Fun is over and I am having a fancy dinner of ham and cheese baguette on my last night in Paris. The last of the Mohicans still congregate at Cafe Charlot, but the majority have already packed their bags. Since people often ask me about fashion week, I might as well make my observations public.
The Ann Demeulemeester men’s S/S 2014 show in Paris today was a lighthearted affair set to the music of Devendra Banhart. The mood was light and so were the clothes. As Demeulemeester explained backstage, her inspiration came from an idea of taking a leisurely Sunday afternoon stroll. “I wanted something really light, with a bit of humor and good feeling,” she sad. The design of the wisteria vines that were the leitmotif for the collection came from Demeulemeester’s own garden, of course.
Dear readers,
We are co-hosting Damir Doma’s afterparty in Paris this Saturday. Please RSVP to the address below. See you there!
Dear readers,
Tonight I attended the Haider Ackermann men’s presentation. It was his first men’s collection since the Pitti Uomo presentation in Florence. This showing was intimate in scope, held in a former archives space in the Marais district. The stripped down decor this time was a nice juxtaposition to Ackermann’s luxurious style. This collection seemed like a perfect complement to the women’s shows and Ackermann told me that he used some of the same fabrics he has used for his womenswear. The clothes were rich in detail as well, with some pieces featuring intricate hand embroidery. As to why he chose a presentation and not the runway show, Ackermann said, “I wanted to do create an intimate moment with the men’s.” Indeed, this was a welcome change from the usual madness of fashion shows.
Dear readers,
Here are some photos of the SILENT line by Damir Doma, Spring/Summer 2014, presented at Pitti Uomo in Florence. The last three pieces are women’s, the rest are men’s. We will post the full look-book shortly.
Dear readers,
I am happy to announce the fourth volume of StyleZeitgeist magazine. Putting it together has been another arduous but ultimately immensely gratifying experience. Looking back on it, it turned out to be quite a Belgian issue, with half of our contributors and subjects having something to do with Belgian fashion design. This is no accident, considering this country’s immense contribution to the world of fashion during the last few decades.
First time I came across Taiana Giefer’s work, I spent a while examining one of her scarves. It was majestic, in a fairy tale way, something from another era. I wondered about how it was constructed, the crisscrossing wool felt surfaces that formed a kind of a grid, leaving openings like fortress embrasures. The fringes looked liked dreadlocks; the whole things was tactile, alive. A year later I met the California-born designer when we used her scarves for one of the StyleZeitgeist magazine editorials.
Dear readers, I am happy to announce the launch of OtherFashion, the new e-commerce project curated by StyleZeitgeist. This venture arose quite spontaneously, from numerous encounters with under-the-radar designers who do impressive work but are not necessarily well-known, usually because they do not want or cannot afford to play by the rules of the…
That a prominent artist today can still take up a historically serious subject has become a sort of an anomaly, as much of contemporary art seems to be stuck in the irony mode. The new exhibit by the German artist Anselm Kiefer called Morgenthau Plan, on view at the Gagosian gallery, is a cause to take a West Chelsea trip and, for once, not be disappointed.
Kiefer came of age in the devastated post-war Germany (he was born two months before the Nazis capitulated), a time when the specter of devastation and the widespread realization of what the Third Reich has wrought became an all-pervasive national tragedy. Much of Kiefer’s oeuvre reflects an almost therapeutic need to come to terms with the crimes of the previous generation of his countrymen. That he continues to do so in 2013 is a powerful statement.
Dear readers,
I met Filep Motwary almost a year ago. Filep is a costume designer, photographer, and fashion features editor for Dapper Dan magazine. He founded Un nouVeau iDEAL in 2006. We have corresponded regularly since, sharing our views on fashion. We finally realized that we should share our insights with the larger audience in our respective publications. Below is our first conversation, conducted via Skype.