Rough Trade
With only three other shops around the world designated in West and East London and New York City, Nottingham is pretty lucky to be graced with such an independent hub like Rough Trade. Hidden away in Hockley opposite the Broadway Cinema, Rough Trade embraces the birth of new artistic talent and also celebrates the old with their devotion to universal styles of music that they have rendered since 1976. With promotions such as 'Album of the Month', 'Books of the Year', areas to listen to selected music playlists, a range of genres of books in fashion, photography, film and music, a café for a light snack and a room for live music, Rough Trade displays a passion for all things creative and shares a sense of belonging for their customers to feel welcomed in, relaxed and to join the indie music subculture.
I am a fan especially of the Taschen table in Nottingham's shop with books such as Photographers A-Z and 1000 Record Covers on offer to purchase!
Alongside having a shop in central Oxford, Objects of Use's can also be found inside Nottingham's Rough Trade. Objects of Use is a shop for carefully sourced household tools and products that last a lifetime due to the use of low-impact production methods and natural materials. As a company, Objects of Use are against 'Throwawayism' and instead, they use left-over materials to form new recycled products with an aim to minimise global warming and environmental crises.
Aesop Nottingham is another brand that is situated in the same building as Rough Trade and Objects of Use. Aesop is a beauty and cosmetic brand that sells all types of skins, hair and body care products using naturally sourced and laboratory tested ingredients. With other stores in Melbourne, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong, again Nottingham is fortunate to have this innovating, environmentally conscious brand in Hockley.
Below are a few more images I have taken of the Nottingham Rough Trade shop!
Nottingham Contemporary
Nottingham Contemporary is a modern art gallery that offers artistic outlooks on cultural diversity, the formation of identities, social and political matters and international affairs to purposely translate messages of modernism in an imaginative way to a wider eclectic audience.
Alien’s Encounter
This autumn season, an alien encounter has landed in the contemporary gallery offering four individual exhibitions based on theatre, performance, film and culture. The exhibitions consist of the work of the artists Sun Ra, Rana Hamadeh, Pauline Boudry and Renate Lorenz and Danai Anesiadou which sets out to influence an understanding on social identity, global history, the norms and values within a society and how it feels to be alienated or in a state of anomie among other civilians.
Each exhibition communicates a different cultural reference as you walk through the gallery. For instance, the exhibition based on the works of Sun Ra’s (1919-1993) and designed by the French scenographer Nadia Lauro offers an exploration into the subject of jazz music. Although Sun Ra, who named himself after the Egyptian sun god, was seen as an artist, performer and musician, he was also known as a writer, poet and philosopher.
As you walked into gallery 2, viewers are met by a striking neon yellow hue room decorated with dozens of hanging headphones that play the chosen style of music. The headphones are surrounded by various records created by Sun Ra himself that have be placed onto the walls and in glass cases, enclosing the room with an aura of Afro-futurism. Personally, I thought the interior of the room was rather minimal for such an expressive style of music but by creating a spacious composition and avoiding too many visuals, Lauro had left the sound of harmonious jazz do the talking for Sun Ra.
As for the second exhibition located in gallery number 1, the work of Rana Hamadeh called ‘The Fugitive Image’ has been showcased to communicate a narrative based on acts of violence and mass murders executed by the serial killers, Raya and Sakina who were the first Egyptian women to be sentenced to death in Egypt. Supported by the film 'The SleepWalker' Hamadeh has shared the story of the sisters and exposed them as women who took part in acts of savagery and cruelty which were arguably stemmed from the poverty, immigration, female depravation and political segregation in Egypt during the early 1900's.
In the third exhibition, the gallery celebrates art in the form of film and photography through the work of Pauline Boudry and Renate Lorenz who have collaborated together to create ‘In Memoriam to Identity'. The exhibition addresses issues based on ‘queer’ identity, gender and sexuality. In the exhibition the directors have used nothing but two facing large screen fitted into a dark bare room with a centralized seating area that lights up every time one of the films ends, signalling the viewers to turn around and to begin to watch the second film created by the artists. To communicate their message visually, the artistic pair have used punk poet Kathy Acker, activist Jean Genet and ex US soldier Chelsea Manning who is currently serving 35 years in prison for leaking state documents to WikiLeaks.
In the final exhibition of the Alien Encounter series, located in gallery number four is "Don’t commit suicide just because you are afraid of death" by Danai Anesiadou, an artist whose work in the gallery pays tribute to classical myths, pop culture, politics and her own day to day experiences within her home country of Greece. These elements have arguably formed the person she identifies herself as today. However, through her surreal art work she has also painted an image, in her eyes, of what she would convey as purgatory and used it as an escape mechanism from the 'Jello mould' she describes to be stuck in based on the political and financial problems in her country.
Overall, I thought that the exhibition was enlightening as it represented the work of people who channelled their emotions and feelings, to produce work based on what it felt like to be the outcast of society. A feeling many people go through, especially while growing up, changing locations or generally having different norms, values and interests to other people around them. The only criticism I would have for this exhibition is that I would have liked the narratives to have been presented a bit clearer as it was hard to interpret what the different artists were trying to communicate initially.
Although this exhibition finishes on the 31st of December, in the New Year the gallery will be presenting a new exhibition from January to March 2016 called ‘Movements should not be trusted’ surrounding the context of the political, economic and social conditions between the 1960s to the 1980’s, a period named the “golden years” of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The exhibition will showcase the works of over thirty different artists who specialize in the displays of moving image, collage, photography, sculpture and painting, music, TV clips and artefacts.
Hopkinson's Vintage Antiques and Arts Centre
So if Rough Trade wasn't one of your most favourite things about Nottingham's city centre's intriguing attractions and instead you have a wandering eye for key retro pieces, Hopkinson's Vintage, Antiques and Art Centre is perfect for you. And it even has it own tea bar located at the front of the shop for you to chill out and have a slice of cake, or a freshly prepared sandwich after getting lost in the heaps of treasured goods that they have to offer. Trust me, it is like a maze for all things unique and quirky that I can promise you, no one else will have! From home-ware aesthetics to mid-century furnishings and clothing spread across four floors of vintage fashions, you are bound to find the perfect gift for a friend or a piece of your own if you’re a vintage lover like myself.
The Vintage Shops of Nottingham
Wild
Reigning as Nottingham's longest running vintage store since 1983, and just a couple of doors up from Rough Trade, Wild Clothing attracts all demographic customers due to their handpicked retro clothing from the 70s, 80s and 90s. You may even find clothing from decades earlier if you dig deep around this alternative little store. However,Wild are not just known for their mixture of stylish vintage fashions, as they also offer a range of new clothing brands such as the street wise label, Stussy, as they intend to embrace both old and new fashions for a consumer with a particular taste in fashion.
Cow Vintage
So on your way around Hockley, you are bound to be stopped by the gleaming bright yellow letters spelling C-O-W that sit in the front window staring out into the streets of Hockley. Cow Vintage is not an independent store in Nottingham, as the brand has other shops in Sheffield, Birmingham and Manchester. However, as a brand they still try to bring a different experience every time you step foot into one of their unique stores and enjoy their vintage and handmade garments that have been 'reworked' to the best quality possible. Out of all five I have recommended in this post, COW is probably my favourite vintage store in the Creative Quarter of Nottingham as they have their own trademark street style, observe and receive inspiration from the fashions of their customers, as well as following the latest catwalks and runways to develop a current and retrospective style that caters for everyone. Furthermore, if one floor or vintage fashion wasn't enough, the store has another floor upstairs that offers more authentic fashions than imaginable.
Checkout their online version of the store out at: http://www.wearecow.com/
White Rose
Named after the Nazi Resistance group in the 1940's, White Rose is another fashion conscious boutique for pre-owned clothing in the heart of Hockley. The shop even accepts donations of clothing from the public that still has life and potential left in it, which they can alter then sell on to other vintage lovers. What also makes White Rose so different to any other vintage shop in town is that as A company, they encourage the wear of energetic summer colours and pretty fantasising feminine dresses or skirts paired with impeccable leather accessories and box hats for the ultimate retro 20th century look.
Braderie
Similarly to Cow Vintage, Braderie has stores in other places around the UK such as Birmingham and Leamington Spa. However, if your unable to visit one of their stores, you can go online and look at their website http://www.braderie.co.uk/ where they offer fashion and cultural advice on things like 'How to wear Flares', 'Fashion Week Trends' and 'Where you should visit in Hockley' if your planning on visiting Nottingham soon.
BakLash
Reopening its doors to the public back in 2013 in a refurbished old music store, Baklash is another competing vintage boutique that strives to cater for a vintage loving sub culture that takes over the community of Nottingham. Old flannel checked shirts, a section devoted to every denim garment imaginable. fifties A-Line floral dresses and china cabinets filled with glorified costume jewellery, Baklash is may be your first stop on your vintage adventure starting at Market Square but it is one you will find yourself revisiting over and over again thanks to their values, dedication and passion towards all things retro.
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