Wednesday night, nightlife guru Wass Stevens and his crew “Dirty Old Gangsters” gave the first live premiere of their new music video “Not Tonight Bro”, featuring Steven’s signature rejection phrase while on duty as a doorman.
This week, famed fashion house and culture curating phenom Maison Kitsune hosted a launch party to kick off an 8-city tour featuring a collective of up and coming artists.
This Monday, designer and artist Gianni Mora released his newest fashion venture via “Helder Vices Corp” entitled “Ladies & Gentlemen, Natural Preservations”.
This week, Australia based “Woolmark Company” has announced its winners of the International Woolmark Prize regional final at the NeueHouse Madison Square. Christopher Bevans, creative director of New York based brand DYNE took home the award for Menswear, while Zaid Affas took home the Womenswear title. Included in the prize is a contribution of $70,000 AUD, along with the opportunity to compete in the international finals. An esteemed panel of industry judges chose the winners, including Stefano Tonchi of W magazine, Steven Kolb of the CFDA, and fashion designer, Thom Browne.
The winner of the international finals will receive $200,000 AUD along with further mentoring by industry gurus and the chance to have their collection distributed through the Woolmark Companies many retail partners around the world.
Judge and brand consultant/strategist, Kate Lanphear, shared her thoughts on menswear winner DYNE. “What I loved was the humble way he spoke about the fabric with reverence — that was something that really got my attention … his pieces were so extremely innovative, yet he still spoke so humbly about them and about wool, it seemed holy, and I really liked that exchange.”
The event was presented by MAC, Cutler and ORDRE.com. Multidisciplinary artist Jonathan Zawada created the trophies and decorative wares for the event.
From July 16th through July 18th at the Javits Center New York, Erik Ulin, President of Menswear and Leslie Gallin, President of footwear, present their curative eye in the form of the Project / Mrket to hundreds of prospective buyers from around the world. Project caters to slightly lower price points while focusing heavily on quality and curation, while MRkt showcases tailoring and classics, while featuring it’s own “Made in Italy” booth.
Broken into subsections to ease navigation, PROJECT and MRKT provide buyers a comprehensive and uncluttered way to peruse some of the best brands of the world, ranging in size from smaller luxury brands such as Le Flow and Hook & Albert to well known commercial brands such as 7 for all Mankind and Vince. In order to give each brand a level playing field, Erik decided to limit the frills of each booth to bare necessities. An advocate for truly quality products, he believes a brand and it’s assortment should speak for itself, without the use of fluff and decoration.
Amongst industry veterans, a plethora of small brands congregate in the Vanguards Gallery. Ulin believes that “an important part of supporting the marketplace is to foster the talent of tomorrow” and PROJECT gives newcomers a chance to showcase their work as well. The Vanguards Gallery is built to cater to brands less than two years old, and provide them with an accessible way to enter the marketplace in the form of a trade show without breaking the bank.
In conjunction with Vanguards, PROJECT welcomes the work of four talented graduates from the Parsons Fashion Design program after an intensive selection process. Yuner Shao, Rika Konishi, Alexa Chia, and Qiongxin Kou debuted their bachelors thesis collection inspired by a plethora of cultural and psychological experiences.
Yuner Shao presented a mix of screen printed and digitally printed garments reminiscent of Chinese Propaganda, accompanied by a coloring book and comic book, inviting the viewer to participate in the collection and “create their own” propaganda. Rika Konishi presented a collection inspired by “hidden emotions” and “deeper meaning” using a construction technique that allowed her to complete a garment that’s effect flourished post-wash. Alexa Chia used a highly experimental process to shape vinyl sheets to mimic the textures of denim jackets and jeans. Qiongxin Kou’s brand “Gentle Mind” was inspired by Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddism, to represent harmony, kindness, and zen, respectively.
To bring the opening day to a close, Bagutta and Project hosted a cocktail hour at Americano Hotel on the highlane, with plenty of shade, food, and drinks to beat the heat and prepare for a long week of buying appointments.
Designer Wang Tao created quite the stir at her Fall/Winter 17 show for Taoray Wang this season, when Tiffany Trump and her mother Marla Maples appeared front row wearing the brand. The show itself began approximately 45 minutes late, as press, photographers, and gawkers crowded around the duo to get a closer look.
Georgine’s Fall Winter 17 collection was a refreshing sight channeling tasteful punk with an eye for youth.
10:00 AM Thursday marked the beginning of the Fall/Winter 17 show season, kicked off by designers Nicholas and Christopher Kunz for Nicholas K.
Designer Donrad Duncan debuted his Fall/Winter ’17 collection this season for Engineered for Motion at New York Fashion Week: Men’s at an impressive show featuring performer Young Paris.
The Museum of Sex recently celebrated the opening of “Known/Unknown: Private Obsession and Hidden Desire in Outsider Art.”