////////CHIEF Interview Darcy Smith
Chief: four men yearning for a vague, indistinct 70s America.
Hometown: Santa Monica. The lineup: Evan Koga (vocals, guitar), Danny Fujikawa (vocals, guitar), Michael Fujikawa (drums), Mike Moonves (bass). The background: Chief are the latest signing to Domino, and it's always worth paying attention to a new arrival at a label that has on its roster not just Arctic Monkeys and Franz Ferdinand but also Tricky, Four Tet, Wild Beasts and Max Tundra. Chief are unlikely to make a big splash like the first two bands in that list, and they're not as wayward or experimental as the other four. But they're a nice addition, if "nice" doesn't annihilate them with faint praise. The sort of nice they peddle is the Midlake variety, or at least the Midlake of The Trials of Van Occupanther, that 2006 album on which they offered a take on 1970s west coast rock, from the Laurel Canyon troubadours to the airbrushed AOR of Fleetwood Mac. Chief, four LA musicians who formed in New York then returned to California, have in their songs a similar quality of yearning for a vague, indistinct 70s America that, when you think about it, included a lot of different styles. They namecheck Neil Young, Tom Petty, the Band, and Crosby, Stills and Nash. They don't really sound like any of them particularly, yet you can still tell that's what they're into. It's
a romantic idea of listlessly driving along a freeway in the smog-drenched midday sun, in a semi-stoned state, sometime between 1970 and 1977, ie before disco, new wave and metal took hold. Oddly, Chief also cite as influences Love and the Beach Boys. Quintessential California bands, yes, but they sound nothing – nothing – like either. There are too many guitars and thudding drums to approximate the former's celestial lightness and gossamer softness, and there is none of the orchestr al piquancy of Forever Changes. Chief are a four-piece rock band, pure and simple, with vocals to the fore, although Evan Koga has none of Arthur Lee or Brian Wilson's possessed angel about him. If anything, he sounds like a singer from one of those northern British bands who have California dreams, such as the Coral or the Verve. Koga's voice has that same, not hectoring but slightly overdetermined tone to it, as though he's overeager to communicate his intensity and depth. Chris Martin? Yes, a bit like Chris Martin. Anyway, Chief: they have some pretty melodies, they evoke another time, another place, and they opened for Pearl Jam at Hyde Park. Hold on: Chris Martin and Pearl Jam? Now we're really damning them, and we shouldn't, because they do mellow marvellously well. The buzz: "Whilst not exactly smacking of originality (how difficult is this today?) the song oozes class and is composed with the loving care that most of this esteemed label's artists seem to put into their work" – Vain Zine. The truth: File between Clearlake and Sebadoh in your Domino collection. Most likely to: Be gently arresting. Least likely to: Be arrested for arson. What to buy: The single Night & Day is released by Domino on 30 August, followed by the album Modern Rituals on 20 September. File next to: Midlake, the Coral, the Verve, Tom Petty. Links: myspace.com/chieftheband
HEDI SLIMANE Hedislimane.com
From Lindsay Lohan and Courtney Love to amateur teens he randomly picked off the streets of London, Hedi Slimane likes to showcase the natural beauty of his subjects. Slimaneâ€&#x;s refreshing anti-photoshop work has been featured in some of the most prestigious fashion publications, including Vogue Hommes International, Dazed & Confused, Vogue Hommes Japan and many more. Born in 1968 in Paris, Slimane has Tunisian and Italian-Brazilian roots. During his position as the creative designer for the menâ€&#x;s line at Christian Dior, he launched the world of Dior Homme. Slimane left Dior two years ago to concentrate on his passion for photography.
ANNTIAN ANNTIAN'S BOLD GRAPHICS & ARTY PRINTS Published 1 month ago Join the Berlin-based duo Anntian in their latest search of daily sartorial glints
Text by Tamara Martin
Anne Hilken and Christian Kurt from Berlin-based fashion label Anntian embrace once again all their playful style and personal mix and match in their latest AW '1011 collection. Bold graphics and arty prints inspired by surfaces found on the streets such as asphalt, granite or wood meet geometric shapes, oversized silhouettes and unstructured garments in a collection that aims to change the meaning of ordinary daily fragments of light by alienating them; Colours are coming brilliant out of the dark into the light, like a spotlight from a flashlight. Dazed Digital: How did you decide to start your own brand together? Anntian: We got to know each other at the end of our studies at University. From the first moment we have been talking, it felt like really familiar and close - our feelings toward imagery and aesthetics, things in general, were so surprisingly matching that we just naturally went on. Right after finishing our studies we started to work on a little collection that we didn't really sell - directly followed by our first professional collection. At that time we both had in addition jobs as designers. Everything started quite "organic" and natural. DD: How would you describe Anntian style? Anntian: Mixing harmonic and disharmonic things, making intended little mistakes (we like it awkward and defected), sensitive colour mix, clothes must be easy to wear and functional first, interesting fabrics and textures, rather reserved than loud, playing with little details. Kind of strange, playful, irritating and unusual, strong pieces to combine with other favourite pieces of your wardrobe, collectable items, relaxed and wearable… It is about colours, moods, "freedom of mixing up", harmonies and disharmonies. It„s the people that bring “beauty” to fashion, not the other way around. DD: What is the philosophy of the brand? Anntian: Making pieces that endure many years, which you still like and keep for years. In this sense we like to slow down; we like the idea of clothes that get their own history, that remind you of a specific moment, a certain time of your life. Conceptual working (not in a weighty 60s sense) often runs throughout the range, as several working techniques that get visible in different ways; just like the printing process of the clothes, which is actually a paper printing technique. All in all, the collections are quiet and harmonic - complex and intense in detail. DD: Which are your main references or inspiration sources?
Anntian: In general we are fascinated by mistakes, errors, disharmonies and abnormalities, unusual or uncommon things, defects‌ Nature is also a very important field of inspiration and the greatest ideal. On the other hand there is the vanguard in the field of techniques, future visions and architecture that are of interest for us. As we recognize that our way of working is often constructivist, we can say that we feel close to Constructivism in some ways. Within our collections we are trying to create an entire vision and mood, which we transfer to the interiors, furniture... everything. DD: What is your A/W10/11 collection about? Anntian: AW '10/11 collection "Walk the Light" tells about walks that you have in the dark or at night; it is about illuminated windows that give moments of insight while passing them, about a light cone of a pocket lamp, about beaming spotlights wandering around, detecting, blinding, searching, finding and loosing again the focused out of sight. Hidden beauty, ordinary banal structures we come across everyday get spotted and highlighted, such as road or sidewalk surfaces you walk on, wood grain of a chair, PVC floorings... These fragments, shreds, moments get an entire new magical meaning due being singled out. The collection, as a journey, a walk of senses, connects to daily surroundings, to spaces and places we are living at, to objects and structures. It is the attempt to search and find the very "special" that is inherent in so many things of our daily life, to search and find the outstanding - to give in the "magic". DD: There is a very artistic feeling in the way you create your collections, since you are also involved in the painting and printing process‌ Anntian: Well, it is our will to make the clothes sophisticated, just the way we think they need to be - it's our standard. What we do is what we feel that needs to be done, to say it simple. We reflect what we come across in our life, what we feel. There is no direct link to art. Personally, we feel a great connection to art ever since - sometimes we wish to have more time to work a bit more in this direction, but at the moment it is the collection we focus on. If we have time, we love to go to assorted exhibitions, galleries‌ just as well as we like to go in the "nature" - nature is art. We are fascinated of structures that you can see everywhere your eyes look. CREDITS Photos Johanna Ruebel Hair & Make-up Janine Pritschow Models Vanessa (M4 Models) Marc (Made Management)
About Michael Bailey-Gates I was born in 1993 in the small state of Rhode Island, USA. Growing up, I had a very nostalgic childhood full of pretending. Drawing lines in the dirt to keep out things, talking to statues, finding the creakiest floor board in our colonial home. My family and I live in a very small historic town surrounded by woods. I have always been interested in art forms; when I was in the first grade my art teacher taught me how to draw trees.
Getting older, art was something i had always kept close to me, no matter the form of it. I wasn’t the best at art, but I felt very comfortable with it. On my 13th Christmas I begged my parents for a small point and shoot camera. And out of luck I got it. Photography just made sense to me. I didn’t think it would amount to anything, but I loved it. I would ride my bike for miles and miles and crawl under fences to take photos of the countryside. My uncle told me, “no one likes photographs unless there is someone in them.” Which
didn’t make much sense to me, but I’m glad he said it because it caused me to start photographing people. I started asking my friends to model, and I spent days building sets, story boarding, writing ideas. School feels very suffocating to me, so photography was the one thing I feel like I could do. I loved the feeling of being able to create something, feeling like you were in complete control over it. Fashion photography is the only part of photography where you can create a world, and make up stories. I think that is why I fell into it. I really started falling in love with the fashion industry and have been spending this year growing with it. I plan on continuing with it, taking ideas from life and photographing them. Fiasco magazine
I fell like that was an important moment of my life, because I had never felt I was good at something exc Dree Hemingway by Alasdair McLellan in My Own Private Idaho | Vogue UK November 2010 Written by Joanna on Saturday, October 23rd, 2010 | 2010, Alasdair McLellan, Dree Hemingway, Editorial, Kate Phelan, Vogue UK
Dree Hemingway returns to her hometown of Ketchum, Idaho for the November issue of Vogue UK. Photographed by Alasdair McLellan with styling by Kate Phelan, the American model bundles up for the fall in lush ensembles from the likes of Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Margaret Howell and more in My Own Private Idaho.
Interview: Brooke Reidt October 6th, 2010
Part activist, part flower child, LA artist Brooke Reidt takes a punk rock approach to painting. Her abstract images, splashed everywhere from canvas and tshirts to walls, make a statement without making you wonder. Collabs with Nylon mag and Element skateboards promote her colorful conceptions, but charity work claims her heart. She champions children and the environment. Reidt‟s stunning pieces have certainly opened our eyes. Darcy Smith: How did you get to where you are now? Brooke Reidt: I followed my heart, as cliche as it sounds. I‟m not even sure where I am now but something inside me continues to push me and sometimes drag me down this path. It‟s a windy road but my guts tell me it‟s the right one, and most of the time I‟m having fun.
DS: Do you have a muse? BR: I am constantly reflecting. There are so many thoughts spinning around inside me that I have a hard time sleeping – memories of interactions, colours, songs, things I‟ve read or something someone said – so I stay up all night mixing color, making shapes and connecting the
lines. I don‟t meditate on one thing in particular; I just make marks and wait for something new to happen. My visions are large complex clouds, sometimes chaotic and sometimes calm; I think this is reflected in my work. DS: Which artists inspire you? BR: Marnie Weber, Patti Smith, Maya Lin, Andy Goldsworthy, Nick Cave, Dan Eldon and Yoshio Ikezaki are a few. Their dedication inspires me. It‟s like a pep talk to keep moving and creating relentlessly. DS: Has anyone ever compared your style to Kandinsky, and how do you respond to that? BR: This is the first I‟ve heard it. Abstract art in the 19th century seems a bit punk so I like that. Abstract expressionism is often described as departed from reality and I can relate to that.
DS: Why owls? BR: It‟s just something that flows from me naturally. Sometimes I relate it to doing illustration work for Element skateboards, but no one ever really sat me down and told me to draw things with wings. I‟ve lost a lot of people who I loved and a lot of them identified with birds. My friend Linda was from New Zealand and everyone called her “Kiwi,” so there was a moment I was always drawing these birds as a way to keep her spirit alive. A part of all these people live within me so I feel like elements of them also live in my art.
DS: How different is the experience of painting a wall and painting a canvas? BR: Painting a wall is something I like to do when I get frustrated with painting canvases. I live in Los Angeles where I sometimes feel sickened by people‟s obsession with possessions. I just want to paint something that more people can share and sit inside of for a moment, even if they can‟t commit to the purchase. In a way it‟s about making art that is unattainable and sometimes it‟s just about being detached from my work. Getting it out and leaving it behind, maybe never seeing it again. With walls, I can just walk away. DS: I read that you spent some time travelling, and in Bali. How did that affect your artist‟s perspective? BR: Yes, I‟ve been pretty blessed with travelling. Travelling is and always will be a priceless ticket of inspiration. Bali put things in perspective on various levels. The culture showed me how dedicated people can be to creating art everyday without even labeling it art. Their art is a lifelong ceremony that is selfless, creating constantly from sunrise to sunset for their gods and really just celebrating life in general. I want to be like that, constantly creating without the stress of measuring it against making a living – living through making.
DS: What does being an Element Eden Advocate mean to you?
BR: I think it means living with an honest love for what you do and investing your life into that love, documenting it and sharing it. I like to think of Element as a parent that I want to be proud of me, so I use it to help me measure my work, almost as motivation to have something to write home about consistently. DS: You do a lot of painting for charity auctions. Do you have a favorite cause? BR: I think anything to do with children, animals, and the environment are all favorites. Most of the time something speaks to me and tells me to do it. I feel blessed that something I make can contribute to healing something larger than myself. DS: You recently collaborated with Nylon, painting shirts for their anniversary issue. Any future collabs afoot? BR: Iâ€&#x;m constantly collaborating. Right now Iâ€&#x;m illustrating a book that my best friend wrote and creating some art for a musician who I love as an artist and person. It would have been fun to work with someone like Alexander McQueen. I would just love to work with anyone who can visualize something big, something spellbinding. I want to transform an environment like a building or paint a picture on a hillside by growing flowers. DS: Where would you like your work to take you? BR: In a hot air balloon around the
Boy Genius 19-Year-Old Design Prodigy Pedro Lourenรงo Chats with PAPERMAG About His Baseball-inspired Women's Collection By Luigi Tadini
What were you up to when you were 12? Brazilian designer Pedro Lourenรงo was already making the clothes that would eventually evolve into the bold and directional collections that put him in the forefront of next-gen womenswear designers. Not too shabby! PAPERMAG recently had the pleasure of sitting down with the 19-year-old design prodigy as he began work on his Spring 2011 collection, born from disparate inspirations ranging from 18th century Empress Josephine de Beauharnais to baseball.Find out about his eclectic choice in design themes in our interview below. Your show got such a great response at Paris Fashion Week. Now it's back to work on your Spring 2011 line. Yes, I'm slaving away at the atelier. My international orders arrived quite slowly, being a new designer and such, so on top of producing the Spring 2011 show I have to manufacture all my orders. It's a slow and arduous process considering everything is manufactured internally by our small team here in Sรฃo Paulo. So everything is entirely produced in your atelier in Brazil? We produce everything in our atelier by machine and hand. My hand touches every single garment and I am very much involved in every aspect of the production process. How did you learn the business side of the industry? It seems like that would be hard to do with you intense role on the creative side. I had no choice. I still have a lot to learn about the "business side" of the fashion industry. It's really a trial and error process. I think by now I have the basics down, I have to -- my parents don't want any more work then they already have. What's your first distinct fashion memory? The first thing that comes to mind is Paris. Ever since I was a child, I traveled quite often with my parents. I think the first time I went to Paris I must have been six months old or so. Parisian fashion, the culture and the city itself have always been an inspiration to me. You grew up in this world. Your parents, Gloria Coelho and Reinaldo Lourenรงo, are respected fashion designers in Brazil. When did you know this was something you wanted to pursue as well? I've always loved to sketch and as a child I would play with the textiles at my parents ateliers creating costumes and playing dress-up. At six, I would beg my parents to let me play with the sewing machine. It was a natural process and my parents always gave me a lot of support and fueled my creative confidence. I never really noticed that I was learning a trade, but rather it was the way I liked to play - it was a very organic process.
Being the son of two renowned designers, did you spend a lot of your "family time" in their ateliers? That was definitely our natural habitat. I observed them grow and develop creatively, and saw the business expand too. In the beginning it was quite small and I got to see it become what it is today. The structure began to grow, they started to show and be published - it was great to be a part of it. I had access to every aspect of the business at a very young age. From the creative to the beurocratic aspects of our industry. When you were a child what things did you like do to? Did you have any hobbies, other than sewing, or any particular movies that you were obsessed with? I was fascinated by Tommy, directed by Ken Russell. My mom says she had me watch it for the first time when I was three. It was a big reference to me. I think I'm obsessed with the 1970s because of that movie. You were 12 when you started designing. Tell me about that. Well, I designed my first pieces for Carlota Joakina, a sub-line of my mother's fashion label. I was always curious about working with my mother. I always admired her style and designs. At the time the head designer left the company and there was no one to replace her. So I produced a few pieces with some of our in-house seamstresses without my mother's knowledge. I wanted, to surprise her. Were your parents opposed to you going into the fashion business? They certainly wanted me to go into a different field. Anything else. I think my mother's biggest dream was to have a scientist for a son. To a certain extent you're a bit of a scientist, creating original fabrics and exploring new ways of garment construction. You're right. In a way I do feel like I'm in a laboratory studying new techniques to defy gravity, stitch different fabrics or stain certain materials. So let's go back to your first designs - you were creating this collection without your mother's knowledge. Were you nervous to show it to her? I was pretty certain she would like what I had created. I've always understood very well my parent's distinct aesthetics. The pieces I produced were quite simple, creative and commercially appealing.
Was it difficult to share your art with critics? Fashion is a bit different then other art mediums, since it's intentionally produced to be seen and worn. I don't really see fashion as an art form. I see it as a form of expression, but mostly as a business at the end of the day. Its purpose is to dress, to shelter - it has a different objective then art. It's more a means of expression with similar processes to art, but the final objective is entirely opposing. You're always called a prodigy by the national press. How do you feel about this label? Well, I don't view it negatively but don't think much of it either. Think about a young ballerina. She loves to dance, to rehearse -- it's all she wants to do and all she knows. That does not make her a prodigy. That makes her passionate and dedicated. In 2005, after seven collections, you decided to take a break from the industry. Why did you make that decision? I felt like I needed to broaden my references, experience a different side of life and meet new people that where different from me. Did your references change as a result? I think so. Soon after I had made the decision to take a break, I met with a director at Saint Martins and he told me that fashion would become redundant for me unless I migrated into different areas. I needed to study different things to allow myself to develop and grow. After that meeting, I really opened my eyes and became incredibly interested in other professions and academia/ I think that is really reflected in my work today. What type of profession and academia are we talking about? Quantum physics, biology -- these aren't topics that are expressed aesthetically, or are even evident visually but it's just another form of creativity. It's a different part of your brain, if you will. You lived in Paris for a while, during your soul-searching period... I go to Paris very often. I still have my apartment there and I really identify with that city. I also love London. How do you think the Parisian and British aesthetic affect your work directly? I think the British, is the wild-child portion of it: the creative freedom, the freak, the eccentric, if you will. While the French is the classic academic side, the balanced, perhaps a bit more mature.
Who is the most influential designer in your career? Vionnet. Even though aesthetically we are completely incongruous, conceptually we are really on the same plain. I always think of her and the fact that to her the art of decoration was only acceptable if it serves a purpose, functionality. The decoration needs to be an element of the architectural component of a garment. This concept is something I take deeply to heart. For your A/W 2010 collection you juxtaposed two very different references: Diana the Huntress and the modernism of Oscar Niemeyer. Can you discuss these influences? The huntress element was really the mood of the collection and not a direct reference or inspiration on the garment construction. I wanted to evoke the French hunting tradition. The colors were very earthy and I paid a lot of homage to Jeanine Janette who used to design all the windows displays at Hermès in 1970s and '80s. I juxtaposed all this with Oscar Niemeyer's work and modernism. I wanted to give the clothes a certain structural feel -- like a modern skyscraper. I try to present different shapes and angles in a single garment but always respecting the female body. To me the natural curves of the woman are the natural foundation of any of my creations. Some of the things that really struck me about the collection were the very distinct necklines and shoulders. Where did this silhouette come from? When you are producing the clothes and fitting them on a mannequin, you start to discover new harmonies of proportion that perhaps are more suitable than those you drew transforming the silhouette into something new and different. I think I arrived at that neckline when we started to do the fittings. So your designs are always evolving, even if you've drawn them a different way? Always. In fact that's the difficulty I'm having right now with my Spring '11 collection. It's a workshop till the end! The garments take their life and like a sculpture or a painting develop into sometimes completely different things than originally planned. So what is your Spring '11 like? What should we expect? What are you references? The collection is a mix between Empress Josephine and baseball. I love sports. I love their aesthetics and the functionality of the uniforms created for each sport. I love baseball uniforms and how they provide protection and structure without being rigid. Functionality and comfort is incredibly important to me. This new collection has a definite connection to my last. It's an ever-evolving narrative, but the materials and techniqes remain the same.
Msgm - Italy June 28 2010
When you think Italian fashion design, Armani, Valentino and Versace spring to mind, having paved the way for strong, bold aesthetics. Quality and tailoring is also intrinsic to the Italian sensibility. A new label that epitomises both has emerged from a 20-year strong lineage. Italian company “Paoloni Group” launched a new label “MSGM” recently with strong acceptance domestically and internationally with the likes of Harvey Nichols, Joyce, Lane Crawford, Matches and Browns plus being named as one of the best new emerging designers for Vogue Talents.
Created by and for a youthful demographic of under 35, the label has both a men‟s and women‟s collection. Blending comfort and function with a distinctly Italian preppy edge, the Men‟s collection is fresh and modern yet combines achingly simple pieces together. The Women‟s is more fashion focused with an emphasis on print and staying current to the season. Either way, this is one label to watch as they make their mark on the international fashion scene. – Kate Vandermeer