05.05.08 SIDE BY SIDE Inside the new Givenchy flagship in Paris, designer Riccardo Tisci makes it cool to compartmentalize
We've been told in therapy that compartmentalizing our feelings could lead to a regrettable emotional outburst. At 28, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, however, Givenchy artistic designer Riccardo Tisci proves that compartmentalizing a couture wardrobe could lead to an outburst of unrelenting chicness—and that, of course, is anything but regrettable. Uprooted from its home on Avenue George V, the label's new Parisian flagship represents the house's recent rejuvenation at the hands of Tisci. "This space is the natural setting for our new designs. It represents the modernity of Givenchy," says CEO Marco Gobbetti. "It also gives us the opportunity to define the new image and language of the brand with even greater precision." Tisci collaborated with architect Jamie Fobert (of London's Tate Modern) on a space that reflects a divide-and-conquer approach to fashion, breaking the store up into five compartments that mimic the famous Givenchy boxes used to deliver the garments. Each box contains some wisp of the brand's history (the interiors of Box No. 1, for example, are sculpted from the same white plaster moulding that's found in the couture Salon of the Avenue George V store), that offers historical contrast to the current line displayed within their walls. According to Fobert, "[Riccardo Tisci and I] experimented with materials, looking for surfaces and textures to alter perceptions and trigger memories that would be contemporary but emerge with a subtle romanticism." The result of their efforts is a store deeply aware of its origins without falling victim to the pitfalls of nostalgic design, and balanced by a fresh, zen-like energy that is sure to sustain the house through the next hundred years. Catherine Blair Pfander
Givenchy, 28, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris. 33.1.42.68.31.00 For information: www.givenchy.com
05.02.08 THE ITALIEN JOB Dance/art/music collective The Changes takes a wild week in Milan and smashes, tapes, and collages it all into one book
Exemplifying
the different strokes for different folks aesthetic in more ways than
one is a new book titled Italiens, brought to you by a dance/art/music
troupe that answers to the name of The Changes. In 2007, they arrived in
Italy for a party celebrating an exhibition opening during Milan Design
Week. One year later, they're releasing a book of the adventure that
once was. Think sci-fi sound tracks, tortellini alla panna,
re-interpreted ad campaigns, punk music overtones, mozzarella, disco and
mama-style momentos featuring everything and more from fellow clique
members including Fergadelic (Tonite UK), Skatething (BBC/IceCream JPN),
and Shauna & Misha (PAM). Highly recommended viewing for anyone who
gets off on being lost in translation or better still, for those who
consider themselves connaisseurs of what the French call “n’importe
quoi.” A definite must-have for any bookshelf with balls.
Italiens is out now from PAM Books. Available at I Heart, NYC. 262 Mott Street, 212.219.9265
05.01.08 V53 PREVIEW: MARIO TESTINO AND THE GIRLS OF FALL 2008 It's back to black in the next issue with the new class of rising supermodels
Blame it on the economy, the stratospheric cost of crude oil, the Tibet-China crisis on the eve of the Olympics, or the general looming threat of global annihilation, but fashion is in a dark mood this season. The day after the Fall/Winter 2008 collections ended in March and the last blackest black look left the runway, photographer Mario Testino took to the Paris streets to shoot the standout clothes and the new class of rising supermodels. From New York to Paris, Armani to Vuitton, Amanda to Toni, V53 spins through the looks and the faces that matter, leaving no stone unturned. We're shining a light on some of the darkest (and most brilliant) clothes around.
Photography Mario Testino
V53 Summer 2008 is on newsstands everywhere May 15th.
04.30.08 GREAT SCOTT Jeremy Scott and Adidas escape to Palm Springs with Chloë, Sarah, André, and M.I.A. in tow
The crowds at Coachella weren't the only ones shaking their tail feathers last weekend. One only had to have witnessed guests at the Adidas x Jeremy Scott party on Saturday night held at the former residence of Frank Sinatra in Palm Springs to have understood the level of musical appreciation in full effect. M.I.A., Liberty Ross, Sia Furler, JD Samson, and Cassette Playa's Carri Mundane were spotted dancing up a storm in the living room (where DJs Sam Spiegel and Pedro Winter set up the decks beside a baby grand piano, naturally). Meanwhile, André Saraiva and fiancé Uffie lounged pool side with Sarah from Colette, and siblings Paul and Chloë Sevigny. "I had such an awesome time I don't know if I will ever be able to go back there again after that," confessed host with the most, Jeremy Scott. Fortunately the memory isn't showing any signs of fading soon, thanks to a grade-A souvenir of the party—a giant beach towel imprinted with an image of the designer. "I love working with Adidas," says Scott. "They are the only company who can completely understand the humor behind a trompe-l'œil beach towel imprinted with an image of myself and a logo of their brand."
Top: Jeremy Scott for Adidas souvenir towel. Bottom, clockwise from top left: Jeremy Scott and Liberty Ross; Anouck Lepère and Paul Sevigny; Sia Furler and Santogold; DJ Sam Spiegel Photography Linlee Allen
04.30.08 BEAT CONNECTION Apache Beat's Ilirjana Alushaj and Philip Aceto on Kraftwerk, America, and going non-Western
Union Pool's gold-framed stage was awash in up-tempo psychedelia this past Saturday as New York’s latest dance sensation, Apache Beat, blasted its unique brand of electro-for-the-tribal-set. Singer Ilirjana Alushaj, an Australian native and the editor of online mag Pop Manifesto, echoes Fay Ray's Sheila Macartney, Berlin's Terri Nunn, and the quavering croons of Siouxsie Sioux. Underneath her eerie vocals, the band drives a hard 4/4 techno rhythm that somehow manages to sound earthy and organic. Like drum machines in the wigwam, there’s nothing quite like it. Bartholomew Dougherty sat down with Alushaj and guitarist Philip Aceto after the show.
BARTHOLOMEW DOUGHERTY Your name was borrowed from the late Klaus Dinger of Kraftwerk, right? PHILIP ACETO Yeah, in the nineties he started calling Motorik the Apache Beat. Motorik was the name the music press had given to Dinger’s 4/4 beat. I wrote a song called The Apache Beat for one of my old bands and it was because I'm a huge fan of Neu! and Klaus Dinger, anything he does. That song was very political, about the army manipulating the Apaches to go against each other. BD Dinger's Apache Beat, seemed mechanical, motorized. You stray from that with more of an organic, tribal cadence. PA Native Americans used a certain type of trance-like pulse. And I think they were trying to get to more of a rhythmic trance. I guess that’s what we’re doing. BD Beyond music, what’s influencing you right now? PA A lot of minimal film and art in general—just the same idea as the Motorik beat and what not. It's very minimal, something built on repetition through time. It's more of a non-Western way of looking at things. And a lot of art I like is moving in that direction in all mediums. I'm just bored, you know what I mean? You get kind of bored playing certain types of music, like rock 'n roll. I've been listening to more world or classical music; just moving music, you know, and how do you incorporate that into a pop song? BD Ilirjana, you’ve lived in the States for four years. How has the music scene changed over that time? ILIRJANA ALUSHAJ I got here when the Interpol, Yeah Yeah Yeahs thing was exploding and it was kind of amazing to be around at that time music-wise. And all of this new stuff fashion-wise was coming out. And then there was this lull for a while and now it's like in the last year all of these amazing bands are coming out of Manhattan and Brooklyn. It's obvious, I feel, they're making it because they love it. I feel like in other countries people make music because they can get famous. I think people here are not, like, more knowledgeable about music, but they listen to much more of a variety of things. So you can talk to any New York band and they have these random influences. BD Cool to be a part of that. What’s motivating everyone? PA I think it has to do with is the political environment. People are just so fed up that it’s like, Where else do you go but forward? That's the way of getting it out and that's why a lot of the music now is a lot more experimental. It's almost like an awakening. I think it's pushing away from all that's corporate. You're just like screw all that stuff. I get that stuff shoved in my face on the television, on the radio. We're a mess right now and why be a part of it, why not just break it? People want real shit. If you're really putting you're heart into something, it's going to translate. And even if it translates with two people, whatever.
Photography Justin W. Lin
Apache Beat plays at Brooklyn's Studio B on May 15. The band's debut album is out this fall. For information: www.myspace.com/thisisapachebeat
04.29.08 MODEL OF THE WEEK: CATO VAN EE This new Dutch face is 100% Meisel-approved, which makes any model's life that much easier
Cato Van Ee (IMG)
Age: 18
Hometown: Bentveld, The Netherlands
Discovered: At my hairdresser in Amsterdam. He insisted I give modeling a try.
Favorite food: Sushi, fruit, and grilled vegtables.
Favorite drink: Lemonade and tea.
Who are your heroes? My parents.
What is your earliest fashion memory? Wearing a men's shirt from The Gap everyday when I was 5!
Where do you see yourself in ten years? Looking back on a successful career as a model with a degree from NYU.
Look for Cato in the Fall/Winter 2008 Calvin Klein Jeans campaign, photographed by Steven Meisel, and in an upcoming issue of Chinese Vogue, photographed by Greg Kadel.
04.28.08 T. COLE RACHEL'S RECORD OF THE WEEK Swervedriver's Never Lose That Feeling EP is worth shoplifting for its rockin' shoegazer sounds
I’m a little bummed out that I didn’t go to the Coachella festival this year, especially when my friends continuously flooded me with text messages like "OMG PRINCE IS AMAZINGGGGG" and "OMG PINK FLOYD! INFLATABLE PIG FLYING OVER THE DESERTSSSS." Still the toughest message had to be from a friend who texted to let me know that the new reunited Swervedriver (one of my all-time fave bands from the early '90s) was playing an amazing set to a half-empty tent on Sunday afternoon. Luckily, I can relive my college glory days when Swervedriver play NYC in a few weeks, but the cruel text still prompted me to go dust off all my old shoegazer records, including Swervedriver’s Never Lose That Feeling EP, which I vaguely remember shoplifting (yeah, I said it, shoplifted!) from a record store in Oklahoma City during my senior year of high school. (To my credit, the record had been erroneously placed in a bargain bin and was priced for only $5, which would have equaled two meals for me back in college.) This band was always a little more straightforwardly rockin' than most of the bands they got lumped in with (My Bloody Valentine, etc.), but they wielded the mighty wall of guitar sound with the best of them. Despite the fact that Swervedriver had not one but two members sporting questionable dreadlocks, I still obsessively bought all of their records until they eventually broke up. Hearing this now takes me back to a time in my life when buying records (or stealing them) was still this exciting opportunity for discovery, and I played this record on my best friend’s stereo while we all sat around doing bong hits and feeling utterly cool and just so happy to be hanging out together and no longer living with our stupid, clueless parents. It’s a feeling I hoped I would never lose, even though I eventually did.
The band playing “Duel” live on some TV show back in 1993 (aka “the year that T. Cole Rachel graduated from high school!”)
