HOW DID YOU GET HERE? FEATURING PHOTOGRAPHER & MAGAZINE EDITOR NICK CLEMENTS OF MEN’S FILE
MY MY FIRST MEETING WITH NICK CLEMENTS WAS IN 2015 IN YOKOHAMA, JAPAN’S SECOND LARGEST CITY. I WAS VISITING AND HAPPENED TO BE IN TOWN FOR THE MUCH TALKED ABOUT ‘CC SHOW’, A HERITAGE TRADE SHOW RUN BY THE JAPANESE PUBLICATION CLUTCH MAGAZINE. NICK TOOK MY PORTRAIT AT THE SHOW FOR HIS POPULAR VINTAGE STYLE MAGAZINE MEN’S FILE. I DIDN’T TELL HIM AT THE TIME, BUT I WAS A HUGE FAN OF HIS WORK AND WAS REALLY NERVOUS TO BE PHOTOGRAPHED BY HIM! BUT FROM THAT IMPROMPTU MOMENT WE HAVE CONTINUED TO BE GOOD FRIENDS WITH A SHARED PASSION FOR VINTAGE CLOTHING.
NICK IS BY FAR ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING AND OUTSTANDING MEN I’VE MET, NOT ONLY FOR HIS INSPIRATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY WHERE HIS CAREER SPANS FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS WORKING WITH RRL, PERONI, STELLA ARTOIS, ADIDAS, BALMAIN, & HARLEY DAVIDSON TO NAME BUT A FEW! BUT ALSO FOR HIS EDUCATIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND DEDICATION TO VINTAGE FASHION. HE HAS MANY STRINGS TO HIS BOW; HE RAN THE CURATOR KITCHEN IN TOTNES (DEVON); HE IS A LECTURER IN FASHION STYLING AT THE INTERNATIONAL FASHION SCHOOL ISTITUTO MARANGONI; HE HAS AN MA AND PHD IN MENSWEAR FROM THE ROYAL COLLAGE OF ART; AND HAS PUBLISHED A NUMBER OF BOOKS INCLUDING THE REVIVALISTS & PAMPHLET ‘THE UNSEEN SCENE’. HE ALSO SURFS, SKATEBOARDS, RIDES & COLLECTS MOTORCYCLES!
NICK CLEMENTS’ TALENTS GO FAR BEYOND HIS WORK FOR MENS FILE MAGAZINE AND THIS INTERVIEW SHOWCASES SOME OF NICK’S MANY TALENTS, INSPIRATIONS & PERSONALITY.
OCCUPATION / Magazine Editor & Photographer
LOCATION / London & Tokyo
INSTAGRAM / @nick.clements @thecuratortotnes @mensfilemagazine
WEBSITE / www.nickclements.co.uk & www.mensfile.com
Q: Who is Nick Clements?
A: I have had three stages to my working life: 1. Van Driver, 2. Fashion Photographer, 3. Magazine Editor.
Q: Tell us, have you always been a photographer?
A: Yes most of my life, I got into fashion photography because I loved men’s style (historical and contemporary). Like so many others I was motivated by the photography of Bruce Weber and wanted to somehow be a part of the menswear industry.
Q: How did you first get into fashion photography?
A: Sometimes luck comes your way. I got the chance to take part in a photo-shoot in the early 1980’s and it went from there.
Q: What advice would you give to someone starting out on a similar career path?
A: It’s impossible to give anyone any advice as the ground rules in fashion image-making are changing so fast. The old route used to be first to work for top magazines and then find an agent. It’s not as simple as that any more – although that wasn’t simple either!
Q: What would you tell your younger self?
A: I would tell my younger self...Grow up! Oh, and learn more languages.
Q: If you weren’t a photographer, what would you be?
A: If I were not a photographer I would probably be a waiter or work in the hospitality industry. In the USA they say: ‘service is a high place’. Good tips too! There are no tips in photography…
Q: What is your favourite part of what you do?
A: Because I edit a magazine for people obsessed with what they do, I like very much to meet and spend time with those individuals. There’s so much to be gained from the energy of true enthusiasts.
Q: What stories do you hope to tell with your photos?
A: My photographs illustrate a true, and sometimes extreme, dedication to style.
Q: What is the most memorable photo you have ever taken?
A: My most memorable photograph was probably back in the 1980’s or 90’s. Oh gosh! I’ve forgotten.
Q: Tell us more about Men’s File magazine and how you started documenting vintage style?
A: I first started taking photographs of revivalists in the early 1980’s with a little Pentax 110. I had no idea what I was doing, I just wanted to create images that looked as if they were shot on a film-set. I was very impressed by Italian neo-realism cinema at the time.
Q: What prompted the making of Men’s File?
A: Men’s File is half Japanese and half British. It comes out twice a year and is a response to the world-wide manifestation of an array of collectors and performers who focus on mid-twentieth century style. In other words it’s a vintage style publication with international dimensions. I started Men’s File as an elaborate hobby and then it took off. I owe a lot to others like @matthind and Dan Black for their support.
“Many people inspire me, but most of all I like self motivated people who make their own style”
Nick Clements
Q: What’s a typical day like for you and is the magazine your full time pursuit?
A: Any magazine like Men’s File is a labour of love. It’s like the @kellouhar blog and website, you put everything you have into the images 24/7 and hope people like it.
Q: Where is the most inspiring place you have been?
As a fan of mid-century style I love Palm Springs, but the various scenes (surf, skate, hot rod etc.) in the area of San Clemente are extraordinary.
Q: How many languages do you speak?
A: I’m pretty good at Italian and not bad at Japanese and German. I can say hello, goodbye, please and thank you etc. in about 20 languages. It’s an ice-breaker. It makes people laugh to see an old Englishman speaking their language be it Russian or Arabic.
Q: The best place to pick up a vintage bargain?
A: Back in the 1980’s the Japanese economy became the most successful in the world and ordinary Japanese people became rich abroad as the value of the Yen was very high. It was known in Japan as ‘The Bubble’. The Japanese went to the USA and bought everything that was old and good. The bubble ended in the 1990’s, but the clothes remained. You can still find the best of American mid-century items in various parts of Japan.
Q: What inspires you?
A: Many people inspire me, but most of all I like self-motivated people who make their own style.
Q: Your favourite vintage possession?
A: That’s probably an early 1960’s Champion training top with Buffalo State on it. I don’t know why, but it’s great looking and practical, even though it’s almost 60 years old.
Q: Coffee or tea?
A: Coffee in the morning and tea in the afternoon.
Q: Tell me one thing about yourself nobody knows?
A: I have a surf lifesaving medal.
Q: What are your favourite jeans?
A: Bowery Blue NY.
Q: How many tattoos do you have?
A: Three. The land on one arm and the sea on the other.
Q: Finish the sentence
A: On my motorbike I feel...like I should pay attention!
Q: What does the future hold for Nick Clements?
A: I’m working on a series of pamphlets on men’s style called the Unseen Scene, but these are only for academics.
“There’s so much to be gained from the energy of true enthusiasts.”
Nick Clements