Fiona Jane Burgess, UK-based film director specializing in music videos, commercials, documentaries and fashion films, owes much of her career success to experiencing a number of challenges. Burgess found herself having to rethink her career path at 28, a time when she was also facing the realities of motherhood and the breakup of her band, Woman’s Hour. Fortunately, her natural flare as a director, which she exercised when shooting her own music videos, determined her career segue into film direction. Since delving into the film industry, Burgess has worked on diverse campaigns that span music videos, personal projects, working with the UK’s No.1 Baby Feeding brand, Tommee Tippee and some of fashion’s most recognised names, including Gucci and Burberry. Read more.
Alexander McQueen & Vestiaire Collective Are Pioneering Circular Practices In Luxury Fashion
ALEXANDER MCQUEEN VOSS finale
photograph: Chris Moore Catwalking.com
Alexander McQueen and Vestiaire Collective have just launched a pioneering collaboration aimed at empowering a move towards sustainability and circular practices. Supported by innovative technology, the collaboration marks the launch of Vestiaire Collective’s new ‘Brand Approved’ programme and reinforces Alexander McQueen’s growing commitment to the durability of luxury fashion.
A select group of clients will be contacted by a sales representative at Alexander McQueen. Any pieces the clients wish to sell will be assessed and if eligible assigned a buy-back price. Once the pieces are received and authenticated by Alexander McQueen, the client will be issued with a credit note with which they will immediately be able to purchase new items from specified Alexander McQueen stores. Once processed by Vestiaire Collective the pieces will carry an external NFC tag giving prospective new buyers access to information confirming the authenticity of the piece. The pieces will be available to purchase on a dedicated ‘Brand Approved’ page on the Vestiaire Collective app and site.
There are currently two pieces available for purchase.
Tuxedo jacket
ALEXANDER MCQUEEN
Sarah Burton’s first show as creative director SS11
photograph: Chris Moore Catwalking.com
Tartan skirt
ALEXANDER MCQUEEN
‘Widows Of Culloden’ AW06
photograph: Chris Moore Catwalking.com
Couture From Home: An Inside Look At The Making Of Alexander McQueen's Pre-SS21 Collection
As all offices, ateliers and factories were closed over lockdown, the Alexander McQueen design team were sent stock fabric to their homes, which was over-printed, over-dyed and renewed.
This collection harks back to the early days of McQueen and a free, make-do-and-mend spirit. Garments – from signature sharply cut masculine-inspired tailoring to prom dresses - were cut by hand at kitchen tables, fabric was dip-dyed in gardens. A mid-twentieth century silhouette – sweetheart necklines, soft shoulders and overblown skirts – is complimented by a hyper-feminine colour palette in shades of pink, from albion to fuchsia rose, and red, punctuated by classic black. Asymmetric hand-draped silks and exploded bows nod to the haute couture tradition finishing an audaciously romantic look.
Look 26
A dress with off-the-shoulder drape and a tiered skirt in washed silk organza dip-dyed albion pink and black.
look 27
A double-layered tuxedo jacket in black wool silk with a wrapped bow peplum in albion pink micro-faille and cigarette trousers in black wool silk with a black satin tuxedo stripe.
look 28
An oyster ruffle dress with a high neck and scalloped back in washed organza dip-dyed albion pink and black.
look 29
An asymmetric, floor-length dress with an exploded skirt volume in washed calico silk organza with sketchbook hand embroidery over a skeletal corset in nude silk tulle. The embroidery was inspired by drawings in the notebooks of the Alexander McQueen design studio teams.
Watch S.R. Studio's Debut "Apparitions" For Paris Haute Couture Week
California Couture. A collection created in America, reflecting America. Shot in Los Angeles on January 19, 2021, the last day of the Trump presidency.
The Puritan and Pilgrims, traveling to America in the 17th century, viewed the United States as a “Redeemer Nation” — a belief in the country’s divinely ordained redemptive role in the world. It is a narrative being profoundly questioned today, inseparable from the enduring inequalities and ongoing threat of violence framed as patriotism.
Responding to the history of the United States — imagined and real — Sterling Ruby explores the intersection of fashion, art, craft and culture for this first haute couture collection created at the invitation of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, Paris. Silhouettes, shapes, garment archetypes reference American heritage: Puritan collars, styles of dress inextricable from colonialism, neocolonialism, and religious persecution. These contrast with the uniforms of modern America: references to skate wear, workwear, business wear.
creative direction and editing by Ruby
Read A Conversation Between Emily Labowe and Devendra Banhart On The Occasion Of The Launch Of Poppy Undies →
Click here to read more.
Frutti Di Mare: Read Our Interview Of Danish Designer Sia Arnika →
With her SS21 Frutti Di Mare collection, designer Sia Arnika has found a chimeric pearl in the depths of a timeless Limfjord oyster. These highly-coveted mollusks were so in demand by the 16th-century King Frederic II of Denmark and his court that he declared them “crown regalia” and forbade the people of Arnika’s native Mors island from eating any themselves. While the capital city Nykøbing was a bustling port city in the mid-19th century, its population has since dwindled, and with it, much of the island’s former sense of self. Click here to read more.
Watch Alexander McQueen's SS21 Film "First Light" Directed By Jonathan Glazer
Back to London, coming home.
“Shape, silhouette and volume, the beauty of the bare
bones of clothing stripped back to its essence —
a world charged with emotion and human connection.”
-Sarah Burton
Watch Mused's New SS21 Campaign Video And Interview With Designer Lindsay Jones →
Two fashion insiders discuss the fashion industry’s pivot, and why fashion need not be considered frivolous, especially in ugly times. Click here to see more.
Enter Sasha Frolova's Romantic Apocalypse In A Beauty Collaboration With Dr. Hauschka →
Click here to see more.
FRIENDS: A Sustainably-Minded Fashion Editorial By Byron Jesus
Shot by Allison Nguyen, featuring (model) Cameron Rose, (painter/model) Lila Doliner, (photographer) Bradley J Cooper, (designer/Model) Kristian Kane, styled by Marilyn Monroy and Byron Jesus, creative direction by Byron Jesus, casting by Büst Agency.
Featured brands: Bonfire of the Vanities @bonfireofthev, PHLEMUNS @phlemuns, Comme des Garçons @commedesgarcons, Boy Kloves @boyagainstthesea. @blk_pr, @jjjordandouglas,
No Sesso Runway Presentation Of "A Vignette of the Renaissance on 24th Street" At MOCA Los Angeles
photographs by Michelle Genevive Gonzales
Cara Delevigne And Olivier Rousteing Team Up For Puma x Balmain Campaign Directed By Philippa Price
An unlikely partnership takes the form of two limited-edition capsule collections, both designed by BALMAIN’s Creative Director Olivier Rousteing and his good friend and muse, the English actor and model Cara Delevingne. This is PUMA’s first-ever collection with Cara Delevingne, who has been working with PUMA since 2016. Standing at the intersection of sport and fashion, this new collection features pieces inspired by traditional boxing gear that are infused with Parisian couture. Bra tops, boxing shorts, and sneakers are elevated with a stark color palette, hits of gold, and design elements straight out of BALMAIN’s atelier.
The campaign for the line, directed by Philippa Price and produced by MAAVVEN is a boxing-inspired, interactive campaign starring Delevingne. The campaign is not a literal interpretation of boxing but a dynamic and visceral interpretation of the timeless tale of human connection, identity, tragedy and triumph, love and hate, and the universal duality of “the fight.” In addition to Delevingne, the cast is rounded out by an incredible group of “real people,” who personify this idea of the fight.
In addition to the campaign, Price produced the live launch event, which took place here at Milk Studios in Los Angeles.
"Translating the campaign into the show concept was a lot of fun. We wanted the whole event to feel like a fight club. I worked with Jasmine Albuquerque (who also did all the choreography for the campaign) to create a 20 minute performance piece that evokes the duality of emotions behind any fight, whether it be physical or emotional—anger vs. empathy, defeat vs. perseverance, endurance, truth, forgiveness, and most importantly, love. Love for the self and love for all humans.” -Philippa Price
"Back Side / Fashion from Behind", An Off-Site Exhibition @ Musée Bourdelle In Paris
![Jeanloup Sieff, Eve from behind, Kim Islinski [Top and skirt Martine Sitbon, published in New York,1997] © Estate of Jeanloup Sieff](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/544cb720e4b0f3ba72ee8a78/1571798019244-IN4BFT01MJ43GMEWWFWP/29+Sieff+Kim+1997.jpg)
In a society that is obsessed with people’s faces, "Back Side / Fashion from Behind" is an original and unexpected theme. By addressing our body’s relationship to clothing from a social and psychological point of view, the exhibition questions the perception we have of our own and other people’s backs.
The exhibition spreads across the Great Hall of Plasters, the contemporary Portzamparc extension and Antoine Bourdelle’s studio. The models on display establish a dialogue between fashion and sculpture, a dialogue with the works of this great master of the turn of the 20th century. "Back Side – Fashion from Behind" gives us a new take on the works of Bourdelle: we look with new eyes at the powerful, muscular backs and the slender outlines of his sculptures. "Back Side / Fashion from Behind" is on view through November 15 at Musée Bourdelle 18, rue Antoine-Bourdelle, Paris 15e. photographs courtesy of Palais Galliera
Meals Clothing Presentation At Various Small Fires Gallery In Los Angeles
Meals’ first presentation ‘COCKTAIL PARTY’ took place on October 12th at Various Small Fires gallery. The show was styled by legendary LA stylist, Shirley Kurata, and featured a food-centerpiece and delicious agar-agar pouches by ascendent food artist, Nünchi. photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
Whole Drops Capsule Collection In Collaboration With The Germs' Don Bolles
Los Angeles art weirdo brand, WHOLE has just dropped a capsule clothing collab with legendary LA punk band, The Germs. The collaboration consists of album and poster artwork as: t-shirts, sweatshirts, sweatpants and a wool cap. Don Bolles (drummer of The Germs) has been a staple of the Los Angeles music scene since the 70's and has also modeled for Skim Milk and WHOLE back in 2018. The unisex capsule collection is available for purchase on WHOLE's website and they will be doing a pop up event at Virgil Normal on October 5th where the items will be for sale and Don Bolles and Josh Scholl (WHOLE) will be spinning records.
Mansur Gavriel Teams Up With Calder Foundation On A Limited Edition Capsule Collection
To coincide with Frieze London, Rachel Mansur and Floriana Gavriel, of Mansur Gavriel, collaborated closely with the Calder estate and Alexander Calder’s grandson, Sandy Rower, to create a limited edition capsule collection consisting of four of the brand’s classic bag silhouettes, each featuring one of four iconic Calder artworks painted onto the exterior. The full collection drops on October 2, 2019.
See Gypsy Sport's Spring Summer Campaign Photographed by Bennet Perez in Malibu →
Click here to see more.
Concept 005: Read Our Interview Of Union Los Angeles Founder Chris Gibbs & Nordstrom Men's Sam Lobban On Their Recent Collaboration →
Founded in 1989, Union’s history first started in New York’s Soho with the gracious ambition of giving a space to young, local designers on their way to recognition. The Los Angeles shop followed a few years later and strived to maintain the same principle born thirty years ago: embracing the creativity of fresh designers within the city while being inspired by trends coming from Japan and the UK. Union Los Angeles has now become one of LA’s prime destinations for men's contemporary fashion and streetwear. Earlier this month, Chris Gibbs, who used to work at the original NYC shop and is now the owner and operator behind Union LA, announced Union’s first ever collaboration with a national retailer: Nordstrom. Click here to read more.
MSGM Presentation During Pitti Uomo 96 at The Nelson Mandela Forum in Florence, Italy
photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper
Sterling Ruby "S.R. STUDIO. LA. CA" Collection Presentation During Pitti Immagine Uomo 96 in Florence, Italy
Endocannibalism X Exocannibalism – The Los Angeles-based artist, Sterling Ruby’s first runway presentation at the gorgeous Le Pagliere in Firenze, Italy was a triumphant clash of tribalism, studio wear, bleach splatters, dark natural landscapes and a chilling romanticism. Presenting a form of soft sculpture on the runway, Ruby’s first collection is autobiographical, a chart through cloth of Ruby’s life, influences, fantasies and reality. The references include heavy metal and punk album cover art, Amish and Mennonite dress, and Ruby’s own geographical journey across America, from his rural upbringing in Pennsylvania to Los Angeles, California. The craft language of American folk tradition - of crafting, mending, the patchworking of quilts - is here embedded in garments, whose worked surfaces are a map of the journey of their making. The first drops are available here and here. photographs by Oliver Maxwell Kupper