YOU’VE GOT MAIL

Catalogs are not cool. For models they are a paycheck, for consumers they are yet another piece of junk mail.  They get no respect. Most catalogs aren’t talked about the way magazines are, nor are they typically held in high esteem. Save the efforts of a few diligent ad-addicts (The Fashion Spot, I salute you) the contents of most catalogs would be forgotten without a moments notice. What is there to discuss really? No matter how you dress it up a catalog’s primary function is to move product – it’s commerce, not art. A even the most banal magazine editorial can at least cling to the pretense that it is something more than just consumerism – most catalogs cannot make that claim.

Unless they stretch beyond their constraints…

OPTICAL ALLUSIONS

Looks can be deceiving. When one first peers at one of Massimo Gammacurta’s puzzling still life portraits they see the very surface of the image. A beautiful flower, the intricate parts of a gun, a familiar designer logo – all things that register as completely normal for a split second before we begin to look closer to find some of the most cunning product placement ever devised. Names hidden in flower petals, a pistol made of cosmetic compacts and even an edible Vuitton symbol - each little trick is more inventive than the next and hidden symbols remind us of the pervasive way product placement influences our daily lives. If you dont notice the subversiveness at once don’t worry – that just means the subliminal hints are working.

CHANEL DISTRIBUTION

The phrase “it is what it is” ranks high on the list of least descriptive platitudes. The term means nothing in particular yet conveys a world of gloomy truth. Some things must be accepted for exactly what they are regardless of how we feel about them because at the present time there is  nothing short of a minor miracle that can be done about the situation. Things are either so beyond helping that they cannot be saved or they are exactly what they will always be and cannot be changed. Chanel, in it’s current Lagerfeld crafted state is what it is. Regardless of the season we can expect certain things from Karl and his team – whether or not these things are good all boils down to how the Coco aesthetic suits you.

9 SONGS

The curtain has been drawn on global fashion weeks and now there is finally the time to indulge in the fabled R word – relaxation. The wham, bam, thank you Stam pace of the fashion calendar is a force to be reckoned with and in the hustle bustle a great deal can get lost. How can one really pay close attention to the intricacies of fashion when there is a new development every few minutes? Even the most dedicated and diligent follower needs a breather every now and then. With the collections through and a meditative state of mind upon us what better time to appreciate the season’s best music.

HYSTERIC GLAMOUR

While the look of Dior’s F/W collection was almost slavishly focused on Paul Poiret’s interpretation of orientalism, the collection’s hair and makeup references the era without taking the literal route. ( Dior Makeup F/W 09 Slideshow )  Dior makeup is typically outlandish but each season it develops into something fresh via Pat McGrath’s expert use of color. The rich purples, pinks and golds this season served as the perfect compliment to the clothing. The brash exaggerated hues were rich and lush, instead of being so far removed from reality that they could only entice within the realm of runway, the colorful hues were the right mix of the real and the surreal. For Dior the look was relatively tame and the simple standout trends within it were for the most part easily adaptable for everyday. A dark plum lip, a shocking shade of shadow, a thinner brow – all things that can be brought down to earth for those of us who don’t have Pat and Co. there to do our touchups.

FASHION VICTIMIZER

Ever since The Imagist treated us to the latest issue of Fantastic Man featuring Bret Easton Ellis as it’s cover subject my mind has been tipped towards representations of fashion’s trappings within Ellis’ writing. As a self-proclaimed moralist Ellis’ depiction of fashion (and the surrounding culture of disposable glamour) is one of interest tempered with apprehension. The world inhabited by Ellis’ college students, vampires, social parasites and of course psychos is one that mirrors our own in terms of it’s connection to consumerism.

THE DIE IS CAST

There was really only one show to watch this season in terms of it’s casting and that was Givenchy. Prada was still stuck in the white washed past, CK offered little excitement save the instantly enigmatic presences of fresh faces Jac and Lindsey and just about every other show on the fashion calendar stuck to the tried and true formula of proven girls. Maybe it’s the recession or a sweeping state of malaise but few risks were taken overall. Not that one minds seeing the familiar strut of Raquel Zimmerman yet again each season but ultimately there isn’t much behind that very safe choice.

KEEP IT COMING

With the proliferation of Murakami (and Murakami-esque) imagery readily available in our daily lives the novelty of Takashi’s signature style might seem to have faded. While achieving household notoriety is major coup for an artist seeing one person’s work on handbags, t shirts, toys and assorted objects d’art can kill the wow factor. The Murakami brand is well known but that doesn’t stop it from taking our breath away every now and then. With a new show at the Gagosian were instantly reminded of all the things that made us love Murakami in the first place – the energy, the wit and of course the wonderfully childlike anime enthusiasm that ties all his work together. His new paintings (particularly the Time Bokan series) continue to engage and delight.