fashionologie

Elle's Joe Zee, Kate Lanphear, and Anne Slowey Sound Off on Bloggers

fashionologie — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 09:03:45 PDT

>> Elle's fashion news director Anne Slowey has sounded off on bloggers - particularly Style Rookie's Tavi Gevinson, before - which then prompted her to take to Elle's blog to further expound on her comments. Last night at ELLEvated, a forum of six Elle editors hosted by WFIT (the Fashion Institute of Technology's radio and television broadcasting network) in New York, the subject came up again, and creative director Joe Zee and style director Kate Lanphear, too, put forth their views on bloggers.

When asked his feeling on the Tavi phenomenon, Zee replied:

"The Internet has allowed people to be 'couch critics.' You could sit anywhere in the world, you could sit in Oklahoma, look at a fashion show on the Internet, you could post your thoughts . . . the Internet has made fashion a lot more democratic in this way. You know, Tavi, like her or don't like her, she's 13 - whether she even really writes it herself, the idea that she has gotten all this attention, it's because of the Internet, not because of anything else. [At Elle] we're talking about people who have really done this their entire lives, who've really covered fashion, who really understand fashion . . . understand the history of fashion, can critique it from a point of view, [can] actually relay it back to something they've experienced and understand. I don't think Tavi even knows what happened five years ago. She has every right to [post] on the Internet, she has every right to have the following she has . . . everybody can follow her and find her creative or funny or quirky or inspiring, but the idea is there are people here [at Elle] who do know the history and I think that Anne [Slowey] stresses this. It's absolutely true: if you don't know what you're talking about, then do you really have the credibility to talk about it?"

Lanphear disagreed »

Jason Wu, Hottest Ticket in Town?

fashionologie — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 13:06:18 PST

>> Isabel Toledo may have shelled out for that lemongrass fabric she used to make Michelle Obama's inaugural day dress - it rings in at $500 a yard - but it's Jason Wu who will be reaping the Fashion Week benefits of an Obama nod.

In fact, Wu's show "might be the hottest ticket in town" - right after Marc Jacobs - according to The New York Observer. Elle is sending seven more staffers than it did to Wu's Spring 2009 show - including editor-in-chief Robbie Myers, creative director Joe Zee, and style director Kate Lanphear. Bergdorf Goodman is bringing its entire buying team, in addition to fashion director Linda Fargo and senior women's fashion director Roopal Patel, who attended last season. Anna Wintour is sure to attend again, especially since she was already front row for the Spring 2009 show.

"I feel extreme pressure . . . »

movers and shakers

philleif — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:49:00 PDT

>> Anna Wintour has a new assistant - Claiborne Swanson (right), as in Swanson TV Dinners.

Meanwhile, in the midst of all the Nina Garcia-Elle is she or isn't she mess, a handful of promotions have been bestowed at the magazine, most notably Kate Lanphear moving from senior style and market editor to style director and Joann Pailey becoming market director. Both of Nina Garcia's assistants have been promoted to editor positions, but there's still no fashion director replacement for Nina herself.

Also of note, the body count at Elle is still rising: Bookings editor Claudine Ingeneri and long-time deputy art director Florence Sicard have both left the magazine.

*image: nysd