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ELLA RIDDELL PORTFOLIO

About

ELLA RIDDELL PORTFOLIO

About

WHO AM I?

Music sits at the core of how and why I create.

It shapes my perspective and defines my approach to visual curation.

As a BA (Hons) Fashion Communication and Promotion student with ambitions of becoming a creative director, my work explores the relationship between sound, identity, and visual storytelling.

I work within a space where music and fashion are inseparable, translating rhythm, attitude, and emotion into visual form. I’m interested in capturing moments that feel immediate and real; where fashion becomes a language for identity, and imagery holds presence.

My work is driven by creating visuals that feel honest, culturally aware, and unapologetically expressive.

MY PROJECTS

FASHION ANTHROPOLOGY

STUDDED RESILIENCE: ARMOUR REIMAGINED

THE BRIEF

required development of a collaborative Fashion Anthropology project centred around a chosen fashion item. Through primary and secondary research, the project needed the item’s cultural significance and research findings, which then had to be translated into a cohesive exhibition outcome.

THE process

Studded Resilience: Armour Reimagined explores the duality between strength and vulnerability through the symbolism of studs as both protection and self-expression. Using monochromatic imagery, the project reinterprets armour within fashion, examining identity, resilience, and the tension between defence and exposure.

Within the collaborative process, my role was primarily outcome-focused, contributing to the planning, shoot inspiration, visual execution, and final presentation of the project. During the shoot, I adopted a creative director role, making key decisions surrounding styling, model composition, and image direction to strengthen the overall visual outcome and ensure the research was translated into a cohesive exhibition piece.

STUDDED RESILLIENCE

THE BRIEF

EDDIE OTCHERE’S PORTRAITS OF THE WU-TANG CLAN

THREADED LEGACIES

90’S EDITION

LIVE CLIENT: DAWSON DENIM

focused on developing editorial brand content that strengthens the connection between a brand and its audience through engaging storytelling. Using brand, consumer, and trend insights, the project required the creation and pitching of an original content platform that communicated the brand’s identity through visually engaging and culturally relevant outcomes.

THE PROCESS

For the development process of the Dawson Denim live client project, I referenced archival imagery of the Wu-Tang Clan, particularly portrait photography that captured the raw attitude and visual identity of 1990s hip-hop culture. These references informed the styling, posing, and overall creative direction of the campaign, helping to establish an authentic 90s-inspired aesthetic while continuing my exploration of the relationship between music and fashion imagery.

THREADED LEGACIES

90’S EDITION

THREADED LEGACIES look book visualises the cultural influence of 1990s hip-hop through the connection between music, identity, and fashion. Combining 90s-inspired imagery, Dawson Denim’s garments, and primary research quotes, the project creates a visually driven narrative that reflects the attitude, authenticity, and self-expression associated with hip-hop culture.

THE BRIEF

AFTER HOURS

RESPONDING TO THE VISUAL WORLD

required the development of a self-initiated photography project based on a personally chosen theme. Alongside the final body of work, the project involved producing a sketchbook documenting the creative process, including experimentation, influences, development, and reflection.

THE PROCESS

behind AFTER HOURS was heavily inspired by the emotional themes explored within After Hours by The Weeknd, particularly heartbreak, desperation, regret, and emotional vulnerability. Through creative direction, styling, lighting, and composition, the photography was intentionally curated to visually translate the dark, cinematic atmosphere and emotional anguish reflected within the music.

after hours

AFTER HOURS is a self-directed photographic zine inspired by After Hours by The Weeknd, exploring themes of heartbreak, emotional instability, isolation, and desperation. Through cinematic black-and-white imagery, dramatic lighting, and distorted typography, the project visually translates the dark emotional atmosphere of the music into an expressive narrative centred around vulnerability and mental decline.

THE SOUND OF THE STREETS.

A VISUAL EXPLORATION PRESENTING MUSIC AS A CULTURAL BRIDGE TO AUTHENTICITY.

THE BRIEF

THE SOUND OF THE STREETS explores how music can reconnect streetwear with authenticity, community, and cultural meaning. Positioning streetwear as a form of cultural resistance, the project examines how music continues to shape identity and community, using visual and strategic outcomes to realign streetwear with the people and cultures influencing it.

CONTEXT

The Unbranded Creator is a culturally driven consumer who values authenticity, individuality, and creative expression over trend conformity and over-commercialisation. Influenced by music, fashion, and subcultures, they are connected through creativity, collaboration, and community, investing in experiences, exclusive products, and culture-led self-expression.

required the development of a self-devised fashion communication project that addressed a chosen problem or opportunity through innovative creative outcomes. Supported by research, concept development, prototyping, and a marketing communications plan, the project aimed to create impactful visual solutions that effectively connected with a target audience across both digital and physical platforms.

INTRODUCTION

The context stage established the foundation of the project through the exploration of three key insights: re-storytelling, trend cycles, and the cultural influence of music. Supported by a defined problem statement, big idea, and my chosen brand: SOUTH.ST, this stage identified the need to reconnect streetwear with authenticity, identity, and community through music-led fashion communication.

CONSUMER

BRAND

THE UNBRANDED CREATOR.

SOUTH.ST

I chose South Street as the focus of this project due to its strong foundations in community, music, and authenticity through collaborations with rappers and local cultural events. However, as the brand evolved, it shifted towards trend-driven aesthetics and over-commercialisation, distancing itself from its original identity and core consumer within an oversaturated streetwear market. Providing the opportunity to reconnect them with their roots by using music.

CONCEPT

THE SOUND OF THE STREETS.

OUTCOME.

THE SOUND OF THE STREETS, gave me the opportunity to be the sole creative director, independently leading the visual direction, styling, image composition, and overall aesthetic of the project. Every element was self-curated to translate music, culture, and identity into cohesive visual storytelling, ensuring the final outcomes aligned with the project’s narrative and intended audience.

THE SOUND OF THE STREETS LOOK BOOK

THE SOUND OF THE STREETS is a music-inspired look book exploring the rhythm, attitude, and visual language of contemporary street culture. Influenced by the presence and cultural identity of artists such as A$AP Rocky and Central Cee, the outcome combines clean layouts, recognisable lyrics, and atmospheric imagery to unapologetically communicate attitude, authenticity, and cultural awareness through visual storytelling.