I met the actress Ann-Julie at the exit of the supermarket by chance. I was completely intrigued by her bike. The story behind the funny vehicle is as interesting as its owner.

One day Ann was in a park with a group of friends and an old lady approached them, offering her bicycle for only 10 Euros. Ann didn’t have the amount with her, so she suggested that they should go together to the nearest bank. Detail: Ann cycled with the woman sitting on the back of the bike. The deal was closed and now the actress moves everywhere on her two wheels. There is almost no space left for further adornment on the bicycle but Ann always finds space to add another one.

Jonas Bonnetta is a Canadian musician and composer who was visiting Berlin when we met in the Mitte district. Like many tourists, he did most of his tours around town with a rented bike (they can be easily found at major tourist spots).

From a distance Jonas’ style may look ‘hipster’, but the buckle of his belt shows that the reference of his style is more to ‘folk-rock’.

Joschua Tonay is one of the many taxi-bikers that work in the city. We met when he was in his first week of work. His ‘office’ in this case is nothing less than Brandenburg Gate. The standard tour he offers includes the main tourists attractions and it means to him one hour of cycling.

His clients are transported in a kind of Indian Rickshaw, or rather a Berlinda –  term that describes a horse carriage produced here from 1670 onwards and which was named after the city of Berlin. To Joschua the work as a taxi-biker is rewarding because it is a way for him to combine a hobby with a job.

This group of young cyclists, meet in a square in Mitte every Friday after work. Parallel to their jobs as Fahrradkurier (Bicycle courier), they all have activities or hobbies related to sports or to arts.

Gordon Teßmann works as a delivery boy for more than two years now. His bike is full of stickers and one of the wheels is decorated with flyers and some of his favourite images.

He dresses himself with high-tech fabrics to optimize his performance while cycling. His passion for bicycles can also be seen on the amount of tattoos he has.

Holger Matthias also works as a delivery boy and during a very busy working day he is riding his bike up to 9 hours. His single indulgent act may be the comfort of the anatomical leather saddle of Brooks England.

His bike is one of the most beautiful, fully in silver color and with various customized items that were chosen by Holger himself.

Jim Pirus also began working as a delivery boy about two years ago.

Another collector of stickers, his bike is full of them including one that supports the vegan cause – being himself a vegetarian.

Feliks Aleksander is so connected to his bike that he decided to bring it from Frankfurt by train under the care of his own hands. Now it is his main working tool.

Feliks is also a photographer, producing a very interesting work about Berlin.

Useful links for those who are planning to ride in Berlin:

- Call a Bike rental service

- Berlin Wall bike tour

- Other tours

Photos: Hermano Silva © Berlin, 2011

Different phases of Prince Edward, later Duke of Windsor

Many things have been written about the Duke of Windsor, the British royal member of many facets and enduring style. If you don’t know him yet, you should. The most impacting thing he perhaps did was to give up the throne and his role as King after only a few months on duty. He was determined to marry a divorced woman, Wallis Simpson, later named the Duchess of Windsor. This happened in 1936 and the story was recently told in the movie “The King’s Speech”. The actor Guy Pierce played the Duke of Windsor in this movie, and later this year we will see the Duke once more through the young actor James D’Arcy in the new movie “W.E”.

Dandies and gentlemen around the world have a lot to learn from our character. The Duke created a very personal, smart and chic style. His boldness, though often subtle, opened doors for any man who wanted to express himself with intelligence through fashion.  He captured as no other man from his time the Zeitgeist of the 1920s: a break from tradition and extra frivolity in dressing. He decided to take his passion for clothes seriously and push it to another level – avant-garde some would say.

If we look to the streets of the most stylish cities in the world right now what we will find is some reverberation of the “Duke of Windsor style”: the turn-up trousers, flamboyant socks, checked blazers and the attempt to mix and match different patterns at the same time. This not to mention some very groomed haircuts combined with the upcoming preference for bright colours – very frequent when the Duke played sports.

His sports clothes actually are a highlight: it brought out the enfant terrible in him. ”I believe in bright checks for sportsmen,” he once stated. ”The louder they are, the better I like them.” So loud that one day they captured the attention of Coco Chanel. She based her costume for one of the Diaghilev’s ballets (Le Train Bleu) on a snapshot of the Prince playing golf. He had “a white collar, tightly knotted tie and, along with his plus-fours, a striped sweater with matching socks”, describes the journalist Suzy Menkes in her book “The Windsor Style” – a delight for hardcore fashionistas.

“Blue jeans are not the pants for me” (Duke of Windsor)

Part of the triumph of the Duke of Windsor style was and still is his charm and charisma. He was very popular with the public, had his every move followed by the world press, and was adored since a boy by all the royal fans. He was also naturally gifted with good taste, but most of all, the Duke had a secret weapon: a tailor, Mr Scholte, the best one he could get. A matter of fact: how many politicians bother themselves with doing something like that?

When the Duke was still the Prince of Wales he patronized the Dutchman Frederick Scholte, one of the most talented craftsman from Savile Row in London.   Scholte was the one who developed the ‘London Cut’, a high-waisted, close-fitting suit with broad shoulders. The ‘London Cut’ introduced comfort and movement to suits, changing the rigid structure of the previous designs almost completely. Clothes with no stiffness or interlining were exactly what Windsor wanted.

Scholte, however, was famous for his very difficult temper. For example, he didn’t allow the wives of his clients to come into his atelier during a fitting for the simple reason that he didn’t like anyone trying to interfere with his work.  Also: all his clients went to see him, never the other way around. But with the Duke it was a friendship story. They worked together for 40 years, between 1919 and 1959, and perhaps the only moment when the friendship was shaken was when the Duke decided to have his trousers done in New York, by H. Harris tailors. Just the trousers, because his jackets – most of them double breasted – remained the exclusive duty of Scholte.

”I was in fact produced as a leader of fashion, with the clothiers as my showmen and the world as my audience” (Duke of Windsor)

It is important to stress that it was only the experience and know-how of a good craftsman that could really help the Duke to make his own show go on. He wasn’t a tall man. He was 1.67m and he only allowed himself to be photographed from angles that were favourable to him. The waists of his jackets were higher than normal to elongate his silhouette. The trousers also had a higher waist to give a flat stomach line and to also elongate his legs. The patterns and prints he used, usually ones that short people should avoid, were actually small enough to give the impression of him being a taller man.

One day the Duke asked Scholte to make a tuxedo with dark blue wool instead of black for the simple reason that the dark blue in photographs look “blacker”. The “midnight blue” colour, as it was called later, could also reveal some subtle tailoring details as lapels, buttons, and pockets. (What tailor wouldn’t want that?)

More than someone very conscious about his public presence, the Duke was someone that saw ahead of his time. Along with a few others, he managed to anticipate something typical of our era: everyone must have the ability to be the manipulator of their own self-image.

Text and collages by Hermano Silva

Mr. Harold Tillman, 63, has long been regarded as a leading figure of the British fashion world. At the age of three, he was already wearing his first suit. At the age of 19, during the Swinging Sixties, he secured a tailoring internship at Lincroft Kilgour in Savile Row after graduating from London College of Fashion. Five years later he became the manager of Kilgour, and simultaneously discovered and employed a young designer named Paul Smith. Tillman’s know-how for industry resulted in both great success trading on the stock market, as well as significant expansion of his fashion business.

Today he owns the department store Allders and the brands Aquascutum and Jaeger. He is also president of the British Fashion Council and because of his recent achievements in this position he received compliments from the previous Prime Minister’s wife Sarah Brown in February. In 2009 the entrepreneur landed the 201st position on Sunday Times Rich List of the richest men in Britain with an estimated fortune of 295 million pounds.

But perhaps the most outstanding characteristic of Mr. Tillman is his smart elegance. With a respectful collection of bespoke suits in his wardrobe, he is very often the most well-dressed person in the room. Mixing and matching colours, scarves and ties is a true science for him.

Recently I had the chance to met Mr. Tillman in his office in Soho, London, for a conversation.

How would you define a good investment?

A good investment is the one you don’t worry about. It’s difficult to explain, but you can feel it.

What advice would you give to young entrepreneurs?

You have to make clear decisions. Stay focused, be consistent, don’t get depressed and take your time. You don’t get results from one day to the other.

How would you define a gentleman?

You are talking to one!

Yes, indeed!

Gentleman, the word says it all: “gentle” “man”. It is someone who is always calm, civilized and who never shouts or does anything rude. It’s very different from the Dandy of 19th century. Dandies are in extinction. They don’t exist anymore. They were absolutely well dressed – almost exaggerated. To overdress nowadays can be compromising.

More about Mr. Tillman can be found on the June issue of Brazilian Men’s Vogue.

Photo: Hermano Silva © 2010

“The everyday is infused with an epic dimension”. James Lingwood

Photos: Hermano Silva © 2010 London
Ropewalker: Chris Patfield

Thanks: Rob Watt, Circus Space, Tower Hamlets Council, Paul Bevan, Alex Mutter and Joseph Campbell

Daniel Dias and Rob Watt photographed by Hermano Silva

Paul Anderson is a musician that performs in the streets of London at night. With his guitar he creates “galactic” sounds. While playing he observes the world from his corner.

When I met him, I was impressed by his work, but even more about his visions. I sat beside him and we spent hours talking about Osho, arts, inspirations and love.

This young black guy is the friend of many girls and boys that always stop there for a talk and to listen to his advices. He’s like a spiritual mentor.

Paul didn’t allow me to take pictures of him – a way to protect his art, image and work. So I asked to take pictures of his instruments and his feet, which he didn’t oppose.

Later these pictures became part of a series as homage to street artists (the truly ones). I gave them colors and showed them in public spaces. The images were back to the streets of London.

Photos: Hermano Silva

Image source: Gawker.com

I had the chance to interview the American fashion designer Marc Jacobs  for a Brazilian magazine some months ago. He was in São Paulo to open his new store in town. I remember he was very friendly, smart and nice. On that day he was wearing something that now is his trademark: a black skirt from Comme des Garçons. Below four questions that I’ve asked Marc especially for this blog.

Please tell us about the skirts you have been wearing…
It started in the last summer when I was in the office working and I couldn’t go out for shopping. I asked to my assistant to shop some funny pants in the streets of New York for me to have some fun with it. I was many days indoors and I wanted to see something new. He came back with this skirt that is half short and asked me what I thought about it. I tried and everybody in the office was laughing because I was wearing a skirt! I really liked that and I was very happy (laughs). I still wear pants, but much less than before.

How do you define a true gentleman?
Someone who’s honest, fair and generous. Someone that trusts in his own style. I believe that what I always admired in someone, be man or woman, is that he does what pleases him. That he doesn’t wear for others, but for himself. One of the most stylish things that can exist is confidence. Confidence in your own ideas, in your sensibility and opinions.

What someone has to do to become your friend?
I don’t know. I like to meet people and I don’t define criteria, neither have a receipt. We have few friends in life. One way to find them is with patience through the time. You really don’t know how people are until you have a lot of experiences with them.

What the ideal party has to have?
A good mix of people because everything that is monothematic can be very boring. It has to have people from different cultures and different sensibilities. The mixture is the most important.

Naomi with the photographer Maurício Nahas, at a photo session for “Poder” magazine.

The interview with me and my coleague Suzy starts. The time is short and Naomi has to talk with us while a team brushes her hair and do her make up. After a while the adult woman appears, the same Naomi we know from the magazines. As we joke in Brazil, “My Saint Lord of Make Up!”. Naomi is another.  When she’s almost ready, she finishes the make up herself with some more tricks, as a good supermodel she is.

This self-consciousness towards her image maybe is the reason for the power she got in her business. After each photo, Naomi looks to the notebook positioned in front of her like a mirror. She knows what a good picture is and asks – gently – to the photographer delete the ones she disliked.

I was very curious to know what was her definition for a real gentleman. To her, “the gentleman must have discipline, manners and power”. Does anyone disagree?

Photo: Hermano Silva