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COMME DES GARÇONS | PERFUME

Fashion, Features/Op-Ed

It is no big secret that “perfume” is a bit of a dirty word in fashion. Often, it is seen, not without justification, as an easy way to make money by capitalizing on one’s brand name. The typical arrangement is to license out one’s name to a big perfume conglomerate, tell them what you want it to smell like, and sit back while the money rolls in. A successful perfume can be immensely profitable. Thierry Mugler, to take one example, has not designed a garment in decades, but his enormously successful perfume “Angel” has made him a millionaire many times over. All you need is a brand name and a good formula. It is no wonder then that every newly minted fashion designer and celebrity is eager to sign a perfume deal.

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THE SALT OF THE EARTH: WIM WENDERS & SEBASTIAO SALGADO

Culture

One day, back in the 80s, the German filmmaker Wim Wenders saw pictures of the Brazilian-born photographer Sebastiao Salgado at a gallery in Los Angeles. He was so impressed that he bought two prints on the spot. Since, Salgado has quickly become his favorite photographer. Wenders continued to follow his work, and one day, being who he is, Wenders decided to simply knock on Salgado’s door.

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Boris Bidjan Saberi x Mad et Len

Design, Fashion

The Barcelona-based fashion designer Boris Bidjan Saberi has revealed his new capsule of home fragrances in collaboration with the French scent maker Mad et Len. The collection consists of two candles and two scented lava stone jars. The main scent note is vegetable tanned horse leather. Needless to say, it’s an olfactory match made in heaven.

eKoeun’s Portrait

Forme d’Expression

Fashion, Features/Op-Ed

This past January during the men’s fashion week in Paris I, as is my habit, visited the showroom of forme d’expression. The label, which recently celebrated its tenth year anniversary, is designed by Koeun Park, who quietly works in Perugia, Italy on her men’s and women’s collections.

1990s

Op-Ed: Why The 90s Matter

Culture, Features/Op-Ed

Everyone who goes through his formative years in a certain decade considers it the golden age. Obviously, the 90s were the best decade ever.

But let’s go beyond facetiousness. In terms of cultural production it is obvious that every decade has the good and the bad. What is more interesting is how much of the good and how much of the bad the zeitgeist of every decade produces, and what gets to hit the mainstream. Why 90s matter is that it was the decade when culture, and fashion as part of culture, took the last stand before succumbing to pure, unapologetic commerce.

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The Rebirth of Atelier New York

Fashion, Retail

Atelier New York, an iconic menswear boutique that shuttered its doors in 2013, has reinvented itself, re-opening under new ownership as an eclectic shop for men and women. Since the rumor mill surrounding its rebirth has gone into overdrive, I decided to speak with Lu Han, the new owner, and Karlo Steel, the former co-owner who has remained at Atelier as head buyer.

We met in the lobby of Hotel Americano in West Chelsea, around the corner from where Atelier is now located on the tenth floor of a building in which other tenants are art galleries and fashion companies.

IRIS VAN HERPEN exclusively for thecorner.com (9)

Iris van Herpen x The Corner

Fashion

We would like to present the capsule collection of the Dutch designer Iris van Herpen created exclusively for The Corner. The collection is characteristic of van Herpen’s body of work, especially evident in its “liquid” fabrics that give the garments their otherworldly, ethereal feel.