Rachel & I hanging with Sir Paul! |
It was inspiring to learn that coming from humble beginnings in Nottingham, Paul fell into fashion by accident and his global fashion empire took off in a tiny 3 x 3 metres square shop that was only open two days a week. I didn't know that Paul has been taking photographs since he was eleven, and even though it's his hobby, Paul shoots all the photographs for his campaigns and promotional work. More than that though - Paul is always snapping photos wherever he is in the world - it's his visual diary.
I loved the central part of the exhibition, which was two huge gallery walls full of framed prints and photographs, all carefully and lovingly collected by Paul over the years. There were illustrations, vintage movie posters, famous art works (by Andy Warhol, Hockney and Banksy), and mail sent in from Paul's fans, friends and family. This was a a very small part of Paul's collection from his office in Covent Garden! Immediately I thought of the prints, postcards, letters and cuttings that I keep in boxes around my home - so inspiring to have them out on the walls all the time - kind of like a live scrapbook!
The Gallery Walls |
Paul's collection up close |
![]() |
Inspiring quote from the start of the exhibition; s snapshot of the gallery walls: showing Sir Paul our appreciation; the famous stripe Mini |
Women's Country House Print Dress, AW 2006 - Love this, so chic! |
Women's Sari Silk Embroidered Dress, SS 2002 |
![]() |
A replica of the design studio; the stripe Evian bottle collaboration; a wall of buttons; Paul's creatively cluttered Covent Garden office |
A closer look at one of the design studio desks - I spy mood boards, colour charts, fabric swatches, magazine cuttings... |
In this section, there were hundreds of images fading in and out of anything and everything - and Paul spoke about what he saw and how those visions and thoughts could be channelled creatively into a piece of clothing or form the inspiration to one of his collections. For instance, printing the unexpected onto fabric is Paul's signature - such as pictures of flowers or a photo he has taken on holiday.
Rachel and I left the exhibition, our minds buzzing with excitement and creativity...
Then came the icing on the cake - we bumped into the man himself in the foyer and took a selfie with him!!!!
Sir Paul Smith - officially the nicest man in fashion! Still can't believe we met him!!!
![]() |
Selfie with Sir Paul Smith - this is getting framed! |