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Spring Fever 2006, Volume 2, Issue 1
Spring Fever 2006
Contents
Contents
Spring Fever 2006, Volume 2, Issue 1
Editorial Editor in Chief Beth Hammarlund Managing Editor Amy Roark Creative Director Molly Roark Marketing Director Kate Iverson Design Izaak B Nathan Hinz
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Senior Beauty Ediors Jen Hughes Truc Nguyen Contributing Beauty Assistant Olivia Brown Associate Style Editor Michelle Butterfield Production Assistant Valerie Townsend Staff Photographers Krista Oakes Colin Simmons Contributors Amy Pierce Chris Hajny Aaron Wojack
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Letter from the Editor 06 Contributors 07 Everyone Knows its Windy 08 Only Human 14 Whirl–Wind 18 Cliché 24 Candy Eye Factory 26 The TV Sound 28 Labrador 30 Agoraphobia 42 Where to Buy 58 Opinion 60 l’étoile Nightlife 64
Special thanks to Amelia Biewald, Lili Jackson, Brandy LaChapelle, Anna Lee, Charles Miller, Gina Reid, Holly Schroder, Caleb Hinz, Michelle Skally Doilney, Erin Smith, Steve Wolf, Aaron Wojack, Pam Arcand, Clement Shimizu, Nick Golfis, White Chocolate, James Lindbloom, KHS, Jon Bradley, Esther Park, Grain Belt, Shakers, Ben and Emma, Bill and Meg and the dungeon masters, Sally Spencer, Colleen Jean Johnson, Dan and Jeff
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All content © 2006 l’étoile Magazine except were noted. No part of l’étoile Magazine may be reproduced in any form without prior written consent.
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Spring Fever 2006
Volume 2 Issue 1
L’étoile
Spring Fever 2006
Contributors
Letter from the Editor
Contributors
The ground has thawed, the trees have blossomed, and the winter doldrums have melted away. Finally, spring has returned to l’étoilé du nord. And just as winter is a time for rest, spring is a time for growth. It is with this philosophy in mind that we bring you a new l’étoilé, featuring expanded coverage of local art, design, culture, and events.
Amy Pierce–Photographer, Agoraphobia. NYC
Although it’s been a season or two since you last heard from us, we’ve hardly been hibernating. We spent our winter months creating an issue with fashion and beauty editorials that rival those of national publications, as well as coverage of local art exhibits, music, and nightlife. With these new additions, and further expansion to come, we look forward to becoming your favorite Twin Cities source for all things beautiful and interesting. Spring Fever marks a new direction for us; we hope it inspires you to take some chances, as well. In addition to the publication of this issue, l’étoilé and A Pretty Mind Studio have worked together to host multiple events throughout the winter and early spring. This new tradition continues on May 19th when l’étoilé hosts the opening festivities for NEMAA’s Art-A-Whirl. Can’t make it? Well, keep your ears peeled, kids, because our jam-packed summer issue might just merit a party of its own. We hope that our magazine, events, and upcoming website encourage you to experience the Twin Cities creative community and all that it has to offer. Get involved. Get inspired. And make some new friends.
Beth Hammarlund Editor in Chief
Amy Pierce was born in Yonkers, New York where she made movies with her sisters, the family video camera and lots of fake blood. Later she moved to Connecticut where she got made fun of for her weird accent and learned to take pictures. Amy now resides Brooklyn, but her favorite at-home actitivies still involve lots of fake blood.
Chris Hajny–Illustrator, Labrador. Minneapolis Chris rocks black denim and blazing white kicks. As a freelance illustrator out of Minneapolis, and 1/3 of the illustration/design trio Drawl Graphic, Chris spends all of his time making art. And that’s the way he likes it. Check the work at www.drawlgraphic.com or has his personal website, www.hajny.com
Aaron Wojack–Photographer, Everyone Knows its Windy. Minneapolis Aaron is a Minneapolis native who doesn’t much care for writing about himself. He does however enjoy taking pictures and also bikes and tigers.
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Everyone Knows its Windy
Our forecast for Spring calls for scattered thunder clouds of cascading curl. Get these lightning fast results by creating twisters in the hair, lock by lovely lock, then dry. The look is made easy breezy with a sprinkle of Hair Potion in the crown for volume and a strong mist of Air Control throughout. Deep radiant reds recall the rainbow’s warmest hues and beckon the Summer sun. When the advisory warrants more treacherous conditions, fasten the coils around ribbons and pin the hair away from the face for a finish “that’s lighter than air.” This will create more elegance and prevent loose curls from blowing in the face.
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Style: Beauty
Photography by Aaron Wojack Art Direction by Molly Roark Hair by Jen Hughes Hair Color by Lindsey Yozamp Makeup by Truc Nguyen Model - Monica Shot on the Rooftop of Density Studio
This time of year the weather is temperamental at best, so be prepared for either sun or storms with a range of colors that span the meteorological possibilities. Our girl may have “stormy eyes,” but theusual smoke and clouds have been replaced by rich jewel tones that still define but now add complementary color to your irises. Speaking of flowers, juxtapose your dark gaze with an unexpected lip shade worthy of the best spring roses. While waiting for the storm to pass, comfort yourself with the fact that colors are registered as being brighter on overcast days. - Truc
After all, everyone knows it’s Windy! - Jen
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Style: Beauty
In Monica’s hair: Be Curly Curl Enhancing Lotion, Air Control Hairspray, and Pure Abundance Volumizing Hair Potion. All by Aveda.
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Style: Beauty
Monica wears: Artjam Paint, Pinked Mauve Pigment, Sweet William Blushcreme and Pro LongWear Lipcolor in Lover’s Lust. All by MAC Cosmetics.
All clothing Monica’s own Laminated eyeglass necklace by Two Bit Bling
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Only Human
Only Human By Brandy LaChapelle
I was eating string cheese. Yes, string cheese. Shut-up, you eat it too. I noticed the awkward, nonbiodegradable wrapper and wondered, why do I open packages of food, full of unrecognizable ingredients, processed in ways I can’t imagine, actually eat it and then wonder where that little gnaw of guilt comes from? David Hamlow brought this conflict to the surface at his recent showing at the Minnesota Museum of American Art (MMAA). His Dodecahedron is a deliberate confrontation of the colorfully packaged and ultimately medicated daily life of a culture under the influence of corporate design and trendy medicine. This work, in the context of portraiture, left the audience with the unsettled feeling we’re denying our substance, blindly subsisting on the most appealing and convenient of crap. Why? We are only human. At the MMAA’s recent exhibition, Only Human: Exploring Contemporary Portraits, many artists contemplated the highs and lows of our shared humanity with an honest appreciation for our tortured, delicious conflicts. To say we are “only human” implies we can imagine something better, be something better, than who we are. We are all acutely flawed, weighed down as much by our fantasies as our tyrannical self-inflicted standards. The art in the exhibits ran the gamut from prejudice to obsession, laziness to fanaticism and really gave voice to an array of universal fears. I decided to review this show from the perspective of a fellow artist rather than a critic, because I share their fascination with our constant need to try to change ourselves and each other. I believe the exhibit was an admission that we secretly love our flaws and frankly, without them we wouldn’t have much to make art about. Theresa Downing, curator of the show, explains, “Our identities are constructed of more than our simple faces.” The traditional portrait remains elusive as we wander through a funhouse of character dimensions that somehow both reflect and define us. From the perspectives of such a profoundly diverse group of artists, I couldn’t help feeling an embarrassed hope for the budding culture of my adolescent country. The Artists Anthony Marchetti served up juicy morsels to satisfy our inner voyeur and reacquaint us with our inner vandal. His portraits are of lives left behind and they captured that poignant moment as we take one last look at the place we called home. It is what our back sees as we turn away, and moves on from our messy weaknesses. Only an artist with an extreme “empathy” for objects that have been used up, abandoned and forgotten could find the grotesque beauty in our most shameful moments. 14
Visions of my fourth grade trapper keeper and its shield-like power flashed to mind as I met the penetrating gaze of Jay Wittenburg’s Sylvia Plath, clutching a book to her anatomically questionable breasts. The paintings are awkward and a bit little creepy, and his obsession, it would be a glorious one if only we’d seen the whole collection. But in the end, I believe Jay Wittenburg ‘s fantasies about female writers are as romantic as my own. Ben Olson’s expressively rendered paintings of himself and his beloved fiancée, Emma were so raw, a tribute to the overwhelming happiness of desires met. Each fluid brush stroke was loaded with color and brought out the secret desire to be laden in the textures of another. Olson knows what to do with paint, and I now know how I’d want to be painted. Susan Kosmalski succeeded in disturbing my personal archive of sharp and flawless images of movie star beauties in black and white. She captured our desperate struggle against the inevitable with her portrait of Marlene Dietrich, taped under her wig, a mere ghost of herself before her death. No one can fight the passing of time, no matter how much money we spend. Xavier Tavera’s three larger than life Extreme Fighter portraits exposed our basest nature. Hair, sweat and spittle glistened on the surface of three predatory men. They gazed at me with the self assured power of a lion ,tiger, and bear. In striking contrast, Xavier’s portraits of Koffi, El Abuelo, and Dr.Chou depicted the disenfranchised of our world, those people on the margins of society whom we rely on to make our world rich. They gaze with more power, strength and confidence than any of other the featured subjects. Earnest Bryant III flat tarp like canvases represented our black cultural icons with a garishly airbrushed nobility and an explosion of color, humor and irony. They remind the controversies that have both separated and brought us closer. “Nine Monologues,” played with gender perspectives. In Peter B. Becker Nelson interviews with nine women, representing a wide range of age and circumstance, he deftly revealed a stunning and simple expression of the gender conflict. Boy’s v.s. girls, what do we really know about it? As Nelson’s expressive, boyish mouth recounted the thoughts of a savvy young girl on the subject of “what a boy should be like”, I simply could not look away. It is not the first time the ideas of a woman are presented by a man, so why is this special? Nelson is not trying to pull the wool over our eyes, we know whose ides these are. Katinka Galanos left me hanging. Her layered negatives certainly added dimension to her images of individuals, yet the overall voice remained a whisper. Her pieces were the most traditional portraits in the show, despite all the technical manipulation. However, I can still appreciate a beautiful, mysterious picture.
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Only Human
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Whirl–Wind By Holly Schroeder
What inspires you? Visual arts like painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, printmaking? Perhaps it’s pottery, weaving, woodworking and jewelry making? What about furniture, ceramics, fabric, multimedia or performance based art like music, dance and acrobatics? Whatever it is, you’ll find all of this and more at the annual NE Minneapolis “Art-A-Whirl” festival. For the past ten years in Minneapolis, the third weekend of May has been all about art. Over 20,000 visitors will attend this open studio art crawl in Northeast Minneapolis, where over 400 galleries, studios, converted warehouses, private homes, industrial buildings and rehearsal centers open their doors to the public. This year, a bike map showing routes to the galleries and studios will make it easier to pedal and participate in this spring’s fling with art. Maps will be at locations all over the city as well as at Art-A-Whirl information booths throughout the neighborhood. The Bike Map is also available online at www.alteredesthetics.com/bikemap.
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Whirl–Wind
Jamie Schumacher Altered Esthetics 1300 Quincy St NE 626-318-7019 info@alteredesthetics.com alteredesthetics.com artonquincy.com
Jamie Schumacher, artist, curator and owner of Altered Esthetics Gallery, is involved in many organizations, like the Arts Action Plan, that benefit the Northeast art community. She’s a NEMAA volunteer and arts advocate. She also was the primary force behind this year’s first ArtA-Whirl Bike Map sponsored by Peace Coffee. Altered Esthetics will open their next group show “Bike Art” over Art-A-Whirl weekend. How is NEMAA helping make successful artists out of ‘starving’ ones? Is that really NEMAA’s responsibility or mission? I think NEMAA works hard as a facilitator for promotions and some connections but if your art is thoughtless and not even aesthetically palatable, all the promotions, connections and marketing in the world aren’t going to help you sell your work in a district where even some of the remarkable work isn’t selling. NEMAA helps link artists up with grant writing workshops, credit card processing for businesses and other like minded artists. These and the events are all positive things and most artists are grateful. But if your art isn’t feeding you yet, bite the bullet get a day job. If you expect some non-profit composed of other artists to be able to do that for you for a measly 50 bucks a year, you’re sadly mistaken. To answer the question in a less harsh way, NEMAA is helping artists out by providing them with some useful links and resources, but in the end I think it is up to the artists to feed and care for themselves and take ownership of their art and Art District. Jamie, what is Art on Quincy? Art on Quincy, by raw definition, is an organization of artists and studios on Quincy Street working together to better their part of the Art District and consolidate limited resources for promoting the business and artists they represent. For Altered Esthetics (and Quincy Street as a whole, I would say), it has been a great way to help with drawing people into an often overlooked portion of the district. It has also been a great opportunity to meet and work with our neighbors. Kate Iverson from Density Studios first contacted us to begin these group promotions before last years Art-AWhirl. I think the consolidated effort has really helped all of us.
How is this year’s Art-A-Whirl different? This years Art-A-Whirl will feature sculpture, performance art, painting, photography, comic art, music, and film. The “Bike Art” group show brings together the cycling and artistic communities in an engaging and unique juxtaposition. From the feedback I’ve been getting from the bike community, it looks like we may be reaching an audience that isn’t normally the gallery-going type of crowd. Being able to draw somebody into the art community that isn’t otherwise superinterested and having them walk away with a positive interpretation is exciting to me! 18
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Whirl–Wind
Laurie Svedberg and Faith Farrell FUNKtionall ART 3359 Tyler Street NE 612-789-8616 lsved@ties2.net www.funktionallart.com
Mike and Irene Menasco Artistic Indulgence 302 East Hennepin 612.746.4508 Wereiartm@aol.com
Well-known as that quirky art gallery in Nordeast Minneapolis, FUNKtionall Art participates in the annual Art-A-Whirl open studio event each May and the Fall Fine Arts Show each November. Owners Laurie Svedberg and Faith Farrell love to meet folks who share their impish attitude toward art and life so they show individually at local venues and their work is always on view at Columbia Grounds Coffee Shop on 33rd and Central Avenue NE in Minneapolis.
Mike and Irene Menasco are owners of the fine art gallery and framing store Artistic Indulgence. Both are self trained artists who create AND sell art, representing about eight to ten national and local artists at a time in their gallery. Mike has been a Certified Professional Picture Framer for six years, so in addition to the 50 or so original pieces displayed for purchase in the gallery, they do conservation custom framing. They also offer a range of artist materials. Mike, your own art seems to be all over the board in regards to style and content. Is this something you specifically set out to achieve, or do you simply paint what you feel?
Laurie, can you give us a brief bio of yourself? I’m a retired high school art and philosophy teacher with a residential studio/gallery that’s been on HGTV and home tours. I have a white shepherd named “Wonder” who inspires me and I’ve lived in NE for 26 years where I still marvel at the mix of arts, culture and grittiness. Besides Funktionall Art, I show regularly at Altered Esthetics and Columbia Grounds. I also designed the banners on Central Avenue as a tribute to this great area (but they need some freshening up!) How did you and Faith come together to create FUNKtionall Art? Years ago, before the “craft craze” hit, I started funkifying my household furnishings. A pole lamp became a tree, stereo speakers morphed into rocks, and clocks turned cuckoo. About that time I met fellow funkstress, Faith Farrell who lived down the alley. We decided to launch a gallery of funky furnishings that everyone could enjoy. FUNKtionall ART was born. Our mission was, and still is, to fashion “fun-of-a-kind” art pieces from useful objects. Faith and I create “serious” art as separate entities, but FUNKtionall ART remains a great outlet for our shared sense of humor, irony and pop culture. What are your plans for Art-A-Whirl? Funktionall Art is sponsoring “Battle of the Brushes” at Columbia Grounds on Saturday May 20 from 2-4 pm. It will be a speed-painting extravaganza, with NEMAA artists and local celebrities creating 5-minute paintings of topics tossed out by spectators. Think “Pictionary” meets “Beat the Clock.” We’ve got M.A. Rosko of FOX 9 Morning News, Paul Ostrow of the Minneapolis City Council, L.K. Hanson a Star Tribune illustrator, Ben Heywood, the Soap Factory director and Julie Swenson, “Skyway Girl” lined up to be celebrity painters. Rich Kronfeld (a.k.a. “Dr. Sphincter”) of TV’s “Let’s Bowl!” fame will be the emcee. The paintings will be auctioned with a portion of proceeds to benefit Clare Housing, an organization that supports folks with HIV/AIDS. And, of course, FUNKtionall ART Gallery (34th and Tyler NE) will be a must-see stop during Art-a-Whirl. Judith Westergard, Faith Farrell and I will have lots of funky artworks for show and sale at realpeople prices. It’s delightful to witness the giggles, gasps and guffaws of visitors and Wonder hopes everyone will stop by to pet him and gawk at his wacky house! So stop by and experience a gallery unlike any you’ve seen! 20
I paint solely for myself. I am not an artist who just produces to sell. I paint what I feel, whether it sells or not. I work in many different styles and mediums including acrylics, oils, colored pencils, river clay and pastels, etc...I’ll try anything. For me, that’s the great thing about art. You are the only one that limits yourself. How do you feel about showing your more controversial work in your own gallery? Galleries like Altered Esthetics are wonderful for me because it allows me to show my more controversial work without the judgments of closed minded people. Unfortunately as we know in business it is not always wise to wear your political or personal beliefs on your sleeve. We prefer our business to stand alone as a place where anybody can come and enjoy what we have to offer based on quality and professionalism, not what our personal beliefs are. I feel I get the best of both worlds. I get to do more of a range of subjects without being categorized into one style. Do you find maintaining the business end of your gallery to be challenging when you’re more of a creative type? Not at all. Yes, you have to be both, business and creative. Irene is completely the business side. I am learning a little after all these years. But she does an incredible job and she is both, business–minded and creative. There aren’t many people like her and that’s why it works for us. Do you think Art-A-Whirl has increased sales or awareness or both? I feel it has increased both and gets better every year. We get the trickle down from the Art District. It’s all just getting the public to realize we are here and to remember. This will be the 2nd year that we have our Northeast Art Buying Incentive. To support the local arts and artists, Artistic Indulgence will give 25% off of framing or reframing of any art, that is bought from any artist in NE participating in Art-A-Whirl.
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"Susanna" by Nicholas Harper Now on Display
Fine Art Music Film Dance Theater
www.roguebuddha.com
ROGUE buddha GALLERY a contemporary place to view art
357 13th ave . ne . mpls 612.331.3889
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Cliché
Cliché By Victoria A. Zumpano with additional reporting by Beth Hammarlund
Photo: Krista Oakes
The days when you have nothing to wear, when you feel as if you’ve been sucked into a fashion black hole, are the ideal days to venture to Cliché on 24th and Lyndale in Minneapolis. An answer to your styling woes can surely be found inside the narrow boutique, nestled snugly between a coffee shop and a music store.
As for the future of Cliché, Josh and Delayne intend to continue to support and offer local designers, while maintaining a balance with mass-produced items. If their current success is any indication, their red and white store sign should be announcing Cliché’s presence to Lyndale Avenue for many years to come.
Cliché offers it’s customer a large selection of clothing and accessories encompassing a wealth of different styles. Its filled with enough variety to delight new wavers and bohos, alike. The duo behind Cliché, husband and wife Josh and Delayne Sundberg, share a great love of fashion. Both grew up in the Twin Cities and are excited to support the burgeoning fashion community. Their boutique carries fashion from local designers such as DeGeny Recycling, Kerry Riley and Less Than Perfect. However, they make it quite clear that they will not carry a line just because it is local. “We want to carry cool stuff that happens to be local,” Josh says. They initially wanted Cliché to be a vintage store, but when city zoning laws and permits stood in the way of their original vision, they decided that they would open a boutique that offered new, mass-produced clothing and accessories, in addition to local pieces. “We wanted the store to be an alternative to the label stores,” Josh says. Delayne, Cliché’s buyer, scouted the globe for new clothing companies. She shopped specifically for pieces that looked like nothing else she had ever seen. The result of her scouting is an eclectic, affordable mix of Asian brands, American brands (including sweatshop-free American Apparel), and local designers on the rise, such as Corrine Lohman. Josh says of the affordability of the items, “Delayne and I felt it was important that it be reasonably priced. We always wanted it to be within a college kid’s budget.” There are tops and skirts available for under $30, as well as one of-a-kind dresses for $150. The choice for the location was purely accidental. “We saw an ad in the paper and we came by to check it out,” co-owner Josh Sundberg says. “We immediately fell in love with the early 1900’s tin ceiling.” The location has turned out to be a blessing as Lyndale Avenue has become a shopping hot spot in the past few years. “Uptown used to be the place to go for edgier clothing when I was a kid, but now it’s all Gap and Express,” Josh says, “Lyndale is where the people who live in Uptown come to shop now.”
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Candy Eye Factory
Candy Eye Factory By Lili Jackson
Film often stimulates fashion and style. Klute set off the shag haircut. Clueless inspired bigskirted suits and knee-high stockings. Beastie Boys videos roused the love of oversized, fake mustaches. For JoEllen Martinson and William Scott Rees of Candy Eye Factory, it is fashion that inspires their films. The duo started experimenting with clothing in elementary school. They nursed their creativity by digging through barrels full of vintage clothing, wigs and fake blood to work on school projects. When they began making films, their work rarely contained stories, but the characters were always styled to perfection. It was not until after studying Media Arts together at MCAD that they started to focus on the narrative aspect of film. However, they still rely on the styling of their films to express what words cannot. Martinson, who focused on animation in college, also creates graphics that enhance the atmosphere and mood, particularly in their films Digits and The Driver & the Doe. Digits is a perfect example of fashion as muse. While flipping through a book about the BaaderMeinhof Gang (Red Faction Army), Martinson and Rees were intrigued not only by the politics of the militant Marxist/Maoist organization, but also by their terrorist chic. Armed with an arsenal of 70’s vintage clothing and an eye for design, Candy Eye Factory conceptualized and created a story of kidnapping and betrayal through a Kino eye. In The Driver & the Doe, the duo told a tale of exploitation and cruelty, challenging the viewer to reconsider the way that animals are used to satisfy our own consumerism. Tri and Expectorants are two more non-narrative films on the Candy Eye Factory DVD (available at Design Collective, Robot Love and Day-Lab.com). Both delve deeply into interpersonal relationships, but have extremely contrasting moods. Although they both contain an element of strife, Expectorants creates an atmosphere of love and concern, as a couple tries to cure a mystery ailment. Tri is composed of three complimentary shorts. As Candy Eye’s most abstract film, starring Martinson and Rees, it has a modern dance-like quality that is enhanced by its creative editing. Color and character ripen in both The Legend of Santa Susanna and Betsy Benson & the Bowtie Boy(s). As their longest and largest film to date, The Legend of Santa Susanna transforms Minneapolis into a sleepy southwestern town from the packaging of the main character’s favorite Unpasturized Goat’s Milk carton, down to the TexMex threads. The Legend has an air of magic realism whirling throughout while the narrator’s twang sets the tone. Betsy Benson & the Bowtie Boy(s) is narrated as well, but shot as a very inventive reclamation of an old childhood story as the narrator records it herself.
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With an intense work ethic and attention to detail that enables them to make these films without a production team, Martinson and Rees still get excited about the small things, such as discovering cool and amusing tags on vintage clothing. The idea for their recent film The Mallory’s Go Black Market was inspired by silly labels with names like Daddy’s Money and the importance of brands. Check out Candy Eye Factory’s website at www.candyeyefactory.com, and stay tuned to PBS and various film festivals for a chance to view their upcoming works.
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The TV Sound
The TV Sound By Anna Lee
Anyone who attended Voltage: Fashion Amplified at First Avenue in May, 2005 can tell you that the club was brimming, if not overflowing, with local talent. The surprise hit of the night was The TV Sound, a band that seemed made for the event. Steven Hutton, keyboardist and front man for the TV Sound, a distinct figure in the local fashion community, is known for his eclectic, 80’s inspired menswear, currently sold at Cliché. Hutton’s runway shows are entertaining and innovative and often involve recordings of original music, human “mannequins” and dancing that one can only describe as “Hutton.” Minneapolis music enthusiasts may recall Audrey, a band who made 80’s music lovely even before the current retro-revival. Max Mileski, bassist and founder of Datalyst Studios, and Josh Lemoine, houndstooth-jacket-wearing drummer, were two of that band’s members. Mileski and Lemoine are now key members of the TV Sound. Joining them is Brandon Dalida, who taught guitar lessons, and worked on his own electronic music projects before coming to the band. The TV Sound was originally conceived in 1997 when Hutton answered an ad run by Mileski in a local newspaper. The two musicians spent their first few years as a duo “recording the songs that would become their 21st century statement for the return of pop melody, dance swagger, analog influence, and digital technology”. They did not appear on the local music radar until winter/spring of 2005. Hutton got more involved with visual arts and clothing design, while Mileski performed with Audrey in 2001-2003. In spring 2004, they were joined by Lemoine on drums. That fall, Dalida joined the group after seeing a performance. Recently, I spent some time with the band’s Minneapolis residents, and Steve Hutton joined us via speakerphone, having recently moved to Chicago for his job with H&M. Hutton says he misses rehearsing and playing with the guys – it is what kept him sane in Minneapolis. Though he has to be at work at 6 a.m., he still loves his new job and has been able to let go on the weekends and get to know the city. He has been scoping out new venues there, and I’m happy to report Chicago can expect a TV Sound show in the near future. Moving to Chicago was good for Hutton. The shopping district is vibrant, and he is getting a lot of inspiration. He has been styling for shows and getting involved with marketing and events. When pressed for his title at H&M, he half–joked that they don’t believe in titles there, but be assured he is the one who makes their windows so eye-catching. Outside of The TV Sound, the rest of the guys have been keeping busy. Mileski, when not working on finishing the TV Sound’s new CD, has been working on other recording projects and fixing 28
Photo: Colin Simmions
up his new sailboat. Lemoine has been playing with local musician Beight, and Dalida has been playing with electro-pop/new wave group Mercurial Rage. During our conversation - in the midst of a heated debate regarding the finer points of gauchos and cropped pants - I realized how closely these guys work together, despite their long-distance relationship. Their aesthetics and interests are varied, yet still uniquely in line with one another’s. Songwriting, performance, and fashion are important to any band, but The TV Sound approaches each detail with the most artistic of intentions. The result is an experience that makes the audience dance, and leaves them with a feeling of “that’s how this should be done.” The release party for their new 12-song, self-titled CD is set for May 19th at the Varsity Theater. They will be joined by The Alarmists and This World Fair. The night promises to be filled with fashion and excellent live music, each band prominently featuring keyboards.
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Labrador
Labrador By Beth Hammarlund
It’s one thing to wear your heart on your sleeve. It’s quite another to wear your ideas. Labrador, a Twin Cities brand and collective of fashion designers, models, stylists, and photographers, produces clothing inspired by and rooted in politics. These pieces, ranging from casual to luxurious, blend aesthetics, function, and ideology. In 2000, chief designer Barrett Johanneson was spending a semester away from Hamline University to study in Southern California. Frustrated with Orange County and Los Angeles style, Johanneson and a friend decided to purchase a sewing machine over spring break and spend the following two weeks teaching themselves to make their own clothes. “The idea really came about from an intense dissatisfaction with suburban, Southern California. Labrador began as a response to what we knew we didn’t like,” Johanneson says. The name Labrador, is a product of the same logic. “I didn’t like dogs at the time. And Labradors are so happy and stupid. We decided to go with something that we didn’t like and turn it into something that we did,” Johanneson says. “And we really liked the name. Labrador sort of rolls right off the tongue.” The November 2003 and August 2004 Anti-Fashion District shows at the Fine Line brought Labrador to the forefront of the Twin Cities fashion scene. Johanneson’s ambitious goals and general philosophy compelled him to enlist the help of Assistant Designers Amy Sorenson, Dania Miwa, and Noah Miwa. The demands of preparing for the August 2004 show, in particular, fueled the collaborative atmosphere that Labrador has become known for. These two shows were prime examples of Labrador’s clearly defined color palettes. Johanneson favored a bold red, white, and black color scheme inspired by the artist Barbara Kruger. “The color scheme was reflective of the polarization of the political atmosphere,” explains Johanneson. “We were very focused on consumer culture and trying to fit in socio-political critiques of materialism and feminism.” Both of Labrador’s appearances at the Anti-Fashion District shows included staging that echoed the clothing’s political charge. In the first show, models cast ballots onstage. In the second, more intricately choreographed show, models wrote on a blackboard with chalk, taking turns writing and erasing a random series of letters until the audience was left with the message “Vote or Shut the Fuck Up.” Although the shows were decidedly political, Labrador did not endorse a particular candidate or party. Their goal was to encourage members of the audience to make a choice and stand up for it.
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After the 2004 presidential election, Johanneson chose to bring down the intensity of the Labrador message. “Everyone was exhausted with politics. Everything was going more underground. So we brought that to our design by using more subdued colors symbolizing being underground or under the ocean,” Johanneson says. The collection shown at Voltage: Fashion Amplified 2005 presented a gentler side of Labrador. The subtle color palette allowed the viewer to better appreciate the texture and shape of the clothing. The shiny fabrics, nubby knits, and voluminous pieces marked an enormous shift for the brand. It also created an opportunity to showcase the unique talents of Noah Miwa, who constructed a squid-inspired purse. This particular piece is a fantastic example of Miwa’s beadwork and was dyed black, appropriately, with squid ink. Although Johanneson is quick to give credit to his fellow designers, it is clearly his passion that fuels the brand. “He’s great about combining our ideas and giving us an equal say, but when it comes down to it, Labrador is Barrett’s baby,” says Dania Miwa. “I want Labrador to be able to break new ground in expression of human ideas as opposed to being a display of consumer products,” Johanneson says. “If Labrador wasn’t striving to express thoughtful, meaningful ideas about the world we live in, we’d just be a miniature factory. It’s about provoking thought and discussion.” To learn more about Labrador, visit their website at labrador-style.com or drop by the Design Collective to purchase select items. Photography by Steve Wolf Photography Assistant Colin Simmons Makeup by Molly Roark Hair by Addie Mrosla Illustration by Chris Hajny Styled and worn by Labrador
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Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia
Tree bark bodice by Melanie Ree Lychee by Emily Johnson Earrings Painting by Amelia Biewald 42
Top - Princess Warrior by Abigail Meyers Skirt by Molly Roark Skull necklace, worn on wrist by Mother Daughter Ring by Darcy Designs 43
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Dress by Lauren Schad Necklace by Natalie Lucas
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Dress by Laura Fulk
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Skirt and leather corset by Melanie Ree Metallic jacket by Princess Warrior
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Jacket by Lamb Vintage skirt and bustle from Melanie Ree Collection
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Slip from Cliché Vintage wrap from Melanie Ree Collection
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Dress by Laura Fulk Earrings by Mother Daughter Painting by Amelia Biewald
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Photography by Amy Pierce Art Direction by Molly Roark Photography Assistant - Charles Miller Hair by Jen Hughes Hair Color by Brent Camp Makeup by Truc Nguyen Prop Stylist - Gina Reid Style Assistant - Esther Park Artwork by Amelia Biewald Model - Erin
Opposite page: Dress by Diane von Furstenberg Necklace by Natalie Lucas Handmade neck ruffs by Melanie Ree
Roman Polanski’s 1965 film Repulsion had Catherine Deneuve playing Carole Ledoux, a beautiful but repressed young woman who left to her own devices when her family goes on a vacation, descends into a psychotic state as she is consumed by claustrophobia. Deneuve shared the same patrician façade and icy mannerism that made Grace Kelly and Tippi Hedren two of Alfred Hitchcock’s favored actresses. This frigid type of beauty instills in the beholder not only admiration, but an urge to uncover and even destroy it in a search for something deeper. At once perfectly beautiful and tragically flawed, Hitchcock’s platinum blonde exhibits “lots of apparent reserve, lots of temperament in private”. She is “ice cold tea, piping hot sex.” The theme of women being trapped,–whether physically or metaphorically—is not new. 19th century authors Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Edna St. Vincent Millay also featured women who were confined— if not within spatial boundaries then within societal constraints or their own unquiet minds. Gilman’s protagonist in “The Yellow Wallpaper” a writer, goes mad when forced to convalesce after a long illness without an outlet for her creativity. Dynamics of human interaction–especially those of the romantic type idealized in literature, music, and art–act as catalyst, setting into motion the type of emotional chemistry that changes each character. Outside the cinematic world of resolved intrigue and happy denouement, l’étoile’s own cool blond spends her day in solitude, posing the question: what happens to our hidden selves if there is no one there to discover them?
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Where to buy
Darcy Designs available at Design Collective, 1311 26th street west, Minneapolis, 612-377-1000 Laura Fulk available at Cliché, 2403 Lyndale avenue south, Minneapolis, 612-870-0420, and through lfulk@mcad.edu Labrador available at Design Collective and at labrador-style.com Lamb available at Nordstrom Natalie Lucas available through nattykdesigns@hotmail.com Lychee by Emily Johnson available at Gallery 360, 3011 west 50th street, Minneapolis, 612-925-2400 Mother Daughter available at Design Collective Princess Warrior by Abigail Meyers available at Design Collective and at princesswarrior.net Melanie Ree and available at Cliché and seamstrix.net Molly Roark available at mollyroark.com Two Bit Bling available at myspace.com/twobitbling Lauren Schad available at laurenschad@yahoo.com Diane von Furstenberg available at Nordstrom
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Opinion
Opinion By Michelle Skally Doilney
Spring has arrived in Minnesota, but like all of us at some time or another, it is still winter in my brain. My endless ideas and my doubts about expressing them clash and mix into a slothful slurpee. Wintertime and its hardships are handy analogies and excuses for stalled ideas and projects. Yet, spring follows winter and the mind slurpee must eventually thaw. On a recent visit to the Big Island of Hawaii, my mind slurpee melted enough to let creativity flow from the darkness into the light. It wasn’t sun, surf or Mai Tais that inspired me. It was the mythological goddess of volcanoes and her awesome power. Mother Pele incinerates forests as well as pavement; then she pushes back the ocean, creating the newest Mother Earth on the planet. To many Hawaiians, she’s not a myth and certainly not a joke. Science aside, any force of nature that can consume your neighborhood should be respected and taken seriously. Instead of trying to control the uncontrollable, wise islanders show respect for her process, step quickly out of the way and wait for the eventual fruits of her explosions. For laughs, my husband Jim asked four different Park Rangers how much rain it took to cool and stop lava. They all stuttered a lot, trying to diplomatically explain the laws of nature to two mainland morons.
How can we really lament our mental winters when they are part of us, our own heating core, the source of something new to come after the thaw? To wholly honor our poems, photos, paintings, and inspired couture we need to honor the usually dark, sometimes painful, and almost always frustrating process that births them. So often, we see our end result as the only thing with street cred. We rejoice when our next Mona Lisa is done and block out the days of lying around eating Nutella from a jar and watching infomercials with disgusting zeal. We need to open ourselves to our final draft, and to how we get there in the first place. Feed your own Pele with nourishment, meditation, friendship and a foreign book or movie. Respect the time it takes to build your creations from within and honor your winter hibernation as well as your springtime magma. Prepare yourself for the explosions (or at least short red bursts), because Pele rewards with new terrain even as she destroys that which no longer serves you.
Pele and her rhythms symbolize life’s cycle of death and rebirth, the yin-yang of dark and light, the releasing of old ideas and the embracing of new. When Pele erupts, the current landscape is destroyed. Where Pele erupts, new lands are born. As Jim and I hiked over bizarre sheets of lava, we were awed by the desolation of the glassy, black ground against the blue sky. In our next steps, we were awed by the beauty of the rippled, new land and by the tenacity of little flowers peeking out here and there. Where there is moisture, even barren lava mothers new life. Every goshdarn little “mistake” is part of the creative process. As I just realized, thanks to my computer’s spell check, the difference between staring and starting is only one letter (today’s slurpee puzzle = figure it out). Staring is the outward sign of something deeper and it’s usually the last conscious action before heading to the couch for “thinking time”. We build our creative volcano, collecting bits of daily life, naps, frustration, TV, storefront posters, and late night phone calls made from the bathtub to other stuck creatives. “Starting” comes after staring: our inner mixture of conversation and experience condenses into lava that is eventually ready to blow or flow. Build your own habits to harness the stare and grab the start. Find ways to release steam until the lava bubbles up. Enjoy “stare” but schedule face time at your studio or computer. Give “start” a chance, a place to happen. Without grasping and growing around in our warehouses of words, experiences and ideas, we’d end up back in grade school land, filling space with adjectives like “very, very” and colors like “sunshine yellow.” “Stupendously insignificant” and “eye-piercing yellow” come out of coffee shop arguments over using pencils vs. pens to write complaint letters and of chamomile tea daydreams at 2 AM.
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Michelle Skally Doilney, a Minnesotan by birth and accent, is reinventing herself at her new homes in Utah and California. A former hospital food schlepper turned corporate clamberer, she is currently a certified Feng Shui consultant, certified Yoga instructor and business consultant. Most importantly, Michelle is a certified writer/photographer at soul, with tons of stories and ideas just like the rest of us.
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Art & Culture / L’etoile Nightlife
l’étoile Nightlife
The Twin Cities fashion intelligentsia invaded A Pretty Mind Studio for the winter and spring l’étoile events. Art, music, cocktails and parlor games entertained even the most jaded scenesters. Paintings were sold. Drinks were downed. And our lease? It was lost. Anything in the name of art, right?
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a gallery for the artist in all of us
ARTISTS IN ADVERTISING A showing for Art-a-Whirl 2006 May 19, 20 and 21* at
The creative class flooded Northeast Minneapolis’ Density Studios for the opening of Josh McEvitt’s provocative exhibit, “Into the Pink”. Partygoers drank gummy bear cocktails, exchanged airkisses, and even took occasional leave of the dance floor to, you know, actually check out the art. It has recently come to l’étoile’s attention that several attendees were molested by a dancing bear. We offer our sincere apologies to anyone that “Bearis Hilton” may have offended.
unleashed productions 1121 Jackson Street NE, Suite 113 located in The Waterbury Building �
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Call Ellen at 612.767.3457 for more information. *During all Art-a-Whirl scheduled hours.
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