eyesing

Crazy Hat Lady

No denying Anna Piaggi has a fabulous way with clothing. I can't help wondering why she dresses the way she does. How does she feel waltzing around in her colourful garb? Does she want to stand out or do the hat, clown make up, blue hair and cacophony of prints create a suit of armour to hide behind? I know when I'm dressed up, with make up, heels and fancy frock, I hold myself with more composure and confidence compared to when I'm bumming around in tracksuit pants. Does Piaggi want to take that feeling of "this is me at my best" as far as she can or does she find herself sans makeup, blue hair and top hat completely unpresentable to the outside world?

Ponder, ponder...

It's cool to see Piaggi when she was younger, but am I alone in thinking she seems more fabulous and fascinating now than she did 30 years ago?

With her friend Karl Lagerfeld

More information
Hundreds of photos on style.com
style.com beauty icon
Lots of old pics
International Herald Tribune feature
Q&A on telegraph.co.uk
Victoria & Albert Museum exhibition, Fashion-ology, curated by Piaggi

For whom the Del tolls

Apologies for lame heading.

Everyone's favourite, most collectible Aussie artist, Del Kathryn Barton, is a finalist in the 2008 Archibald Prize.

You are what is most beautiful about me, a self portrait with Kell and Arella
Del Kathryn Barton

More info
Archibald website
The other finalists here

Hairy down there - Guillaume Pinard

Don't know about you but Guillaume Pinard's work makes me think of the hair you find down there... in a good way...

It's all a bit of a hirsute "Where the Wild Things Are" n'est pas? (which is incidentally being made into film by Spike Jonze and written Dave Eggers!!! How exciting is that? Hope they do it justice. How dev if they f#ck it up.)

More info
Team Gallery, New York
Guillaume Pinard's website in french
New York Times article

George Clooney turns my legs to jelly

Actually he doesn't... at all..

Anyway, portrait of George Clooney in jelly beans.

I kind of like it...

By George Rochas for Jelly Bellys in honour of Clooney's Oscar nomination for his role in Michael Clayton.

SMH article

Bloody Carine

Back in the day (ie the early 90s) when forest green suede parkas were de rigueur and Kate Moss was just a bandy-legged teen from Croydon, UK magazine The Face was the coolest thing on the planet. Every month I would gobble up its morsels of youth culture fabulousness like a hungry puppy.

To this day, there are still a few images from the mag have seared themselves onto my memory – the cover of Kurt Cobain in a dress, Bjork submerged in Icelandic thermal baths with her lookalike son… and these images… Eva Herzigova as a butcher. Yes, you read right, Eva Herzigova, face of Wonderbra, famous for her boobs, Bridget Bardot bouncy blonde beauty, blood-smeared, washed out and holding a lump of bloody mince meat. I'd never seen anything like it, and the gory subject matter and surprising representation of a famous supermodel had quite an effect on me.

At the time, I didn’t take in the names of the stylist and photographer, but after reading this article in the Guardian I was fascinated to realise these disturbing/intriguing images were created by none other than Carine Rotfield, now editor of Vogue Paris and celebrity photographer, Mario Testino.

If you flick through any of Rotfield’s issues of Vogue Paris you’ll see she still makes subversive choices. Unlike most fashion editors who direct other stylists to make sense of trends for their readers (New Seaon Florals, Nautical Stripes, Glamorous Skinny Model in Evening Clothing etc), Rotfield still acts as stylist. And under her editorship, Vogue Paris has become a space where she and her collaborators (Emmanuelle Alt, Juergen Teller, Mario Testino, Terry Richardson) examine the cult of celebrity, art, stereotypes, glamour, scandal, dignity and infamy.

L'icone
Styling by Carine Rotfield
Photography Mario Testino
August 2007

Just Married
Styled by Emmanuelle Alt
Photographed by Terry Richardson
February 2008

L'idole
Styled by Emmanuelle Alt
Photographed by Peter Lindbergh
February 2008

Cindy Sherman
Stylist and photographer Cindy Sherman
All clothing Balenciaga
August 2007

More information
Vogue Paris
Carine Rotfield interview, The Guardian
Cindy Sherman

It ain't over til the lady with the pink hair sings

I've seen two operas. They were both in German, contemporary, minimalist and involved men sleeping with/killing their mothers and/or someone's ghost haunting and ultimately sending someone mad. Given I'm all about costumes and hold an unfair prejudice against Germans (horrible German exflatmate), this isn't my idea of a fun night out. Turned me off opera to be honest.

I would, however, have make an exception for the English National Opera's recent production of Aida. That's because Zhandra Rhodes, high priestess of pink hair designed the costumes and set, using her own Egyptian collection as inspiration. Sounds like the Abyssinian's loincloth to me!

Design sketches
I presume these are sketches by Zandra Rhodes... quite interesting to see the illustration style, n'est pas?

On stage
More turquoise than you can shake a Navajo neckpiece at...

Not impressed? Think you could have done a better job than that crazy lady with the pink hair? Click here and design your own Aida costume.

More information
Zandra Rhodes website
English National Opera
This Is London interview with Zandra
Hilary Alexander on Aida + Zandra
One of Zandra Rhodes' other creative productions, the Fashion and Textile Museum

Weimaraner you always picking on me William Wegman

It's Friday.

That means it's time for puppies.

William Wegman is to Weimaraners
what Anne Geddes is to babies
what Cindy Sherman is to self portraits and
what van Eyck was to the Arnolfinis.

I could go on... and on... because he's taken many many pictures of Weimaraners, most notably his first, Man Ray.

Bless.

“On Set”
1994
Color Polaroid, 24 x 20 inches

“Front Façade”
1993
Color Polaroid, 24 x 20 inches

“Patriotic Poodle”
1994
Color Polaroid, 24 x 20 inches

“Canon Aside,” diptych
2000
Color Polaroid, 24 x 20 inches

“Miss Mit”
1993
Color Polaroid, 24 x 20 inches

“Stepmother”
1992
Color Polaroid, 24 x 20 inches

More information
Wegman World.com
PBS info
Senior & Shopmaker Gallery

Valentine's Day Romance Was Born in the Garden of Eden

My first post on this blog was about Sydney artist Del Kathryn Barton. So, I'm trying to be OK about the fact that I didn't find out about this event until after the fact. Apparently subscribing to an art gallery's blog, email newsletter as well as joining their facebook group doesn't guarantee that you'll be notified of upcoming event.

Huff, snort, grump.

Anyway.

Last weekend, Romance Was Born and Del Kathryn Barton had what looks like a fabulously exciting two-day installation at Kaliman Gallery in Sydney. Here's a bit of promo that I missed said:

A collaborative exhibition of work from past and present with 12 new one off designs from Romance was Born featuring prints from Del Kathryn Barton who introduces a new body of work. Garden of Eden includes installations of giant objects (fruits and garden of eden inspired pieces) by Romance was Born.

Can't believe I missed out on the giant fruit! These pictures from this blog will have to do.

Pictured above in centre Luke Sales, Del Kathryn Barton and Anna Plunkett with models from the show

Somethink special by Del Kathryn Barton from the Kaliman Gallery website

Melbournites can catch the Garden of Eden show in the L'Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival cultural program at the National Design Centre from March 7-May 7, 2008.

More information
romancewasborn.com
Del Kathryn Barton
L'Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival
Little Hero PR

Topsy Turvy Viktor & Rolf

Viktor & Rolf are fond of themes. They like block colours, repetition and bows.

Block colours

Fall 2001

Spring 2002

Fall 2002

Repetition

Fall 2003

Spring 2006

Spring 2006

Bows...

Spring 2005

They also like block colours, repetition and bows all at the same time...

Spring 2002

Spring 2005

For their Milan boutique they also went with a theme - upside down.

Fun.

If you don't suffer from vertigo...

Photos of Milan boutique from Angelonki on Flickr

More information
Viktor & Rolf website
Guardian interview
Viktor & Rolf blog

Colour by numbers - Liz Corkery

Remember the days when you and your peers gave props to anyone who was really good at colouring in between the lines? Liz Corkery has turned the colouring in rules upside down, firstly by not finishing! Secondly, by ditching the standard paint-by-numbers subject matter of dolphins and cartoon characters and putting childhood in the picture, literally. Love the colour palette, the subjects (crying babies are funny) and the unfinished vibe. Smiley stamp from me.

Babies Got Background

Boots and Bows

Heads and Legs

Training

Whispers

More information
See Liz's work in the furniture store, Format Furniture, Surry Hills, Sydney