Wallpaper* Handmade... Sebastian Tarek

From the promising talent of Tariq Mahmoud explored below we turn our attentions to one of his teachers, Sebastian Tarek. Ever since we encountered the bespoke shoemaker's beautiful, bespoke and handmade men’s shoes in the eclectic surroundings of the NEWGEN MEN and Fashion East Installations AW11 we have kept a captivated eye on the craftsmen. Given his own excitement by the challenge of fusing his traditional skills as a maker of a timeless artisanal product with a more contemporary and relevant aesthetic, it should come as little surprise that he RCA MA tutor was so enamoured with the work of Mahmoud. Tarek has worked on the MA course for some time now and admits that "at times I get jealous of watching the students create in complete freedom, designing when only the sky is the limit." Thankfully for us, Tarek has recently been given such an opportunity through Wallpaper* Handmade. The release of the Handmade Issue signals the culmination of the the design and style publication's annual celebration of creative talent and the story can now be told. 

Each year the project starts with ideas being thrown at master craftsmen, innovative manufacturers and free to dream designers. creative connections are made, problems are solved and wishes fulfilled. Editor in Chief of Wallpaper explains, "Handmade is a testimony to great design, talent and ideas, and the determination to achieve the extraordinary. We are once again celebrating beautiful new friendships and beautiful new things." It is a celebration of new friendships and beautiful new things. 

The Handmade logo that inspired key elements of both of Tarek's shoes, the Handmade issue and a quick look at Tarek's contribution alongside the Stash bag.

Alongside Lernert and Sander putting Brioni on film, Aldo Bakker laying some skin on the ‘Valet’ chair and Paul Cocksedge making a marble bookmark, Sebastian Tarek was invited to contribute stunningly crafted shoes. An extension of his bespoke shoemaking business and approach to design, the project allowed Tarek to push both himself and his peers to create something wonderfully unique. We caught up with the craftsmen at his East London workshop to learn more about the project and to take a closer look at the result of the collaboration...

"The handmade project for someone like me is just gold dust, an incredible platform and the very idea of it being commissioned fits well with what I do as a bespoke shoemaker. I've never considered myself as someone who designs but rather I make items to people's request. Wallpaper originally asked me what I'd like to do and I went away and thought hard about it. I gave them a few ideas and the most suitable was collaborating with two people that I know personally, have worked with previously and whose work I think fit very much within the same ethos and same position, they are peers. Duffy and Claire Barrett are both London based and work within beautifully British styles and techniques."

The two designs.

By recruiting two likeminded craftsmen who marry traditional skills with contemporary design, the results are quite breathtaking. Using the handmade logo (shown above), embroidery designer extraordinaire Claire Barrett applied it to a neat creeper lace up whilst one of Tarek's good friends and master jeweller Duffy embossed it on a buckle to help create a truly special monkstrap.

The first person I worked with was Claire Barrett who runs a company called Hathawne & Heaney and has worked for a number of designers in the past and previously she was creative director of Hand & Lock who are the embroidery firm who deal with most of Savile Row's requirements. Amazing stuff. She spoke to me a while ago about working together and the Handmade project was just the ideal opportunity to do so. I got in touch, explained the project and she mentioned that she'd love to do something with blacked out gold work, the embroidery style that are more common on large military pieces. To tie it in with Wallpaper specifically we experimented with elements of the Handmade logo, deconstruct it and take portions from it. When it came back I was blown away."

"For the overall construction, I had this idea bouncing in my head for some time to make an entirely handmade creeper. I've never been hugely trend led or derivative but you do see brothel creepers everywhere and it is very much one of those shoes that is comes from the post-industrialisation age. They've never been a handmade object, benchmade to a degree but they came in to existence when manufacturing came in to place. I liked the idea of trying to make it a handmade object. It is entirely made out of leather and essentially a welted shoe  with a cork footbent which is wrapped and fixed to the welt with leather and then channelled horizontally to make the ridges."

Have you encountered a finer creeper? Barrett's delicate embroidery work and Tarek's masterful construction embody the real spirit of Wallpaper* Handmade.

The creative coming together with Claire Barrett was a first for Tarek but he has worked with his other collaborator, Duffy, previously. The result is just as special though. Thanks to Duffy's fine metal work and Tarek's touch with leather, the pair have helped reimagine the monkstrap...

"In many ways the idea evolved from an initial conversation with one of my regular collaborators, Duffy. I'm not a massive fan of the monk shoe, it is neither a real classic yet still feels a little stuffy and odd. We wanted to make it feel more contemporary and modern. I know for a fact that there are only about three buckles in circulation across British footwear manufacturing that are used for monk shoes, just another indicator of the demise of the industry. I just couldn't use one of them. Given the relative simplicity of the shoe itself we wanted to make it really decorative. Duffy took the banding that goes around the logo and reimagined the cross hatching on the buckle, there's a sense of movement throughout which I love."

The fruits of Tarek's collaboration with Duffy.

Examining the fruits of the collaborations and listening to Sebastian Tarek talk about the Wallpaper* Handmade project in general it is easy to see that the shoemaker enjoyed the creative freedom and working with like minded specialist craftsmen. Each were given the freedom to really express themselves. The resulting cocktail of traditional skills and true innovation ultimately delivers objects of great beauty. I'll leave you with Ignore This Film's documentation of Tarek making the shoes...

RCA MA Showase... Tariq Mahmoud

Approximately one month in to my Law and Sociology degree (or perhaps even before I sat down in my first lecture) I knew deep down that I didn't want to pursue a career in the field of law. The course itself was enjoyable enough but I soon understood that the profession just wasn't right for me. That moment now feels like a lifetime ago and I've pursued a very different path. A similar realisation happened to Tariq Mahmoud, albeit a little later than mine. Whilst training as a solicitor at a large law firm in the City he, thankfully for us, opted for a complete change in direction and set his sights on a career as a shoe designer. Then came the nine year journey of preparing and learning that has culminated in an MA at the RCA. "I quickly realised that it wouldn't be a job that I would find satisfying or motivating ten years down the road," admits the recent graduate fresh after his acclaimed presentation. The catalyst was an ES Magazine feature that showcased six aspiring young women's shoe designers who had all recently graduated from Coardwainers at LCF. "Not only did the light bulb go over the idea that there were actually opportunities out there as a shoe designer but I thought, 'hang on a minute, why isn't anyone paying attention to men?' I was frustrated by the lack of choice compared to the women's market. It seemed to me that men's footwear hadn't moved on in to the same expressive territory as men's apparel (these were the days before the likes of Mr. Hare), so the decision was a combination of a long standing appreciation, spotting an opportunity and ultimately a desire to find a job I thought I would really enjoy." Having spent the last nine years honing his craft, Mahmoud confidently moves in to the spotlight and deservedly steps closer to realising his dream.

Tariq Mahmoud's nine year journey gathered pace following a diploma at Cordwainers and valuable industry experience at Lodger and Pointer. It was during his stint as junior designer and operations manager at Lodger where I first encountered the enthusiastic shoeist. Looking back now, Lodger's mix of continuous design, in combination with cutting edge technology and traditional craftsmanship was the perfect place for the emerging talent to grow. During this time he worked closely with Annejkh Carson, a RCA men's footwear graduate and it was only a matter of time before he followed her path. "The quality and integrity pf her designer approach underlined to me the strength of the course. One of the things that sets footwear at the RCA apart is its unique positioning as a specialism within the fashion menswear course. I've learned so much from being among the fashion students and from the guidance of the fashion tutors" he admits, looking fondly back over his time at the RCA.

"The ability to combine new materials and technologies with classic shoemaking skills and heritage because I want those invaluable skills to survive," purrs the design talent. Whilst inspired by the elegance and simplicity of classic men's footwear, he wishes to breathe fresh life and excitement a more modern gentleman by experimenting with combinations of materials and finishing techniques. "The collection starts from my love of classic men's shoe styles - the Derby, the Longwing, the Chelsea boot - from their elegance and simplicity. The challenge was to make them relevant and contemporary in terms of shape." To accomplish this, the designer examined the foot and its relation to the last which led to much experimentation with silhouette and the pattern line. Mahmoud explains his inspiration and shares a few of the images that graced his mood board...

"I looked at the shape of the heel bone which is far sharper and angular than the soft tissue around it and translated this in to the faceted shapes at the backs of some of the shoes. The classic rounded toe shapes are retained but the silhouette is sharpened (literally) by the heel. I continued this approach with the patterns for the uppers by breaking down the curves from traditional shoe patterns in to a series of diagonals and corners.


I also thought about the beautiful contour that runs along the base of the last from the tow down to the joint and then swooping up in the arch and heel. Initially I used clear perspex for the heels with the ideas that they would 'disappear' on a profile view. Of course, with the way the prisms reflect and refract light they became features in their own right. I collaborated with Lily Kamper, a mixed media student at the RCA, who used dip-dye techniques to create smoked effects on the perspex. Lily also machined lathed the cores of some of the heels to make modernist cut out patterns which create optical effects inside the heel. The opportunity to work with such talented people from a huge range of design disciplines is another invaluable feature of the RCA course.


In terms of colour and material, the oil installations of Richard Wilson and the abstracts of Gerhard Richter really got me thinking about classic back as a texture rather than merely a colour." 

A look at Mahmoud's inspiration and a sketch of the full collection.

Drawing on biology, art, architecture and the beauty of nature, Tariq Mahmoud's graduate collection showcases unexpected silhouettes and combinations of materials to stunning effect. His is a talent that strives to works create modern statement shoes for men who want to express their confidence and individuality. Here he explains the coming together of a few innovative techniques and introduces us to the collection itself...

"There are several different techniques at work on the uppers, my favourite is the mink fur beneath clear pvc. The pelt is compressed to produce fluid marbled patterns which, from a distance, look almost as if they are printed. I love that such a precious material is put tantalising out of reach, making it even more luxurious in a sense. I have also hand applied droplets of resin on to leather, either in place of a brogued medallion or in a more organic way to look like raindrops. Also, there is a white untreated chrome tan leather which is dip-dyed black, the dye disappears in to a band of purples and greys.


For me, in a truly great shoe there is an almost mesmeric harmony between the contours of the last, the lines of the pattern and the proportions of the sole and heel. Millimetre changes make a huge difference so finding that harmony is a very satisfying moment."

A look at his graduate presentation and a closer look at the collection itself.

I can't recall encountering a more accomplished and considered graduate collection. The combination of his appreciation of classic footwear and his thirst to innovate is a magical one. The cocktail of classic and modern, expected and surprising, age old techniques and technological innovation is a heady and seductive one. So what does the future hold in store for the design talent? For Tariq Mahmoud, the goal is to design for a house that has the the resources to allow him to continue to experiment and develop his vision of men's footwear. The following admission sums up this shoeist perfectly, "I just love the design process and love seeing beautiful shoes at the end of it so I'm not sure having my own name on them would make me any happier." I'm certain that we'll be seeing (and no doubt wearing) the fruits of Mahmoud's footwear experiments and development for years to come. Thank goodness he made that career change.

LCF BA Graduate Showcase... John Alexander Skelton

Over the last few years the LCF BA show has emerged as a real calendar highlight as we've been introduced to a plethora of real design talent. Year after year, the pulse of my eyes is left racing. With the likes of Baartmans & Siegel, Asger Juel Larsen and Jade Jung Sun Kim as recent alumni, the moment we enter June my blogging stomach begins to rumble in anticipation. The Class of 2012 did not disappoint. As many eyes drift eastwards with the Olympic countdown ticking on, the show itself shuffled from its usual home inside the V&A to Hackney House but despite this move it was business as usual. As the latest crop of graduates inaugurated the new space we were treated to innovation and promise at every turn. For me, the standout menswear talent of the year is John Alexander Skelton.

Entitled British Lion, John Alexander Skelton's accomplished collection explores the depths of a familiar working class style. Growing up in Margate I often found myself huddled against the railings in an anti-social formation on the long pavement that dissected the sprawling mass of arcades and the sweeping golden sands. Clad in the standard issue uniform (late 90s at least) of a crisp Lacoste polo shirt, black Nike jogging bottoms tucked in to the whitest of white socks and a pair of Reebok classics, I engaged in social camouflage. However I felt about myself at the time or even now, from the outside at least, I would have appeared the archetypal chav. Away from the coastal seafront of my youth and the sartorial stereotype, Skelton was drawn to the uniform worn by two notorious gangs from Liverpool and offers progressive tailoring that fuses minimalist tailoring and sportswear.

"The two gangs had gained media attention and notoriety for their use of extreme violence, even at young ages. I in no way deem any of this as inspiration as such but rather, I was drawn to the the clothing that they wear. I had read a number of articles about them over the past few years and slowly I became fascinated by their almost uniform way of dressing. They all wear all black, consisting of brand's such as North Face, Low Alpine and Nike. This is done so police have a harder time identifying who belongs to which gang. For me the aspect of taking something that is designed for a completely different purpose and targeted at a different audience in to this context is extremely interesting. The teenagers will strive to have these items, they have become fashion, this is now there fashion but it is also an item that middle class, middle aged man will wear on a camping trip."

Skelton was captivated by a particular working class style that is prevalent and thriving in so many areas across Britain but developed his inspiration to create a considered collection. Whilst drawing on examples of Brutalist architecture including the Barbican and Trellick Tower (used in the look book) "with their boldness and irregular block type formations in concrete are very beautiful, the cold structures and sharp lines provided endless inspiration," Skelton reimagines the chav style thanks to a refined eye. "Basically, it is what I would love to wear, I regard ease of wear as essential to my process. I believe that it is a very grounded collection that has a strong air of identity and sense of attitude," the graduate proudly adds.

As with so many of the LCF students, Skelton's Showtime profile is an absolute delight. A digital treasure trove of inspiration, illustration, look book imagery and even a film. Having acquainted ourselves with the talent and discussed the graduate collection in some detail, it is time to explore the concrete estate and take a closer look at the designs...

Lookbook imagery shot by Ben Benoliel and modelled by James Taylor alongside the designer's own FMP Illustrations and the film by Duncan Roxburgh.

Having recently discovered the design talent, don't be surprised to hear the name John Alexander Skelton uttered in the coming months and beyond. "I have a few projects which are ongoing at the moment, I am doing something with Nike involving a few established London based designers as well as my self which will be exhibited in September." Beyond this showcase and looking further ahead, Skelton talent reveals that he "would then like to refine my concepts and skills on the MA at St Martins or in industry, in order to launch my own designs into the market." However, much like Aitor Throup announced this season, he has a growing problem with the concept of collections and is likely to explore an alternate path. "I would like to approach fashion in a different way, something interesting and exciting to challenge the tediousness of what is current." An exciting future is guaranteed.