01 26 2012

COUTURE COLLECTION: VALENTINO

PARIS -  of the many collections presented around the world, each year & season, the house of valentino is one i’ve become most affectionate towards. the house of valentino is one that i was always aware of & overtime, i’ve become much more aware. aware in the sense of the brand’s history, it’s development, it’s hardships & the point of valentino’s own retirement from the company; as well as the reasoning behind it. an in-depth knowledge of any fashion house, i feel, is necessary in order to really appreciate a direction, archival references or even trends. in the realm of haute couture, techniques take the place of trends as the traditional & historically valued take center stage before anything else. this season, the house of valentino continues to build a digital presence, as this season’s collection was the first ever couture live stream. the presence of film & media are currently surrounding the house, from my perception. upon valentino garavani’s retirement, the house has seen radical, modern changes in areas of style, branding & advertising. a move which has to be benefiting the house, granted i think they’re doing a really dope job at things. it’s always tricky when a fashion house enters a transformation, or goes through an image overhaul or, for lack of better articulation, a make-over. the modern transformation the house has taken on definitely takes into consideration the houses history & preserves the value of design that was put fourth by valentino himself.

speaking again in reference to the connections to film, remember that awareness of valentino’s history i mentioned? most of that uncovering of truth about the fashion house was discovered in my viewing of the documentary, ‘valentino: the last emperor‘. the documentary sheds a great deal of light on the rise & fall of valentino, while uncovering how ugly & tragic it can be for true artists & designers working in fashion, transitioning from the old ways of the industry, to the now much more globalized format. from the purchased stakes by luxury investment groups, to seeing the atelier bicker about construction of gowns; to valentino’s last runway show- everything was shown. the frustration, the glamour, the history & the future- it was all touched upon. it was that connection & understanding that really reshaped my perception of the house. what i love of current valentino creative directors, maria grazia chiuri & pier paolo piccioli, is their awareness. with the two working at the house under valentino himself, prior to their promotion; they honor the values & legacy of the italian label, which i completely admire. while sitting & watching the live stream, i welcomed the collection into my psyche. this season, i wanted to take more time to focus on each houses inspiration. i think an overall vision of a collection is better translated when you understand what was looking to be represented through design. the recurring theme of film again devoured this inspired collection even further.

upon seeing the valentino documentary, i decided to really bulk up on films that inspire me. in close reference to who i have become inspired by, people i have come into contact with; i’ve had strong connections to image, style & music but none as strongly established to film. over the last year & a half, i’ve been collecting films that represent a form of nostalgia for me or allow me to see something i haven’t seen before or just inspire my love of style & art, my love for design & aesthetics. amongst my collection are an assortment of fashion documentaries, historic re-tellings & concert DVD’s. usually, in an effort to stay inspired, i just let them play, while i continue to do other things- i’ve seen every one multiple times & really only am interested in films that make me feel a certain way. through glamour, through love, through vulnerability, through triumph. one of the films? sofia coppala’s marie antoinette. i remember one day, alone in my room, i sat while the film just played. i remember hearing the same piano rift from kanye west’s “blame game”, from his ‘my beautiful dark twisted fantasy’ album. while the film played in the background, the sound of that rift stopped me. i sat, just staring at the screen- taking in the scene thinking of the creative process & how kanye must’ve heard this same rift from the film, which then provoked him to use it for his album. i posted a tweet of my discovery but due to lack of enthusiasm from my followers, ended up deleting the tweet. as others who’ve followed my work or me, as a personality, can attest; i’ve been very vocal about coppola’s antoinette, finding aesthetic inspiration in the costumes & setting of the film. while watching this season’s valentino couture live stream, as floral print from the collection began to hit the runway; delicate & feminine as if from another time, i thought to myself. “reminds me of marie antoinette”, then the same kanye sampled rift played during the show’s runway soundtrack. immediately, i sat up, much like i did upon my own discovery of the sample during the film. avril 14th, played by richard james. from the original motion picture soundtrack of sofia coppola’s marie antoinette. reading up on the inspiration of the collection, there it was- thirteenth century marie antoinette, in her garden of versailles was listed as this season’s inspiration for the collection.

there is a scene in the film that really struck a cord with me. in the story, marie antoi, as she was affectionately called by her mother, would meet regularly with a dress maker & hair stylist. in one scene, kirsten dunst, whom played the french queen, met with her dress maker & said, “i want something more simple, natural- to wear in the garden”. this soon followed an extensive garden scene. content & at peace, that same feeling is what i felt seeing the collection. the fact that i am able to pin point where the sound, style & film references come from is amazing. in this wide world of inspiration i’ve created for myself, immersed in sound, style & imagery- a sense of accomplishment. as an artist, i was able to translate a complete & total vision, delivered through design & sound. from milan, through a computer screen- i interpreted their vision, spot on. it’s these moments, these mere glimpses of creativity; that act as reassurance for the artist that i have become & the artist i am meant to be. while i could talk about the flowing florals, or compare this season to last couture season- i won’t. i’ll let you interpret the collection as you want. simply put i was stunned by the collection for it’s direction & loved every moment of the eleven minute show. collections like these are why fashion exists- they take inspiration from one place & house them for a world of people to see- vulnerably allowing them to be either persecuted or praised- much like marie antoinette. the symbolism that i am able to define, the connection i am artistically able to identify- that. is. fucking. fashion.  [source]

01 26 2012

COUTURE COLLECTIONS: ELIE SAAB

PARIS – faultless glamour through refined sophistication is what we get, each season, from elie saab. a lebanese designer who you’ve seen worn on the back of iconic actresses like halle berry as well as beyoncé, celine dior, rihanna, mila kumis, catherine zeta jones & royal princesses, queens & duchesses from around the globe. as of may 2003, saab became an offical member of the chambre syndicale de la haute couture, showing his first couture collection just two months later in paris. launching his label at the age of 18, from his workshop in lebanon, saab is a self-trained designer with an undeniable eye for elegance & glamour. now based in paris, with workshops in milan as well as his native of lebanon; saab continues to produce consistent quality & some of the best gowns seen on the red carpet. much like other designers this couture season, florals proved to be the spring inspiration for the season.

incredibly detailed beading & lightweight gowns are saab’s specialty, as made visible yet again this season. whereas repetition might wear thin on my impressions of collections from season to season, i find a sense of wonder in saab’s work; often times looking for his signature silhouettes or how he has refined certain concepts, techniques or looks. always an immediate win in palette, this season’s collection hosted a range of milky tones that were introduced with a set of white, that set of white soon cooled to a set of iced teal. beautifully, the icey toned teals became heated when a masking of blushed tones entered the set, eventually cooling to a prelude of nudes. the nudes warmed to a set of yellows which then cooled again into a set of blue. the collection closed with it’s bridal finale look, which was worn by toni garrn in a fade out in the tone most often associated with ultra-femininity, pink. in the collection, i loved most the looks in white- considering how minimalist i am about everything. there’s something about in a woman in white that is so powerful to me. the sense of purity, refinement- fantasy. whether worn or lighter complexions, golden browns & darker skin tones- white radiates & those looks, i feel, are completely timeless. overall, the collection serves it’s purpose, though no new ground was broken.

though a familiar set of designs were seen here, what i love about elie saab’s collections is the amount of beauty held in the collection. even in saab’s ready-to-wear collections, there is extensive attention paid to what makes a woman look beautiful. amidst a transitory period as a digitally based writer, i have been looking to only represent the best of the best, leaving only room for what i love here on my site. you may have noticed that haute couture collections from mega iconic fashion houses like chanel, armani & jean paul gaultier were not reviewed this couture season. this, i assure you, was intentional. for the past few years i’ve been writing here, i have felt an obligation to contribute valued pieces of writing on the most important houses in fashion, internationally. after years of doing this, i feel it necessary to review only the greatest collections, in an effort to better refine my approach & to, well, save me some time. im not willing to fuck with anything less than dope, creatively. elie saab is one of those designers that is incredibly dedicated to the beauty i, myself- as a writer, am dedicated to represent. as i near my last review for the SS12 haute couture season, i wanted to mention that no collections are ignored nor forgotten any season, each collection is seen & thoughtfully placed here for your valuable eyes to see. collections that represent a dimension of outstanding creativity have greater value to me & as a writer, in the context of fashion, i feel it necessary to give these designers, producing these collections; more of the spotlight as often as possible. as you know, each season is a hit or miss- what’s horrible this season can be incredibly chic the next, so on & so fourth. im always looking for collections that showcase surreal & an almost impossible sense of beauty, which in turn feels absolutely possible. i feel that elie saab represents that, completely. it’s those designers that push us as creatives- whether stylists or celebrities, writers or magazine editors; to reach even further for not just the hottest thing, but for the most beautiful. it’s all expression & execution- saab killed it. [source]

01 26 2012

COUTURE COLLECTIONS: STÉPHANE ROLLAND

PARIS - seemingly merging the popularization of more minimal concepts to haute couture technique, the stéphane rolland haute couture collection was one of my favorites this season. at the age of 20, rolland became creative director of menswear at french fashion house, balenciaga, where he remained for 4 years. soon following, rolland parted ways with balenciaga & became artistic director of couture at jean-louis scherrer, in 2008.  rolland’s first namesake couture collection made it’s debut in 2007, after he became an official member of the chambre syndicale de la caute couture, which allows labels to bare the prestigious title of, haute couture. in 2009, rolland officially introduced his leather goods collections with plans to unveil an accessories line, april 2012. as a creative force floating a bit under the radar compared to other designers, i feel like people sleep on stéphane. as evidenced in this collection, his attention & design resume more than qualify him to be a fighting force in the hum drum world of fashion repition. with his flourishing designs of couture, rolland is also a costume designer & that sense of theatricality, that attraction to dramatic silhouettes- it’s all seen in the way he designs & how those designs are executed.

usually, with couture- designers take one of two approaches. there’s the timeless, classic appeal often seen at houses like christian dior, valentino or chanel. then you have this new wave of more modern designers like iris van herpen or givenchy. both sides of the spectrum will thoughtfully combined in this collection, which merges more minimalistic shapes & design lines, often associated with ready-to-wear & combines them with select couture techniques on each piece. layered textiles, flowing chiffon- it was all very beautiful & contemporary. i loved the collection’s use of hardware as well as the variation in design of the neckline. off whites, blasts of yellow & red with use of black was all seen in the collection palette, which kept the momentum of the collection going & powerfully from start to finish. reportedly, the red bridal finale gown in the collection, worn by supermodel icon yasmin lebon; weighed 110 pounds, took 49 yards of fabric to create & required assistance from two design assistants to walk the runway. the collection, as well as it’s execution, was exceptionally sharp- hence it being one of my favorites this season. i think it’s extremely interesting to see how designers interpret the traditional couture techniques & morph them to appeal to this modernized age of fashion. mindful of rolland’s design past, i would say that he is doing a remarkable job & merging classic with modern. couture is about taking design fantasies & making them reality- a mission which was well achieved this season at stéphane rolland. [source]