Happy New Year from Secret Forts.

A huge thank you to everyone who's found and stuck with Secret Forts through the years and here's to a bang up 2011.

Happy Holidays from Secret Forts.

Have a good one.

Radiant Child: Jean-Michel Basquiat, b. 12/22/60.

Debatable: 3Sixteen SL's at 13 Months.

Up now on Denim Debate, the ongoing wearing and tearing(not quite literally) of my 3Sixteen SL's, just over a year old.

30 Seconds, 30 Century Man, The Rig OUt Film.

And speaking of Oi Polloi's Rig Out, the team, when in Norway, shot an amazing film of their mate, world record breaking cyclist James Bowthorpe in Woolrich Woolen Mills kit. Antony gave me a preview of the rough cut and it kills. Here's an abbreviated look at it. The full version of the film goes live this Friday with some additional footage and interviews over at NOWNESS. This should hold you over 'til then.

Outbox: The Rig OUt #3.

Having been in TN for a week and prior to that, at the Pop Up Flea with Hickoree's, I have finally and belatedly gotten all orders for The Rig Out #3 into the care of the USPS. There was a limited quantity available and those who received an invoice from moi, you should hopefully have The Rig Out by week's end. Those who haven't paid, time to pony up. Enjoy and apologies for the delay. The Secret Forts shipping department is population 1 and he's a bit of a ne'er do well.

Extra, Extra: Koji Kusakabe's Test Shot.

Jake's latest subject is his friend and the man behind Extra, Koji Kusakabe.
I've spent some time over there and had a great time one recent afternoon shooting photos and talking vintage. Jake does his thing once again, training his Canon lens on Koji, giving much deserved shine to a man who's spent much of his life quietly going about his business, persuing his passion for Americana; combing through second hand shops and used clothing stores across the US since before, perhaps, you were born(I don't know how old you are).

Respect to Koji and Jake for yet another dope Test Shot.

The Fall Three: Trespasser, Mikael Kennedy.

Friend and photographer Mikael Kennedy has made it a mission to keep a dying art vital and relevant. Over the past decade or so, he's shot thousands of Polaroids. Thousands. When
I got the chance to get an advanced look at his recent show "Shoot the Moon" at the Chelsea Hotel this past April, I was overwhelmed. And that was only a fraction of them. Inexhaustibly creative, he's always hustling, always shooting, always thinking of the next thing. One of these days, we're gonna get a project going together. Until then, Mikael will be out there, beat-to-hell Filson bag full of various Polaroids, documenting life from New York to Vermont and way beyond. Wherever his storied van will take him. He'll be here and there, maybe tracking down a cache of expired Polaroid film, maybe hanging a show, maybe shooting a spec under the guise of The Explorer's Club. Whatever it may be, you can bet that a Polaroid will be involved.
And speaking of which, he's edited and compiled the latest volume of "Passport to Trespass" titled 'I can't remember where I've been', spanning Dec. '08-Sept. '09. It's a limited edition of 100 and ships Dec. 4th. So get on it. Go HERE to pre-order.
It's my great pleasure to present my buddy Mikael's Fall Three.

Watch Your Step: Grant Taylor, Mind Field.

I've put this kid up before and this isn't the newest video out there, but this kid is such a ripper. So tough.(Did he go through a growth spurt while filming this part?) Either way, sick. Reminds me of getting stoked on Dyrdek and Duane Pitre in G&S "Footage" back in 1990. Check it here. Dinosaur and Workshop, always tough as hell in my book.

The Fall Three: Jou-Yie Chou, The Ace Hotel.

Over the past year or so, Jou-Yie Chou has become a friend and compatriot.
Many evenings have passed in the lobby of The Ace or the bar at The Breslin and more than a few times, with Jou-Yie. He's partly reason why the Ace has become such a gravitational center in an otherwise nondescript part of town. Build it and they will come seems to have been the ethos and indeed, they have(present company included).
Jou-Yie's recently returned from a coastal caravan with fellow road-trippers Jay Carroll and photographer Nate Bressler, having set up pop-up outposts in Palm Springs and LA. Currently, he's on the move again but took some time to indulge my request for what's got him stoked on Fall. This is Jou-Yie Chou's Fall Three(and then some).

Field Report: C'H'C'M' / Bond st. / NYC.

There's a pattern emerging. Think UNIONMADE, Wharf, Inventory Stockroom. Good people setting up shop who care about the products they sell. Now add to this list Sweetu Patel's very recently opened C'H'C'M' Shop at 2 Bond st.

Shelf Life: My Rugged 211 x Minoru Onozato.

Free & Easy Editor Minoru Onozato has, for over 40 years, searched for, found and collected what has amounted to a vast collection of what he calls rugged style. If you're at all familiar with Free & Easy, the word rugged recurs quite frequently. Hell, there's a "museum" in it's honor. Sparked by a youth spent playing Rugby, Onozato was set on a path, a lifelong pursuit of "unfashionable fashion" and "My Rugged 211", as he states in the forward, "is a record of this quest". Here's an extremely abbreviated look inside. Available at J.Crew.