fashionologie

Sophie Theallet Takes Home 2009 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Win

fashionologie — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:48:45 -0800

>> Last night, with the help of keynote speaker Alber Elbaz, who doled out gems on the perils of success - "It's like a bottle of perfume. You smell it, you don't sniff it or drink it" - Alaia veteran and Michelle Obama favorite Sophie Theallet took home the 2009 Vogue/Fashion Fund prize of $200,000 and a year of mentoring. Fellow nominees Patrik Ervell and Monique Pean were named runners-up, and received $50,000 each plus a business mentor.

In her speech, Anna Wintour said that in addition to the US, Italy, and the UK - which just started a similar talent-nurturing program - she just met with the French minister of culture about mirroring the contest there. "And Brazil, India, Russia, and China aren't far behind."

Theallet Tweeted of her win: "my american dream comes true tonight thanks and much love to all of you!xox." Cathy Horyn, too, weighed in on the choice:

"The money and the mentoring will help Ms. Theallet because she needs to be able to offer more range in her collection, as well as expand her production options. She has such a distinctly feminine eye, and the skills, that I’ve often wondered why a big retailer doesn’t ask Ms. Theallet to design some blouses and summer dresses for them, using the store’s resources and manufacturing connections."

Videos of the nominees going through the competition and the awards ceremony last night can be seen here and here, respectively.

Proenza Schouler Go Urban Scuba for Spring 2010

fashionologie — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:54:07 -0700

>> Of all the shows this week, Jack McCollough's and Lazaro Hernandez's Proenza Schouler presentation had the most excitement and energy about it; Joe Zee agreed, calling it "one of the best this week." We didn't know it at the time, but a piece from the collection actually debuted on Dasha Zhukova during the POP dinner last Friday.

Tonight, the lights above flickered back and forth on the bottom floor of Milk Studios, and with three Trainas in the front row - Victoria, Vanessa, and Samantha - we got to see the full urban scuba collection, which seemed to be a continuation of their Tahiti-inspired resort 2010 collection. Neon printed minidresses mirrored the backs of tropical fish, cateye sunglasses had lifeguard-style reflective lenses, neon tops resembled long sleeve Under Armor, and tinsel and feathers fringed dresses. One girl sported beachy green-tinged hair, another purple. And of course the boys, known for their knack with accessories, didn't disappoint with rainbow-linked minibags and strappy toggle wedges.

Afterward, they told Fashion TV's Jeanne Baker they wanted to indulge in color this season, and edited out about half their potential looks from the show to leave people wanting more.

Video Sneak Peek: The Day Before with Proenza Schouler, Fendi, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Sonia Rykiel

fashionologie — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:59:39 -0700

>> Loic Prigent's The Day Before series, documenting the 48 hours before Proenza Schouler, Fendi, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Sonia Rykiel shows, doesn't air on the Sundance Channel until Sept. 9, but they've put up 11 clips total spanning the four segments, and the entire Fendi episode has leaked to YouTube - watch here. A couple of favorite clips below: the first in which Karl Lagerfeld's muse Amanda Harlech yells for some music, initiating the Fendi employees' seasonal late night fashion show - one male staffer even wobbles the runway in vertiginous Fendi heels; the second in which Proenza Schouler's clearly nervous Jack McCullough - who yearns for a cheeseburger - and "fidgeting" Lazaro Hernandez are inclined to physically touch every look backstage before it goes out on the runway. Ikram boutique' Ikram Goldman calls it "blessing" the garment.

The video clips! »

More Details on Loic Prigent's The Day Before, Capturing Proenza Schouler, Sonia Rykiel, Fendi, and Jean Paul Gaultier

fashionologie — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:48:55 -0700

>> Matt Tyrnauer may have gotten ahold of Valentino for The Last Emperor, and RJ Cutler of Anna Wintour for The September Issue, but it's Loic Prigent who has really taken the whole fly-on-the-wall fashion documentary concept by the horns these past few years. He did Signe Chanel, a five-part series on the creation of Chanel's Fall 2004 couture collection, and the 2007 film Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton, which captures Marc waddling in pigeon costume and finding inspiration for a bag from a collection of pastel macaroons; both Signe Chanel and Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton have been uploaded to YouTube.

His latest project, announced back in June, is The Day Before, set to air for four consecutive nights starting Sept. 10 on the Sundance Channel. Prigent tracks four design houses - Proenza Schouler, Sonia Rykiel, Fendi, and Jean Paul Gaultier - in the 36 hours before their Fall 2009 ready-to-wear shows, with the exception of Gaultier, who is captured before his Fall 2009 couture show.

Grumpy seamstresses, yappy dogs, collapsing roofs . . . »

At CFDA Town Hall Meeting, Future of Fashion Week Contemplated

fashionologie — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:36:03 -0700

>> This morning, the CFDA held its first town hall meeting, moderated by CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg, to discuss whether Fashion Week is still relevant. Many attendees agreed with Proenza Schouler's Jack McCollough, who voiced his concern: "There seems to be a disconnect. For us, the shows have become a press thing. It’s on blogs; magazines pull straight from the runways; and by the time it’s in stores, it feels sort of old."

Donna Karan, who has long been a proponent of selling and showing clothes in season, also wondered about the timeliness of the shows: "We are in a crisis. There's no question about it . . . We spend so much money on shows, but what is it getting us?”

Anna Wintour suggests something illegal »

fashionologie — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 12:02:51 -0700

>> Kiefer Sutherland Will Not Be Charged for Headbutting Jack McCollough -Although Jack McCollough and Kiefer Sutherland issued a joint statement resolving their differences back in May (Kiefer allegedly headbutted Jack after the Costume Institute Gala in early May), the case wasn't officially closed until today. The Manhattan's District Attorney dropped all charges because McCollough "was quite uncooperative" with the prosecutors. [People, AP]

fashionologie — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:08:39 -0700

>> INSIDER WIRE -Loic Prigent, director of cult fashion documentaries Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton and Signe Chanel, has been enlisted by the Sundance Channel for four-part original series The Day Before, following four different designers in the 36-hour period leading up to their runway shows. The series, to air on four consecutive nights starting Sept. 10 at 10 pm, covers Sonia Rykiel’s 40th anniversary celebration in Paris in October 2008, Proenza Schouler in New York in February 2009, Fendi by Karl Lagerfeld in Milan in March 2009, and Jean Paul Gaultier’s Fall 2009 couture show in Paris in July of this year. [Glamour]

Proenza Schouler May Bring Florence Exhibition to New York, Show in Paris "One Day"

fashionologie — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 12:47:51 -0700

>> Proenza Schouler spent yesterday in Florence debuting their Cruise 2010 collection with the help of three artists: Kalup Linzy, whose video with Liya Kebede and Chloe Sevigny we saw yesterday - he also photographed himself, Liya, and Chloe in Renaissance-style pictures that were on display, one with Liya as Mona Lisa; Haim Steinbach, who creates spatial collages using found objects, was asked to focus on the resort accessories and placed them on a span of white carpet in the Medici villa courtyard along with a bed frame, dog toys, and plastic onions; and performance artist Kembra Pfahler, who with 20 local Italian women donned Proenza Schouler bodysuits, body paint, and sang with her glam rock band The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black.

“For Pitti W, we knew wanted an old-school, iconic artist like Haim, someone very contemporary like Kalup, and with Kembra we had so much in common,” Lazaro Hernandez told Vogue. “She connected with this idea of surf culture, as she is from Malibu, which is where we found a lot of inspiration for the collection.”

Showing in the future »

Proenza Schouler Debuts Guest Edit of A Magazine, Short Film with Kalup Linzy, and Cruise 2010 Collection All in a Week

fashionologie — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:10:39 -0700

>> This has been a week of firsts for Proenza Schouler. They took home their first CFDA Accessory Designer of the Year award Monday, after which Jack McCollough was snapped licking Thakoon Panichgul; Lazaro Hernandez later quipped, "Yeah, we started the week off with a hangover, bad idea, and kind of throws off the whole thing!" With A Magazine #9, out this week with Chloe Sevigny on the cover, they become the first American designer guest editors - Lazaro even photographed the Swarovski campaign inside.

And today, they present their first collection abroad in Florence - complete with performance artist Kalup Linzy's short film starring Chloe Sevigny and Liya Kebede (see here), because they felt they "needed to up the ante." The Cruise 2010 collection includes bags with leather treated to look like herringbone canvas and was inspired by their recent trip to Tahiti: "When we finish a show we go away, and that trip usually winds up being the spark for the next season. Not directly - I think we try to avoid the places where the inspiration would be too on-the-surface, in fact." They say they're staying to work in Italy, and then coming back to get ready for Spring 2010, so maybe some Italian influence will shine through next time around?

The 2009 CFDA Awards Are Here! Rodarte, Alexander Wang, Proenza Schouler Take Home Wins

fashionologie — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:33:28 -0700

>> American designers are trickling in at Alice Tully Hall for tonight's CFDA Awards - CFDA President Diane von Furstenberg was first to arrive, International Award winner Marc Jacobs walked the red carpet arm and arm with fiance Lorenzo Martone, Kirsten Dunst came with Womenwear of the Year nominees Rodarte, presenter Diane Kruger arrived with Swarovski nominee Jason Wu, Doutzen Kroes is resplendent in Zac Posen, and all were greeted on the front steps by a crowd of models in the nominees' creations.

Swarovski nominee Alexander Wang said he's "not nervous at all" - he woke up today and "forgot it was the CFDAs," but we'll have to wait and see if this turns out to be a night to remember for him, after all . . .

The ceremony is now underway, and host Tracy Ullman opened with a Kiefer Sutherland-headbutting joke - Proenza Schouler is an Accessory Designer nominee, and arrived with Daphne Guinness in tow - the CFDA crowd is a notoriously tough crowd, and the joke was met with "weak laughter."

Later on, Tracy, known for her designer impressions on her eponymous TV show, took a crack at impersonating Anna Wintour. Michelle Obama, who wasn't there in body, accepted her Special Tribute Award by video, and Rodarte's Laura and Kate Mulleavy accepted their Womenswear Award saying they watched Midnight Cowboy this afternoon to calm their nerves.

And the winners are . . . (nominees here):

Accessory Designer of the Year: Proenza Schouler
Popular Vote Award: Ralph Lauren
Menswear Designer of the Year: Italo Zucchelli for Calvin Klein and Scott Sternberg for Band of Outsiders (tie)
Swarovski Award for Menswear: Tim Hamilton
Swarovski Award for Womenswear: Alexander Wang
Swarovski Award for Accessories: Justin Giunta for Subversive Jewelry
Womenswear Designer of the Year: Rodarte