Posts Tagged ‘zoom’
Paris Fashion Week – Comme des Garçons Spring 2010
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Deconstruction seems to be a popular theme among fashion’s top intellectuals these days, but Comme des Garçons latest use of the theory is a very interesting one. After all, Rei Kawakubo has been creating many of the trends in fashion for a while, with everyone translating a piece of her vision into their own. This time it feels as if Kawakubo took what she saw out there and collaged it together, a kind of roadmap of current fashion, not at all too different than Alexander Mcqueen’s fall show. Comme des Graçons’ women looked as if it was pulled from a Klimt painting, beautiful and chaotic all the while perfectly composed.
Paris Fashion Week – Christian Dior Spring 2010
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Some designers create a great show and then feel they have to create something completely different the next time. Fortunately, John Galliano didn’t abide to that logic and took his couture collection and refined it for his Spring ready-to-wear collection. You know those old movies that had Lauren Bacall or Rita Hayworth seducing men only to see in the next scene the couple smoking in bed? Well Dior gave us a peek at what she might have looked like between seduction and the cigarette. Playing off of his wonderful lingerie theme from earlier this year, he combined a more glamourous, more voluminous look that was free flowing and elegant, a true winner.
Paris Fashion Week – Lanvin Spring 2010
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I think it’s pretty unanimous that Alber Elbaz’s Spring collection for Lanvin is one of the best of the year. Usually I would say that I’m a bit tired of draping but Elbaz twist on the style by combing great textures and the perfect color choice won me over.
Paris Fashion Week – Balmain Spring 2010
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I have a love/hate relationship with Balmain. On the one hand, there’s always some great fashion involved, but then again the display of excess that comes with it annoys me. It sometimes feels to me that Balmain just creates clothes to create expensive apparel. This collection didn’t really create any of that conflict for me. This was a stripped down Bailman, well maybe a more sensible Balmain is a better term. This collection still has the glitz and glamour but a kind that is more suited for this economy. The clothes are still not cheap but it’s in bad taste to flaunt that these days.
Paris Fashion Week – Limi Feu Spring 2010
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Limi Yamamoto took a bit of inspiration from her father with this collection it would seem. The asymmetrical, androgyny found in Limi Feu’s collection is nothing new, but still was great to see. Mixing a modern European styling to traditional Japanese proportions made this a very refreshing look. Yamamoto’s doesn’t overwork the fabric and this simplicity makes a dramatic statement without over complicating things.
London Fashion Week – Topshop Unique Spring 2010
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There have been a lot of differences in London this week compared to New York last week. The first big difference between them is that London has been interesting and New York was boring. Even if you don’t like the styles coming out of London this week, you have to give it to them for at least still taking chances in this economy. Although it’s not really taking a chance when it comes to Topshop. The youth focused brand has always made a name for itself by creating apparel that can be commercial and off the wall at the same time. This collection felt a bit like Pee Wee’s Playhouse and Mad Max, humorous and chaotic. My only complaint about this show was that some of the model looked very unhealthy and anorexic. Even if they aren’t it’s just bizarre to me how there can be such an uproar about designers using plus sized models this week but some of these models look okay to them; far from a good example for young girls out there.
London Fashion Week – Christopher Kane Spring 2010
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I haven’t covered London Fashion Week since it started due to illness. Now that I’ve gotten my strength back I can start to comment again and I chose Christopher Kane’s latest collection. I’ve been a fan of Kane for a while because quite simply he knows how to use fabrics. With this collection he uses patterns as a design element and not as some arbitrary element like House of Holland. Skewing lines and shapes, using patterns to redefine a common silhouette is what I admire about Christopher Kane’s vision and his collection.
NY Fashion Week – Anna Sui Spring 2010
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If you’ve spent any time at all on this site then you know that Anna Sui is one of my favorites. Her Spring collection mixes her usual hippie aesthetic with a modern flair. Lets face it, you know what she’s going to come out with every season: something 60/70’s California with different rock influences. However what I love about her is that even knowing what you’re going to get each time she still can just style it a certain way that it always looks great and feels new. There are certain designers out there like McQueen or Jacobs who are great because they can always surprise you and make good clothes and then there are designers like Sui who can surprise you even after you already knew what the collection would look like. And just in case I didn’t prove my point you can look here for a second opinion.
NY Fashion Week – Marc by Marc Jacobs Spring 2010
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Marc by Marc Jacobs always seems to surprise people that it’s actually good, which I still find hard to believe after so many great seasons in a row. The faux vintage mixed with high fashion styling always seems to match pop culture perfect and inspire all those people on LOOKBOOK.nu and Chictopia to try new things with their garage sale finds.
NY Fashion Week – Charlotte Ronson Spring 2010
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Let’s get some things out of the way upfront. I don’t think Charlotte Ronson is going to be one of those designers who will advance creativity in the industry. This collection feels like a mash up of some previous Marc Jacobs and DKNY looks combined. With that said these are still very good clothes. Clean looks and great proportions. They are the kind of clothes that would make any women (if you could fit in them that is) look and feel confident and in control. I only wish Ronson would have worked more with prints because they were my favorite pieces.
NY Fashion Week – Gary Graham Spring 2010
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One of the quickly rising stars in the fashion world is Gary Graham. His latest collection is one of my favorites so far this week. This collection harkens back to the silent films of Griffith and gives them a modern approach. I wasn’t much of a fan of the more complicated pieces but these simpler looks are inspired to me, with a feeling of apocalyptic glamour of sorts. The designs reference the construction of clothes, the construction of beauty. Graham’s look book reiterates that concept by literally referencing the old film tricks of smoke and mirrors.
“Absolute Man” by Hedi Slimane
I know this site is starting to sound like a fan site. One day Hedi Slimane, one day Kate Moss and so on, and so on…
Well I can’t help it if they produce a large body of excellent work. Slimane’s feature for Balmain Homme is in character with his usual mise-en-scene. The attitude, in classic Slimane style, is young and cool with and edge. Slimane completely owns a signature style that feels like a fresh idea every time. Slimane is on Avedon status these days and I can’t see much changing that for some time.
Kate Moss, The Ultimate Model
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The images for Kate Moss’ A/W 09 Collection for Topshop came out today. The more years that go by the more amazed I am by Kate Moss. If you aren’t sure of her talent just go look through the last couple days of posts on this site alone. Her ability to produce such amazing images in so many different styles is truly unique. Being a photographer I am usually biased about the level of ones input in a project. However, there are certain talents that come along that completely shift the balance. Marilyn Monroe is the greatest example of this. I am thoroughly convinced that she created all those great photos and the photographer merely recorded it. If you go back and read interviews from photographers that photographed Monroe they all share this belief that she had completely fallen for their greatness and they made her a star. However there is no doubt in my mind that through the years she used them more than they used her, at least as the images is concerned. I believe the same goes with Moss. She is more than a pretty face or a good model, she is a talent that controls the image and dictates its outcome. Credit still has to be given to everyone involved, photographer, stylist, etc. of course. However those factors come and go while Moss still remains a constant in a catalogue of great photographs.
V Magazine September 09
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Fashionologie has all 19 images Paul Rowland did for V Magazine’s September issue. These images are crude, haunting, and in some cases disgusting, but they are all appealing to me. It is the best cross between the grotesque and new wave that I find oddly appealing.
AnOther Magazine Autumn/Winter 09
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For their Fall/Winter issue AnOther Magazine is releasing four separate covers. Kate Moss, Katie Holmes, Natalie Portman, and Vanessa Pradis are photographed Craig McDean and Hedi Slimane and celebrating a decade in style. Just at first glance I think that the Kate Moss cover is the best with Natalie Portman second. You can read the full article here.
Kate Moss for W Magazine
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This is really another powerhouse collaboration for W magazine. For the September issue supermodel Kate Moss shows off one of my favorite collections of the year, Prada, and is beautifully photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggot. It is a really great feature, (as is par for the course with W it seems), so go pick it up if you see on newsstands and click here to see the full article.
(Images courtesy of W Magazine)
Topshop Boutique Preview
Topshop recently posted these photos on their blog and I love them. Raw and candid but a lot of fun with great attention paid to the clothes and their inspiration.
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Hedi Slimane for Prada
The brilliant Hedi Slimane was chosen by Prada to photograph their latest menswear campaign. Simple and refined, just like it should be. These photos continue the tradition of greatness both Slimane and Prada display time and time again when it comes to integrating high fashion into other artistic mediums. These are not the flashiest images out there but they are striking, Slimane knows how to reduce a subject to it’s pure, essential elements. In a time when technology and the increased exposure of amateur photography into the mainstream pressures professional photographers to go overboard on effects, Slimane shows that the best choice is to go with substance and let the photograph prove itself.
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(Images courtesy of Design Scene)
Alexander McQueen Spring 2010
I’m torn by this collection, it appeals to one side of me and pisses off the other. This collection was preceded by a short film by David Sims which conceptualized the creative process and focused on the tortured side of the artist. I found the whole thing just completely predictable and pretentious but at the same time I connected with the overall feeling of the video. It was the same thought process I had when viewing this collection. On the one hand, it shows McQueen’s usual brilliance on going against current trends and still making wonderful, conceptual clothes. While most designers have gone for the slim, slick silhouette, McQueen chose a more bulky, baggy, and vagabond look which works very well. It also harkens back to the tortured artist, Jackson Pollock (who I think was an overrated jackass, but that’s for a different post). The part of this collection that irritates me is that the concept is way too literal and way too blunt. There is no subtlety, no fine touch. It feels like a one trick pony, but at the same time, they’re still great clothes. I guess the genius of McQueen is that the clothes always leave me debating myself, but still delighted.
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(Images courtesy of style.com)
Burberry Resort 2010 Collection
While there’s nothing “resort” feeling about this, they are still very beautiful clothes. Burberry Prorsum focused on textures with this collection and from everything I’ve read, photos do not do this collection justice. There are the ruffles and draping qualities you can see right next to the slick tailored looks, but there are also minute details that are hard to pick up which make Burberry so great. For a couple years I’ve been fairly disappointed in what Burberry had been putting out, but recently they have been very impressive.
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