Picture special: Christmas comes to Savile Row
Christmas lights are twinkling again along Savile Row in the heart of Mayfair. The Christmas lights, launched last year and put up again for 2024, are inspired by iconic tools found in every tailor’s workshop: a pair of shears, representing some of the key values of Savile Row, craftsmanship, skill and knowledge. The giant illuminated golden shears are seen cutting through a glittering swathe of ‘fabric’, with the message of ‘Savile Row Christmas’ twinkling against the winter sky. The festive lights illuminate The Row, from the corner of Clifford Street down to the corner of Burlington Gardens, adjacent to the Royal Academy of Arts.
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Christmas lights are twinkling again along Savile
In a piece in Savile Row Style Magazine back in 2017, David told David Ward, also a leading Savile Row tailor, about his love of the business. “I had the opportunity to learn the art of Savile Row tailoring from a master tailor with over 30 years’ experience,” he said. “To start, it was not a paid apprenticeship and I spent a number of years without being paid a penny. I was told once by one of the great masters that it takes 10 years before you can truly call yourself a Savile Row tailor. It has taken a great deal of time, sacrifice, dedication and passion to achieve the honour of being called a Savile Row tailor and after years of being taught by some of the true greats of the industry I can now justify calling myself a master tailor in my own right.”
The celebration underscored IWC Schaffhausen’s enduring presence in one of the world’s most prestigious retail locations and its commitment to creating extraordinary experiences for its clientele. The event was a blend of heritage, innovation, and a shared passion for precision and performance, as exemplified by both IWC’s craftsmanship and Russell’s success in Formula 1.
One of the world’s largest collections of graphics by David Hockney is currently on display at Halcyon at 148 New Bond Street. Spanning six decades of Hockney’s career, the works date from 1961 to 2018, and include his iconic pool images, self-portraits, portraits of friends, still lifes and landscapes. As an artist, Hockney has always embraced the latest technological innovations. In the 1980s he harnessed photocopy machines as part of his practice and, more recently, the iPad, which he uses to capture the world as he sees it – through the technicolour guise of the digital age. Visitors will discover various iPad drawings, providing a rich insight into his unique exploration of this new medium.
Visitors will discover works from the Moving Focus series, which is perhaps his most ambitious and experimental output of prints, consisting of portraits, landscapes, interiors, and still lifes. Through this body of work, the artist explored unconventional methods of articulating space, as if the subject is captured from multiple viewpoints, rendering his sitters with an electric feeling of dynamism. These works are notable as a demonstration of his masterful use of colour and as a pure expression of Pablo Picasso’s impact on his work. Hockney acknowledges this impact in two pieces that he created in 1973, which hang in the exhibition. In The Student, Homage to Picasso and Artist and Model, the artist represents himself confronting his idol, the pioneer of cubism.
Paul Green, President and founder of Halcyon said: “It is a privilege to put on an exhibition dedicated to one of the most important British artists of the 20th Century – someone who made his mark in the 60s and is still just as relevant today. This is a unique opportunity to tell his story and make his work accessible to a wide audience.”
“He lived and breathed Henry Poole, built special relationships with clients, and was fond of and proud of the skills of all the staff and of their achievements in making Henry Poole what it is today: one of the finest tailors in the world. He was called “the Godfather of Savile Row” as he fought continuously to achieve the Row’s global recognition, its protection and preservation. He was the chairman of trade-related organisations such as the FMT in Europe, the SRB and the BTBA. He was much loved by the trade and all the people involved in it, and was honoured with an MBE for his services to the industry. He leaves a legacy and will be greatly missed by all of us. Rest in peace.”
