SWINGING LONDON - newsletter for Elegantly Papered - May 2015

THE SWINGING LONDON 'FOR TRENDIES' MAG

We've just been working on a huge Swinging Sixties research project at the Elegantly Papered archive - more on that to follow soon. But for now, we have a super special collection of London Life magazine just in this week, great score! They're jam packed with fashion images photographed by Brian Duffy, Terence Donovan, Peter Knapp and the like. It's a compendium of Swinging London - even Sixties icon Jean Shrimpton was guest editor at times! It really is a gem, all be it a short-lived one. And we're lucky enough to have found some, we just had to share!

London Life was art directed by David Hillman, the man who went on to do the same for the more widely known Nova from 1969 until its 1975 demise. We have a full set of Nova at the EP HQ too - here are some covers created under Hillman's art direction, pretty great we'd say...

The infamous Duffy 'How to undress for your husband' shoot is inside this 1971 issue. Model: Amanda Lear.

The cover and editorial was styled by Caroline Baker and photographed by Hans Feurer. Army surplus wear to the max!

Ian Dury

Before his genius as a wordsmith and performer was discovered, Ian Dury, chief blockhead, was also adept with a pen as an illustrator. He worked with David Hillman for a brief stint at London life. Hillman describes the mag as a "what's on for trendies." (Source: Creative Review) Here's some super pop, colourful and fun examples of Dury's spectacular artwork for London Life...

Illustration by Ian Dury for London Life - 1965 — Illustration by Ian Dury for *London Life* - 1965

Dury didn’t spend long enough as an illustrator as far as we’re concerned, such talent! Rumour has it, pop genius Sir Peter Blake played a part in getting Dury the London Life job after teaching him at Walthamstow School of Art.

And...we just found this movie star collage illustrated by Ian Dury in a sixties issue of The Sunday Times Magazine. So bold!

Ian Dury illustration for The Sunday Times Magazine

It turns out Mark Boxer, the founding editor of The Sunday Times Magazine, was actually the mastermind behind London Life too. Small world! The piece of artwork above was exhibited at the Ian Dury: More Than Fair exhibition held at the Royal College of Art in 2013.