20 on +40: Cameras + Coffee vs The Beret ROUND ONE

20 on + 40
Note:  To showcase the wide appeal of +40 bloggers that goes beyond their own age-group, I'm starting a new blog  feature, the 20 on +40. This feature will showcase 20 other friends in the community who pick their favorite +40 blogger, interview them, and write about it.  This is the second of the series.

Canadian beauty, +40 style blogger Melanie is an artist from Vancouver. Her personal style blog, A Bag and A Beret hit the ground running last year, and her voice, style and face made powerful impressions on anyone ever visiting her blog. Thoughtful, introspective explorations of style ala Cindy Sherman and Mel's artistic flourishes of dress hang seamlessly with her nearly model good looks. It's a powerhouse style impact: bold dressing on her lithe figure, and that unforgetting piercing blue stare. 

Decades apart, and across the Atlantic resides a certain Roz Jana, a 17 year old  fashion wunderkind, who already has been peeped at from around the world on a slew of street style blogs. This teenager  has written expertly on the subject of fashion for the likes of Oxfam, The Guardian and British Vogue.  Like Mel,  her leggy figure and gorgeous face could easily be confused for that of an off-duty model, but Rosalind's interests seem to lie elsewhere.  As good as she looks in front of the camera (you can see how good on her blog, Clothes, Cameras and Coffee) it seems apparent that Roz would rather be behind it, or at least behind a  good typewriter, clacking out in resounding Querty beat, her thoughts on fashion, feminism, and  taking a poetical turn at her arts + letters. Clearly, these two are kindred spirits.

So it came as little surprise, when I asked Roz to interview her favorite +40 blogger for this series, that Roz picked Mel in a heartbeat. What did surprise, however, was how they both wrestle with body image, artistic ambitions,  and their take on the fashion industry.

Mel Kobayashi: Artist, Writer, Photographer, Style Blogger. Roz Jana: Artist, Writer, Photographer, Style Blogger

 












Roz and Mel got on so well, that Roz's interview got away from itself- and the tables turned, with Mel dressing up and playing the interviewer to Roz. Their conversation has been broken into two parts, so read on, and stay tuned! 

Rosalind:  Have you always dressed in such a unique and vibrant way, or is this something that has evolved over the years?

Melanie: My attention to dress has ebbed and flowed, but I remember wearing two-tone purple flare pants with a red-and-white-striped shirt when I was about eight years old. Through the years I've used my style as a political statement, an invitation, armor, camouflage, and decoration, but it hasn't been until the past three years or so, that my style has been a source of light. At no other time have my clothes felt like such an organic and spiritual extension of my being, and I ascribe this current state to my surrender to the chaos, if that makes sense.

Rosalind: You've done some Cindy Sherman style projects examining the way that changes of appearance affect your sense of self. What did you learn from your experimentations in different wigs or lip sizes?

Melanie: I've learned that altering myself to elicit a response is not nearly as powerful as heartfelt expression. I've always known that instinctively, but this cosmetic tourism has confirmed the idea that authenticity shines the brightest. I've not just dressed but felt the stereotypes associated with certain looks. The two times I tried the long red wig experiment in public I was shocked by the significant change in how men treated me. I've always considered "being myself" a fluid thing, but I am still exploring how I can express those dormant parts of me temporarily to empower who I am the rest of the time. Now I've got a question for you, Roz: Having seen your writing, photography, styling and drawing in your blog, I regard you as an artist. How would you define an artist, and do you see yourself as one?

Rosalind: I would define an artist as someone who is curious about the world, and wishes to capture, observe or imagine some part of it in a creative medium – whether this is in writing, painting, sculpture, photography, fashion, music, etc. Having said that, I don’t think that there is any one way to describe an artist, as everyone will have slightly different perceptions and expectations of what ‘art’ is.  I would consider myself an artist in training at the moment. I’m still very much learning my craft when it comes to writing and photography, and relish the thought of learning and creating in years to come. I hope that at some point in the future I will indeed be able to define myself as an artist.

Melanie: What do you think are the limitations of blogging, if any? How do you envision blogging fitting into your future?

Rosalind: I think the primary limitation is the ‘blogger’ label. At London Fashion Week at least, there seems to be a perception that bloggers are somehow inferior or amateur. As someone who has a blog, but also works for other publications, I find this very frustrating. I can understand the complaints, as the British Fashion Council gets absolutely saturated with bloggers with different levels of success requesting press passes. And yet, the problem is then in consequently treating ‘bloggers’ as some kind of collective, rather than judging the merit of each individual. We don’t assume that all magazines have the same circulation figures and aesthetic, so why should it be expected that all blogs adhere to a similar formula and number of readers? Personally, I hope that one day I can make the transition to having my own website...However, for the moment I’m happy to just keep continuing blogging.

I don’t think that there is any one way to describe an artist, as everyone will have slightly different perceptions and expectations of what ‘art’ is. -Roz Jana

Rosalind: What is your opinion on the modern obsession with appearance?

Melanie: There seems to be an enormous dichotomy in terms of how the developed world is obsessed with appearance and how individuals project themselves in public every day with sloppy style. The cult of celebrity sickens me, to tell the truth, and I think feeds a nasty blurring of lines between fantasy and reality. We are bombarded with unrealistic expectations about body weight and daily happiness quotients, but instead of fixing the things we can fix, like respecting ourselves and others and focusing on how we can be forces for positive change in our own spheres, many of us often wind up depressed, even more critical and cynical, and more distanced from those impossible ideals.


Melanie: How long does it take you to craft a blog post? What kind of writing satisfies you the most?

Rosalind: The short answer is that it takes too long! No, I do indeed relish the chance to craft posts. The writing tends to come last, unless I have a very specific theme that I want to cover, such as feminism. In that instance it’s a matter of then finding photos that will accompany the piece without being too tenuous. It probably takes around three hours for each post, if the styling, photography, choosing of photos, writing, editing and final checks are all taken into account.  

 
Rosalind: Mel, you talk of your body as being like a canvas. What's your opinion of those who use such a statement literally- by tattooing, piercing or otherwise adorning the figure?
 
Melanie:I celebrate our right to freedom of expression as a precious gift.  Anything goes.

Coming Soon! 
20 on +40: Cameras + Coffee vs The Beret ROUND TWO

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