Elaine Constantine
Encyclopedia
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Elaine Constantine is a photographer and filmmaker known for her colourful and upbeat imagery of British youth culture.
, where newly installed art director
, Lee Swillingham commissioned her first fashion editorial. Constantine's youthful and energetic style suited his vision to introduce a new generation of younger photographers to readers. According to Constantine, her work, "came at a point when people had seen grunge fashion for a few years and needed something else to look at." Constantine has also contributed to Vanity Fair and American, French and Italian Vogue
. Her commercial clients have included; Adidas
, American Eagle
, Burberry
, Clarins
, Diesel, Evian
, Gap
, H&M
, Lacoste, Levi's, Nike
, Shiseido
, Sportmax, and Vivienne Westwood
.
The film will tell the tale of two Northern boys whose worlds are changed forever when they discover black American soul music. Rejecting their small town existence working the production line, they dream of going to America in search of the super-rare records that will help them to become the best DJ's on the Northern Soul scene.
Born in Bury, Lancashire, the youngest of a large Catholic family, Elaine grew up listening and dancing to Northern Soul. From hearing her elder siblings’ record collections to her first youth club experience, Northern Soul
was the soundtrack to her adolescence.
It is her obsession with youth culture and a life-long passion for 1960s American, independent soul music that inspired Elaine to work towards making her first full length feature film. Some ten years in the making, it aims to be an authentic portrayal of a quintessential northern soul experience.
's "Baby You're My Light" and Moloko
's "Familiar Feeling" (featuring Paddy Considine
).
In 2002 Constantine exhibited ‘Tea Dance’, a show that documented the tea dance culture of Northern England.
Her work has been exhibited at London's Photographers Gallery, Tate Britain
's 'Look At Me' Exhibition, curated by Val Williams, The V&A's 'Imperfect Beauty' Exhibition, curated by Charlotte Cotton.
A series of Constantine's prints are held in the photography collection at the National Portrait Gallery.
Most recent solo exhibition, 'Tea Dance', has toured Paris, London, Rome, Amsterdam and Moscow.
Foundation's Award.
In 2002 Constantine was awarded the Creative Review
's Award for Best Up and Coming Promo Director.
In 2005 Constantine was awarded the Royal Photographic Society
's Terence Donovan Achievement Award.
Elaine Constantine is a photographer and filmmaker known for her colourful and upbeat imagery of British youth culture.
Photography
Constantine came to prominence due to work published in The FaceThe Face (magazine)
The Face was a British music, fashion and culture monthly magazine started in May 1980 by Nick Logan.-1980s:Logan had previously created the teen pop magazine Smash Hits, and had been an editor at the New Musical Express in the 1970s before launching The Face in 1980.The magazine was influential in...
, where newly installed art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
, Lee Swillingham commissioned her first fashion editorial. Constantine's youthful and energetic style suited his vision to introduce a new generation of younger photographers to readers. According to Constantine, her work, "came at a point when people had seen grunge fashion for a few years and needed something else to look at." Constantine has also contributed to Vanity Fair and American, French and Italian Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
. Her commercial clients have included; Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
, American Eagle
American Eagle Outfitters
American Eagle Outfitters is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1977 by Mark and Jerry Silverman as a subsidiary of Retail Ventures, Inc., a company which also owned and operated Silverman's Menswear...
, Burberry
Burberry
Burberry Group plc is a British luxury fashion house, manufacturing clothing, fragrance, and fashion accessories. Its distinctive tartan pattern has become one of its most widely copied trademarks. Burberry is most famous for its iconic trench coat, which was invented by founder Thomas Burberry...
, Clarins
Clarins
Clarins is a French cosmetics company specializing in skincare products and fragrances.The family company was founded in 1954 by the medical student Jacques Courtin-Clarins, who died in 2007...
, Diesel, Evian
Evian
Evian is a French brand of mineral water coming from several sources near Évian-les-Bains, on the south shore of Lake Geneva.Today, Evian is owned by Danone Group, a French multinational company...
, Gap
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
, H&M
H&M
H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB is a Swedish retail-clothing company, known for its fast-fashion clothing offerings for women, men, teenagers and children....
, Lacoste, Levi's, Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
, Shiseido
Shiseido
is a major Japanese hair care and cosmetics producer. It is the oldest cosmetics company in the world and the fourth largest cosmetics company in the world.-History:...
, Sportmax, and Vivienne Westwood
Vivienne Westwood
Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI is a British fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.-Early life:...
.
Feature film
In January 2012 Elaine will be returning to the North to direct Northern Soul, the project she has always dreamt about. Read recent Guardian article here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/aug/31/northern-soul-elaine-constantineThe film will tell the tale of two Northern boys whose worlds are changed forever when they discover black American soul music. Rejecting their small town existence working the production line, they dream of going to America in search of the super-rare records that will help them to become the best DJ's on the Northern Soul scene.
Born in Bury, Lancashire, the youngest of a large Catholic family, Elaine grew up listening and dancing to Northern Soul. From hearing her elder siblings’ record collections to her first youth club experience, Northern Soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
was the soundtrack to her adolescence.
It is her obsession with youth culture and a life-long passion for 1960s American, independent soul music that inspired Elaine to work towards making her first full length feature film. Some ten years in the making, it aims to be an authentic portrayal of a quintessential northern soul experience.
Pop promos
Elaine has made promos for Richard HawleyRichard Hawley
Richard Hawley is a guitarist, singer-songwriter and producer. After his first band Treebound Story broke up, Hawley found success as a member of Britpop band Longpigs in the 1990s. He later joined the band Pulp, led by his friend Jarvis Cocker...
's "Baby You're My Light" and Moloko
Moloko
Moloko were an Anglo-Irish electronic/pop duo consisting of Róisín Murphy from Wicklow, Ireland and Mark Brydon, from Sunderland, England.- Origin of band name :...
's "Familiar Feeling" (featuring Paddy Considine
Paddy Considine
Patrick George "Paddy" Considine is an English actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, musician and frequent collaborator with Shane Meadows. Best known to audiences for his portrayals of dark, troubled, morally or mentally ambiguous characters...
).
Exhibitions
Elaine's first solo show was at Marion de Beaupre's Gallerie 213, Paris in 1998.In 2002 Constantine exhibited ‘Tea Dance’, a show that documented the tea dance culture of Northern England.
Her work has been exhibited at London's Photographers Gallery, Tate Britain
Tate Britain
Tate Britain is an art gallery situated on Millbank in London, and part of the Tate gallery network in Britain, with Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It is the oldest gallery in the network, opening in 1897. It houses a substantial collection of the works of J. M. W. Turner.-History:It...
's 'Look At Me' Exhibition, curated by Val Williams, The V&A's 'Imperfect Beauty' Exhibition, curated by Charlotte Cotton.
A series of Constantine's prints are held in the photography collection at the National Portrait Gallery.
Most recent solo exhibition, 'Tea Dance', has toured Paris, London, Rome, Amsterdam and Moscow.
Awards
In 1998 Constantine was awarded the John KobalJohn Kobal
John Kobal was an Austrian-born British based film historian responsible for The Kobal Collection, a commercial photograph library related to the film industry....
Foundation's Award.
In 2002 Constantine was awarded the Creative Review
Creative Review
Creative Review is a monthly magazine targeted on the commercial arts and design scene. Creative Review has a circulation of around 20,000 readers. In general it focuses content on media originating in United Kingdom, Europe, and the United States, showcasing some of the best contemporary...
's Award for Best Up and Coming Promo Director.
In 2005 Constantine was awarded the Royal Photographic Society
Royal Photographic Society
The Royal Photographic Society is the world's oldest national photographic society. It was founded in London, United Kingdom in 1853 as The Photographic Society of London with the objective of promoting the Art and Science of Photography...
's Terence Donovan Achievement Award.