Justine Simmons and Darrell Vydelingum Justine, London’s deputy mayor for culture and the creative industries, says:
I met Darrell on a blind date 12 years ago. We bonded over a shared love of art and all things creative, and we’re drawn to the same 1960s and 1970s aesthetics. For instance, when we first moved in together, to a house in south London, we realised that we both collected Japanese dolls. They now have a whole shelf to themselves.
Sharing clothes happened over time, and we hadn’t really thought about how many pieces we both wear until we put together a list for Vogue, which included boilersuits, belts, sunglasses, kimonos, capes and printed shirts. We also have a shared box of silk pussy bows, a collection of badges and brooches, and a hat wall. And we often buy the same thing, but one size apart – such as high-waisted trousers.
Each of us has our own wardrobe, and then we have shared rails. Often in the morning we will pick up the same thing, or put together a look that’s quite similar, but we never argue about it – we just think it’s funny. Over the course of my career, people have occasionally said, “You work in government, you need to start dressing in a serious way.” Of course, I’ve totally ignored that advice. Still, if Darrell and I are wearing the same thing and meeting up that evening after work, we might change – we don’t want to look like an art project.
We both love vintage shopping, and it’s part of the itinerary whenever we go travelling. Darrell puts together a great list before we go anywhere – Tokyo is our favourite destination. He always gets me to try on things that I wouldn’t have thought to try, pushing me out of my comfort zone. He’s usually right. The trousers I’m wearing in this portrait were his suggestion: they were too tight for him, but then he handed them to me, they fit perfectly.