#fcnu

Shaun Ross is a professional fashion model, actor and dancer who is mostly known for being an albino male model. He was discovered at the age of 16 from YouTube videos and was signed by Djamee Models and AMCK Models London.   

As we all know the fashion industry is mostly dominated by women, becoming a strong male model is hard. in most fashion photos, the male is seen as a prop to make the women stand out more and seem more powerful. Shaun Ross is not only unique in being such a successful male model but by becoming the first male albino model. This makes him an icon and inspiration for people who are a little bit diverse looking. 

Shaun was bullied at school from a young age by his peer’s they would call him names like “powder” and “white-out”. Younger people can look up to him and aspire to be like him in the future.

   I think he has changed things in the fashion world and more and more designers are wanting their models to stand out and be different from the typical “girl next door” look.

Jason is a 32-year-old graphic designer. He lives with his girlfriend in a mid-sized apartment in the city. He enjoys living in an urban area and often goes to the locally owned coffee shop to work on his freelance projects. He likes to spend his Friday nights in the pub with his friends and their partners.

Brand Values

When viewing Prefab77 work it is obvious that there is a strong sense of rebellion, this shines through with the use of punk rock imagery. They also tend to make use of political and social figures in their work which helps to express the brands clear passion for politics and social justice.

Mission Promise

After living in multiple cities across America for 12 years, including San Francisco, Laguna Beach, Los Angeles and New York, Peter Manning moved back to the UK with ideas of starting his own design company. After travelling and arriving back from Japan, Manning met Marc Ross who was still at University. This was around 2004 when Manning formed and began working as creative director at Reluctant Hero. They began collaborating together and worked with many brands including Nike 6.0, Hurley and Calvin Klein. Manning then opened a street wear shop in Newcastle called Electrik Sheep where they stocked different street wear brands. After this they even opened a gallery and showcased work by Pictures On Walls artists such as Banksy and Eine.

It isn't clear when they started Prefab77; however, it seems to be around 2008. The number 77 in the name is referring to the year 1977 which was a very successful year in the history of British rock and roll, this is a huge part of the culture behind their work. Along with music being an inspiration; fashion, politics, and history are also hugely important to them both and make up the meaning and stories behind their work. Although they are based in Newcastle, UK, they often spend a lot of time working in the US and exhibiting work there.

Currently, 10 years on from starting Prefab77, Marc Ross has left the duo and Peter Manning is working as a solo artist. There isn’t much mention of this online at all apart from on the websites about page which refers to him as a singular artist. The Facebook page however, still refers to the brand as a ‘collective of artists’. This is quite confusing for a lot of customers who might want to know more about the people behind the artwork. There also isn't a lot of information on projects and exhibitions he has coming up this year apart from his current collaboration with Jonathan LeVine Projects.

Creating

With them being a creative brand, this is quite clearly expressed through their Instagram account. They post many pictures of current work and projects. Along with this, they often post short videos showing the process of some of the pieces.

Culture

They definitely have a clear style about their work which incorporates a lot of pop culture and political references; however, this could definitely be strengthened. They to have a running style through their work and social media that makes it clear that people are looking at something by Prefab77. I think they have began to do this, but it could be defined a bit more.

Curating

I think that they could be more selective with their social media posts. Although there is a lot of great content, it can seem a bit jumbled. If they worked on this, they could make their branding a lot clearer.

Connection