800.929.dior (3467)
NEW E-BOUTIQUE. DIOR.COM
800.929.dior (3467)
NEW E-BOUTIQUE. DIOR.COM
PHOTOGRAPHED BY NICK KNIGHT
HUGO BOSS FASHIONS INC. PHONE +1 800 484 6267
#PostcardsFromBerlin Drop Three Photographed by Mark Peckmezian HUGO.COM
VMAN
LETTERING ALEX TROCHUT
EDITORIAL
ADVERTISING
DESIGN
CONTRIBUTORS
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / CREATIVE DIRECTOR STEPHEN GAN
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER / ADVERTISING DIRECTOR NICOLA BERNARDINI DE PACE NICO@VMAGAZINE.COM
ART DIRECTOR GABRIELE BALDOTTO
ADVERTISING OFFICE, ITALY AND SWITZERLAND MAGAZINE INTERNATIONAL LUCIANO BERNARDINI DE PACE LUCIANO@BERNARDINI.IT DANIELA SARTORI DANIELA@BERNARDINI.IT
CONSULTING CREATIVE / DESIGN GREG FOLEY
RICHARD BURBRIDGE GEORGE CORTINA CHRIS COLLS PAUL SINCLAIRE LIL NAS X MARCUS OHLSSON GIAMPAOLO SGURA DOGUKAN NESANIR DOUG INGLISH CHRISTIAN STROBLE RJ ROGENSKI BLAIR GETZ MEZIBOV FERRY VAN DER NAT HEDVIG JENNING CHRISTOPHE MEIMOON DANIEL JACK LYONS HANA KNIZOVA LORENA MAZA ALEX TROCHUT DARREN CRISS RAVEN SMITH HUNTER HARRIS OWEN MEYERS T. COLE RACHEL RYAN JENQ
MANAGING EDITOR / PRODUCTION DIRECTOR MELISSA SCRAGG EDITOR DEVIN BARRETT FEATURES EDITOR SAMUEL ANDERSON PHOTO EDITOR GORAN MACURA EDITOR, ENTERTAINMENT GREG KRELENSTEIN ASSISTANT TO THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF NICOLE SINGER CONTRIBUTING EDITOR-AT-LARGE DEREK BLASBERG CONTRIBUTING EDITOR JAMES FRANCO COPY & RESEARCH EDITOR MAX FOX DIGITAL DEPUTY EDITOR MATHIAS ROSENZWEIG MATHIAS@VMAGAZINE.COM CONSULTING DIGITAL EDITOR IAN DAVID MONROE IAN@VMAGAZINE.COM DIGITAL EDITOR ABRAHAM MARTINEZ AMARTINEZ@VMAGAZINE.COM
BRAND PARTNERSHIPS JORDAN STENMARK JDSTENMARK@STENMARK.COM.AU ZAC STENMARK ZRSTENMARK@STENMARK.COM.AU PUBLIC RELATIONS PRESS AND EVENTS REMI BARBIER REMI@REMIBARBIER.COM CONSULTING/PR PURPLE PR ANDREW LISTER JOCELYN MAK AMY CHOI AMY.CHOI@PURPLEPR.COM FINANCE / DISTRIBUTION BUSINESS MANAGER KELLY KEEGAN KELLY@VMAGAZINE.COM MANAGING DIRECTOR TODD KAMELHAR
DESIGNERS DJIUN WANG SHIBO CHEN
FASHION CONTRIBUTING FASHION DIRECTORS PAUL CAVACO GRO CURTIS FASHION AND MARKET EDITOR ARYEH LAPPIN ASSOCIATE MARKET EDITOR SARA ZAIDANE ASSISTANT MARKET EDITOR JESSICA NEISES CONTRIBUTING FASHION EDITORS NICOLA FORMICHETTI ANNA TREVELYAN AMANDA HARLECH JACOB K JOE MCKENNA MELANIE WARD CARLYNE CERF DE DUDZEELE JANE HOW CLARE RICHARDSON PANOS YIAPANIS TOM VAN DORPE BEAUTY & SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR STELLA PAK INTERNS CZAR VAN GAAL LILY BLAZEVIC JOAHNNALEE UCOL JADA POSTADAN TARRA BOROUMANDI NICOLE TERRITO THEO CHOI VINCENT LE HANNAH MORROLF LILLY SCHOENBAUM NICOLE PAGOUMIAN CAROLINE MACK MORGAN HARRISON
DISTRIBUTION DAVID RENARD OFFICE MANAGER / DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANT JULIE GRAY
ON COVER 1 ANSEL WEARS TOP GIVENCHY ON LIPS HEDONE JELLO LIP SIP IN RUBY BITES ON COVER 2 ASHTON WEARS JACKET AND TOP GIORGIO ARMANI SUNGLASSES GENTLE MONSTER ON FACE ARMANI MEN MOISTURIZER ON COVER 3 CODY WEARS COAT PRADA MASK AND_I
SPECIAL THANKS ART + COMMERCE JESSICA DALY IMG KEVIN APANA MORGAN RUBENSTEIN NEXT SAMUEL ZAKUTO DNA TONY CRAIG VNY LANA WINTERS HEROES ARNAUD DAÏAN THE LIONS CLAYD YILA WYO ARTISTS KAREN LONG NEW PANDEMICS CODY CHANDLER FUSION VERONICA CANTO THE WALL GROUP GREGG RUDNER JAY LOPEZ MANDY SMULDERS SERLIN ASSOCIATES PHILIPPA SERLIN CATHERINE SANS EXPOSURE NY AUDREY GREENE D+V MANAGEMENT SARAH CLEMENTS BRYANT ARTISTS BRENNAN CASEY CONTACT INC JIM INDORATO STREETERS RAYNA DONATELLI JILLIAN GRAHAM FORD SAM DOERFLER STINK FILMS SARAH KAZALSKI NYMM AUSTIN RUBINO SOUL LINDSEY LE GARREC MAJOR NY HORATIO WAUCHOPE STATEMENT ARTISTS DANIELLE WILLIAMS VIVIANA CARTAGENA CREATIVE EXCHANGE AGENCY JEREMY HERZOG QUADRIGA KARINE BRIDGE ARTISTS KATRINA DALTON ATELIER MANAGEMENT VONETTA BALDWIN UNSPOKEN AGENCY RALPH VAN KLINGEREN CHRIS BOALS ARTISTS STEFANIE DELGADO D1 TREVOR SWAIN DAVID ZWIRNER GALLERY ROOT STUDIOS PIER 59 ADJARA GROUP
LETTERING
30 SHOW TUNES 32 VMAN NEWS 38 VMEN FALL/WINTER 2019 48 INSIDE AN ART-HOUSE THEME PARK 50 CITY GUIDE 54 BUZZED 56 WHO’S THE BOSS? 58 CARRY DIARIES 60 OLD TOWN, NEW SHERIFF 62 PARIS NEW GUARD 66 THE NEW NEW YORK 71 TURNING POINT 86 ALL FOR ONE 98 SKI PATROL 106 TOUGH EXTERIOR 116 STEREO POWER 122 BRAINS AND BRAWN 130 IN SEASON 140 WHEN KIM MET RAYMOND
LETTERING ALEX TROCHUT
WE’VE REACHED THE DAWN OF A NEW ERA. HOW WE DEFINE MASCULINITY IS RAPIDLY CHANGING; PRECONCEIVED SOCIETAL NOTIONS ARE CRUMBLING, USHERING THE MENSWEAR INDUSTRY THROUGH A MAJOR TURNING POINT. AND IN TANDEM, A WHIRLWIND OF CHANGE THROUGHOUT CULTURE AT LARGE. OUR NEW COVER STARS ARE PRIME EXAMPLES OF THE NEXT WAVE. ANSEL ELGORT, ASHTON SANDERS, AND CODY FERN EACH OFFER A DIFFERENT IMAGE OF THE “HOLLYWOOD LEADING MAN.” PHOTOGRAPHED BY RICHARD BURBRIDGE AND STYLED BY NICOLA FORMICHETTI, OUR COVER TRIO ISN’T AFRAID TO TREAD INTO EXPERIMENTAL TERRITORY. ANSEL ELGORT AIMS TO DISREGARD THE HEARTTHROB STEREOTYPE, AND ALL EYES ARE ON HIM AS HE TACKLES THE LEADING ROLE IN THE FILM ADAPTATION OF THE GOLDFINCH, AN UNDOUBTEDLY SIGNIFICANT PROJECT. ASHTON SANDERS WAS PLUCKED FROM UNIVERSITY FOR HIS FIRST LEADING ROLE IN THE ACADEMY AWARD-WINNING FILM MOONLIGHT, AND HE HAS SINCE EMERGED AS A TRUE HOLLYWOOD HEAVYWEIGHT. DESPITE ALL THE ATTENTION, SANDERS COULDN’T CARE LESS ABOUT FAME. HE’S SIMPLY HERE TO ACT, AND AS HE TELLS WRITER RAVEN SMITH, “THERE IS NO SET WAY TO BE AN ACTOR IN HOLLYWOOD.” SPEAKING OF WHICH, CODY FERN, THE LATEST STAR TO EMERGE FROM THE RYAN MURPHY UNIVERSE, CONTINUES TO TRANSLATE THE DRAMA FROM THE SCREEN TO SARTORIAL REALITY, CONFIDENTLY PUSHING FASHION BOUNDARIES ON THE RED CARPET. THANKFULLY THERE’S A GENERATION WITH A SIMILAR MENTALITY WAITING IN THE WINGS. PHOTOGRAPHER DOUG INGLISH AND STYLIST CHRISTIAN STROBLE CAPTURE THE NEXT GENERATION ON THE STREETS OF LOS ANGELES, SPANNING THE WORLDS OF FILM, TV, MUSIC AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN. CONSIDERING THOSE CHALLENGING THE STATUS QUO, LIL NAS X HAS ESSENTIALLY CARVED OUT HIS OWN NICHE IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY, BRIDGING THE WORLDS OF COUNTRY AND HIP-HOP. WE CATCH-UP WITH THE MUSIC SENSATION, AND HE OFFERS A RARE GLIMPSE OF HIS LIFE ON THE OLD TOWN ROAD. IT’S BEEN A WILD RIDE. WE’VE ALSO NOTICED A GENERATION OF FRESH TALENT TAKING SHAPE IN PARIS, WHERE FOCUS ISN’T SOLEY ON THE MAJOR PLAYERS. YOUNG DESIGNERS SHOWING IN PARIS ARE SPARKING A CONVERSATION ALL THEIR OWN, AND WE’VE PHOTOGRAPHED THEM WITH THEIR TEAMS, MUSES AND CLOSE COLLABORATORS. SOMETHING MUST BE IN THE WATER, AS A DEFINITIVE POINT OF VIEW ALSO TOOK SHAPE IN NEW YORK THIS SEASON WITH A CROP OF INDEPENDENT DESIGNERS PAINTING FRESH IMAGES OF AMERICAN STYLE. WE’VE CAPTURED THEIR CREWS TOO, OFFERING AN INTERESTING STUDY OF THE EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN FASHION OF NOW. AND IT WOULDN’T BE FALL WITHOUT A PHOTOGRAPHIC SURVEY OF THE BEST OUTERWEAR OF THE SEASON. AS CONTRIBUTING FASHION DIRECTOR GRO CURTIS PROVES, IT’S NOT ABOUT PLAYING IT SAFE. EVEN THE TRADITIONAL PUFFER GETS A SCULPTURAL UPDATE. NOW IS THE TIME TO STEP OUTSIDE OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE. ELSEWHERE IN THIS ISSUE, WE EXPLORE ANOTHER SEASONAL MAINSTAY– SKI WEAR. GONE ARE THE DAYS OF THE BURLY MOUNTAIN MAN. PHOTOGRAPHER HEDVIG JENNING AND STYLIST DOGUKAN NESANIR TRAVEL TO THE MOUNTAINS OF GEORGIA TO TEST THE UTILITARIAN LOOKS THAT RULED THE RUNWAYS. ALSO IN THE PAGES AHEAD, ARTIST RAYMOND PETTIBON DETAILS HIS COLLABORATION WITH KIM JONES AND DIOR MEN, AND PIETRO BOSSELI RECALLS HIS DAYS AS A TEACHER, PROVING BRAINS AND BRAWN CAN CO-EXIST. THE NEW AGE STARTS NOW. —MR. V
SHOW TUNES THE MARRIAGE OF MUSIC AND FASHION GETS PLENTY OF AIRPLAY, BUT A TRIO HIT NEW HIGHS IN PARIS, TRADING THE AUX CORD FOR THE ART OF LIVE PERFORMANCE
JAMES CHANCE AT CELINE BY HEDI SLIMANE
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: COURTESY CELINE; PHOTOGRAPHY JORDAN HANCOCK, COURTESY VOWWS; PHOTOGRAPHY GEERT BRAEKERS, COURTESY GENTLE MANAGEMENT.
Illuminated by a glowing sphere and perched atop a rotating platform, legendary No-Wave saxophonist James Chance serenaded the audience at Slimane’s first menswear-only show for Celine. Chance’s signature fusion of jazz, funk and punk rock flooded the space as models stormed the finale in the nearly pitch-black show space along the Place de la Concorde, sporting cropped pleated trousers, leather lace-up boots, oversized outerwear and skinny ties, all punctuated by narrow sunglasses.
WHISPERING SONS AT RAF SIMONS “The only direction Raf gave us was: Just be yourselves and just do what you do. We make dark and atmospheric post-punk-inspired music, filled with intense emotions that are propelled by an urging and ominous sound.” —Whispering Sons 30
VOWWS AT COMME DES GARÇONS HOMME PLUS “We call it ‘Death Pop.’ We steer clear of obvious genre markers. We use drum machine beats because they are robotic and driving, but we contrast that with guitar, synths, and vocals that aim to be evocative and cinematic.” —Matt Campbell of VOWWS
TOMFORD.COM
VMAN NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY RYAN JENQ
PRADA CLOUDBUST THUNDER SNEAKERS The chunky-sole trend has gone sky-high since Prada debuted its first oversized iteration, spawning everything from platform Crocs to hiking sneakers. The Cloudbust Thunder Sneaker reflects a return to chunkiness in its purest form—just the right amount of elevation, while still streamlined—perfect for channeling your inner superhero. PRADA CLOUDBUST THUNDER SNEAKER ($ 895, PRADA.COM)
MSGM X FILA COLLABORATION Cushiony yet lightweight, MSGM’s collaboration with FILA is inspired by Mexican long distance runner and throwback FILA ambassador German Silva. And if anyone trained for the current day athletic shoe craze, its MSGM’s four-letter Italian forebear; besides the streetwear renaissance, FILA has been supporting arches since before most influencers could walk. MSGM X FILA SILVA TRAINER ($380, MSGM.IT) 32
2/5
Winter Postcards from GCDS WEAR - Capri (NA)
gcdswear.com
@gcdswear
@Uglyworldwide
SHOT BY Renell Medrano
FW 19 - 20
STYLED BY Anna Trevelyan
VMAN NEWS
GCDS SKATE SNEAKERS
PACKS THAT PUNCH
Trainers and runners have dominated the athleisure landscape, despite skateboarding shoes predating them as acceptable all-day footwear in the long arc of street fashion history. Now the Italian godfathers of streetwear have circled back to the flat-soled, kickflip-friendly shape—wallet chain and sagging pants not included.
Never has the men’s market been so endowed with big-bag variety—as exemplified by these distant relations: one rugged and Italian engineered, the other a French, fluid tote, both offering above-average storage space. And with Ermenegildo Zegna’s detachable pockets and Lanvin’s future-facing, genderless philosophy, why not grab both?
GCDS SKATE SNEAKER ($525, GCDS.IT)
ZEGNA “XXX” BELT BAG (PRICE UPON REQUEST), LANVIN HOOK BAG ($1,395, LANVIN.COM)
FENDI BAGUETTE FOR MEN
NORDSTROM’S NEW UNION
The Baguette’s entree into menswear was an epic event. These masculine remixes, faithful to the OG’s elongated frame, come with sentimental as well as structural heft, including a collab with Porter, artful shearling, and a Karl Lagerfeld-designed print.
For Nordstrom’s fifth concept store, the pedigreed emporium partnered with 12 brands, thanks to a multi-tier collab with L.A. skate shop Union. “They [have] an incredible [legacy] of brand mix and product curation,” VP Sam Lobban says of Union, which created a polycule of sub-collabs, including with Marni (above), Fear of God and Michael Jordan.
FENDI X PORTER BAGUETTE ($2,290, FENDI.COM), FENDI SHEARLING BAGUETTE, ($9,600, FENDI.COM), FENDI KARL COLLAGE BAGUETTE ($2,390, FENDI.COM) 34
CONCEPT 005 UNION & COMPANY, NORDSTROM.COM AND NORSDTROM MEN NYC
VMAN NEWS
EMPORIO ARMANI TRAVEL COLLECTION This fall, the Emporio Armani Travel Capsule solves the modern traveler’s age-old conundrum: whether to pack light or fly in style. Forget slippers and run-of-the-mill streetwear, weary traveler. With breathable, tailored essentials—think indestructible suitcases, clean-cut trainers, and relaxed, jogger-like trousers—this precious cargo is the upgrade you deserve. EMPORIO ARMANI TRAVEL CAPSULE ($275– $675, ARMANI FIFTH AVENUE, NYC)
EXTRAS FROM DSQUARED2 DSquared2’s Fall/Winter offerings coupled bubblegum pink shirts with a dash of Alice in Chains. While their compact plush backpack—better for transporting a Bluetooth speaker than a 12-inch record—retains designers Dean and Dan Caten’s brand of fun-sized poppiness, its shellacked surface leans utilitarian, holding its own among any collection of heirloom vinyl. DSQUARED2 LEATHER SHOES ($1,345) AND NYLON BACKPACK ($ 800, DSQUARED2.COM) 36
PROP STYLIST JEREMY TRAVIS PARKER
VMAN NEWS
VERSACE SQUALO SNEAKER After sliding into his current employer’s DMs on LinkedIn, Yeezy alumnus Salehe Bembury earned a title as covetable and of-the-moment as one of his designs: Head Designer of Sneakers for Versace and Versus Versace. Emblematic of an aquatic carnivore, the Squalo (or “shark,” in Italian) is highly adapted to take the nu-corporate go-getter from his or her open-plan office to the mean city streets. Iterations range from this yellow-and-red option to highlighter pink. VERSACE SQUALO SNEAKER ($ 895, VERSACE.COM) 37
VMEN FALL WINTER 2019 THE ACTORS, MUSICIANS, INFLUENCERS, AND ATHLETES DEFINING THE SEASON AHEAD PHOTOGRAPHY DOUG INGLISH FASHION CHRISTIAN STROBLE
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VMEN
AUSTIN WEARS TOP, PANTS, SHOES, SOCKS GIVENCHY RING AND BRACELET DAVID YURMAN
AUSTIN BUTLER Last spring, Austin Butler struck gold twice while waist-deep in his Broadway debut, opposite Denzel Washington in The Iceman Cometh. First was booking an untitled Tarantino project in what he calls “one of the most magical days of [his] life.” “I flew from [New York] on a Sunday to an all-day Monday audition. [Quentin] gave me the job that day,” says Butler. “That never happens—a director just shaking your hand at the end.” Then, also during Iceman’s run, Butler tested for director Jim Jarmusch (Coffee and Cigarettes, Broken Flowers). “I would have done one line in a Jarmusch movie,” says Butler. “He is just so iconic.” In Jarmusch’s zombified character study The Dead Don’t Die, Butler plays an unsuspecting hipster alongside Luka Sabbat and Selena Gomez. “It was great to spend some time with [Selena]. [She, Luka and I] play friends on a road trip [who] show up in a town where weird things are happening,” he hints. “[All I can add about the film] is madness, and zombies, ensue.” Butler took a quasi-method approach to accessing the vivid historicism of Tarantino’s film industry caper Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood, dressing in flower-child fashion and blasting ’70s radio programs at home. “I felt like a kid in a candy store; I wanted to hear what they heard and wear what they wore,” he says of playing Manson-Murder crony Tex Watson, a dark lynchpin in the film’s subplot. Raised in Anaheim, in the shadow of Disneyland, Butler’s proximity to the scaffolding of fantasy proved to have realworld benefits. “I stumbled into extra work when I was about 11. Being on a film set, around the essence of movie-making, [made] something click. I thought, this is my tribe,” he says. “I’d never really found my place before that. My parents tried putting me in sports and I would come home crying.” Equal parts blue eyed soul and brawn, Butler seems a likely heir to the Hollywood Golden Age archetype—making his most recent career windfall playing Elvis in Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming biopic—feel both thriling and fated. Still, he admits to doubt: “I remember being 21 and thinking I had it all figured it out,” he says. “So I have been trying to enjoy the climb rather than focus on being on top of the mountain.” SAMUEL ANDERSON 39
VMEN
BUDDY WEARS COAT ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA HOODIE ACNE STUDIOS PANTS STELLA MCCARTNEY ALL JEWELRY HIS OWN
BUDDY From birth, rapper Buddy was looking skywards: He grew up near the Compton Woodley Airport in south Los Angeles, learning to fly as part of its aeronautical museum’s youth initiative—a theme he revisits in 2018’s high-altitude “Hey Up There” video, with the help of some adorable fellow alums. “That [youth] program is still there, [teaching] kids how to fly planes,” he says warmly. “And I think that’s fire.” Despite originating from the birthplace of epoch-defining rappers like Dr. Dre, YG and Kendrick Lamar, Buddy’s music sounds miles away from tough-talking rap. While his state-of-the-nation anthems (“Black”) may echo the message of Compton’s forefathers, they deliver it over breezy hooks as inviting as an Indian summer. “People expect a certain type of vibe from Compton artists, and I’m not like that at all,” says Buddy, explaining that the city’s reputation for “gangster shit” is reductive and outdated. “I’m trying to show the city in a different light,” he adds. Raised by a preacher father, Buddy, born Simmie Sims III, was singing in the choir before hitting middle school, and later starred in musicals like Dreamgirls as a member of L.A.’s Amazing Grace Conservatory. “I’ve been in front of an audience all my life,” he says. Though he’s graduated from local Motown revivals, his infectious showmanship endures: “I’m used to just killing the crowd.” Today the 25-year-old’s entourage resembles a modern-day Motown, including label founder Pharrell Williams, who introduced him to Miley Cyrus, a co-feature on Buddy’s hazy slapper “Smoke Signals.” “She [and I] were working in Miami with Pharrell at the same time,” he says. “She had a bunch of weed [and] I was trying to smoke. We just really got along over the kush.” Now at work on his debut album, Buddy’s thoughts often drift back to his roots, even more since the passing of friend and Compton pillar Nipsey Hussle. After paying tribute to Hussle at his Coachella set, Buddy is continuing to invoke the late rapper’s inspiring example. “Nipsey was just so self-made and independent,” he says. “That’s the vibe I try to send: Anybody can do it.” OWEN MEYERS 40
CONAN WEARS SWEATER AND TOP BURBERRY
CONAN GRAY Conan Gray’s music is akin to a well-loved coming-of-age movie packaged as a pop song. It’s familiar and contemporary, yet strikes a nostalgic chord targeted at Gen Z. Considered “bedroom pop,” Gray’s self-recorded EP Sunset Sessions came together in his Georgetown, Texas home. “We live in this really interesting generation now where people can make fantastic music out of their bedroom; it’s really pushing artists to be genuine in what they make and to be extremely creative,” explains Gray. Worth noting, this was before he even graduated high school. The now-20-year-old credits the power of the Internet and social media for allowing his voice to be heard. “I don’t think that I would have any of the success that I have now if it wasn’t for the Internet. I was also a really quiet kid. Nobody at school knew that I sang or wrote music,” says Gray. He continues to describe the writing process as a cathartic release, one that allows him to understand his true feelings. Citing Adele, who he discovered at age 12, as a key influence, he says, “I realized that music and especially pop music could really be beautiful and make you feel. It was also the first time that I realized you could write your own songs.” Gray’s first single, “Idle Town,” was a love letter to his hometown. As he explains, it came to him at a very pivotal moment—the point he needed to grow up. “I was about to graduate high school and I just got kicked out of my house. It felt very much like my last goodbye,” he recalls. Following the attention the song’s release sparked and the subsequent record-deal signing, Gray released Sunset Sessions. The five-song EP effectively soundtracks his high school experience, encapsulating the feeling of growing up in a small town. Next up is Gray’s first album, which will explore the next era, straddling the cusp of adulthood while in college. It’s a particularly personal moment as Gray is enrolled at UCLA. “The sound is definitely darker,” he explains. “I talk about a lot of things that I wouldn’t have said on the EP. I am not afraid to say a lot of the things I was afraid to say in high school. I think this phase of life is a unifying one.” DEVIN BARRETT 41
LUCAS WEARS JACKET AND PANTS VERSACE TANK TOP LINDER SHOES GIVENCHY WATCH BULGARI
LUCAS DELL A “dandy”—turn-of-the-century slang for a flamboyant male—is, according to writer Tara Burton, one who “transform[s] every gesture, every look...into an intentional performance designed to produce an effect; a hyper-field of signs.” If, in the social media age, such hyper-fields are de rigueur, the dandy’s successor may be the thirst trap, which Dictionary.com defines as “a sexy photo posted to attract attention—a social-media crush. G.O.A.T.” Attached to that online entry is a picture of a shirtless Lucas Dell, a.k.a. @LucasDell across YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. “I’d just moved into a new apartment and [wanted] to take a random photo in my new bathroom. [Whoever made the post] linked it back to Pinterest,” says Dell of how his image ended up literally defining “thirst trap.” “It didn’t really relate back to me at all,” Dell laughs. Born in the sticks of Missouri, the 23-year-old influencer, who identifies as gay, soon outgrew small-town expectations, pursuing a grabbag of activities—“job interviewing, acrylic painting, website design”—through his local Beta Club chapter. But social media soon proved to be Dell’s strong suit. “It was like my secret second life; my parents didn’t allow [social media], so I went by ‘Lucas,’” says Dell, born “Luke.” For the son of a military man and grandson of a preacher, the virtual world’s promise of escapism and affirmation, initially via forums like DeviantArt and Tumblr, was especially alluring. “The only [gay kids] I knew of weren’t out, and still aren’t,” says Dell, now based in West Hollywood. “I was also a lot more overweight. [Only] after 9th grade [did] I start fitting this very standardized form of beauty.” With his Ken Doll-like looks, Dell is an object of both thirst and curiosity. (He’s regularly alerted to catfishing schemes hinging on his stolen image.) But the thirst, good and bad, says Dell, is a byproduct of sharing his authentic self. The selfies were “something I entertained more ironically, as a joke,” he says, echoing OG dandy Beaudelaire. “I always say that I am finding myself every day, and discovering what [my] purpose is. But naturally, whenever you attach yourself to irony long enough, it kind of morphs into reality.” SA 42
VMEN
CHARLES WEARS TOP AND PANTS LOUIS VUITTON TANK TOP LINDER
CHARLES MELTON “It was fun!” says Riverdale hunk Charles Melton of being a point on Ariana Grande’s panseuxal love triangle in the “break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored” video. “And very organic. [Grande] is a mega-talent.” Whether facing off with stars or stepping into the shoes of a previously-cast role, the 28-year-old model-actor remains unflappable. The second actor to play prankster jock Reggie, Melton was instantly magnetizing, helping shepherd the character from “recurring” to “regular” after season two. (A shirtless locker room scuffle didn’t hurt.) This summer, he delivered his first leading-man role, in The Sun Is Also A Star opposite Yara Shahidi. Though a bittersweet teen romance at heart, the film tackles genre-bending themes like deportation—an of-the-moment layer that struck a personal chord with Melton. “America is founded on immigrants,” he says plainly. “In the media we’re only getting information on policies and people getting deported, but we fail to empathize and to see that these are human beings.” The son of a Korean mother, Melton grew up going to the movies and adoring Heath Ledger. “[I loved] the movies that the critics don’t always love,” he says with a laugh. Even so, blockbusters like A Knight’s Tale and The Matrix instilled a love of escapism in Melton, who waxes nostalgic about movie-theatergoing, a “lost art,” he says. “It’s like listening to a record player.” Naturally, he gravitated to acting. “There’s an escapism in living in someone’s shoes,” he says. Following his small screen breakthrough, he’ll be in multiplexes everywhere with Bad Boys for Life, a January 2020 update to the ’90s franchise. As a “badass” former DEA agent, Melton did all his own stunts, alongside founding “Bad Boy” Will Smith. After lending his looks to both comic book and action-comedy franchises, Melton still harbors his own acting goal fantasies. Though he has a dream role in mind, he’s keeping schtum. “I don’t wanna jinx it!” he says. Suspicions aside, it seems that Melton’s A-list domination is written in the stars. OM 43
VMEN
JEFF WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES GUCCI
JEFF WAHLBERG During his first few projects, actor Jeff Wahlberg was still working at a Florida car dealership while bouncing between Miami and Los Angeles. “I remember always having to go back to my day job after. It was a weird contrast,” the 23-year-old explains. “You spend these two months on top of the world, living your dream and then you go back to regular life.” His double life included booking feature films from behind his cubicle. After starring alongside James Franco in Don’t Come Back from the Moon (Wahlberg’s first feature film), Franco offered Wahlberg a part in his film Future World, a dystopian action flick. “I remember reading that email in my cubicle like, Oh my God, yes!” The jarring dichotomy of the mundane and magical wasn’t the only driving force behind Wahlberg’s move to L.A. “I feel alive when acting,” he says. “It’s the only time that I feel like I have a clear idea of what I’m doing in life. But at the same time, I don’t have any idea what I’m doing; I’m kind of winging it.” Acting comes naturally to Wahlberg—unsurprisingly so, given that his uncle is Mark Wahlberg. “We are products of different environments and different generations, but he’s a Wahlberg and so am I. We all have corny jokes and we were all born in Boston.” This summer marked Wahlberg’s first major role. He starred as Diego in Dora and the Lost City of Gold, the live-action adaptation of the beloved Nick Jr. franchise. It’s his first project of this scale, one he recently illustrated on Instagram, sharing posters for the film’s various international editions, spanning China, Brazil, Russia, and Latin America. Of acting, Wahlberg says that after each shoot, “I leave a different person. [During Dora], I remember feeling in touch with my inner child. When I left, I felt happy and grateful.” He certainly looked the part at the film’s world premiere in Los Angeles, where he was seen, radiant, sporting a perfectly disheveled Prada look with ease. Now L.A.-based, and with the car dealership gig long gone, Wahlberg beams with relief: “Happiness is next and now.” DB 44
NICHOLAS WEARS COAT RAF SIMONS SWEATSHIRT BOSS EARRING HIS OWN
NICHOLAS GALITZINE Well-trod archetypes like the “sensitive jock” may appear in the rear view mirror as cultural wish fulfilment rather than naturally occuring. But London native Nicholas Galitzine is a modern-day example of the real deal. Galitzine, a former professional-track rugby star who hadn’t seriously acted until the tail end of high school, is predisposed to embody “bro” onscreen, as seen on Netflix’s Chambers, in which he plays a privileged son uprooted by loss, or in HBO’s Share, as a possible perpetrator of sexual assault. As far short of decency as his characters may fall, Galitzine sees real-life white-male pathology as the incentive to tackle difficult roles. “I think as a young man, it’s important to educate other young men about what is appropriate behavior,” he says. “[When you portray] stuff like sexual assault and abortion [in film], it makes [those issues] more clear to people, and hopefully breaks that horrible cycle.” Galitzine cites empathy, the ability “live through a person,” as his greatest tool—and occasionally a job hazard. “I definitely felt a suffocating sense of guilt, just playing a character like that,” he says of Share’s AJ, whose unsavory posturing may or may not belie a misunderstood humanity—a delicate mix that’s central to the film’s whodunit plot. “Before getting the part, I had this long hair, and wasn’t very intimidating at all,” he says. “So I shaved my head, grew this pubey mustache, and wore a diamond earring. When I started pitching tattoo ideas, [director Pippa Bianco] was like, ‘You know, I think we’ve covered all the bases’ [laughs].” Galitzine’s try-anything enthusiasm may explain his belated high-dive into acting—a part in Spring Awakening at Festival Fringe. “I had severe stage fright, but I’d gone with a group of friends, including a girl I fancied,” he says of the experience, which was not the romance plot he might’ve envisioned. “After I got the part, [I realized] I would be playing the gay lover of my best friend in real life. [laughs] We had to have a conversation, like, ‘Hey, this is totally fine!’ Definitely a shock to what acting could be!” SA 45
JACQUES WEARS TOP, TURTLENECK, PANTS MSGM RING DAVID YURMAN EARRINGS HIS OWN
JACQUES COLIMON For an 8:00 am call, Jacques Colimon is disarmingly sharp, recalling anecdotes that range from his Haitian grandma’s voodoo spirituals to Eckhart Tolle’s concept of “inner space,” once imparted to him via a drama teacher’s sock puppet demo. After weaving together this ad hoc sermon as if it had been naturally hovering in the forefront of his mind, Colimon circles back to his hometown of L.A., where he still lives and to which he returned after UT Austin by way of off-off-Broadway. “A lot of people’s expectations of L.A. are [based in] job security,” he says of the city. “[Whereas] my main predisposition is the drive to make art.” Colimon, best known as Will on Netflix’s The Society, calls himself a “multi-hyphenate,” and his buzzy gigs seem a foothold from which to pursue more existentially tricky work—that of elevating “POC narratives and ancient mythology,” he says. Not to be confused with dilettantism, his multi-tier mission is animated by resistance: “[Both] Black artistry and activism [were designed to] disarm trapping mechanisms of categorization, and create resilience—to welcome the complex fullness of life.” With his growing platform, Colimon is laser-focused in championing fellow artists—as his single-digit “Following” count on Instagram shows. “I like to follow one person at a time—if [they] bring me joy, I get to keep [them].” he says. (His account of choice today is that of Phillip Youmans, 19-year-old director of TriBeCa Film Festival breakout Burning Cane.) Outside of Instagram, everyone from Marilyn Manson to Shel Silverstein sparks joy in Colimon, now in the process of writing a “part musical, part confessional.” “It explores The Giving Tree in the same way that Manson does in his first album with Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” he explains. But with election season in swing, Colimon is just as focused on real-world nightmares. “I understand feeling uninspired by [today’s] politics; [it’s] nihilism in the face of genocide,” he says. But he hasn’t ruled out a fairytale ending yet: “I am an artist so I get to make the impossible demands; I get to dream.” SA 46
VMEN
GROOMER MIRA HYDE (THE WALL GROUP) DIGITAL TECHNICIAN MAXFIELD HEGEDUS PRODUCER JULIAN DAKDOUK PHOTO ASSISTANT RYAN MORAGA STYLIST ASSISTANT ARYEH LAPPIN LOCATION CACTUS CUBE STUDIO
EVAN MOCK
EVAN WEARS JACKET, TOP, PANTS, SHOES, NECKLACE SAINT LAURENT BY ANTHONY VACCARELLO SOCKS HAPPY SOCKS BRACELET HIS OWN
Evan Mock has good timing. There’s the time he buzzed off his thick brown coif and dyed his hair electric pink, sending ripples of copycatting through the Internet. Then the time Frank Ocean posted a video of a then 20-year-old Mock shirtlessly grinning and skating somewhere off in California. (Ocean had been sent the video by mutual friend and artist Tom Sachs.) The timely moments culminated in the fashion industry’s irrevocable love for Mock, landing him in the hearts of brands like Salvatore Ferragamo, Paco Rabanne and Saint Laurent. For all his good timing, the surfer-skaterturned-model’s quite literally overnight ascent has posed challenges to living in the now: “It’s hard for me to be present when so much cool shit has happened in the last six months—[shit] I’ll probably forget about in a year or so,” he says. Thankfully his knack for photography offers a means for future reflection. “My grandpa got me into it because he just had all the old cameras laying around,” says Mock, a native of O‘ahu, on Hawaii’s North Shore. His custom was to finish off his grandfather’s rolls, then wait a few years to develop the photos. “It was fun to kind of go back in time,” he recalls. Despite his recent globetrotting, like flying to Barcelona for a campaign with fellow model-of-the-moment Alton Mason, Mock is still a beach bum at heart. “I’m so lucky to be able to go back [to Hawaii’s North Shore] at any point in the year and get sunburnt and go surfing and be with pretty much everyone I love,” he says with obvious gratitude. Mock, who began skating at 12, before branching out into surfing, might look out of place now amongst his old peers. “If you ask a typical, run-of-the-mill surfer or skater to look at me, they’d be like, ‘This is not what a skater looks like,’” he explains. But after three years of living “abroad” in L.A., things are changing. “Every time I go back, they show more and more love.” As far as worries, Mock doesn’t have many. For a multi-talent who grew up swimming with sharks, the fashion industry is a walk in the park. Plus, he knows how to catch a wave at just the right time. MATHIAS ROSENZWEIG
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INSIDE AN ART-HOUSE THEME PARK RYAN TRECARTIN, LIZZIE FITCH, AND FONDAZIONE PRADA BREAK NEW GROUND IN THE HINTERLANDS OF ATHENS, OH TEXT SAMUEL ANDERSON PHOTOGRAPHY RHETT LARUE
Ryan Trecartin and Lizzie Fitch slip-n-slid their way to art world acclaim in the 2010s, powered by duelling, highly visual forces: one the RISD grads’ wabi-sabi video art techniques, the other their subsequent cult stardom. If celebrities were adjacent to Fitch/Trecartinland, they would eventually be absorbed by it; a 2016 commission saw Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid as Snapchat-inspired tableaux vivants, transposed with cutesy yet deranged animal masks. But the latest Fitch/Trecartin showcase disrupts this delicate equation. Having long explored the bounds between the real and imagined, Fitch and Trecartin recently severed their close connection to the postmodern milieu, decamping from L.A. to a 32-acre live–work studio in Athens, Ohio. Both Ohio natives, Fitch and Trecartin often create hermetic spaces to channel their fluid, Internet-bred visions. (As one of their final premove projects, they overtook an entire Masonic temple.) The studio, cosigned by Fondazione Prada, the luxury brand’s eponymous Milan art space, is a carte blanche for those visions to flourish. “For so many years we built things that were temporary,” says Trecartin. “By moving here, we wanted to create something that had a [long] life. The Foundation was very encouraging of [that].” As reflected in their inaugural exhibit, “Whether Line,” made of works created onsite in Athens, the campus offers ample space for the artists’ dystopian whims. In said works, artist pals roam the woods, filing under a transplanted TSA-grade metal detector or scaling watchtower-like structures. “We tried to use forms that have recreational use in some contexts or can be oppressive or jail-like; maybe [the metal detector] is for theme park guests, or maybe it’s for surveillance,” Trecartin explains. But as the duo discovered, putting theory into practice is more complicated on a construction site. “We faced a lot of building challenges that we did not anticipate,” says Fitch. “Much of the land here is on top of clay,” adds Trecartin. “It slips really easily when you disturb it, so there was a lot of engineering to figure out, which we had never dealt with before.” The property’s crowning jewel is its Trecartin-designed mega-pool. “We [flew in] someone from Las Vegas who does those weird fancy pools at hotels, and we also employed workers from the Athens area for the actual construction,” says Trecartin. A monument to resortstyle grandeur and post-ironic whimsy, the pool is an emblem of Trecartin and Fitch’s long term ambitions. Busy shooting footage for an exhibition in Milan slated for this fall, they have work to do yet before declaring the property Miuccia-ready (the Prada co-chief executive and lead creative director has yet to visit, but she plans to, say Trecartin and Fitch). “Our goal is to slowly continue to add to this property and almost develop it out as a kind of amusement park,” says Trecartin. “The first phase is about 80% complete,” adds Fitch. “We would like to build it out a lot more and expand its form, but [we need] to first get it to a functional point.” Unlike lazy rivers and treehouses, Internet access has been a surprisingly low priority in the Fitch/Trecartin infrastructure plan. “We didn’t have [Internet] for the first year that we lived here,” says Trecartin, perhaps the foremost artist of his WiFi-dependent generation. “It was really weird at first, but I kind of loved it. Now it’s like I can’t even bring myself to use Instagram anymore. It was just so much fun not using it.” Without the shackles of social media, these art pioneers are finally free to choose their own adventure. 49
CHECK OUT THESE YOUNG TALENTS’ FAR-FLUNG COORDINATES, FROM THE SHINING RIVIERA TO THE UAE
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DUBAI 1. JULIAN LAMADRID Born a globe-trotter to a pilot father, the pop crooner reflects on his high-altitude origins in the UAE. 2. THE DESERT “Having the desert right there, basically in your backyard, is incredible. You can be in the heart of the city, drive 30 minutes out, and be in the middle of the desert, completely alone. There’s nothing [but the] the stars. It’s really nice to just grab a car and go camping with a couple of mates. The desert is so majestic.” 3. EMIRATES AIR “My dad being a pilot for Emirates Air is the reason I grew up here; I’ve seen a lot of the world, from Peru to Thailand, and Mexico, [where my parents are from]. My dad is ready to retire in Mexico, so my mission is to [be able to] one day say, you don’t have to worry, take this [money] and go build your house and relax in it.” 4. BOUTIQUE ONE “I would save up all my money from DJing kids’ birthday parties, for three or four months, to buy one pair of shoes—they have sales offering Margiela, Y-3 or Raf Simons... I lost this one Y-3 jacket [I got there], and it was like losing a part of myself—I’d worn it every day for months. Even when it was boiling hot outside.” 5. THE SYKLINE “So much of Dubai is in development, so we’d find that hotels being built would be empty at night. We would sneak in and climb up the stairs to the top floor, then climb onto the crane, all while slightly drunk. We would sit on the crane, drinking and smoking. It was dangerous stuff...” 50
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: JULIAN LAMADRID, COURTESY ARISTA RECORDS; PHOTO 2 AND 4 COURTESY JULIAN LAMADRID; EMIRATES AIRLINE FOR V79, PHOTO BY DAVE KENNEDY; DUBAI SKYLINE COURTESY JULIAN LAMADRID
CITY GUIDE
TRAVEL
PHOTOGRAPHY (1 AND 5) BY ANDREAS NEUMANN; ALL PHOTOS COURTESY CONNOR TINGLEY
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THE VALLEY 1. CONNOR TINGLEY A protege of Michèle Lamy and A$AP Rocky, this young painter is building an artistic empire in L.A. suburbia. 2. CAVARETTA’S “This lunch spot has been around since the ’50s, when the Valley was all horse ranches and orange groves—the vibe is very old-school lunch counter. My studio, which used to be a lingerie factory, is actually built on a former orange grove. Now the area is mostly auto body shops and liquor stores—it’s not as developed as other [art hubs] like Downtown. I’ll pick up a lasagna or a sandwich from Cav’s, and friends come around the studio with beers. We just hang out and skate until everyone is tired.” 3. TOPANGA CANYON “I have to go through Topanga to get to the beach. To say it ‘inspires’ me [would be a cliché] but it clears the palate before you see the ocean. I feel like a lot of my soul is there.” 4. T-MART “I’m always on my hands and knees while I work, getting covered in paint, and wear Dickies for how durable they are. A pair can last me two or three years, and T-Mart has the best selection around.” 5. COOL STUDIO “I built a skate park [in] the corner [of] my studio, with the help of [veteran skater] Charlie King. I wanted a place that I could [recharge] between painting and designing. One of the corners is a [repurposed] pool [floor,] which is kind of a metaphor for that SoCal mentality that birthed skate culture: ‘Yo, how can we surf on the land? Okay, let’s go to the pool.’” 51
TRAVEL
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1. JULIAN KLINCEWICZ The artist, photographer, and Virgil Abloh collaborator breaks down his favorite spots around Tokyo, his onetime home and inspirational source of a month. 2. INTERNATIONAL BITES “About Life [has] the best morning coffee and bread, so it’s my go-to spot in the AM. Or I’ll hit up Saturdays for a mellower moment [of reflection] on the balcony. Chao Chao Bamboo, in central Harajuku, has super good Thai food; Breakfast Club Tokyo—best spot for an American breakfast. You’ll always run into someone you know.” 3. YOYOGI KOEN “This neighborhood is just really relaxing and nice. For my first trip to Tokyo, I spent about a month living there. Part of my routine would be to walk and grab a coffee, then read [a book] on a bench for an hour or two. I felt like the last person on earth.” 4. HESHDAWGZ SKATE SHOP “This is the most core skate shop I’ve been to in Tokyo. The owner, CB, has been rad every time I’ve visited.” 5. SO BOOKS “This is one of my favorite book shops. They have a wide variety of art books, which are all super inspiring.” 52
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: JULIAN KLINCEWICZ, PHOTO BY MICHAEL CUKR; CHAO CHAO BAMBOO, COURTESY CHAO CHAO BAMBOO/INSTAGRAM; YOYOGI PARK, COURTESY EXPLORESHOW.COM; HESHDAWGZ SKATE SHOP, COURTESY HESHDAWGZ/INSTAGRAM; SO BOOKS, COURTESY JAPANTTRAVEL.COM
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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: FÉLIX AUGER-ALIASSIME, PHOTO BY MAX GAO; MONTE CARLO COUNTRY CLUB, PHOTO BY FÉLIX AUGER-ALIASSIME; THE MONTE-CARLO PAVILLIONS © BELLESDEMONACO; CLUB 39 EQUIPMENT COURTESY CLUB 39; CÔTE D’AZUR, PHOTO BY FAA
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MONACO 1. FÉLIX AUGER-ALIASSIME Projected for U.S. Open greatness, the tennis prodigy finds his ideal training conditions in this high-rolling Riviera gem. 2. THE COURTS AT MONTE CARLO COUNTRY CLUB “The best place to play tennis in Monaco is, without a doubt, the Monte Carlo Country Club. It is probably one of the best tennis clubs, if not the best, in the world. Not to mention they have the best Sunday brunch in town.” 3. THE MONTE-CARLO PAVILLIONS “If you want to go in [the direction of] high-end designer brands, you should head to the Monte-Carlo Pavillions, right next to the casino. I recently bought a nice Dior sweater from there!” 4. CLUB 39 “This multipurpose club is another great spot to both work out and recharge; it’s my favorite breakfast spot, and offers healthy and recharging meals [served by a Gordon Ramsay apprentice] for after you’ve used all the equipment, including an altitude room and cardio wall.” 5. CÔTE D’AZUR “You need to take any chance you can get to take in the ocean views—Monaco has some of the best in the world, in my opinion. They’re not hard to find around town—the Monte Carlo Country Club is right on the water—but for the best views, you have to go up in the mountains outside town. It’s a three-hour walk to a lookout spot called ‘Tour de la Tête de Chien’ [which means ‘dog’s head trail’ in French]. You can see all of Monaco and the whole of Côte d’Azur.” 53
B U Z Z E D
THE ETHOS OF TATTOO ARTISTRY HAS MOVED UP TO CLOSE-CROPPED HAIR, AN IDEAL CANVAS TO MATCH YOUR LOOK ACCORDINGLY PHOTOGRAPHY FERRY VAN DER NAT FASHION SARA ZAIDANE
BENJI WEARS JACKET AND TOP CELINE BY HEDI SLIMANE NECKLACE DAVID YURMAN
MAKEUP AYAMI NISHIMURA HAIR JOSEPH HUCKABEE MODELS BENJI STAKER (IMG) JONAS KLOCH (HEROES) DIGITAL TECHNICIAN SARA LEWIS PHOTO ASSISTANT GARTH MCKEE LOCATION ROOT BROOKLYN JONAS WEARS TOP AND PANTS VERSACE EARRING HIS OWN
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SECTION
MAKEUP CYNTHIA BALIGAN (NINA KLEIN) HAIR PHILIPPE BALIGAN (NINA KLEIN) MODEL LUKAS MARSCHALL (NEST MODEL MANAGEMENT) PRODUCTION SARAH LALENYA KAZALSKI (STINK BERLIN) CASTING DOMINIK WIMMER PHOTO ASSISTANT JEAN-PAUL PASTOR GUZMÁN
WHO’S HEADER THE BOSS? TEXT POP ROYALTY COLLIDES WITH GERMAN HERITAGE IN THESE COBRANDED STREETWEAR-INSPIRED STAPLES
PHOTOGRAPHY HANA KNIZOVA FASHION LORENA MAZA TEXT MATHIAS ROSENZWEIG
SUBHEADER
Stay ahead of the curve. Unlock the essential items of the season. PHOTOGRAPHY CARLOTTA MANAIGO FASHION CARLOTTA MANAIGO ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES HUGO X LIAM PAYNE
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CROSSBODY BAG (TOP) ALEXANDER WANG CROSSBODY BAG (BOTTOM) LACOSTE SWEATSHIRT (AROUND WAIST) AND JEANS GUESS UNDERWEAR (UNDER) SUPREME UNDERWEAR (OVER) EMPORIO ARMANI BELT HERON PRESTON
“That’s the one thing about being in this line of work,” Liam Payne says at Soho House in Berlin. “[Even though] I’m in this whole growing period, there are so many different fashion errors that I’ve made over the years that I just can’t escape.” A digital footprint of one’s fashions—both hits and misses—comes with the territory of being an internationally known pop star. It is perhaps what drove Payne to prove himself with the HUGO x Liam Payne capsule collection. Unlike the ambassadorships we often see Payne-like characters taking part in, this one relied heavily on its namesake for his taste and designs. That is not to say, however, that the pieces look extraordinarily different from the rest of HUGO. “As someone who designs clothes, it’s not your job to make sure that your name is everywhere. It’s your job to make sure that the blend between what is you and what is the brand fits so well that people will buy it, not even knowing that it was a piece of my collection,” Payne says. In fact, you’ll only find his name on the inside of the pieces; he’d rather someone who shops HUGO buy the streetwear-inspired clothing regardless of it being his design or not. The 25-year-old Payne was also recently announced as the face of HUGO Bodywear, and shot by Mert and Marcus for the campaign. “You know, we all look at those people on the [packaging] and say, ‘I wish I could be like the guy in the boxers.’ So at least this time, I was going to be the guy in the boxers! That was neat for me.” The success of the first HUGO x Liam Payne collection has confirmed a second collaboration between the two parties. It would seem there’s more than one direction for this particular talent’s career. HUGO X LIAM PAYNE IS AVAILABLE NOW AT HUGOBOSS.COM 57
CARRY DIARIES KNOWN TO CHAMPION EMERGING ARTISTS, HEDI SLIMANE TOOK A FEW TO HIS “LONDON DIARY” F/W19 SHOW—REFLECTING THEIR DIVERSE AESTHETIC ON OPTIC CARRY-ALLS PHOTOGRAPHY RYAN JENQ
For inspiration this season, longtime connoisseur of sound Hedi Slimane unearthed his “London Diary,” a black-andwhite Polaroid series captured in London’s brimming musical underground. But for the collection’s graphic range of bags, Slimane looked beyond the borders of his adoptive city, recruiting a duo of globe-spanning emerging artists: Chicago-based Anneli Henriksson, and French-born, Berlin-based David Hominal. Together, they comprise a portable metaphor for Slimane’s vision: Hominal’s is a brooding take on negative space, while Henriksson’s is expressive and all-seeing.
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: ANNELI HENRIKSSON WALLET DAVID HOMINAL BACKPACK ANNELI HENRIKSSON BACKPACK AND WALLET ALL CELINE BY HEDI SLIMANE
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PROP STYLIST JEREMY TRAVIS PARKER
TOUR DIARY
OLD TOWN, NEW SHERIFF
ON HIS STARWARD TRAJECTORY, LIL NAS X HAS MET RIHANNA, MASTERMINDED THE SONG OF THE SUMMER “OLD TOWN ROAD” (A TROJAN-HORSE COMMENTARY ON DATED NOTIONS OF GENRE) AND RIDDEN AN ACTUAL HORSE INTO HIS FIRST-EVER TELEVISED PERFORMANCE. WE WERE THERE TO CAPTURE THE CONVERGENCE OF ALL THREE PHOTO DIARY LIL NAS X TEXT SAMUEL ANDERSON
When Lil Nas X emerged on the public stage, he could have been mistaken for an anomalous anti-hero, the product of the crypto-pop age in which old notions of “celebrity” have disappeared into social media-fueled legerdemain. But as his hit April remix “Old Town Road,” a novel mashup of rap and country featuring Billy Ray Cyrus, galloped up the charts, internet theories soon gave way to song-of-the-summer acclaim. By July, the song was one of the biggest singles in history, tied for most weeks at No. 1 (with sixteen, a former record shared by Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” and Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day”). Then, by August, it had smashed the record completely, clocking in at the top for the 18th week and counting. While theories surrounding his cryptic origins or antithetical approach may have cast him as a kind of music-industry cipher, the Atlanta-born 19-year-old is nothing if not human when reflecting on his national TV debut, at the BET Awards in June, documented here for VMAN. “It was amazing—it was my first televised performance, and everybody in the crowd was singing along. At first I had to poop a little, before I came out…” he deadpans. “They were like, ‘Okay it’s time to go through the doors,’ and I was like, ‘Oh well.’ But I got out there and did it.” And like any sentient being, he fan-boyed out over Rihanna, who he met on the red carpet. “Somebody was like, ‘Rihanna is coming!’ I was like, What!? It was the first time I’ve been starstruck,” he recalls. “She was like, ‘Keep going, I am proud of what you are doing,’ and things like that. And she smelled good! ...She smelled like, if you were to meet the queen of a huge, popular country. That’s how [Rihanna] 60
smelled... I think she actually did [compliment my outfit] but I was too in the moment to even say anything.” Both of his red-carpet getups bear repeating: for the pre-event, a custom black-and-yellow leather ensemble, courtesy of stylist Hodo Musa, and a powder blue Pyer Moss suit for inside. In addition to fashion courtships with Moss’s Kerby Jean-Raymond and Telfar Clemens, X has captivated big-name fans from all over the musical spectrum, from his producer, Blink-182 alum Travis Barker, to Nelly, who voiced support when Billboard took “Road” off its country charts, which many have interpreted as a discriminatory double standard. Besides fostering an extended network of collaborators (following Cyrus and Diplo, Dolly Parton has pledged her own “Old Town Road” remix) X can call practically himself an adoptive member of country music’s royal family. He and Billy Ray Cyrus rode front-saddle together at the BET showcase, and Miley is wont to pop up on his IG grid. But like any cowboy, X is most at peace when he’s off the grid, practicing his horse riding with Cyrus, the Butch Cassidy to his Sundance Kid. Prior to the BETs, Cyrus hosted X for a restorative weekend at the family horse ranch in Nashville. “I never could do [that kind of thing] when I was younger, because I didn’t have the money,” X says. “I was there for about a day and a half, just meeting the animals, his family, riding ATVs and exploring.” And if anything can quash a turf war between rap and country, it may be the fact that X felt right at home chez Cyrus. “[Nashville] was much cooler than I expected. It was just like Atlanta in a way,” he says. “I guess I expected some funny looks. But yeah, I didn’t [get any]!”
THIS PAGE: LIL NAS X OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: LIL NAS X AND BILLY RAY CYRUS WITH DANCERS; RIHANNA AND LIL NAS X; BILLY RAY CYRUS AND LIL NAS X
PARIS
NEW GUARD A FRESH CROP OF INDEPENDENT DESIGNERS IS USHERING IN A REVOLUTION IN PARISIAN MEN’S FASHION
MATTHEW WILLIAMS 1017 ALYX 9SM “I believe that there are too many clothes in the world today. If I am going to take the responsibility of making clothing, I need to make something that deserves to exist, in conjunction with sustainable manufacturing and upcycling. It’s important to focus on building from previous collections while continuing to refine the ALYX signature. For me, it is about evolution not revolution.” 62
(LEFT TO RIGHT) MATTHEW WILLIAMS, JENNIFER MURRAY WILLIAMS, ALYX WILLIAMS, DRAKE BURNETTE, ANNA SILVIA BENINI, PETER DUPONT, ALBAN ADAM, LUCA BENINI, ELISABETTA CORALLINI, ANDREW WESTERMANN, LEE ROACH, ERIN MURRAY, SURKIN
PHOTOGRAPHY CHRISTOPHE MEIMOON FASHION GRO CURTIS INTERVIEWS DEVIN BARRETT
(LEFT TO RIGHT) VINCENT THIBAULT, MAUD ESCUDIE, SPENCER PHIPPS, MOLLY LEDOUX, MATHIS CHEVALIER MAKEUP CAMILLE ARNAUD (AIRPORT AGENCY) HAIR LESLIE THIBAUD (AIRPORT AGENCY)
FASHION
SPENCER PHIPPS PHIPPS “PHIPPS is for heroes, or at least people who want to try to be better versions of themselves. We work a lot in the realm of natural sciences, with objects that are connected with nature [in order to create] pieces that can educate about the planet. For Fall 2019, we were looking at physics. We want people to feel connected to the earth and empower them to build a better future.” 63
BENJAMIN ALEXANDER HUSEBY AND SERHAT ISIK GMBH “The Fall collection embodied our anxieties about the future of our planet. We saw the cast of our show as being the crew of an expedition to explore new habitable planets. Through several seasons, we’ve explored issues around our own families’ experiences of migration. Leaving the planet would be the ultimate migration.” 64
(LEFT TO RIGHT) FELIX NGYUEN, SHEHERAZADE D., BENJAMIN ALEXANDER HUSEBY, EMMAN DEBATTISTA, SERHAT ISIK MAKEUP TIINA ROIVAINEN (AIRPORT AGENCY)
FASHION
(LEFT TO RIGHT) JELLE DE BEER (BANANAS MODELS), TEDDY QUINLIVAN (PREMIUM), LUDOVIC DE SAINT SERNIN, MALICK BODIAN (SUCCESS) MAKEUP CAMILLE ARNAUD (AIRPORT AGENCY) HAIR LESLIE THIBAUD (AIRPORT AGENCY)
FASHION
LUDOVIC DE SAINT SERNIN LUDOVIC DE SAINT SERNIN “The brand is about a return to beauty as seen through the lens of sex and sexuality. The Fall collection was called the Supermodel collection. I was inspired by those iconic moments in womenswear that very much celebrated the body, but reinterpreted them for men. The Ludovic man is anyone who feels confident in my clothes.” 65
THE NEW
NEW YORK THE AMERICAN MENSWEAR LANDSCAPE HAS LONG BEEN RULED BY TRADITION AND BIG CORPORATIONS. THIS SEASON, DISORDER EMERGES AND A NEW VISION CATCHES LIGHT
KIRK MILLAR LINDER “I think [urban life in] America is about a non-conformist, effortless style; a pair of great jeans, and an old tee with sneakers or boots…that’s NYC to me. Let it get worn out, ripped, and dirty. The swagger and individualism of a Hollywood protagonist has infiltrated our culture’s views on the self, persona and attitude.” 66
(LEFT TO RIGHT) KALIB BESHER (NEXT), KIRK MILLAR, DANE BELL (FUSION), NOAH DURAN (NEXT), PETER MEYER (IMG), MATTHEW MCCABE (NEXT)
PHOTOGRAPHY BLAIR GETZ MEZIBOV FASHION GRO CURTIS INTERVIEWS DEVIN BARRETT
(LEFT TO RIGHT) SY LUCAS, JOE APPOLONIO, MYLEAN READER, NIC VILLAROSA, ISAAC COLE POWELL (NEW PANDEMICS), NEIL GROTZINGER
FASHION
NEIL GROTZINGER NIHL “I’m happy that I’m able to disrupt the system and throw challenges into the mix, but I think there’s still a lot more potential for American menswear to come out of its shell. My brand revolves around the concept of subverting masculine stereotypes into objects of queer empowerment.” 67
KOZABURO AKASAKA KOZABURO “[Kozaburo as a brand is] an expression of a belief—bridging and breaking the boundaries of East and West in culture and spirituality through my personal narrative. The Kozaburo man is a bare man who walks in the desert with a coyote.” 68
(LEFT TO RIGHT) TOMO WADACHI, JONATHAN RICHETTS, KOZABURO AKASAKA, JACOPO OLMO (NEW YORK MODEL MANAGEMENT), SIVAVAJRA AI LIN
FASHION
(LEFT TO RIGHT) ALEXANDRA ALBRIGHT, JOHN ANTHONY LEONE, FRANCO SCHICKE, CAMERON LEE PHAN (NEW PANDEMICS), RAUL SOLIS, MATTHEW SOSNOWSKI (TOMORROW IS ANOTHER DAY), MAKEUP VIRGINIA YOUNG (STATEMENT ARTISTS) HAIR SHINGO SHIBATA (THE WALL GROUP) DIGITAL TECHNICIAN ANTHONY MILLER LIGHTING DIRECTOR RICARDO FERNANDES PHOTO ASSISTANT ERIC BOUTHILLER HAIR ASSISTANT KAZU LOCATION HOOK STUDIOS
FASHION
RAUL SOLIS LRS
“I’m targeting a man who is interested in current culture and self expression. Someone who is creative, rebellious and interested in design. A self-expressive individual who is willing to push norms. Someone dressing with no age, no gender, body type or cultural uniforms [in mind].”
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VMAN 42
EACH FALL/WINTER SEASON IMPARTS A NEW BUT FAMILIAR KEENNESS, AS THE AIRS OF CHANGE PUSH US TOWARD DISCOVERY AND IN TURN, TOWARDS SOMETHING FRESH. MIRRORING A SHIFT IN MENSWEAR AND CULTURE AT LARGE, THE HOLLYWOOD LEADING MAN ARCHETYPE IS RAPIDLY CHANGING. THREE ACTORS LEAD US INTO TOMORROWLAND LETTERING ALEX TROCHUT
PHOTOGRAPHY RICHARD BURBRIDGE FASHION NICOLA FORMICHETTI
ANSEL ELGORT THOUGH HIS INSTAGRAM SELF-PORTRAITURE IS CONSIDERED ART BY SOME, ELGORT’S STAR TURN IN THE GOLDFINCH DEFINITIVELY MAKES THE FLOPPY-HAIRED HEARTTHROB A RENAISSANCE MAN TEXT HUNTER HARRIS
Ansel Elgort’s character in this fall’s big-screen adaptation of Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch is, among other things, a thief, so it feels natural to ask the actor if he’s ever stolen anything good. “Man, am I gonna get banned from Blick now?” he sighs theatrically, referring to the New York arts supply chain. “I used to steal paints from Blick. I would steal half of them, and buy the other half to give myself a discount. I was probably like 15,” he says. Eventually the art store’s security got wise: “There was this man following me around, and then I realized I [couldn’t continue the scheme] anymore,” he laughs. “I feel like [the fact that it was a chain] is an important part of the story, though, because I wouldn’t have stolen from the independent art shop. I was able to appreciate that that’s the kind of store that needed my support.” The Goldfinch is the first movie that called the 25-year-old actor to spend an entire shoot living in a character— one that was hard to shake. “The big challenge was trying to find, as [director] John Crowley called it, ‘a darkness.’ We talked about that, because that’s not me. I’m a happy guy; there’s no reason for me [not to be].” As an actor, Elgort has zig-zagged between earnest crowd-pleasers (The Fault in Our Stars, Baby Driver) and dramatic indie fare (Jonathan, Men, Women & Children), but The Goldfinch presented a new challenge: a big studio drama, playing a character who is addicted and afraid, a liar who doesn’t share Elgort’s own natural buoyancy. “I don’t really like being this guy,” Elgort says, and then he pauses, thinking a little bit, before underlining his point: “I mean, it really hurt to be this guy.” Theo Decker is thirteen years old when a bomb at the Metropolitan Museum of Art goes off and kills his mother. In a panic, Theo pockets Carel Fabritius’ painting “The Goldfinch,” a totem of sorts that he keeps with him as he’s shuttled between temporary homes and caretakers. The seismic waves of that one afternoon—of that loss, and of obtaining the painting—reverberate throughout The Goldfinch and Theo’s coming of age: “He’s lying to a lot of people. He’s with a woman he doesn’t love and he feels trapped. He has this painting hidden in his storage unit and he can’t tell anyone. It’s the last thing that reminds him of his mother,” Elgort explains. Uneasy lies the head adapting a blockbuster Pulitzer Prize-winning novel but Elgort approached the project with characteristic confidence. “I only recently got into reading books again, and it really changed my life,” he says. The Goldfinch came highly recommended, and, impressed with Tartt’s detail, Elgort decided to go after the lead role. “What she’s able to communicate in writing is nowhere near my skill as an actor, but her characters were real. They’re flawed and they’re seeking attention, and it can feel a little heavy at times.” For all their differences—Theo is intense where Elgort is charismatic—they’ve occupied some of the same spaces. The character’s private schools and ritzy society parties aligned with Elgort’s privileged upbringing as the son of two successful artists, a New York milieu that could make both actor and character feel like outsiders. “I was always the kid that came from the weird artistic family,” he says. “Even though I grew up extremely privileged, I was always like the poor kid compared to the societal kids whose parents were super prominent.” Theo works in an antiques store; Elgort likes to collect old things. “Well, my parents are old and I like them,” he jokes when I ask him where he thinks that affinity comes from. He used to go antiquing with his mom, and speaks fondly of a store on 12th Street that bears a strong resemblance to Theo’s employer. “It’s a little different from this story, but I still spent so much time in this store just stopping and looking at things. Eventually I bought one table and I still have it.” Despite the parallels, he had to stretch a lot for The Goldfinch and is dealing with the growing pains. “When I was 18 I was like, I’m such an adult now, wow, look at me!” he says. “And then I always look back and I’m like I knew nothing. I was an idiot, I hated everything about myself. I’m glad now that I’m changing.” It’s hard to grow up as someone a lot of people consider a heartthrob. “I think that’s why a lot of people become reclusive and quiet. It’s in these circumstances where no one’s watching that I can have a lot more room to grow,” he says. “Under a microscope, you don’t have room to grow. You’ll hit the lens. I’m taking a little time away, which is nice.” As an actor, Elgort is still figuring out what his process looks like, growing into his talent. He has a stronger connection to his body and his emotions than he did when he was younger. The Fault in Our Stars was his breakout role, and Baby Driver earned him a Golden Globe nomination, but he thinks Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story remake, will be his greatest endurance test yet. “I’ve been singing a lot,” says Elgort. “I have an awareness of my voice. I think a good actor should have an awareness of his body, of his voice, so they can be in a neutral place.” The night before The Goldfinch trailer dropped, Elgort posted, unprompted, a series of 17 shirtless selfies on Instagram—a collection of surprisingly candid oddities. He’s shirtless in all of them; some are nearly duplicates, except he’s furrowed his brow or almost imperceptibly dropped his chin. He just wanted to try something, he says when I ask about them, and then he gives a very detailed explanation of the benefits of the iPhone camera; how the act of self-documentation in public is intriguing, especially for someone who is so frequently photographed. “The thing about selfies is you’re taking these photos and no one is going to see them ever. Unless you want them to, but usually not. Maybe that’s why I thought it was interesting to put them up,” he says. He likens it to the way he carries himself, or even the way he approaches roles: coming from various angles before taking a leap of faith, throwing caution to the wind. Sometimes he thinks out loud, trying on words or ideas until he arrives at his point. “Those photos weren’t for anyone but myself, but then I realized that’s what I meant to share: something of myself.” He thinks of The Goldfinch similarly, as his own unself-conscious coming of age: “I wasn’t thinking, I want to be really good in this,” he says of the emotionally taxing journey of The Goldfinch. “I just wanted to do it just because it’s my job.”
ANSEL WEARS TOP BALENCIAGA
TOP GIVENCHY ON LIPS HEDONE JELLO LIP SIP IN BABY BITES
“WHEN I WAS 18 I WAS LIKE, I’M SUCH AN ADULT NOW, WOW, LOOK AT ME! AND THEN I ALWAYS LOOK BACK AND I’M LIKE, I KNEW NOTHING. I WAS AN IDIOT, I HATED EVERYTHING ABOUT MYSELF. I’M GLAD NOW THAT I’M CHANGING.” —ANSEL ELGORT
ASHTON SANDERS THIS NEW LEADING MAN ISN’T INTERESTED IN FAME. THE BREAKOUT STAR FROM MOONLIGHT PREPARES TO NAVIGATE THE CHANGING WATERS OF HOLLYWOOD TEXT RAVEN SMITH
Have you ever interviewed a Hollywood actor? If you haven’t, you might imagine organically breaking the ice with your most relatable anecdote, which the actor will reward with a Jackson Pollock-style barrage of confessional, easily quotable soundbites. You will laugh as the awkwardness melts away, heartily agreeing about the décor of the actor’s sprawling hotel suite. So beige! You will order room service and nosh over pay-per-view. You will both eventually nod off to sleep. This may be a good time to admit I have never interviewed a Hollywood actor—or at least I hadn’t up to meeting Ashton Sanders. But since Sanders is not like most Hollywood actors, the above scenario—one I may or may not have held onto until my very final moments as a non-interviewer of actors—did not come to pass. When a press agent patches me through to Sanders, I am in London, on a sweltering Monday afternoon in July, and he is in Los Angeles. Besides being on opposite sides of the earth, the biggest obstacle to my imagined meet-cute may be that Sanders is spectacularly busy. He’s currently in a car at 8:00 am, squeezing in the interview before arriving to the set of his latest project—one beginning just as post-production wraps on Wu Tang: An American Saga, premiering this September on Hulu. Plus the fact that, at first, possibly due to a case of early-morning grogginess, Sanders is reserved. But this first impression soon falls away to another: he’s reserved, perhaps, but not detached like Chiron, the character he played in Barry Jenkins’s 2016 Best Picture winner, Moonlight. In fact, he breezily humors my actual ice-breaker—something about the weather—which evolves into something more like an impromptu discourse on climate. We end up reflecting on the subject in rigorous detail—the weather in L.A. today, then the weather in New York, and then back to the weather in L.A.—not today, but while he was growing up there. His laidback tone telegraphs an image of the actor with his feet up, window down, casually obliging my mundane conversation-starter. It’s not quite lying on a hotel chaise lounge, but it’s enough to convince me of Sanders’s status as a new kind of celebrity—a point he underscores himself when I suggest his lack of typical starriness: “There is no set way to be an actor in Hollywood,” Sanders notes. I come to appreciate the thoughtful, meandering nature of the conversation. Where some may have offered rehearsed McNuggets of information, or it-was-an-honor-to-work-with-so-and-so’s, Sanders says this: “Acting is kind of like psychology: you’re trying to understand someone by putting on [the identity of that person.]” Listening back, later, he seems unflappable, unflustered, choosing his words carefully. He’s disarmingly polite, to a fault. He says “please come again” instead of “what.” He calls me sir, twice. He’s not a media-trained celebrity who’s learned the tango between private and public. You can see this in the way he dresses. Actors can often look as if they’ve been carefully outfitted, to the point that you can see the strings of the fashion puppeteer as they parade the red carpet. But Sanders never looks giftwrapped. His clothes read as unrehearsed and are grafted onto him like a second skin. He was the marquis of the Met Ball, where he sported head-to-toe Raf Simons leather like it was prom night on the prairie or on the moon. He dresses like a Monet, all large, expressive strokes. He’s not another chiselled actor in a tux and a Rolex. Who, I wonder, is his fashion icon? “I reference myself.” Touché. There’s a fearlessness in his self-representation and the roles he takes. Cast in Moonlight when he was still a student at Chicago’s DePaul University, he stole a third of the film with his simmering secrecy, which propelled the standard coming-of-age story into stellar orbit. There’s a quietness to his performance as Chiron in the film, the placid surface of his face occasionally leaving tiny clues to the deep waters of his interior world, like the polished surface of Aladdin’s lamp secreting the multitudes of a genie inside. The performance heralded the arrival of a new type of leading man that nodded to the polymorphic masculinity we’re seeing in culture, more broody than brutish. Sanders holds himself with a sense of sophistication that touches on the sublime, at once relatable and yet wholly other. Though not in the habit of liberally giving interivews, Sanders once told Vogue that, “to be different is a part of my life’s theme.” Two years on, he notes the way the rest of culture has followed suit, telling me, “I feel like we’re living in like an artistic Renaissance in every level of art. Shit is changing up, and there’s different rules and different levels being established. It’s progression. We’re breaking stereotypes, we’re breaking barriers, and I think we’re seeing other types of artists and people [as a result].” We’re here to talk about the new Hulu series, based on the writings of Wu Tang member RZA. How did he feel about tackling such a huge slice of music history? “I didn’t know too much of the story of the Wu, not to the extent that the show goes into. None of us really know the Wu in the way that the show showcases it,” he says. Sanders plays a young Bobby Diggs, before he became RZA. How was it portraying a living person? “RZA and I have similar spirits, similar souls, similar drives in our history, but you still have to go into the archives and do your research. [RZA’s] here in the flesh, but I still have to revisit a chapter of his life. I had to find the 1990 RZA.” Acting is a funny old profession. A system of complicit deceit between actor and viewer that only works if the real actor disappears. Sanders is an actor and a man who completely inhabits characters in the margins of mainstream life as effortlessly as slipping on a Gucci jacket. He lacks the posturing of old Hollywood and doesn’t care for it: “There is no superficial hierarchy of Hollywood actors anymore. All of the old Hollywood rules are being broken.” Ashton Sanders is the future of Hollywood’s leading men. He’s rubbish at being a celebrity because for him, being known isn’t the goal. He came here to be an actor. That’s where his longevity lies.
ASHTON WEARS JACKET AND TOP GIORGIO ARMANI SUNGLASSES GENTLE MONSTER ON FACE ARMANI MEN MOISTURIZER
JACKET AND TOP DIOR MEN
“I FEEL LIKE WE’RE LIVING IN AN ARTISTIC RENAISSANCE...SHIT IS CHANGING UP, AND THERE’S DIFFERENT RULES AND DIFFERENT LEVELS BEING ESTABLISHED. IT’S PROGRESSION. WE’RE BREAKING STEREOTYPES AND BREAKING BARRIERS...” —ASHTON SANDERS
JACKET, TOP, TIE FENDI SUNGLASSES GENTLE FENDI
CODY FERN THIS PRODIGAL SON OF RURAL AUSTRALIA BEAT ALL ODDS TO FIND HIS TRIBE IN THE HIGH-OCTANE STORYTELLING OF RYAN MURPHYLAND INTERVIEW DARREN CRISS
DARREN CRISS To open with a cliché … I can only assume a lot of your interviews have recently begun with, “Well, Cody, it’s been a pretty exciting year for you, huh?” There are so many things that I could ask you about, having gotten to know you over these past couple of years… But I just want to hear your first reaction to the question, “Hey, how have these past two years been for you?” CODY FERN I’m just still in a state of complete wonder. It’s like I stumbled into some Alice in Wonderland world. There was so much movement going on in my life that I didn’t really have a chance to stop and absorb it. And I think this past six months for me has been about finding a place of stillness and being able to process everything that has been going on. And I’m just so…grateful, I guess is the word. And it’s magical, it’s like a fairy tale. But I’m sure it’s the same for you, right? You just had an insane two years! DC Oh, come on now, Cody Fern, this is your interview in VMan, not mine! When I meet new actors on set, one thing I’m always interested in is their backstory. But I was fascinated by your story particularly, because you’re not just any Australian! When I asked you [about your backstory], you taught me what is now one of my favorite Australian slang terms, which is “bogan.” And you, lovingly I think, referred to yourself as a bogan—which meant an out-oftown, or non-city kind of person. So I wanted you to talk about [growing up with] that “out-of-town” feeling, and how watching TV or films might’ve [played into that]. CF Now the life I was living seems so alien to me, but at the time it was my daily existence. In Southern Cross, we had just under 300 people; Perth [which was about 5 hours away] was the big city to me. There was one store, which was the supermarket. I spent the majority of my childhood catching snakes and—genuinely—pursuing kangaroos and rabbits. And messing around on farms and going bush-bashing at night, which is doing up old cars—we [built the cars ourselves] and then went out into the bush [as a group] of people far too young to be driving. And thrashing the cars around, and hoping that we didn’t crash. Which of course I did, and many others did. I’m lucky to have made it out with my life! I look back, like, [who] let these children do this? [laughs] DC That’s a huge shift…I can’t imagine a lot of people in Southern Cross are in huge Ryan Murphy [productions]... CF I mean nobody at that point in Southern Cross had been to university. I was the first person to go to [college]. It wasn’t like a dawning realization that something was very off. I always knew just by looking at the world around me. I always had dreams that were bigger than where I was located [but] every time I expressed them, [I heard] “That’s not possible, that’s not real, that’s not achievable.” I was expelled from school, and went to boarding school, where I heard the same thing. And I’m the kind of person that hears that and digs [their heels] in and goes, “Well fuck you. I’m going to prove you wrong.” In terms of [the choice] to act, it was [initially] that I wanted to express something inside of me, and the only other place that I had seen such things expressed was in cinema. [Although at the time] I didn’t know [to call it] “cinema.” The funny thing is that I remember the exact [turning point], which was when I was 12. I saw Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth, and it was the first time I consciously understood [acting]. That this is not real, she is not the real queen [of England], but I believe that she is, and she’s absolutely the real queen for me right now. DC Speaking of Australian actors, one of my favorite things [is meeting] people who watch you, and assume you’re American. I go, “You know he’s Australian?” And it suddenly multiplies your street cred by fifty. So kudos! CF Aw, thanks Darren. DC Of course, man... I’m going to shift over to the fashion side of things. Considering you once told me you didn’t get dial-up until you were 17, was [your interest] in fashion something you were always able to cultivate? Or how did you first start paying attention to fashion and certain designers and looks? CF I think it’s what you said: cultivating. I definitely have always been interested in fashion, but I never had a sense of style. I very recently realized how many colors are in the crayon box. And that I’d been using about three of them. And I think a large part of that came from never really having a sense of self. I only very recently, certainly within the last two or three years, have become more comfortable with who I am as a human being. Before, those three colors I had been using were to hide or to fit in or to ameliorate. To make sure that I didn’t stand out at all. Or that I wasn’t perceived as weird. But at a certain point in time, I discovered who I was. And fashion came naturally after that point, because all of a sudden I needed to find different forms of expression. And as an artist, I was really able to say to myself, that’s what I am. “I am an artist.” And it’s a hard thing to come to, right? Because it’s this sense of shame in it. You’re like oh, well I can’t say I’m an artist because I’m not Meryl Streep...yet! VISIT VMAN.COM FOR AN EXTENDED INTERVIEW
CODY WEARS JACKET GUCCI EARRING (THROUGHOUT) HIS OWN ON EYES HEDONE SKINNY DIPPING IN BABBLE BATH
“I VERY RECENTLY REALIZED HOW MANY COLORS ARE IN THE CRAYON BOX. AND THAT I’D BEEN USING ABOUT THREE OF THEM.” —CODY FERN
MAKEUP MAKI RYOKE (STREETERS) HAIR KOJI ICHIKAWA DIGITAL TECHNICIAN NICK BARR (CAPTURE THIS DIGITAL) PHOTO ASSISTANTS PETER SISKOS, SCOTT BARRAZA STYLIST ASSISTANTS MARTA DEL RIO, MIGUEL SANCHEZ MAKEUP ASSISTANT ASHLI DANIELLE HAIR ASSISTANT MAI KIMURA
JACKET PRADA
PATTERNED
ALL FOR ONE FALL IS A UNITED FRONT: MILITARY, ANIMAL PRINT, OVERSIZED, LEATHER, PUFFERS, AND MORE. OUTERWEAR TO KEEP YOU WARM, LOOKS TO KEEP YOU COOL PHOTOGRAPHY MARCUS OHLSSON FASHION GRO CURTIS
FROM LEFT: ALPHA WEARS COAT AND TOP VERSACE JAEGER WEARS COAT AND TOP SAINT LAURENT BY ANTHONY VACCARELLO JENTZ WEARS COAT, JACKET, PANTS GUCCI
TEDDY
FROM LEFT: JENTZ WEARS COAT, TOP, PANTS LOUIS VUITTON OLAJUWON WEARS COAT AND TOP FENDI EARRINGS (THROUGHOUT) HIS OWN DOMINIK WEARS COAT AND PANTS EMPORIO ARMANI EARRING (THROUGHOUT) HIS OWN
OLAJUWON WEARS COAT, SWEATER, TOP, TIE CELINE BY HEDI SLIMANE
ANIMAL PRINT
TIMUR WEARS COAT AND TOP DIOR MEN
OVERSIZED
ALPHA WEARS COAT AND TOP RAF SIMONS SHOES BOSS
FROM LEFT: DOMINIK WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES BOTTEGA VENETA TIMUR WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES BALENCIAGA MATTHEW WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES OFF-WHITE C/O VIRGIL ABLOH
DECONSTRUCTED
MATTHEW WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES COMME DES GARÇONS HOMME PLUS XU WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES LOEWE
PUFFER
FROM LEFT: DOMINIK WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA JENTZ WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES RICK OWENS JAEGER WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES TOM FORD
MILITARY
FROM LEFT: OLAJUWON WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSOIRES RALPH LAUREN DOMINIK WEARS COAT AND BELT MOSCHINO TIMUR WEARS COAT AND BELT BOSS
XU WEARS COAT AND TOP PRADA
LEATHER
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: MATTHEW WEARS COAT GIVENCHY TOP GUESS JAEGER WEARS COAT AND TOP BRIONI EARRINGS HIS OWN TIMUR WEARS COAT AND TOP SALVATORE FERRAGAMO XU WEARS COAT MARNI TANK CALVIN KLEIN
TRENCH
FROM LEFT: ALPHA WEARS ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES MAISON MARGIELA
MAKEUP CHIAO-LI (THE WALL GROUP) USING BOY DE CHANEL HAIR WARD (THE WALL GROUP) MODELS ALPHA DIA (NEXT), XU MEEN (IMG), AUBREY O’MAHONY (IMG), TIMUR MUHAREMOVIC (WILHELMINA), JENTZ ZIRBEL (D1), MATTHEW LATER (HEROES), OLAJUWON ANDERSON (HEROES), DOMINIK SADOCH (SOUL), JAEGER HILL (SOUL) DIGITAL TECHNICIAN MAX ROVENKO PHOTO ASSISTANTS ROSS SINGER, MATT ROADY STYLIST ASSISTANT KATE NEHRA HAIR ASSISTANT KIRI YOSHIKI RETOUCHING MADLY (IWONDERU STUDIOS) LOCATION PIER 59
XU WEARS COAT AND PANTS SACAI SHOES SANTONI AUBREY WEARS COAT, TOP, PANTS, SHOES BURBERRY EARRINGS HIS OWN
MALICK WEARS VEST DIOR MEN TOP MARNI PANTS ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA BOOTS Y/PROJECT SKI MASK VOLCOM
SKI PATROL ATOP GEORGIA’S CAUCASUS MOUNTAINS, TRADITIONAL SKIWEAR GETS AN INVENTIVE UPDATE PHOTOGRAPHY HEDVIG JENNING FASHION DOGUKAN NESANIR
LUC WEARS JACKET BOTTEGA VENETTA BLAZER KENZO TOP STELLA MCCARTNEY PANTS VERSACE SKI MASK VOLCOM SUNGLASSES OAKLEY
MALICK WEARS JACKET LEMAIRE PANTS STELLA MCCARTNEY BOOTS ROCHAS SKI MASK FALKE COLLAR KENZO GLOVES ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA LUC WEARS TOP, PANTS, SCARF SAINT LAURENT BY ANTHONY VACCARELLO
LUC AND MALICK WEAR ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES PRADA
MALICK WEARS JACKET RALPH LAUREN SWEATER JOSEPH TOP, PANTS, GLOVES KENZO SHOES ACNE STUDIOS LUC WEARS CAPE VALENTINO TOP AND PANTS DIOR MEN GLOVES ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA SHOES ACNE STUDIOS
GROOMING ANNA TODUA MODELS LUC DEFONT (SUCCESS MODELS PARIS) MALICK BODIAN (SUCCESS MODELS PARIS) PRODUCTION WOJTEK SZAULINSKI CASTING DIRECTOR NACHUM NATHAN SHONN PHOTO ASSISTANT MARK ARRIGO STYLIST ASSISTANT NATALIA FARNAUS LOCATION STAMBA HOTEL TBILISI AND ROOMS HOTEL KAZBEGI
MALICK WEARS JACKET BOTTEGA VENETA BLAZER AND PANTS GIVENCHY BOOTS ROCHAS SKI MASK VOLCOM
TOUGH EXTERIOR THIS SEASON, FIND STRENGTH IN THE STRUCTURE OF ORNATE LAYERS. PULLED TOGETHER BY STURDY BELTS, INFLUENCES RANGE FROM MILITANT TO ROYAL TO ROCK PHOTOGRAPHY RICHARD BURBRIDGE FASHION GRO CURTIS
NIKO WEARS COAT, JACKET, TOP (WORN AROUND WAIST), SCARF, BELT (BOTTOM), SCARF (WORN ON HAND) ANN DEMEULEMEESTER NECKLACE ALEXANDER MCQUEEN HARNESS ZANA BAYNE BELT (TOP) SCREAMING MIMI’S
JACKET, COAT (WORN UNDER), TOP, JEWELRY ALEXANDER MCQUEEN BELT (TOP) SCREAMING MIMI’S BELT (BOTTOM) RALPH LAUREN SCARF (ON BELT) ANN DEMEULEMEESTER
COAT VERSACE PUFFER (AROUND NECK) AND COAT (AROUND WAIST) EMPORIO ARMANI CAPE JIL SANDER BRACELET (ON PUFFER) JW ANDERSON BELT AMIRI CHAINS (ON BELT) SCREAMING MIMI’S
JACKET, VEST (WORN OVER), PANTS BRIONI VEST (UNDERNEATH) MARNI HOOD JW ANDERSON SCARF ANN DEMEULEMEESTER BELT (TOP) SCREAMING MIMI’S BELT (MIDDLE) ZANA BAYNE BELT (BOTTOM) AND SCARF (ON BELT) AMIRI
JACKET ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA VEST (WORN OVER) 1017 ALYX 9SM HEADSCARF AND NECKLACE SCREAMING MIMI’S BRACELET (WORN AS EARRING) JOHN HARDY BELT ANN DEMEULEMEESTER
COAT JW ANDERSON JACKET (WORN UNDER) SAINT LAURENT BY ANTHONY VACCARELLO ROBE (WORN UNDER) SCREAMING MIMI’S PANTS AND HEADSCARF ANN DEMEULEMEESTER BELT (TOP) RALPH LAUREN BELT (BOTTOM) ZANA BAYNE GLOVES AMIRI
JACKET AND GLOVE AMIRI VEST PALM ANGELS CAPE (WORN UNDERNEATH) SACAI HAT ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA BRACELET (WORN AS EARRING) JW ANDERSON ARM CUFF ZANA BAYNE
SWEATER RAF SIMONS PANTS BOTTEGA VENETA COAT (WORN AROUND WAIST) JW ANDERSON BOOTS RICK OWENS HEADPIECE AND BELT (TOP) SCREAMING MIMI’S BELT (WORN ACROSS TORSO) RALPH LAUREN BELT (BOTTOM) ZANA BAYNE
ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES PRADA
MAKEUP YUKO KAWASHIMA HAIR EDWARD LAMPLEY (BRYANT ARTISTS) USING FUDGE PROFESSIONAL MODEL NIKO TRAUBMAN (IMG) DIGITAL TECHNICIAN GABRIEL HERNANDEZ (CAPTURE THIS DIGITAL) PHOTO ASSISTANTS PETER SISKOS, SCOTT BARRAZA STYLIST ASSISTANT KATE NEHRA
COAT, VEST, TOP, TIGHTS, SHOES COMME DES GARÇONS HOMME PLUS SCARF STYLIST’S OWN
LAKEITH STANFIELD ACTOR
“E.S.P” MILES DAVIS E.S.P., 1965
STEREO POWER WITH ROCK-TO-TECHNO ECLECTICISM, THESE SIX MEN INSPIRE A SONIC ACCOMPANIMENT FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON, SCORING THE PORTRAIT OF TODAY’S MASCULINITY PHOTOGRAPHY CHRIS COLLS FASHION PAUL SINCLAIRE SOUND CURATION T. COLE RACHEL
TONY WARD MODEL
“I FEEL LOVE (MEDELEY)” MARC ALMOND AND BRONKSI BEAT AGE OF CONSENT, 1984
ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES (THROUGHOUT) SAINT LAURENT BY ANTHONY VACCARELLO
PAUL HAMELINE MODEL
“ALL I WANT IS YOU” ROXY MUSIC COUNTRY LIFE, 1974
DAVID ALEXANDER FLINN ARTIST
“DESTROY THE HEART” THE HOUSE OF LOVE THE HOUSE OF LOVE, 1988
DAKOTA LINDVALL MODEL
“HAPPY” THE ROLLING STONES EXILE ON MAIN ST., 1972
HAIR TEDDY CHARLES (THE WALL GROUP) TALENT LAKEITH STANFIELD, TONY WARD (MAJOR NY), PAUL HAMELINE (THE LIONS), DAVID ALEXANDER FLINN (IMG), DAKOTA LINDVALL (BRENNER TALENT), ANTHONY VACCARELLO PHOTO ASSISTANTS DANIIL ZAIKIN, KENDALL PACK STYLIST ASSISTANT BRITTON LITOW HAIR ASSISTANT VIRGINIE PINEDA LOCATION MILK STUDIOS LOS ANGELES
ANTHONY VACCARELLO CREATIVE DIRECTOR
“XTAL” APHEX TWIN SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS 85-92, 1992
BRAINS AND BRAWN
PIETRO WEARS NECKLACE (THROUGHOUT) TIFFANY & CO.
BIG ON SELF-CARE AND BIG IDEAS, PIETRO BOSELLI TALKS EINSTEIN AND BRAND BUILDING—ROCKING FRESHLY SHORN LOCKS IN MIAMI HEAT PHOTOGRAPHY GIAMPAOLO SGURA FASHION GEORGE CORTINA TEXT MATHIAS ROSENZWEIG
TOP VERSACE PANTS GIORGIO ARMANI
TOP VERSACE PANTS MARNI
PANTS BALENCIAGA
BOXERS SLEEPY JONES
The term “brains and brawn,” masculine synonym for “beauty and brains,” smacks of fable—the perception being that if you’re good looking, there’s no use in exercising the mind, and if you’re smart, you need not exercise the body. In other words, having one or the other (God forbid you have neither!) will get you through life just fine. However flawed that perceived norm’s rationale may be, perpetuating a dismally limited metric for personal growth, the truth is that, like sunshine on a rainy day, seeing beauty and brawn naturally coexist will always be compelling—as we discovered at this Miami motel, recently visited by Italian model Pietro Boselli. Boselli himself is a living embodiment of brains, brawn, and then some. A few years ago, the Veneto native went viral as the “World’s Hottest Math Teacher,” after one of his students snuck a photo in class. The image in question paints Boselli as an inexplicably Adonis-like pencil-pusher, perhaps having collided with a Calvin Klein ad on his way down a wormhole. In reality, while Boselli may not have been aware of that photo being taken, he was in fact an experienced model—scouted by Giorgio Armani when he was just six years old. The rest is, admittedly, exceptional: “After studying engineering at University College London, I got a scholarship to do my Ph.D,” the now-30-year-old tells us. Boselli, perhaps your greatest example of the anti-Zoolander, acknowledges as much: “When I was 15, I read this book by Einstein and I was blown away by his figures, and [the idea] that people could come up with these theories. That’s why I decided to study engineering: I wanted to combine science with a practical application of it,” he says. “Many people do modeling, and that’s all they do with their lives. They base all of their success on their appearance. It’s very easy to make appearance the center-point of one’s lives…That can create a skewed perception of reality.” While such keen self-awareness may not be associated with rock-hard abs, Boselli pursued matters of the mind and of the body with equal force: “[In university,] I was doing nothing but studying and working out. But at 14, my focus was to push through academia, [even though] I had a promising career as a model. I feel like, in a way, the fact that I always put that first, rather than my appearance, has kept [me] real.” In the same breath, Boselli reflects on the negative effects of social media on mental health, which he values as much as he does physical fitness. “[Social media and mental health] is a very interesting topic for me,” says Boselli, whose follower count pushes 3 million. “I learned a lot about myself [by] interact[ing] with a big audience.” But like those of us striving toward beauty, brains, or some combo thereof, Boselli calls himself a work in progress—particularly in regards to his upstart fashion brand, Petra. “I had to learn everything, from design to shipments...” he says, before stating the obvious: “I’m the type of person who likes to figure everything out.”
“AT 14 MY FOCUS WAS TO PUSH THROUGH ACADEMIA, [EVEN THOUGH] I HAD A PROMISING CAREER AS A MODEL. I FEEL LIKE, IN A WAY, THE FACT THAT I ALWAYS PUT THAT FIRST, RATHER THAN MY APPEARANCE, HAS KEPT [ME] REAL.” —PIETRO BOSELLI
TOP TRIPLE RRR BRIEFS EMPORIO ARMANI SANDALS ADIDAS
PIETRO WEARS BRIEFS MERZ B. SCHWANEN BARBER WEARS TOP ENFANTS RICHES DÉPRIMÉS TANK CALVIN KLEIN JEANS GUESS SNEAKERS NIKE
PANTS MARNI
BRIEFS RON DORFF
BRIEFS DSQUARED2
HAIR BENJAMIN THIGPEN (STATEMENT ARTISTS) MODEL PIETRO BOSELLI (IMG) PRODUCTION DARIO CALLENGHER DIGITAL TECH FILIPPO TARENTINI SET DESIGN RAFAEL OLARRA STYLIST ASSISTANT MASSIEL CRUZ
IN SEASON TAKING IT EASY FLOWS INTO BRAVING THE ELEMENTS WITH THE FRESHEST GEAR IN FOUR CORE CATEGORIES PHOTOGRAPHY RJ ROGENSKI FASHION GRO CURTIS
PLUSH JACKETS
LOGAN WEARS COAT AND TOP 6 MONCLER 1017 ALYX 9SM EARRINGS HIS OWN
SOULEYMAN WEARS COAT TATRAS
MARCO WEARS COAT GCDS TOP DKNY RING DAVID YURMAN EARRING HIS OWN
TJ WEARS TOP DKNY PANTS LES HOMMES BOOTS EMPORIO ARMANI ALL JEWELRY DAVID YURMAN
YOEL WEARS TOP DKNY PANTS BOSS BOOTS ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA
COMBAT
CHARLIE WEARS TOP GUESS PANTS AG JEANS BOOTS GIUSEPPE ZANOTTI ALL JEWELRY DAVID YURMAN
VINCENT WEARS JACKET AND PANTS BRIONI TOP GUCCI BELT SALVATORE FERRAGAMO
MALIK WEARS JACKET MSGM TOP LORO PIANA PANTS VERSACE EARRING AND BELT HIS OWN
PREPPY
BEN WEARS JACKET AND PANTS BERLUTI TOP TOMMY HILFIGER CARDIGAN LORO PIANA GLASSES OLIVER PEOPLES
SCHUYLER WEARS JACKET AND PANTS DSQUARED2 SWEATER LORO PIANA
ELLIOT WEARS JACKET AG JEANS JEANS DKNY SUNGLASSES OLIVER PEOPLES BAG BOSS BRACELETS DAVID YURMAN
CONOR WEARS JACKET AND PANTS LANVIN BAG VERSACE SUNGLASSES TOM FORD NECKLACE DAVID YURMAN
DENIM
GROOMING THOM PRIANO FOR R+CO HAIR CARE MODELS LOGAN (DNA), SOULEYMAN SECK (NEXT), MARCO PICKETT (NEXT), TJ MOORE (FORD), YOEL FERNANDEZ (NEXT), CHARLIE KNEPPER (DNA), VINCENT PAPITO (IMG), MALIK ANDERSON (IMG), BEN JORDAN (NYMM), SCHUYLER MINTON (NEXT), ELLIOTT REEDER (SOUL), CONOR FAY (SOUL), TORIN VERDONE (VNY) DIGITAL TECHNICIAN ERIC TANAKA PHOTO ASSISTANTS TAYLOR FUCHS, IAIN GOMEZ
TORIN WEARS JACKET GUESS JEANS CALVIN KLEIN JEANS SUNGLASSES OLIVER PEOPLES BAG DIOR MEN
ALL CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES (THROUGHOUT) DIOR MEN
WHEN KIM MET RAYMOND FOR DIOR MEN ARTISTIC DIRECTOR KIM JONES, COLLABORATING WITH ARTIST RAYMOND PETTIBON ON THE FALL/WINTER COLLECTION WAS A “DREAM” PHOTOGRAPHY DANIEL JACK LYONS FASHION CHRISTIAN STROBLE
A moving conveyor belt replaced the traditional runway at Kim Jones’s Fall/Winter show for Dior Men. Models stood stoically still, as if sculptures on pedestals, before they disappeared into the darkness of an infinite runway. It was almost as if Jones translated the theatrical nature of the classic runway format into performance art. The context immediately shifted, and for good reason. This season, Jones collaborated with artist Raymond Pettibon, widely known for his penlike drawings and album artwork for bands like Black Flag and Sonic Youth. As models rolled by, all eyes were fixed on the garments. “The inspiration [for the collection] comes from the artworks of Raymond, from the more romantic part of his work and tying that into the loves of Monsieur Dior, which was the nature and the romance of the House,” explains Jones. The collection includes items emblazoned with works handpicked by the designer, as well as original prints. “It was a very easy process,” Jones elates. Having discovered Pettibon’s work as a teenager, he says, “It has been a dream to work with him.” Ahead of the artist’s Fall show at the newly opened David Zwirner Paris gallery, Raymond Pettibon recalls the creative exchange. DEVIN BARRETT VMAN Let’s start from the top. How did this collaboration with Kim Jones come about? I understand you were also working on a series of leopard drawings and prints for Dior Men? RAYMOND PETTIBON I believe it was Stella Schnabel who set it up through David Zwirner Gallery. The leopard drawings were suggested by Kim Jones. I was happy for the chance to work with them. I’ve never felt that my work has to be confined to the white cube of the museum or gallery world. VMAN Tell us about the specific works used in the collection. I understand some of these have never been exhibited before. RP Some go back a while, some were not done specifically for the project. Ultimately, it came down to Kim Jones’s choice and sensibility. VMAN What was the dialogue like with Kim? What was this exchange? How would you categorize the works that Kim selected? RP My works were like any of my pieces that would appear in one of my books or shows. That is, they were not designs or illustrations. It was Kim Jones’s inspiration to make fashion out of them. VMAN What was it like seeing your works reinterpreted in embroideries? Once applied to clothing, do you feel like the messaging of the works shifts at all? RP I don’t mind seeing my work displayed [in contexts] other than gallery walls; that can be tattoos or fashion, walls, street art or telephone poles. In fact, I rather like to see it in unexpected places. VMAN Tell me a bit about your process. How do you select phrases and words to match imagery? RP It’s an adjunctive, associative process I’ve developed over many, many years. It comes out of literature, of writing, reading, rewriting, editing and wedding [those influences] to imagery. Images can come from any source whether imagined, abstracted, borrowed, found; from nature or real life. VMAN I’m also curious to know more about your beginning in the punk rock scene. Tell me a bit about this time. RP I never did drawings for punk; my brother happened to be in a punk band and had a punk record label. Since I made art and he didn’t have a massive in-house art department to work with, he asked me to do some of his covers and flyers. VMAN What do you feel your experience in the punk music scene brings to your works? RP Nothing. VMAN What do you hope the viewer takes away from your works? Are you hoping for a particular reaction? RP That’s undecided. Once a work leaves my hands I don’t have any expectations. I’ve never thought of it—there is no hectoring on my part for the proper way of reading or seeing my work.
“THE INSPIRATION FOR [THE COLLECTION] COMES FROM THE ARTWORKS OF RAYMOND, FROM THE MORE ROMANTIC PART OF HIS WORK AND TYING THAT INTO THE LOVES OF MONSIEUR DIOR, WHICH WAS THE NATURE AND THE ROMANCE OF THE HOUSE. IT WAS A VERY EASY PROCESS. IT HAS BEEN A DREAM TO WORK WITH HIM.” —KIM JONES
GROOMING THOMAS DUNKIN (BRIDGE) USING DIOR & ORIBE MODELS AIDEN KONSTALID (WILHELMINA), ROBERT SEARS (SOUL), SOULEYMAN SECK (NEXT), LUIS PAREDES (DNA) PHOTO ASSISTANTS DAVID MORETT, DANIEL MCELROY STYLIST ASSISTANT SAM KNOLL LOCATION DAVID ZWIRNER GALLERY