Schön! 11 SPARKLE! LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
in print @ schonmagazine.com
We’ve made our way to the ends of the earth and back again, pillaging and plundering and conquering all to bring you a treasure chest bursting with sparkling talent: from the boldly androgynous to the colorfully whimsical … with just a sprinkling of royalty. Our eleventh issue has been devoted to all that sparkles—and we aren’t just talking about jewels. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be celebrating her Diamond Jubilee next year, and we are delighted to present an exclusive preview of the National Portrait Gallery’s touring exhibition of her portraits planned to commemorate it. We are honoured to publish Chris Levine’s image of the most photographed woman in the world on the cover of Schön! 11. Our fashion alternative to The Queen is the rising star of the modelling world Skye Stracke, previously featured on the front pages of international publications, including campaigns for H&M and Lanvin. Skye dazzles alongside the very suave Miguel Iglesias in the fashion spread “Paris is Burning,” shot by regular contributor Jannis Tsipoulanis. We are also proud to present an elite league of up and coming, not to mention extremely successful, male models in Issue 11: the gorgeous Willy Cartier and Stephen Thompson, who have campaigned for Givenchy, and Sebastian Sauvé, who was featured in the latest Zara campaign and shot by Dimitris Theocharis for Schön! 11, have enough talent to impress even The Queen. Continuing in our royal theme, Saskia Reis interviews a queen of the stage: prima ballerina of the Staatsballett in Berlin, Polina Semionova. And Thanassis Krikis presents “Home Alone,” an enchanting editorial spread with an air of melancholy nobility about it. Back to art, we’ve discovered some hidden gems for you in Elena Bombardelli and Stephan Balleux: two painters from two different countries, both with an extraordinary gift. I won’t spoil the fun by telling you all the secrets of what talent we have enfolded within our pages … but I will say you don’t want to miss Stefan Milev’s Little Red Riding Hood-inspired shoot, just in time for the upcoming film, Rocio Frausto’s interview with Oscar and Golden Globe nominated Visual Effects frontrunner Alex Frisch, nor actress Lisa Edelstein’s candid conversation with Andre Da Silva about winning her first award and the price of fame. Like the rarest diamond, Issue 11 of Schön! Magazine has been perfectly formed to bring you the best and brightest talent the world has to offer. We’ve filled our pages with the crown jewels of the creative world just for you, our loyal readers—only the best for the best.
Raoul Keil, Editor-in-Chief
The Velvet Revolution
At the menswear fashion weeks that showed clothes and accessories for autumn/winter 2011/12, a general buoyant feeling seemed to pervade most collections: according to designers and buyers, the future of style is one where images of luxury are to feature stronger than ever on an unprecedented global scale. This was evident in how collections embraced opulence and revived trends and designs inspired by tradition and social lineage. Wherever one looked, hints that men had been famished for sumptuousness and demanded a brighter future were everywhere: in the predominance of fur, in the adoption of plaids (especially well-known tartans like the Prince of Wales), and in the abundant choices of high-quality fabrics and materials such as cashmere, merino wool, and tweed. However, one trend that exuded paramount connotations of luxury throughout the menswear shows was the resurgence of the velvet jacket. If this is a garment whose importance could be interpreted based on its intrinsic aesthetic value alone, it actually reflects broader social and economic developments that are worth observing. The presence of velvet jackets and suits in a considerable number of menswear shows (including Alexander McQueen, Canali, Corneliani, Dolce & Gabbana, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Gianfranco Ferre, just to name a few) indicated that velvet is expected to continue to be in demand and in style for a few more seasons. It is interesting to analyse how velvet attained not only its recent praise but also its solid and universally acclaimed position in men’s wardrobes. It is important to start looking at the popularity of this fabric by considering that the countries where its contemporary resurgence is occurring with a significant impact are those that touch the past and present borders of Kashmir (where velvet originated) and have developed historical trade links with the region, such as India, China, Kazakhstan and Russia. It is no coincidence that these are also countries where many male consumers have generous disposable
income to purchase garments that, like the velvet jacket, provide aspirational social status through the connotations that they invoke. After velvet started being produced in Kashmir in the 14th century, and quickly became popular as a luxury fabric for the ruling classes in adjoining regions, it started being exported to nations further afield. By the 16th century, velvet became a well-liked fabric not only by European aristocrats but also by wealthy artisans and tradesmen who constituted the early bourgeoisie, an emerging social group with sartorial tastes not entirely dissimilar from the ones in many presentday emerging economies. Velvet’s popularity continued throughout the centuries, acquiring an elevated status in the 18th century French court and becoming associated with the dandy aesthetic of late-18th century and early-19th century Britain. Despite the passing of time and the long distance between Kashmir and Europe, velvet was instrumental in developing trade alliances between East and West while retaining strong associations to nobility and affluence in both parts of the world. As contemporary male buyers in Europe, Latin America and Asia face financial contexts that inflict either expansion or contraction of their spending habits, the unwavering embrace of the velvet jacket owing to its connotations of superior class status has become a steady social and economic indicator through time and space. In a world where fashion trends and styles evolve constantly as a consequence of change in societies, the global acceptance of something as apparently simple as the velvet jacket may be representing a quiet revolution in the making that is worth observing closely if one is to understand the meanings of luxury. Words / João Paulo Nunes Illustration / Luis Muñoz Rodriguez
CREATIVE. PEOPLE. UNITED........ THE CREATIVE NETWORK
“Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary.” – Sir Cecil Beaton -