In Love With Nina Ricci Pre-Fall 2011

If the purpose of the pre-fall collections is to excite the buyers and pique their curiosity for the fall collections, then Peter Copping more than succeeded at Nina Ricci. He presented 19 chic, sophisticated, and wearable looks in a stunning palette ranging from bright tomato red to subdued navy. He also presented an outfit for every occasion in his client's life: the tailored skirt suit for the office, the whimsical and flirty cocktail dress for social engagements, the Red Carpet dress, and the edgy feathered look for the Carine Roitfelds among us. I can't come up with a single thing about this small collection that I dislike. Here are a few of my favorites:

This is how I picture my most fabulous self sauntering down rue Cambon in Paris. Trés, trés chic! And I love that red!

This ethereal look has remnants of Chanel in it. It strikes me as the perfect outfit for the ballet. I also adore the black shoes, which make it a bit edgier and pulled-together.

What a show-stopper! The lacy back of this dress is just exquisite- pure perfection.

This looks like the sort of eclectic frock Natalie Portman would wear to a premier or awards show. I'd love to wear it out on the town!

This might be my favorite look from the collection. I love the layered chiffon tiers, and there's something about that hat that just pulls the entire look together.

No, this is my favorite look from the collection. Undeniably chic and oh-so Parisian.

Peter Copping had pretty big shoes to fill in replacing Olivier Theyskens, but he has lived up to the challenge yet again. I can't wait to see what he has in store for us with the fall collections!

(** photos from style.com**)

"The Warhol Treatment"

By now, I'm sure just about everyone has seen Tatler's February cover of Kate Middleton receiving, artistically, what has been dubbed "the Andy Warhol treatment." (I think the Daily Mail first came up with that one?) I googled the phrase "Kate Middleton Tatler cover" in images and was overwhelmed with a screen of Kate's lovely faces in pink, yellow, and green. This image is everywhere.

Iconography aside, I love this cover. It's one of the best Tatler covers I've seen in awhile and it's one of the most memorable magazine covers in the past few years, too. It's eye-catching and Kate looks fantastic. Tatler definitely struck gold with this one. I doubt many people in the U.S. read this British gossip + fashion + society magazine, but plenty will start. I haven't bought an issue of Tatler in a few years (no particular reason), but I'll certainly be racing to the newsstand to buy the February issue!

The NYT's 41 Places to Visit in 2011

The article that I look forward to every year in the Times is finally out: their round-up of the best places to visit for the year. For 2011, they have selected a combination of 41 up-and-coming destinations, familiar cities that are suddenly "hot" again, and some rather unexpected and exotic places. The cities they choose never fail to surprise me. Here are a few of the destinations that the NYT recommends travelers visit in 2011:

- Santiago, Chile (a place that certainly made headlines in 2010)

- Port Ghalib, Egypt

- Dresden, Germany

- Tozeur, Tunisia

- Hangzhou, China

- Iraqi Kuridstan (There are always a few questionable choices and this might be the most suspect recommendation for 2011. It's pretty difficult for an American to get a visa to that part of the world!)

- Kosovo

- Okinawa, Japan

- Koh Samui, Thailand (Two of my friends were actually married here in 2009!)

- Republic of Georgia

- Cali, Columbia

Of the 41 places, I've been to five:

- Iceland (where the above photo was taken)

- Milan (Of all the wonderful cities in Italy that there are to explore, I'm not sure I'd recommend Milan. It's a great city, but Italy has, in my opinion, many more exciting and beautiful places to visit.)

- London (Is there ever a bad time to visit the world's greatest city?)

- Antwerp, Belgium (Great fashion city!)

- Durham, NC

Places I'd really like to visit:

- Melbourne, Australia (I've heard nothing but superlatives in reference to this Australian gem.)

- Budapest (a perennial favorite, no doubt)

- Sopot and Gdansk, Poland (My family is from Gdansk, so I'd love to go back to Poland and head north this time.)

- Erzurum, Turkey (Turkey has been so hot lately. Everyone I know is going there.)

- Tallinn, Estonia

- Singapore

- Oualidia, Morocco

- Zanzibar

And there were quite a few North American destinations:

- Olympic Park, Washington

- Miami

- Oahu

- Whistler, British Columbia

- San Juan Islands, Washington

- Loreto, Mexico

- Park City, Utah

Those are a few of the places that the NYT has suggested travelers visit in 2011. To read the full selections and the rationale behind each choice, visit the full article here.

Where are you off to in 2011? Have you been to any of the places the NYT recommends that you visit? Would you counter their recommendation or concur with it?

As always, happy travels!

Fashion Projects: Collecting Fashion

In the future, I want to avoid re-posting articles that have already been published on the web, but this article on collecting fashion in Fashion Projects is just too important to miss. It also features commentary from some fashion heavy-hitters I truly admire (Valerie Steele, Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, and Amy de la Haye). Read and enjoy!

Collecting Fashion
By Marco Pecorari

Fashion as ephemeral artwork is daily narrated in temporary exhibitions. As hosting institutions, museums have started questioning the way they react to this new dimension within the museum. Collecting dress is already a duty of ethnographic and decorative arts museums. But at the same time, these institutions are conceiving dress as social testimony, or serial object. In these museological contexts, the dress is hardly ever contextualized in its visual process of creation that coincides with a representation of contemporary fashion. In order to explore this topic more in depth, we talked to the curator Amy de la Haye, the Director of the Museum at FIT Valerie Steele, the director of the Galleria del Costume, Caterina Chiarelli and with fashion designers, Agatha Ruiz de la Prada and Antonio Marras.

Marco Pecorari: First of all, thanks for participating. Let’s start with an ‘easy’ issue: what’s the difference between fashion and costume? fashion museum and costume museum?

Agatha Ruiz de la Prada: We had to face this issue with Madrid’s costume museum when we propose to call it ‘Costume Museum’ but I guess, a fashion museum should cover more than mechanics and elements of fashion, such as representing fashion’s relation to society.
Antonio Marras: In my opinion, the gap is huge. Costume is identified as obsolete, retro and not contemporary. Fashion is escaping from this. Wrongly. Personally I love visiting costume museums.
Caterina Chiarelli: I love costume museums, too. But I think we should delimit costume museum to an ethnographic field, based more on the study of dress as a tradition than on its changing nature.
Amy de la Haye: Traditionally collections of dress and fashion were generically described as ‘costume’, a term that could embrace different kind of dress. It was inclusive. Fashion and the museum were not paired explicitly until the early 1970s when the V&A (London) and the Costume Institute at the Met (New York) started to actively embrace contemporary fashion. However, the terminology of museum collections and institutions has only started to change very recently to more accurately reflect the type of garments housed/exhibited and, where appropriate, to reflect growing interests in fashion and attract wider audiences.

Agatha Ruiz de la Prada and Amy de la Hay

MP: so that’s also a commercial side…
Valerie Steele: Yes. But I use the word “fashion” rather than “costume” because I want to emphasize that even in the past, people wore fashion – not fancy-dress costumes. The word “costume” should be restricted to theatrical/film costume or folk costume. The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a fashion museum – meaning that we look at fashion, not as “art” (like in an art museum, where they tend to focus just on haute couture) or “history” (like a history museum, where clothing is used to document or illustrate other aspects of the past) but as a legitimate type of design that has both artistic and historical elements – and that has its own history.
CC: Very true. In my opinion, a fashion museum should exhibit the changing of this type of design, with more freedom.

MP: What kind of restrictions could a fashion museum have?
VS: There are restrictions on conservation and exposition of dress, and also from fashion designers and the fashion system in general….

MP: What kind of links should we have between fashion museums and the fashion system?
ARP: A museum is a place for exhibiting art, creativity, whereas the fashion commercial machine has to deal with money and productions…
VS: I don’t agree… I think that a fashion museum is a part of the fashion system. Fashion designers know that the museum is a medium (like runway, the fashion magazine and the department store) that presents fashion to the public. Therefore, designers seek to control exhibitions of their work: here’s one restriction which doesn’t have to be accepted by curators.

MP: An example is the one with Lagerfeld and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in which case Lagerfeld’s interference caused the exhibition to be cancelled

AM: I’m a fashion designer and I would never dare to interfere in the interpretation of my work. I would put my self in the curator’s hands. I would consider it an honour.
dlH: It’s understandable. Designers in turn recognize that having their work represented in a museum collection provides cultural cachet today and will ensure their place in history in the future. But it’s not only that. Sometimes there are amazing connections made. When he had just launched his own label in London, John Galliano studied an 18th century man’s coat in the collection and presented his interpretation to the Collection as a gift. When fashion looks to history, the Museum can become especially relevant.
AM: Definitely. “fashion people” have very little memory and they don’t look at the past as much as they should, and museums could help close this gap, if they could provide an easy access…

MP: Many museums are starting to catalogue on line their collections, which would make for a lot easier access and would also be helpful in terms of conservation.
AM: Great. I think it would also be important to create a close relation between fashion designers factories and museums, in order to catalogue the most significant clothes, which are being produced. Just think about what we could have done in Italy: from Albino or Capucci to the first Max Mara and Romeo Gigli…
CC: Sure, we should promote this collaboration but we need also to be careful to not get too involved. The museum could end up becoming a company’s archive.

MP: Could fashion museums represent the new step in museology or influence it? A new form of museum?
dlH: We have to say two things about this. First, as we have trends in fashion there are also trends in fashion curation and in curation in general. Fashion curation has to be analyzed because it can be seen as an important step for the role of curators in museum. Second, we have to underline that fashion is one of the most immediately accessible of all museum collections. When I worked at the V&A I used to say that you could find your way to the Dress Gallery (which at the time showed a chronology of western fashion) blindfolded as it was the noisiest – everyone, all ages and both genders, had something to say and felt confident to express an opinion.
Clothing of all types is inextricably entwined with our biographies and we leave imprints on the clothes we wear.
VS: It’s true, but I also think that it’s too soon to know what fashion museums will ultimately contribute to museology as a whole. But we must strive to move beyond designer hagiography and crowd-pleasing displays of “pretty” dresses worn by celebrities.
CC: I do believe that a fashion museum is inherently different and has great potentials for the future of museums. It is a dynamic museum.

Amy de la Haye is reader in Fashion Curation and Material Culture London College of Fashion.Joint Course Director (with Judith Clark) M.A. Fashion Curation, London College of Fashion. Formerly Curator of 20th Century Dress at the Victoria & Albert Museum (1991-1999). She will publish a book (co-curated with Judith Clark) on Curating Fashion for Yale University Press.

Valerie Steele Ph.D., (Yale University) is Director and Chief Curator of The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)

Caterina Chiarelli is Director of the Galleria del Costume – Palazzo Pitti di Firenze.

Antonio Marras is the designer of his own brand Antonio Marras and Artistic Director of Maison Kenzo

Agatha Ruiz de la Prada is a Madrid-base fashion designer

Marco Pecorari is completing his Phd in Contemporary Fashion Theory at the Centre for Fashion Studies – Stockholm University – with a thesis entitled “The Show is not Enough: new trajectories for reading contemporary fashion”. He writes for several fashion, arts and cultural independent magazines.

(**content and photo from fashionprojects.org**)

Ballet Beautiful

Much like the rest of the world, I have resolved to exercise and/ or eat well in the new year. Making the resolution to hit the gym was easy, but actually going is quite another thing. I, like 99% of the population, rather abhor working out and exercising. In order to keep my resolution (for whatever it's worth), I am going to turn to that most sophisticated and chic sport that was recently made popular again by Natalie Portman's stand-out performance in "Black Swan." Yes, I am referring to ballet.

I took ballet lessons briefly during middle school and again in high school when I was taking gymnastics classes at a private academy. I was always terrible- the worst person in the entire class. I am not flexible and I lack rhythm. Yet, I'm willing to give it another try.

The inspiration for my second turn at ballet will be the Ballet Beautiful method by Mary Helen Bowers. After dancing with the New York City Ballet, Bowers studied English literature at Columbia and later went on to develop her own fitness regime which focuses on "the exquisite grace, beauty and strength that are the essence of a ballerina's form." Oh, and she also helped Natalie Portman train for her role in "Black Swan." Vogue's Molly Creeden was recently sent to Bowers's studio to try out her method and to learn how Portman prepared for her role. I think the visit was a success.

Although I won't be able to register for a class with Bowers, I am going to try to incorporate elements of ballet into my soon-to-be fitness plan. Bowers explained that ballet can help one look like a ballerina: "long, lean, sculpted, and strong, but still very elegant" (vogue.com). That's exactly how I would like to look! In order to achieve this, I want to try the "New York City Ballet Work Out" DVD, something that I have checked out from the library multiple times and returned unopened many times. I'll keep you posted as to how this project develops!

(** photo of Mary Helen Bowers is from her website, www.balletbeautiful.com**)

"Twilight Visions:" Brassaï's Contemporaries

While catching up on art news in Artforum and Art in America, I came across an article that included a few of my favorite photographers: Brassaï (naturally!), Man Ray, and André Kertész. Well, the article was actually in The Daily Beast's Art Beast, but I came across the link via Art in America. Anyhow, Philip Gefter wrote about an exhibition, "Twilight Visions: Surrealism, Photography, and Paris," at New York's International Center of Photography that featured surrealist photos of Paris from the 1920s and 1930s. Jackpot! Sadly, the exhibit ended on May 9, 2010, but on the bright side, a few of the photos by Brassï's peers are still linked. Here are a few of my favorites:

This photo by Ilse Bing has all of the qualities that I love about a Brassaï photo: soft, blurred lighting and a completely candid ballerina in mid-twirl. This photo was taken at the Moulin Rouge in 1931.

To me, the most interesting aspect of this Man Ray photo is the placement of the mirror. I've become very interested in the many properties of mirrors throughout different periods of art history. Maybe Anne Hollander's entire chapter on the use of mirrors in art in Seeing Through Clothes had something to do with that...

I love black and white photos of the Eiffel Tower. This one, taken by Man Ray, is titled "For Electricity."

I'm not familiar with the work of Dora Maar (yet), but I really appreciate the themes and techniques of this portrait photo of Léonor Fini, taken in 1936. It really reminds me of some of Brassaï's photos in the Paris brothels (not to imply that Ms. Fini resembles a woman-of-the-night!). There's just something about her bravado that makes me think of those photos...

If you'd like to see more photos from the exhibit, I refer you to "Dreaming of Paris." All photos in this post are also courtesy of the Art Beast.

Goodreads 2011 Book Challenge

If you're not a member of the website Goodreads, I highly recommend that you join. This is currently the only social networking site that I use and it is a fantastic site with multiple social and intellectual benefits. Goodreads allows you to share the books that you have read, are currently reading, and want to read. There are also literary quizzes, polls, lists, reviews, ratings, and other networking possibilities. In my opinion, it's a much better way to spend one's time than trolling on those other social networking sites.

For 2011, Goodreads advertised a book challenge (naturally)encouraging users to push themselves to read a certain number of books. Since I graduated from college, I've had a goal of reading four books per month (except in a month when I am reading something like Anna Karenina), but this year I'm going to aim to read something in the neighborhood of 30-35 books. I have a big project to begin in February (details to come) and I hope to be returning to the hallowed halls of academia later this fall. Thus, I better make the most of my leisurely reading time while I can!

So, here's what's on my immediate book radar:

1) "The Consolation of Philosophy" by Boethius. I've wanted to read this for awhile and I finally found a good edition of it at my library.

2) "Seven Days in the Art World" by Sarah Thornton. My applications to PhD programs in art history piqued an interest in the fast-paced world of modern art. I'm even contemplating an internship with Sotheby's or Christie's. Ergo, I thought it would be a good idea to check out various aspects of the art world in this book.

3) "The Distant Hours" by Kate Morton. This brilliant Australian author is one of my absolute favorite contemporary writers. Her book "The Forgotten Garden" is one of my top ten favorite works of fiction.

4) "The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath." I've read the first 200 or 300 pages of this book somewhat sporadically, but I want to commit to actually finishing it this year. I find her personal writing even more compelling than her fiction and poetry.

5) February's Book Project. Technically, this will be February and March's Book Project, but details will come at a later date. This book will be my reward for completing all of my grad school apps. I'm really looking forward to it!

6) "Cousin Bette" by Balzac. I've really enjoyed the two books by Balzac that I've read previously (Pere Goriot and Eugenie Grandet), so I'm looking forward to this one. Also, one of the grad schools that I applied to sites the works of Balzac in a few of the course listings. Better to get started on that now!

7) "Troilus and Criseyde" by Chaucer. I think we're all familiar with The Canterbury Tales, but I want to delve a little bit deeper by reading this work by the father of English literature.

8) "The Gay Science" by Nietzsche. My uncle loaned this book to me when I had a course in philosophy my senior year. Regrettably, I still haven't read it. That must be remedied.

9) "The Old Patagonian Express" by Paul Theroux. My favorite travel writer has an anthology coming out this year, but I'd like to read this classic on travel through the Americas first.

10) "Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballet Russes," by Jane Pritchard. This is the print companion to the exhibit at the V&A that I previously wrote about. I've been in my library's queue for it for weeks, so hopefully a copy arrives soon.

That's just a small sample of what's on my literary plate this year. What will you be reading? Send interesting recommendations my way!

(** This photo was taken by me in one of the Great Halls of the British Museum.**)