In antithesis to the archetypal post-New Year-boozing-continuation (Us? New Years abstinence? Never!) we, instead, got our cultural heads on and went along to the brilliant Fashion and Textile Museum with the aim of learning something. To be specific: listen to a panel discussion on the role of the photographer in a fashion and lifestyle brand. Prada photographer Philip Meech, Laura Ashley biographer Martin Wood and the FTM's curator Dennis Northdruft threw their ideas in the mix.

Martin Wood (author of Laura Ashley) got things rolling; focusing on images that Jane Ashley (daughter of the aforementioned) shot for her mothers iconic brand from the late sixties onwards which worked to transform the Laura Ashley brand and solidify it's aesthetic. The classic imagery of Ashley's Victorian romanticism came to life with Wood's personal insights as well as input from Jane herself. The strength of the images and their power to nostalgically evoke a bygone era was evident in spades and Martin's confirmation that Laura herself was not a designer, but an editor (acutely aware of trends before they exploded, what would or would not be popular) explained how such an iconic aesthetic came alive with exceptionally executed photography.

Prada photographer Philip Meech (whose work is actually on display at FTM) held court next, with and altogether different perspective. With Laura Ashley it was the photography which worked to expand the brands influence, but Meech stepped into a brand that was already globally successful. His work as a reportage photojournalist was eyeballed by Prada and subsequently hijacked to convert backstage documentary imagery into fashion photographs in their own right. Meech's interests were inspiring and lay somewhat removed from silly fashion nonsense and the Prada fashion house: the capturing of stolen moments, the calm within the chaos and glimpses of humanity working to create amazing fashion images.

Meech's work is featured on Prada's 'fantasy look books' sent to approximately 100,000 people each season, separate to the main campaigns. His imagery brings a fresh and perhaps subversive subversive perspective to such an iconic brand via his distinctly non-fashion approach.

On hand to polarize the differences between the two examples was FTM curator Dennis Nothdruft who expertly underscored the breadth of photography's influence within the industry whilst emphasising the different approaches from launching a brand to revitalizing it.

Nothdruft has also curated 'Catwalk to Cover'; an exhibition documenting the many faces of fashion, which also features some of Philip Meeche's work. It runs until February 25th at the Fashion and Textiles Museum, 83 Bermondsey Street, SE1

The Terrace Rooms of Somerset House were awash this month with 20 years of fashion history as Dazed and Confused celebrated two memorable decades in the industry. Making It Up As We Go Along charms exhibition-goers with all the irreverent attitude, youthful bravado and two-fingers spirit of Jefferson Hack and Rankin’s nineties-born tome. Coinciding with the publication of a book in the same name, a stylish selection of the most iconic spreads from the publication charts a chronological journey from the magazines humble beginnings in 1991 to the glossy aesthetics of the publication at present date.

Jefferson Hack and Emma Reeves curate to capture some of the most poignant moments in the magazines cult history; from Rankin’s signature portraits of Beth Ditto, Blondie and Kate Moss to Dazed pin-up boy Luke Worrall’s first shoot with newly instated Nicola Formichetti as Creative Director. Editorial shoots from Nick Knight, David Sims and Terry Richardson serve as a perceptible reminder of the magazines stellar alumni whilst interviews and contributions from Damien Hirst, David Lynch and Thom York set the barometer for dynamic content. Angular mirrored sculptures reflect the plethora of fashion darlings adorning the walls, making the magazine come to life in all the magnificence of Somerset House.

Room 1 captures the first ten years of the glossy and with it, the emergence of 90’s grunge culture. Haunting portraits of Kids heroine Chloe Sevigny, Harmony Korrine and Iggy Pop decorate the walls in various states of undress. Jeurgen Teller’s Interstella Overdrive exposes a youthful and fresh-faced Kate Moss on the brink of success whilst a Jarvis Cocker cut out standing in line at a fast-food bar echoes back to the first stirrings of New Labour’s Cool Britannia in Rankin’s 1996 Pulp, It’s A Rap.

Room 2 heralds the last decade’s fascination with celebrity culture, including the iniquitous Fake Issue Cover starring the ‘is-he-or-isn’t-he’ Jacko-alike. Gareth Pugh’s first issue cover in 2004, featuring the red and white balloons from his BA collection, is a fantastic example of how Dazed has become a stage for designers to break into the public stratosphere. Showcasing the work of a little-known Central St Martin’s graduate is risky business, but as founder Jefferson Hack states “everything came from a spirit of curiosity – a core attitude that is purely informed by the feeling and mood of the times.”

Further into the exhibition and we are treated to a vibrant and colourful collection of images from the late noughties in Room 3 entitled Scary Monsters and Super Creeps. Mark Pillai’s 2009 Tye-Dye story features a very on-trend, rainbow-haired Anastasia Kuznetsova who could give the BLEACH girls a run for their money. Elsewhere, photographs of London’s Youth come to the forefront of the magazine’s current history, highlighting the entrepreneurial do-it-yourself culture that has emerged from the internet, blogging and social networking. The exhibition concludes with a tribute to the late Alexander McQueen and the magical and inspiring ideas he contributed to the magazine before his untimely death. This includes his 2001 uber-creepy Salo installation and groundbreaking disability shoot Fashion-Able, which Hack sites as a turning point for the magazine in terms of capturing headlines on a global scale.

Despite turning twenty, Dazed and Confused shows no sign of losing the reckless and wanton teenage abandon it has consistently seduced us with every month for the past two decades. Now immortalized in print, the exhibition and accompanying book is perfect for any fashion aficionado interested in British style press and magazine culture.

Making It Up As We Go Along runs until 29th Jan 2012 at Somerset House, W1

This month’s edition of Vogue Italia has certainly had the fashion world in a frenzy, once again digging up that old ‘size zero’ chestnut. 19 year-old Karlie Kloss’s contorted pretzel torso made headlines after the title unceremoniously pulled the plug on an image of the supermodel looking rather angular on their online site. The December cover shoot, photographed by Steven Meisel, caused uproar when an image of Kloss in Daisy Dukes, dramatically twisted at the waist was found doing the rounds on thinspiration blogs and ‘pro ana’ sites encouraging anorexia.

Just when we thought curvy was making a comeback, Vogue Italia editor Franka Sozzani has defended the pelvic predicament on her blog, stating the removal of the picture was a mistake and a formality to avoid an unnecessary weight argument. She has even gone so far as to dub Kloss ‘The New Body’, presumably leaving Elle Macpherson crying into her swimsuit. Whether Karlie Kloss has a hot bod or not is certainly subjective, and as usual fashion followers have made no bones about lambasting the waifs size zero assets on the blogging network. The online uproar has left Sozanni looking particularly red-faced after she passionately launched an anti-anorexia campaign earlier in the year. Personally, those angles look a little too sharp for our liking. Thank god it’s nearly Christmas and Karlie can get her hands on some well-deserved mince pies.

To anyone who's laboured in the fashion industry, hearing the glamorous job title of 'unpaid intern' will not come with the slightest bit of surprise. Said much put-upon intern isn't just the person collecting samples, steaming the fabrics and licking the floor of the fashion cupboard clean anymore: their roles are so manifold they're the very lynchpin of the operations, making the collections come to life. To make a collection come alive you don't need a team: you need an army.

With so many fashion graduates pouring from schools with an abundance of naivety, extraordinary talent (and glasses of the rose-tinted variety) designers can pretty much take their pick of the willing-but-wet-behind-the-ears. This economic downturn this hasn't only accelerated the fashion-slave industry. Whilst obviously it benefits from this phenomenon (duh, it's totally win-win for the designer)  just take a look at London's recent fashion weeks, the anti gets upped every time. 

So, three cheers for the fact that HM Revenue and Customs have finally caught on to this little slavery-loophole: it seems they finally smell a rat of the exploitative variety. A whopping 102 fashion houses that show at London Fashion Week have received stern letters of warning that they are 'under scrutiny' for treating unpaid interns like paid employees. The assumption being that by next London Fashion Week conditions will have started to change. 

Having undertaken internships (good and bad) in this rather chilly economic climate, I have to say it's gonna take more than a few finger-wagging letters to cut out this practice in fashion. That fashion relies on interns is an understatement. Who do we think does this heavy embellishment? If we want to change the system of internships within fashion, more stringent guidelines should be made for the fashion houses, yes, but also for the interns themselves. If you ain't getting a dime well, then there's some shots you're well within your rights to call, and if done correctly you'll take away something amazing from one of the most exciting industries to be a part of. 

Let's not forget that the face of fashion isn't the chauffeured-to-the-front-row champagne-sippers. Its the girl fetching their Starbucks.

Those six-figure ad campaigns just don’t pay the bills like they used to. These days our favourite supermodels of yesteryear can be found earning a crust whilst romping around the Savoy, guzzling Moët and trashing hotel suites for our viewing pleasure. We’re, of course, talking about the much anticipated Girl Panic video by Duran Duran, which sees Naomi, Cindy, Eva, Yasmin and Helena assume the egos and tuxedos of the notorious eighties new romantic band in their hedonistic hey day.

With all the usual cliché’s of reckless rebellion, the nine-minute featurette sees the girls in a whirlwind of leather, sequins, feathers and lipstick lez-ploitation as Duran Duran take on the world, or at least the mini bar. Explicit nudity has already seen the video banned from MTV, which is unsurprising considering it’s directed by bonkers virtuoso Jonas Åkerlund (the man responsible for the outrageous semi-nudist jail spectacle that is Lady Gaga’s Telephone.)

At the helm of the video is Naomi Campbell, the bitch we all love to hate, playing Simon Le Bon in a staple oversized fur coat. Mad props go to Dolce and Gabanna for lending their hands in the stylist department – classic refined elegance with a very season appropriate (fashion, not weather) S&M feel. Proving sex definitely does still sell, this video will probably go down in history. It’s a shame George Michael already trademarked the idea in his Freedom 90 video. Sloppy seconds, anyone?

Words: Liz Connor