dutch Design Week.
– Raw Colour is one of our go-to’s for colour inspiration – we loved their recent collaboration with @sancal, also at Dutch Design week, a series of incredibly comfy rounded sofas in playful colour schemes that challenge your conventional ideas of furniture, re-thinking them as pieces of art.
- REAL LIFE INSPO
Lifestyle & Production editor Vienna is a ceramics freak (well more of a fan than an actual freak) and is really looking forward to seeing Strange Clay at the Hayward Gallery. Featuring 23 international artists working across recent decades, the exhibition examines the possibilities of ceramics, from small abstract works, through to large-scale installations, with topics ranging from architecture, to social justice, the body, the domestic and the organic.
Vienna also recently loved Richard Mosse’s new Broken Spectre exhibition at 180 Studios at The Strand, which explores the climate emergency through photography and a poignant 74 minute film.
And the whole team will be making a trip to see a contemporary interiors concept The House by Mah. The new interior space and online destination for interiors, art and bespoke design is luckily right by our studio, but if you want to visit be sure to make an appointment first at:
studio@thehousebymah.com
2B Vyner Street
E2 9DG London
United Kingdom
- CONSPIRACY LISTENING
Creative Director Jane, loves a podcast when walking to work and has been deeply involved in catfishing, conspiracy theories and life-changing moments over the past few weeks.
Sweet Bobby is the kind of podcast that will keep you up all night frantically Googling details of everyone involved. This fascinating six-part series hosted by Alexi Mostrous follows a radio presenter named Kirat who falls for Bobby, a cardiologist she meets on social media. They enter into a tumultuous relationship and, a decade after their first interaction, she finds out something that will change her life – and not in a good way. Not a new podcast, but definitely worth a listen if you haven’t already, this word-of-mouth sensation that has inspired countless think pieces and conversations around coercive control.
Hoaxed is the newest podcast also by Alexi Mostrous and tells the terrifying tale of a satanic abuse hoax. Multi-layered and sinister, this mind-blowing expose, explains how some crazy online vigilante types are involved in almost every current internet conspiracy frenzy and just how dangerous they can be.
In a more positive note, Changes, by DJ & Presenter Annie Macmanus features artists, writers, musicians and a whole host of fascinating people, as well as the biggest changes they have had in their lives. Looking at how they confront change, react to it and how it eventually defines them, their fascinating stories illustrate how activating change has never been more important.
Because we might be in danger of getting too highbrow – listen to Rylan on Dish with Nick Grimshaw and Angela Harntett – it literally had Jane laughing out loud on the 206 bus, which would normally make her look slightly crazy – but we are in Hackney, so nothing to see here.
- #TEAMSCARLETTE
And lastly, as true reality fans obviously we LOVE I’m A Celebrity, and this year we are more invested than ever, as Scarlette Douglas is related to our very own Fashion Director Jo. We loved her on A Place in the Sun and most recently The Worst House on the Street with her brother Stuart, and we think she’s going to provide an amazing positive vibe in the jungle.
Can you imagine watching a family member eat a kangaroo penis – mmm some of them – possibly.
