Falling In and Out of Love With Fashion: Here Are Ten Things You Need To Know About Elio Fiorucci

This Monday, the fashion world was saddened to hear of the death of Italian designer Elio Fiorucci. Known as “The King of Jeans,” the Milanese designer’s raunchy, colorful fashions “sold America back to America.” His kitschy, recycled style broke the harsh, conservative boundaries of haute-couture, gaining international popularity with his low-cost materials and everyday fashions. The Fiorucci name was a staple in the jet-set world of youth and alternative culture in the New Wave era. However, despite fame and acclaim, poor management and legal issues separated Fiorucci from his brand into the 21st century. Interior design guru Rossana Orlandi said Fiorucci was “the point of reference for an entire generation.” Giorgio Armani called him “revolutionary.” Fiorucci recently celebrated his 80th birthday. Here are ten things you need to know about the fashion icon:

1. Elio Fiorucci was the son of a Milanese shoe-and-sandal shop owner

In 1963, a 22-year-old Fiorucci, while experimenting with new designs in his father’s shoe shop, created three pairs of rubber galoshes in bright, primary colors. After being featured in local Milan fashion magazine Amica, the galoshes sparked a sensation. 

2. Fiorucci was an integral player in fashion’s globalization

A Model In A Chiffon Dress With Roses And Red Satin Accents, 1976 Photo: Associated/REX Shutterstock/Rex USA

Fiorucci was deeply inspired by the bright miniskirts and kitschy baubles trendy in London’s Carnaby Street. When his first shop opened in Milan in 1967, he was determined to bring modern British and American fashion to Italy. The then-conservative Milan had barely seen t-shirts, jeans, and glitter. The store was instantly popular for modern Italian shoppers. Later, the Fiorucci brand would turn underground fashions such as the Brazilian thong and New Mexican glass beads into international trends.

3. The Fiorucci label popularized many staples of modern fashion

Fiorucci introduced the monokini and thong from Brazil, albeit while sparking controversy with the topless photos used to advertise them. The label was the first to popularize leopard-skin prints, Afghan coats, and fishnet stockings. In 1976, Fiorucci introduced the first “fashion” jean for women, selling over one million pairs of jeans in the first year on the market. The company created the first pair of stretch jeans in 1982.

4. Fiorucci was more interested in the everyday than “haute couture”

Fiorucci was known for favoring cheap materials—$10 t-shirts from India, plastic see-through jeans, aluminum lunch pails sold as purses. “I am a merchant, not a man of fashion,” he told WWD in 1976 at the opening of his Manhattan department store. He told People in 1980 he found the label haute couture “pathetic.”

5. Fiorucci’s department stores did not just sell clothes

Fiorucci’s first big store in Milan expanded from fashion to offer books, music, furniture, and makeup. It also boasted a performance space, vintage clothing area, and restaurant. The Milan shop became a focal point for youth and alternative culture. Fiorucci’s Manhattan location was known as the “daytime Studio 54.” New York’s New-Wave creatives would come to the store to sip espresso and trade party plans in the pre-soirée hours. The Fiorucci store was frequented by art exhibitions, book signings, and parties.  

6. Fiorucci advertisements were iconic for their innovation and controversy

The famous two-angels logo was plastered on bags, t-shirts, and billboards internationally. It was paired alongside models in skin-tight jeans wearing fluffy pink handcuffs, Brazilian thongs, camouflage and leopard-skin prints. Others show women in provocatively tight jeans and latex pants. An exhibition at SACI featuring the ads in 2012 claimed, “Such ads, and others with fluorescent colors and breakthrough graphics, ensured the Fiorucci brand a place in design and retail history.”  

7. His designs were extremely popular with celebrities of the 70s and 80s

The glitzy innovation exhibition in Fiorucci’s designs attracted the trendy, jet-set celebrities of the New Wave era. Notable Fiorucci-lovers included Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger, and Jackie O. Fiorucci is credited with creating Madonna’s look, launching her career. Debbie Harry was known to scour Fiorucci collections for anything black. Truman Capote signed books in the window of the New York department store. Fiorucci sent an extra-large sweatshirt with a crown embroidered in gold thread to Princess Diana as a wedding present.

8. Fiorucci launched the careers of notable fashion designers

Fiorucci’s New York department store was the first to feature designers Betsey Johnson, Anna Sui, and Jill Stuart. Marc Jacobs told the New York Times in a 2001 interview, “'When I was 15, instead of going to sleep-away camp I spent the whole summer hanging out in the store. I had this wide-eyed glamour about these beautiful young people that globe-trotted from club to club dressing in these fabulous clothes. It was like a living, breathing fashion show that I wanted so much to be part of.” Jacobs credits Fiorucci with inspiring the low-cost designs

9. By the late 1980s, Elio lost the right to use his own name

Despite thriving sales, poor management forced Fiorucci to close its New York City location in 1986. By 1988, franchise disputes lead to the closing of all U.S. branches. The company was subsequently split into shares that were bought by various multinational corporations, and Elio Fiorucci was legally barred from designing under his own name.

10. Elio Fiorucci fell out of love with fashion

In 2003, after 36 years, Fiorucci closed down his historic shop in Corso Vittorio Emmanuele, Milan. He said he had “fallen out of love with fashion.” However, he continued to design. He launched his own brand, Love Therapy, and designed for Agent Provocateur. 

Text by Keely Shinners

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[FASHION REVIEW] Siki Im Spring 2016 Collection Is A Celebration of Sub-Culture

John Varvatos technically closed NYFWM. But for me, it all ended with Siki Im. At its best, fashion tells stories. Of the designer who created it. Of the sub-cultures that inspired it. Of music. Of art. In 15 minutes, Siki distilled everything that I love about fashion into one seamless collection.

Siki Im has a lot of interests. He collects Jordan sneakers. He appreciates Black Metal and is an avid Hip-Hop fan. He loves literature. But as a former architect, the common thread that ties together all of Siki’s cultural influences appears to be structure. He is passionately obsessed with how things are created, whether they are objects or simply, emotions. Siki has serious design pedigrees, having worked under Karl Lagerfeld and as head designer at Helmut Lang after its namesake designer left the brand to pursue an art career. But with his own brands, Siki aims for the personal, and his presentations are fueled by emotional touchstones. One thing that had been missing from Men’s Fashion Week in New York was showmanship. As one attendee at the show put it, “This was the only collection that felt like there was anything at stake.” It’s true, it feels as if Siki Im is deadly close to entering the big leagues of menswear designers: Rick, Raf, Wang, Kim Jones. These guys do not seem to exist in a world that far removed from Siki Im anymore.

At NYFWM, Siki Im presented the Spring Summer 2016 collections for both his high-end Siki Im line and his more street-ready Den Im brand. He presented the collections together, blending the higher end and street looks into a cohesive street army. The collection, entitled “Youth Museum,” explored Siki’s most prevalent passion: New York City. Growing up as a skateboarder in Germany, Siki longed for the day that he too would shred the streets of the Big Apple. When he got here, however, the city wasn’t quite what he imagined it would be. Or was it?

The show, the most star-studded of any I attended this week, started when a man (Sam Wheeler) entered the middle of the catwalk with an electric guitar. He started welding Dead Man-era Neil Young-like riffs, full of tremolo and power. Then, the Opera singer Anthony Ross Costanzo took the stage. He put the microphone to his lips, and in an earth-shattering operatic falsetto, he began singing the opening line to LCD Soundsystem’s song, ‘New York, You’re Bringing Me Down.”

The message was clear: New York is different, but we are here, god damn it.

As a bass thudding soundtrack, composed by Casey Mullen and helmed by Sam Wheeler kicked in, the looks came down the runway. One of the wonderful things about Siki’s garments is that they are in many ways classic utilitarian work wear, but with flourishes and details Siki is able to turn a sweatshirt into a garment that can be work into an infinite number of presentations. Chalk it up to his talent for structure or his belief in individuality, but in Siki Clothes you can really wear them however you want. A Den Im bomber jacket came with a detachable skirt. A “Jedi poncho” was a call back to Siki’s youth, and most likely, your youth. We all love Star Wars.

Prints from German artist Frank Thiel called back to Siki’s home in Germany. Jeweler Chris Habana embellished the looks with broaches and charms that will be available when the collection drops next year. Siki also amped up the looks with futuristic sunglasses that he designed in conjunction with Gentle Monster Eyewear. With sneaker brand No. 288, Siki designed simple and sleek slip-on sneakers that could be worn at the beach or in space.

As the finale reigned in, Sonic Youth’s ‘100 Percent’ blared from the speakers. The collection was a celebration of New York and of Siki’s life. This was a supremely personal collection, but at the same time it felt remarkably resonant and life affirming. I got into fashion through art and music. Or perhaps, it was just by living in New York that fashion was inevitable. Siki Im’s SS ’16 presentation of his Siki Im and Den Im lines was a celebration of sub-culture and its resilience in the face of gentrification, industry, and commerce. Yes, New York culture has been chewed up and spit out many times over. But it’s still here, and we are still here.

Adam Lehrer is a writer, journalist, and art and fashion critic based in New York City. On top of being Autre’s fashion and art correspondent, he is also a regular contributor to Forbes Magazine. His unique interests in punk, hip hop, skateboarding and subculture have given him a distinctive, discerning eye and voice in the world of culture, et al. Oh, and he also loves The Sopranos. Follow him on Instagram: @adam102287

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[FASHION REVIEW] Edmund Ooi's Spring Summer 2016 Show Is So Gender Bending It Borders On Sexless

If gender-bending is truly the thing in men’s fashion right now, than Edmund Ooi is winning. Or, maybe not. Ooi’s aesthetic is almost extra-gender, bordering on sexless. The models that came down his runway at his Spring Summer 2016 show at NYFWM looked something like over-grown babies in outer space, or male fetish hookers in Battlestar Galactica’s Red Light District. If Gaius Baltar was Bi, maybe these are the dudes he’d be going for?

Edmund Ooi is an extremely experimental designer, even by today’s standards. He seems to have little to no care for making clothes that will sell, and that makes his shows nothing less than thrilling. The Maylasia-born designer is a graduate of the storied Royal Academy of Fine Art. That is the same school that educated the legendary (and my personal favorite all-time designer) Martin Margiela as well as the Antwerp Six: Ann Demeulemeester, Dries Van Noten, Walter Van Bierendock, Dirk Van Saene, Marina Yee, and Dirk Bikkembergs. These designers were utterly boundary pushing in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and the first three have been able to build massive brands that have persisted to this day. Is Edmund Ooi even interested in building a brand that will last? If the Antwerp Six was like post-punk, filtering avant-garde influences into ultimately digestible rock and pop songs, Ooi is almost full-on noise. It’s very hard to imagine even the most ostentatious of dressers wanting to wear this stuff, and even harder to imagine myself and other boring guys adorned in diaper-looking shorts and cut-off vests.

But Ooi’s sheer moxie and lack of filter is endearing. He’s been building his brand slowly and picking up design accolades as he goes along. He won ‘Best Avant-Garde Designer’ at age 19 after graduating from Kuala Lumpur. He worked with Thierry Mugler in Paris. He was handpicked by Giorgio Armani to show at Armani Teatro at Milan Fashion Week in January. And now, New York X, a creative organization that supports emerging talent all over the globe, has brought Edmund over to New York to show his Spring-Summer 2016 collection.

The space, a huge room where a ladder set below a podium that leads to a catwalk floor separated with white Adirondack architectural sculptures, looked precise and futuristic. Ambient music lulled through the speakers as people took their seats. And once the bass-throbbing house music kicked in, it all made sense.

Edmund Ooi claims to want to infuse sportswear with a flamboyant attitude. But, “flamboyant” really doesn’t do this collection justice. The first model came down the stairs wrapped in what looked like white sheets and a diaper (white bandeau, belt, and underwear) and the models that followed weren’t covering much up either.

Ooi researched the technical materials that are used in spacesuits for this collection. That, combined with his overtly feminine aesthetic, made for a collection full of sly winking humor. These clothes looked like they could have been costumes from the set of a gay porn set in outer space. Dare I say, Deep Space 69?

There were still quite a few pieces that looked righteously cool, however. A blazer with architecturally patterned black, grey, and red stripes would surely be perfect for driving a convertible in the streets of Florence. A beige jacket with cream-colored sleeves would also seamlessly fit into the wardrobe of a less-adventurous dresser.

Edmund Ooi is sure to make a name for himself in the extremity of his presentations. He does however need to focus more on making clothes that men, or women, will actually wear. Raf Simons is a name that often comes up in comparison with Edmund. Like Ooi is doing now, Raf made a name for himself with his emotionally charged and art leaning shows. But Raf also became a retail giant because creative guys; rappers, rockers, painters, straights, gays, DJs, etc, all wanted the look that he was creating. Ooi’s vision is there, but he needs to channel it just a bit narrower to turn his label into a brand.

Adam Lehrer is a writer, journalist, and art and fashion critic based in New York City. On top of being Autre’s fashion and art correspondent, he is also a regular contributor to Forbes Magazine. His unique interests in punk, hip hop, skateboarding and subculture have given him a distinctive, discerning eye and voice in the world of culture, et al. Oh, and he also loves The Sopranos. Follow him on Instagram: @adam102287

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[FASHION REVIEW] Capsule S/S 16: A Snapshot of Modern Menswear

New York  designers occasionally feel safer than those from Europe. With numerous exceptions, the collections that come out of here just feel a little less “artsy,” for lack of a better term. I don’t know why that is. Maybe, that despite the city’s storied history with avant-garde expression, it is in many ways a jeans and t-shirts kind of city when it comes to the dudes.

There were quite a few collections that transcended that notion this week. Greg Lauren (nephew of Ralph) presented a massive and striking collection of vintage Americana deconstructed to tatters. Lauren, a former painter, seems to be aware of the fact that beauty can sometimes be constructed out of harsh and ugly beginnings. Russian designer Alexandre Plokhov (formerly of the Cloak label and current creative director of Helmut Lang) presented his first menswear collection in a few seasons and continued his goth, post-apocalyptic aesthetic, but surprised with some splashes of primary colors. Though the collection was nothing out of the ordinary for him, the clothes would certainly appeal to an out of the ordinary guy.

But, the clothes that I felt had the most personal identity and would even venture to wear largely came out of Capsule S/S 16: A Snapshot of Modern Menswear presentation. Seven upcoming labels from around the globe presented five looks per brand, and made the case that the most creativity in menswear design is being conceptualized outside of New York.

Matthew Miller

London-based designer Matthew Miller was probably the best known of all the labels showing at this presentation, and from my standpoint, easily the best. Having shown his collection at LCM since 2013, Miller is part of a young generation of mind-blowing menswear designers: JW Anderson, Craig Green, Nasir Mazhar, and more. On first glance, his clothes look like classic “cool guy standing on a street corner,” infused with a punk-inspired rebellious spirit. One standout piece was a leather moto jacket that read “Born to Fail” that was draped over a mega-distressed oversized navy tee-shirt. Most guys that are interested in post-punk and horror films would wear this stuff in a second. But when you look closer, there is a real poetry to the craft of what Miller does. The clothes are EXPERTLY made, and in five looks Miller tells a story. Miller is one of the most exciting young designers out there. This collection is actually available for purchase on his website.

CMMN SWDN

Conceptualized by designers and partners Saif Bakir and Emma Hedlund, CMMN SWDN makes highly desirable, street-ready menswear. But the clothes are infused with a slightly leftfield and odd sensibility, with skinny trousers cropped far above Thom Browne’s notorious ankle exposure, and a crisp dress shirt freed of its sleeves and infused with an interesting neon print. The clothes are perfect for a guy looking to dress a little different, but not fully ready to bend his gender quite yet (don’t worry, I’m right there with you). 

Blackfist

Bradley Soileau launched Blackfist as a fashion/art/music project out of Los Angeles last year. In only his second collection, Soileau looks like he’s onto something. He has said that his inspiration for these garments was the 1980s thrash metal scene in Los Angeles and also the Wes Craven film The Toxic Avenger, and you can see that in the models with cholo tattoos and the oversized cuts. But some of the slightly wild olive greens made me think of an army soldier tripping on acid to pass the time between combat. Soileau also introduced his take on Vans slip-ons, emblazoned with the collection’s message, “Hurts So Good.”

CAMO

Italian designer Stefao Ughetti launched CAMO in 2007 to modernize menswear while paying homage to the traditional workshops in Italy. The look is sharp and minimal. Some pieces look like hospital scrubs elevated by silky and luxurious fabrics. CAMO wasn’t the most impressive lineup of garments that I saw, but its sneakers were fantastic. They look like a less detailed version of the “mocca-sneakers” created by Hiroki Nakamura for his brand Visvim, but much more sport-ready.

Baartmans and Siegel

The London-based design duo and graduates of the London College of Fashion, Wouter and Amber, have contributed talents to some major European fashion houses, but devised the Baartmans and Siegel label as a way to fabricate clothing using the most luxurious of fabrics while maintaining and utterly wearable appeal. Because of this, the design is only half the fact, and the label really makes its name on its materials. That being said, pieces like the niclas work shirt and the alton reversible car coat look like they would be spectacular to wear.

Second/Layer

The influence of legendary Japanese conceptual designers like Issey Miyake, Yohji Yamamoto, and Rei Kawakubo can be felt around the world, and now specifically in Los Angeles in this decidedly radical looking collection from LA-based brand Second/Layer. Established by partners A. Franco, Joshua Willis, and Jacob Willis in 2012, Second/Layer filters the California avant-garde through a non-gender specific clothing line. People too often forget that Los Angeles is just as important to the history of art as New York or London (um, The Germs, Ed Ruscha, freaking Hollywood?) and Maiden Noir filters a meeting of high and low through a Californian lens. Models with Dogtown and Z Boys hair wore a mostly black and white collection that could fit in any wardrobe.

Adam Lehrer is a writer, journalist, and art and fashion critic based in New York City. On top of being Autre’s fashion and art correspondent, he is also a regular contributor to Forbes Magazine. His unique interests in punk, hip hop, skateboarding and subculture have given him a distinctive, discerning eye and voice in the world of culture, et al. Oh, and he also loves The Sopranos. Follow him on Instagram: @adam102287

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[FASHION REVIEW] Asaf Ganot's Spring Summer 2016 Collection Is Perhaps A Bit Too Oiled Up

As you are probably aware, much of New York Fashion Week: Men’s has already gone on before any of these designers let this eager young writer enter a show. Some of these shows (Robert Geller, John Elliot + Co., Thom Browne, the great N. Hoolywood) I would very much have liked to have seen. Others I remain ambivalent towards.

There seems to be an underlying notion that the New York collections, for men and women, feel a little lightweight compared to those in London, Milan, and of course, Paris. That notion may be true, at least when it comes to designers that get a bit of publicity. Some of the best American menswear designers, from Alexander Wang up to Ralph Lauren, opted to show their SS 2016 collections in other countries. And all together, New York menswear design does feel a bit safe in comparison with its London and Paris counterparts.

At these New York collections, there seems to be three separate camps. One camp of designers excels in clothes that are tailor-made to be worn by the brands’ specific customers. Public School, who yesterday showed their collection as a police lineup, is one such brand. They have honed in on a sharp dressing but streetwise guy, with lots of black and expertly tailored jogger pants. Other designers, like Robert Geller who showed yesterday, or Patrik Ervell who is showing later this week, are showing easy-to-wear clothing but presented through a conceptual lens. Thom Browne is also a designer with big ideas and even bigger sales.

But at New York this year, there are also designers showing menswear collections that have very little name recognition. These are the shows that young journalists will be let into, and these might be the shows that define what New York Fashion Week: Men’s could turn into. Just as the London menswear shows have highlighted an entire generation of forward-thinking designers, maybe New York Men’s Fashion Week will introduce the world to a whole world of menswear designers looking to bend and break rules. Are the next J.W. Anderson’s and Sibling’s of the world about to erupt from New York, who knows?

Is Asaf Ganot, who just showed his SS 2016 collection, one of these designers? I am learning towards no, at least not from this collection. But, I am of a fashion generation brought up on experimental electronic music, Rick Owens, and Raf Simons. Ganot’s bright and sharply tailored clothes adorning the bodies of hulking beefcake types is different than the fashion world that I have been attuned to appreciate. And maybe that makes it radical? Or, at the very least, different.

Ganot has said that this collection is based on Brazil, and the oiled up, hyper-masculine, beach muscles thing can certainly attest to that aesthetic. But the clothes themselves were not profoundly interesting, or anything that I would wear.

Again, perhaps I am not to judge a collection such as this. I have been taught that any fashion collection that isn’t channeling abstract expressionism through proto-punk primitivism to (insert avant-garde sub-culture here), is not fashion worth my attention.

Adam Lehrer is a writer, journalist, and art and fashion critic based in New York City. On top of being Autre’s fashion and art correspondent, he is also a regular contributor to Forbes Magazine. His unique interests in punk, hip hop, skateboarding and subculture have given him a distinctive, discerning eye and voice in the world of culture, et al.Oh, and he also loves The Sopranos.  Follow him on Instagram: @adam102287

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Ten Things You Need To Know About the Incendiary and Prodigious Poet, Painter, and Musician Lizzy Mercier Descloux

To some, she was France’s answer to Patti Smith, or perhaps a 20th century reincarnation of Arthur Rimbaud – or maybe both. To others, she is virtually unknown. But listen to her track “Fire” off her seminal album Press Color, which is seeing a rerelease this summer, and you’ll wonder why you’ve never heard of her. Instead of being France’s answer to Patti Smith, though, Lizzy Mercier Descloux was more of a soul sister; she was also more punk than no wave – punk in the sense of her rebelliousness. You can find Descloux donning a suit next to Smith, who is barefoot and wearing a tattered dress, in a poetry art book that the duo released together – with contributions from Richard Hell. Born Martine-Elisabeth Mercier Descloux in Paris, Lizzy was a bit of a creative anomaly – she introduced world music into her music before there was such a thing. If it wasn’t for her explorations with world music, there is a chance Paul Simon may not have made Graceland. Whatever the case is, Lizzy Mercier Descloux, who died in the early naughts, is still a force to be reckoned with. Here are ten things you need to know about Lizzy Mercier Descloux.

1. She Grew Up in Paris and Taught Herself How To Play Guitar

Born in 1956, Lizzie Mercier Descloux grew up in Les Halles – the center of Paris. She attended art school at the École des Beaux-Arts and taught herself how to play guitar. By this point – the beginning of the 70s – early examples of punk and no wave music was flowing out of New York and London and making its way to France.

2. With Michel Esteban, She Opens a Punk Boutique in Paris Called Harry Cover

Just like Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren ran their iconic boutique and punk mecca, provocatively called Sex on King’s Road in London – Descloux helped run Harry Cover, which became a “temple” for the punk movement in Paris at the time. It sold books, music, clothing and local bands rehearsed in the basement.  She managed the boutique with her boyfriend Michel Esteban who became her closest creative collaborator and partner.

3. Descloux Goes To New York On Assignment For Rock News – Everything Changes

In 1975, her partner Esteban starts a French music magazine called Rock News, which was covering a lot of the punk and no wave scenes that were quickly spreading throughout the world. Descloux visits New York to do a story on the local scene happening on the Bowery. In doing so, she is introduced to Richard Hell and Patti Smith, which would have a profound affect on the young artist’s trajectory as a musician.

4. She Moves to New York Permanently and Buys a Fender Jazzmaster Guitar

Realizing that if she wanted to make it as an artist and a musician, she needed to make New York her home. In 1976, she makes the move and joins a mass migration of artists looking for a new creative environment. The artistic cognoscenti of Downtown New York welcome Descloux with open arms – including Richard Hell, whom she became romantically involved with. She buys a Fender Jazzmaster guitar and starts to work on music.

5. In Collaboration with Richard Hell and Patti Smith, She Publishes a Book of Poetry

With Patti Smith penning the illustrations and the preface, and Richard Hell adding his own contributions, Descloux publishes a book of poetry called “Desiderata.” The title comes from the Latin word, Desiderata, which can be translated into English as, “desired things.” Some of the photographs in the book include photographs of Patti in a dress and Descloux in a man’s suit.

6. She Releases A Mini LP Under the Name Rosa Yemen

Together with guitarist D.J. Barnes, she releases her first EP – mini-album with six tracks, like all-instrumental Decryptated and the improvisational and performative ode to venereal disease Herpese Simplex, which is a good example of one of Descloux’s rawest and most rebelliously minimal songs in her early catalogue. However, it was her debut record on ZE Records – entitled “Colors” – with the electrifying first song, Fire, which really showed Descloux’s true talents as an artist and collagist of musical genres and sounds.

7. Descloux Was Also An Actress

With her distinct look – androgynous facial features and wild swash of hair – she became a muse of the Blank Generation’s film scene. In fact, she can be seen in Amos Poe's “Blank Generation,” which is largely considered to be one of the most important cinematic documents of that era. She can also be found in a short film directed by Seth Tillett.

8. She Loved Multiple Musical Genres and Sounds From Around The World

Descloux’s second album, Mambo Nassau, mixed no wave sounds with funk, soul and African beats. In fact, Descloux was one of the first musical artists to play with the concept of “World Music,” which was an unheard of term in 1980 when Mambo Nassau was released. After a long trip through the African continent, she released an unexpected hit single called "Mais où Sont Passées les Gazelles?,” which had backing vocals from South African musicians. Shortly after this effort, Paul Simon released Graceland, which had an eerily similar approach and sound. In one of Descloux’s later albums, entitled One For the Soul, she teamed up Brazilian musicians with Chet Baker, who she met at a Jazz Festival in Rio De Janeiro.

9. Descloux Went to Africa On The Trail of Arthur Rimbaud

A lot of young artists have had a fascination with the young and brilliant 19th century poet Arthur Rimbaud who gave up writing and moved to Africa where he later died. Although, most young artists don’t follow the same trail as Rimbaud. But Descloux did – she first traveled to Ethiopia and then made her way down to South Africa, which was then still in the throes of the Apartheid.

10. She Is Diagnosed With Cancer and Dies in Corsica

Toward the end of her life, she started to paint more and decided to settle on the beautiful island of Corsica. After being diagnosed with cancer, it was here that she decided to live out her last days – her ashes were scattered at sea in a beautiful and fitting end to a long and fruitfully creative life.

"Press Color," Lizzy Mercier Descloux's seminal album will be rereleased in August by Light In the Attic Records. You can click here to preorder. Text by Oliver Maxwell Kupper. Photos courtesy of Esteban and ZE Records. 

Ettore Sottsass: A Master of Postmodern Italian Design

There is a good chance that you have been hearing a lot about Ettore Sottsass – the revolutionary, incendiary and boundlessly creative postmodern Italian designer and architect. If you are in the design world, you may say that the Sottsass renaissance is already starting to recede – from the flood of interest that came after his death in 2007. For others, you may be curious: who is Ettore Sottsass and why is everyone talking about him? If you don’t know his name, you may be seeing a lot of his designs on social media, his peculiar lamp on someone’s desk, or an alien-like bookshelf in a friend’s home. What is there to know about Sottsass? The most important thing to know is that he was a complete anomaly – a planet on its own bizarre axis. His limitless exuberance was a breath of fresh air compared to the stodgy, boring design of the 1970s and 80s, and his referential palate extended to American Jazz, beat poetry, and 1940s Indian architecture.  Indeed, Sottsass got his start revolutionizing mundane, everyday utilitarian objects and machinery, from typewriters to corkscrews. However, it was his founding of the Memphis Group and his subsequent furniture designs that earned him both praise and vitriol. Love him or hate him, Sottsass’s designs will be forever iconic of his singular vision of reinterpretation and creative anarchy.

 

Imprisoned In A Concentration Camp

After graduating from the Politecnico di Torino with a degree in Architecture in 1939, Sottsass entered the army. After dutifully serving in the Italian military during WWII, he was captured by the Germans and taken to a prisoner of war concentration camp in Yugoslavia. After his liberation at the end of the war, Sottsass went to work for iconic midcentury designer, George Nelson.

Everything That His Father Was Not

Sottsass was a futurist in that he believed that reinventing the wheel could only come out of  “dismantling the past.” His father was a prominent Italian architect and he moved his family closer to Turin so that his son could study architecture there. However, Sottsass had a distinct aversion to the old school methodologies of design and architecture – the idea that functionalism is the key objective. “It’s not enough. Design should also be sensual and exciting."

“Valentine” Portable Typewriter For Olivetti Puts Him On The Map

Obsessed with American pop art and having a distaste for the boring sameness of office equipment and machinery, Sottsass went to work for Olivetti. Through this collaboration, the fire engine red “Valentine” typewriter, with its sleek carrying case, was born – it was perhaps the first writing machine that could be described as sexy, sensual and fun. In 1970, actor Richard Burton was photographed at the Heathrow airport with the typewriter in one hand and Elizabeth Taylor in the other.

A Trip To India

If you look at some of the homes in Tirunamavalai, which is located in Southern India, you can see some of Sottsass’s strongest references. Many of these homes were built as early as the 1940s – forty years before the founding of Memphis Group. It was in India that Sottsass learned the importance of color. Even the poorest in India lived in brightly colored homes and wore brightly colored clothing. His design sensibilities started to change radically. This is evidenced in his large altar-like ceramic sculptures and his “Superboxes.” It was also in India that Sottsass suffered from nephritis, which led to his chance encounter with the Beat Generation.

Meeting Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg & Other Creative Misfits

Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan and Peter and Julian Orlofsky photographed by Ettore Sottsass, San Francisco, USA 1965

Sottsass was given a grim prognosis – back then a diagnosis of nephritis, which affects the kidneys, was basically a death sentence. Roberto Olivetti, no doubt indebted to Sottsass for his contributions, funded a groundbreaking treatment program for the designer at Stanford University. After a miraculous recovery, Sottsass moves north and meets Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsburg and Neal Cassidy. Back in Italy, Sottsass’s apartment would become a central meeting point for the counter culture. From his walks through Milan with Ginsberg, Sottsass’s designs began to become more and more radical.

He Photographed Everything – Literally Everything

Sottsass was also an avid photographer – his camera was a vessel for absorbing the world. He would photograph walls, floors, objects, and people, like Bob Dylan, Chet Baker, Ernest Hemingway, Picasso and many more. For years, he photographed every hotel room in which he had slept with a woman. On a twelve-day trip to South America, he took nearly 2000 photographs.

A Vase In The Shape Of A Penis After Falling In Love With A Woman

The pink, phallic Shiva Flower Vase is an iconic example of Sottsass’s design sensibilities. Created for the Barcelona Design Company, the vase has been titillating enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike since its unveiling in 1973. Designed after falling in love with a Catalan woman – its shape, color and ceramic contours are heavily inspired by Catalonia. The Shiva Flower Vase is still in production today.

Creates The Memphis Group After A Night Of Listening To Bob Dylan Records

Three decades of exploration, immersion in the counter culture underground, and radicalized thought, coalesced into the founding of the Memphis Group. The name is taken from the Bob Dylan song "Stuck Inside of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again.” Dylan’s records were on repeat during that fateful night. Inspirations for Memphis Group designs borrowed from Art Deco and Pop Art movements – with a heavy dose of kitsch. After unveiling the first examples of furniture and objects at the 1981 Salone del Mobile of Milan, the responses varied – from praise to loathing. One review called it "a shotgun wedding between Bauhaus and Fisher-Price"

Sottsass Associati Is Established As A Major Global Design Consultancy Firm

In 1980 – in the wake of Memphis Madness - Sottsass created Sottsass Associati, which was to serve as a design consultancy and architecture firm. The purpose for the Associati, which still has an office in Milan and London, was to build architecture on a substantial scale as well as to design for large international industries. His firm designed the home of David M. Kelley – designer of Apple's first computer mouse. 

His Most Famous Furniture Pieces and Objects Become Iconic

Sottsass’s most famous pieces include a number of functional items for the home – big and small. There is the Carlton room divider, which can also serve as a bookshelf and display case. There is also the Survetta bookcase with its classic graphic black and white pattern printed on laminate. There is also the Tahiti lamp, which looks not unlike an abstract bird of paradise bending down for a sip of water.

Text by Oliver Maxwell Kupper and Summer Bowie. You can explore the work of Ettore Sottsass and the Memphis group at an exhibition entitled "What Is It About Memphis" which is on view now at the Modern Archives until July 30th, 2015. You can also learn more about Sottsass by purchasing this book, which was released by Phaidon last year. FOLLOW AUTRE ON INSTAGRAM: @AUTREMAGAZINE

Black Lives Matter: A Photographic Essay of the Freddie Gray Protests in New York City by Mike Krim and Alex Papa

Mike Krim is the owner and founder of Paperwork NYC, a Brooklyn based publishing imprint which has gained a cult following for its stream of sometimes subversive, sometimes erotic, but always visually captivating zines, books, and photographs. After news emerged that Freddie Gray, Jr. had broken his spinal cord and died while in the custody of six police officers, riots erupted in Baltimore. The idea of the straw breaking the camel's back had a strange and literal meaning in this case, after many other deaths of unarmed black men and women at the hands of police: Tamir Rice, 12 years Old, Cleveland Ohio; Michael Brown, 18, Ferguson, Missouri; John Crawford III, 22, Beavercreek, Ohio; Eric Garner, 43, New York; Freddie C. Gray, Jr., 25, Baltimore, Maryland; and many more. The riots and protests quickly spread to New York City and grew louder and louder. Krim and a friend - model Alex Papa - hit the streets, armed with cameras, to capture the above photographic essay. In Krim's words: "Alex Papa and I decided to grab some film and join in. Not knowing what to expect, we jumped in the crowd and started taking photos. That lasted roughly twenty minutes until we found ourselves chanting "No Justice No Peace Fuck The Police" and fully engaged in the protest, which took over city blocks and highways. As voices echoed loudly, we ran to fill in gaps, walking interlinked to shut down intersections, and marched forward. At times losing people to small pockets of raw emotion that took place. I'm not sure what the exact term of "peaceful assembly" is but I feel it was accomplished last night. Was anything achieved besides screwing up all the traffic in NYC? I'm not sure. I will tell you one thing, though, it felt fucking awesome approaching Times Square with that many people and taking over what some call the center of the universe."

CREDITS:

Photography: Mike Krim and Alex Papa

Location: New York City

Learn more about Paperwork NYC

FOLLOW AUTRE ON INSTAGRAM: @AUTREMAGAZINE

Work.place Looks Into the Lives of Portland Artists

Work.place, a website curated and facilitated by photographer Carlie Armstrong, is an amazing, intimate peak into the inner lives of Portland, Oregon's working artists and creators. In a wonderful exploration of "the creative process and the places that contain them" this documentary style website is very easy to get wonderfully lost in. Filled to the brim with a rugged, DIY ethos, Work.place is a collection of exposés of artists unabashed by their eccentricies, their contorted concentrated faces, their clutter, their cats, their unfinished works, and the secrets behind what they do – and just as well the photographs by Carlie Armstrong are incredible.

Text by Oliver Maxwell Kupper

Minimal Eccentricity: Émilie Meldem

The 2011 Hyères festival of fashion and photography in Southern France has come and gone.  Swiss designer Émilie Meldem, who won this year's Special Jury Prize, makes a unique and remarkable statement. Émilie Meldem "takes her inspiration from her native Switzerland, which she transposes into an isolated country, caught between modernity and tradition, restriction and freedom, fragility and strength. This duality results in a form of minimal eccentricity, which is at the same time decorative and radical." 

photography by Yann Gross