Liv life

thom kerr

Whatever happened to Olivia O’Driscoll? In 2008, at age 17, she emerged as one of New Zealand’s most promising modelling newcomers. Repped internationally by IMG, she walked in four Paris haute couture shows in July that year, before flying to to Milan on an exclusive option for the Spring/Summer 2009 Prada and Miu Miu shows. While those gigs never eventuated, she nevertheless shot editorial for French Elle, German Vogue, Japanese RUSSH, Wallpaper, AnOther Magazine, US Teen Vogue and Italy’s Amica. Only to suddenly drop out of the business, sparking various rumours. In spite of the fact that New Zealand has the second-highest rate of teenage pregnancies in the developed world, a pregnancy was not among these whispers. But a baby daughter, Hara Lea O’Driscoll, arrived a day after O'Driscoll's 20th birthday in December 2010. Now as a single mum, with new management back home in Auckland (Red Eleven/MHI) and Sydney (Chadwick) - and as “Liv” O’Driscoll, as she prefers to be known these days - she is attempting a comeback. She joins models Jourdan Dunn, Arizona Muse, Natalia Vodianova and Australia’s Cassi van den Dungen, all of whom took time out under the age of 20 to have children. Herewith an exclusive preview of some new test shots by Australian photographer Thom Kerr.

photography: thom kerr
styling: james dykes
makeup: stacy lee ghin
hair: lauren mccowan
fashion: alex perry
shot at kingsize studios, auckland

The Order of the Phoenix

thom kerr

Well Rosemount Australian Fashion Week is four days away but as has now become tradition in the leadup to the event, a vibrant off-schedule week of Sydney shows is underway. Yesterday, Life With Bird and Thurley unveiled their Spring/Summer 2011/2012 collections. This morning, it was Carla Zampatti’s turn, followed by tonight’s Ginger & Smart and Phoenix Keating shows. Phoenix who? The 20 year-old eveningwear designer from Sydney’s Bellevue Hill, who is now in his second season, will be making his runway debut tonight at Sydney’s Luxe Studios. Keating did a part-time TAFE patternmaking course while still at school, before receiving private tuition from retired Australian costume designer Jenny Clarke. He also spent one and a half years as an assistant to Australian makeup artist Jody Oliver, who is doing tonight’s show. Others giving a helping hand tonight include his first cousin, Sydney fashion PR queen Marie-Claude Mallat; Deni Hines, his sole client, who will be performing; and upwardly mobile Sydney-based fashion photographer Thom Kerr, who shot this portfolio of images to accompany the collection - starring new face Krystal Glynn. Keating looks to be sufficiently talented to make it on his own without name-dropping, but it is nevertheless worth noting one fascinating bit of bio trivia: five years ago, he discovered that his biological grandfather was the late Nigerian Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti.  

all images: supplied exclusively to frockwriter by thom kerr

styling and art direction: cassandra scott-finn
beauty: sinden dean
production: jovita lee 

Young guns: Thom Kerr shoots Codie Young in Elliot Ward-Fear

Last month Frockwriter mentioned that young Sydney fashion designer Elliot Ward-Fear was about to shoot an Autumn/Winter branding campaign with the upwardly mobile Sunshine Coast model Codie Young. Well here is an exclusive preview of that collaboration, which was shot last week in Brisbane. It was lensed by Thom Kerr, styled by Sarah Babcock, with hair by Shaun Casey, makeup by Becca Gilmartin and graphics courtesy Lekkur Studio. Just a reminder, again, that 22 year-old Ward-Fear only graduated from TAFE NSW's Fashion Design Studio last year and has yet to sell to a single stockist. Although privately he has sold a number of pairs of the 18cm microsuede booties that prompted three models to stumble in the group TAFE show at Rosemount Australian Fashion Week in May this year (note Ward-Fear has upped his own ankle-breaker ante with a pair of 45cm shoes for AW11, see below). And gifted one pair, together with a spectacular spiked Lucite necklace, to blogstar Bryanboy, who has been getting a lot of mileage out of both. 

Ward-Fear's second collection, entitled 'Spirit of Clothing', further illustrates his talent for complex tailoring. Just like fellow Fashion Design Studio alumni Dion Lee, Ward-Fear has a penchant for bodyconscious garments that are festooned with intricate seamwork. 

Below are the three 'campaign' images, complete with branding. And below those, two images from the accompanying Elliot Ward-Fear lookbook. They show the front and rear views of a fantastic pink and purple acrylic jumpsuit with a cutout heart at the derrière - a variation on McQueen's infamous bumster trousers. We have little doubt that garment will generate a lot of editorial coverage.  

After a busy few months, during which she shot a series of editorials and a cover for Vogue Australia under an exclusive arrangement, 18 year-old Young is about to jet off to Europe to embark on her international career. We hear there is already a huge amount of interest in her.

Frockwriter looks forward to tracking Young's movements in 2011 - not to mention Ward-Fear's solo RAFW debut in May. Just like Dion Lee's solo debut at the event this year, it promises to be one of the week's hottest tickets. 

all images: thom kerr for elliot ward-fear. supplied exclusively to frockwriter by mother and father pr

Young blood

Last week frockwriter mentioned new Sunshine Coast face Codie Young. Modelling for a few months, flown to Rosemount Australian Fashion Week for the Ellery show, signed to DNA in New York and booked for three Vogue Australia editorials – with VA editor Kirstie Clements reportedly “obsessed” with her - things are moving pretty quickly for the 17 year-old. We are not likely to see further images of Young in any magazines other than Vogue Australia for the immediate short term because, frockwriter understands, the latter has her locked down on an exclusive. But we can reveal this unpublished test, shot with Australian photographer Thom Kerr in Brisbane on Monday.  

all images: supplied to frockwriter by thom kerr