All hail Ze Frank
the show with zefrank
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Monday, July 24, 2006
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Drunk and Disorderly
After having one too many Jager shots last night at the Cock, I decided to grab my camera and wander around the upper east side. Here are the results.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Jon's Catwalk Report - Paris Haute Couture Part II
As tensions escalate in the middle east following the death and kidnap of 9 Israeli soldiers in a Hezbollah raid, let us continue our excursion into this season's Paris couture collections.
Let's first have a look at Karl Lagerfeld's collection for Chanel. As one of the twin engines of couture (the other being John Galliano) , Mr Lagerfeld has managed to achieve a rare feat in haute couture, profitability. Unlike Mr Galliano, who challenges us with his extreme proportions and line, Mr Lagerfeld has taken it upon himself to demonstrate the relevance and modernity of couture. He typically achieves this through his exquisite and innovative daywear, constantly reinventing the ubiquitous Chanel suit in a dizzying array of permutations. This season he offers us a new silhouette via a reconstructed shoulder. After years of razor thin tailoring and cutting jackets high on the armpit, Lagerfeld has dropped the shoulder slightly, letting it stand away from the body, giving a rounded, softer shape. This should not however, be perceived as an opportunity for a bit of weight gain. As Kylie Minogue reminds us, the average woman still needs a good few rounds of chemotherapy to look good in Chanel.
Mandatory weight loss aside, one cannot help but marvel at the modernity of Mr Lagerfeld's work. The skinny denim boots and leggings imbue the outfits with a chic rocker sensibility, espcially when paired with a beautiful red coat or a navy tunic replete with a tulle train . Who would have thought that a cadaverous German man in his mid 70's be so darn cool? Then again, perhaps I have just answered my own question.
Next, we have Riccardo Tisci's creations for the venerable house of Givenchy. It is clear that Mr Tisci is very capable of producing beautiful pieces (see the beige wool felt top immediately below) but one gets the sense that he has yet to hit his stride.
Like Mr Lagerfeld, Tisci is obsessed with modernity, turning out fur panelled dresses in tulip shapes and keeping his palette to a strict monochrome. However, where Mr Lagerfeld gets us all to groove along to his bejewelled punk rock beat, Mr Tisci drops a piano with the word "Modern" painted all over it on us. It is clear that he has yet to master the disparate elements of couture enough to produce something that is truly greater than the sum of its parts. Nevertheless, it can only be a matter of time before we see something truly amazing from Mr Tisci.
And that's all from me for now! Stay tuned for the ready to wear collections in a couple of months. In the mean time, watch this space!
Let's first have a look at Karl Lagerfeld's collection for Chanel. As one of the twin engines of couture (the other being John Galliano) , Mr Lagerfeld has managed to achieve a rare feat in haute couture, profitability. Unlike Mr Galliano, who challenges us with his extreme proportions and line, Mr Lagerfeld has taken it upon himself to demonstrate the relevance and modernity of couture. He typically achieves this through his exquisite and innovative daywear, constantly reinventing the ubiquitous Chanel suit in a dizzying array of permutations. This season he offers us a new silhouette via a reconstructed shoulder. After years of razor thin tailoring and cutting jackets high on the armpit, Lagerfeld has dropped the shoulder slightly, letting it stand away from the body, giving a rounded, softer shape. This should not however, be perceived as an opportunity for a bit of weight gain. As Kylie Minogue reminds us, the average woman still needs a good few rounds of chemotherapy to look good in Chanel.
Mandatory weight loss aside, one cannot help but marvel at the modernity of Mr Lagerfeld's work. The skinny denim boots and leggings imbue the outfits with a chic rocker sensibility, espcially when paired with a beautiful red coat or a navy tunic replete with a tulle train . Who would have thought that a cadaverous German man in his mid 70's be so darn cool? Then again, perhaps I have just answered my own question.
Next, we have Riccardo Tisci's creations for the venerable house of Givenchy. It is clear that Mr Tisci is very capable of producing beautiful pieces (see the beige wool felt top immediately below) but one gets the sense that he has yet to hit his stride.
Like Mr Lagerfeld, Tisci is obsessed with modernity, turning out fur panelled dresses in tulip shapes and keeping his palette to a strict monochrome. However, where Mr Lagerfeld gets us all to groove along to his bejewelled punk rock beat, Mr Tisci drops a piano with the word "Modern" painted all over it on us. It is clear that he has yet to master the disparate elements of couture enough to produce something that is truly greater than the sum of its parts. Nevertheless, it can only be a matter of time before we see something truly amazing from Mr Tisci.
And that's all from me for now! Stay tuned for the ready to wear collections in a couple of months. In the mean time, watch this space!
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Jon's Catwalk Report - Paris Haute Couture Part I
Having endured an entire week of rather mediocre menswear, let us now proceed to the haute couture collections in Paris. Haute couture as you may well know, represents the apex of fashion design, where designers, unencumbered by practical or fiscal considerations present the purest distillation of their design vision. All the pieces are made to order and hand sewn by a small army of seamstresses, or petites mains (small hands) often with elaborate beading and feathering. Due to the difficulty of construction and the labor intensive detailing (think thousands of hours of beading) a haute couture day suit typically costs in the tens of thousands of dollars whilst a particularly elaborate evening gown can run into the low six figures. This is the price one pays for pure unadulterated fantasy.
Whether one is 'into' fashion or not, it is hard not to appreciate the technical brilliance of haute couture or the pure spectacle of it all. Moreover, one should bear in mind that the seemingly crazy ideas of couture do eventually trickle down a season or two later to the ready to wear collections (where the clothes are mass produced) and a few seasons after that, to pedestrian chain stores like the GAP. So the next time you pick up that cute little sweater with the sparkly sequins at Target, just bear in mind that its progenitor was most likely a $50,000 Chanel ensemble with gorgeous Lesage beading. Only the rich it seems, can afford to be truly original when it comes to fashion.
Right, so enough chit chat, lets get down to business. Today we are having a look at the creations of John Galliano for Dior. Known for his brilliant referencing of historical dress, Galliano remains in good form, sending out towering amazons clad in organdy and armor to spectacular effect. Who would have thought that Bob Mackie and Joan of Arc would get along so well? Fuck pretty, let's be magnificent instead.
Now the next two ensembles are a little more in touch with reality. Clearly these are a nod in the direction of what is to come in terms of ready-to-wear, so let's all get prepared for leggings and linebacker shoulders. Think Thierry Mugler, but updated and minimal.
Now finally, here are the gowns. One cannot even begin to imagine how one would go about constructing something like the outfits below. I would imagine that these dresses have their own gravitational field. This is couture at its finest. Galliano transcends the spectacular and frivolous, delivering something that makes our collective jaw drop. He reminds us that sometimes it is just not enough to look nice or pleasant, that sometimes, we all need to look a little crazy and monstrous and most of all magnificent.
Stay tuned for more haute couture later in the week!
Whether one is 'into' fashion or not, it is hard not to appreciate the technical brilliance of haute couture or the pure spectacle of it all. Moreover, one should bear in mind that the seemingly crazy ideas of couture do eventually trickle down a season or two later to the ready to wear collections (where the clothes are mass produced) and a few seasons after that, to pedestrian chain stores like the GAP. So the next time you pick up that cute little sweater with the sparkly sequins at Target, just bear in mind that its progenitor was most likely a $50,000 Chanel ensemble with gorgeous Lesage beading. Only the rich it seems, can afford to be truly original when it comes to fashion.
Right, so enough chit chat, lets get down to business. Today we are having a look at the creations of John Galliano for Dior. Known for his brilliant referencing of historical dress, Galliano remains in good form, sending out towering amazons clad in organdy and armor to spectacular effect. Who would have thought that Bob Mackie and Joan of Arc would get along so well? Fuck pretty, let's be magnificent instead.
Now the next two ensembles are a little more in touch with reality. Clearly these are a nod in the direction of what is to come in terms of ready-to-wear, so let's all get prepared for leggings and linebacker shoulders. Think Thierry Mugler, but updated and minimal.
Now finally, here are the gowns. One cannot even begin to imagine how one would go about constructing something like the outfits below. I would imagine that these dresses have their own gravitational field. This is couture at its finest. Galliano transcends the spectacular and frivolous, delivering something that makes our collective jaw drop. He reminds us that sometimes it is just not enough to look nice or pleasant, that sometimes, we all need to look a little crazy and monstrous and most of all magnificent.
Stay tuned for more haute couture later in the week!
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Happiness and the American Way
You've done it. I've done it. Hell, we've all done it. And let's not kid ourselves here, we all feel good doing it. With a seemingly endless supply of juicy adjectives with which to hurl at American culture we find ourselves gleefully going to town on the ol' U S of A, armed with our moral outrage and incredulity. So why are we so quick and eager to lambast America?
Foreign policy disasters and the man-child president aside, there appears to be something about the American pursuit of life, liberty and happiness that we all find somewhat unsettling. For one thing, one is hard pressed to find a culture more enthralled by competition. This is after all, a society fixated on individual success and self fulfilment, where people and children compete with each other in a dizzying array of arenas (baton twirling anyone?). While all of this is usually cast in cheerful, optimistic tones, (i.e. following your dreams and such) it is these same lofty ideas of meritocracy and aspiration that drives Americans to build the grotesque 6000 sqft McMansions and enormous SUVs that cause the rest of us recoil in horror.
Now, according to a recent Pew Research Report, 85% of Americans consider themselves either 'pretty happy' or 'very happy' with it all. So the question then becomes, what is the rest of the world giving up in order to keep Americans happy?
Foreign policy disasters and the man-child president aside, there appears to be something about the American pursuit of life, liberty and happiness that we all find somewhat unsettling. For one thing, one is hard pressed to find a culture more enthralled by competition. This is after all, a society fixated on individual success and self fulfilment, where people and children compete with each other in a dizzying array of arenas (baton twirling anyone?). While all of this is usually cast in cheerful, optimistic tones, (i.e. following your dreams and such) it is these same lofty ideas of meritocracy and aspiration that drives Americans to build the grotesque 6000 sqft McMansions and enormous SUVs that cause the rest of us recoil in horror.
Now, according to a recent Pew Research Report, 85% of Americans consider themselves either 'pretty happy' or 'very happy' with it all. So the question then becomes, what is the rest of the world giving up in order to keep Americans happy?
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