Hasta La Ideas

“…[T]he real star of the show isn’t a human being at all. It’s a building: Renzo Piano‘s magnificent Times headquarters. Page One gives us tantalizing glimpses but never takes explicit notice. No journalist should work in conditions so glorious, and few outside The Times do. In 2009 the company sold and then leased back part of its headquarters to generate some much needed cash.”

–Michael Kinsley, reviewing the new documentary Page One: Inside the New York Times in today’s New York Times

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Daphne Guinness prepared for last month’s Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute gala by donning an Alexander McQueen gown of pale gray duck and ostrich feathers, striking a series of ethereal poses, and surveying her appearance at a Lucite vanity. All of this took place not in the comfort of Guinness’s apartment or hotel suite but in a window of Barneys New York on Madison Avenue, where a crowd of hundreds had gathered to watch (both in person and online, thanks to a livestream by Barneys). Guinness described it as “the crowning moment” in a six-week project that saw the department store showcase pieces from her legendary couture collection, but it was more like a warm-up.

On September 16, the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology will debut “Daphne Guinness,” an exhibition devoted to the fashion icon, editor, model, muse, and stylist. It will feature approximately 100 garments and accessories from her personal collection (which ranges from haute couture by the likes of Chanel and Valentino to Gareth Pugh ensembles and uniforms of her own design), along with films, videos, and images, of and by her. Co-curated by Guinness and Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of the Museum at FIT, the exhibition will be designed by Ken Nintzel, who took inspiration from Guinness’s New York apartment. Tide yourself over for the show (and accompanying book, published by Yale University Press) with Daphne’s Window by documentary filmmaker Brennan Stasiewicz. The new video (posted below) includes a first glimpse of the armor-inspired sculptural pieces that Guinness created in collaboration with jeweler Shaun Leane.

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Lady Gaga has established herself as not only a pop giant, but as a fashion icon as well. But like many internationally renowned artists, it isn’t an individual endeavor. She employs a cadre of workers who help cook up ideas for her lavish and often challenging wardrobe, none more important than Pierre² Lafauxxx, Head Desyner for the ‘Haus of Gaga.’ Fortunately, a crew was recently allowed access into his inner sanctum to receive just a peek at his process:

According to our sources, another visit with Pierre² will be coming soon.

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In a bizarre turn of events, it feels like we’ve suddenly been thrust into a world where the situation with John Galliano, who heads to court next month in Paris for his racial slurs and claims to love Adolph Hitler, never happened. First, and making the rounds like wildfire this week, was director Lars von Trier at Cannes, who didn’t seem to be able to control his babbling as he stumbled through an awkward few minutes of a press conference, wherein he said things like, “[Hitler] is not what you would call a good guy, but, yeah, I understand much about him and I sympathize with him a little bit” and ended with a what-have-I-done, “Ok, I am a Nazi.” He was flanked by actresses Charlotte Gainsbourg and Kirsten Dunst, who both appear in his latest film, both of whom seemed understandably uncomfortable (here’s video of the scene and for more careful review, a great page full of animated gifs of Dunst’s reactions as the horror show played out). Second, the organizers behind the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia are catching some heat this week after rolling out a new campaign featuring illustrations that critics have described as “neo-Hitlerite” and “like something from a Leni Riefenstahl film” due to its use of “an Aryan-looking snowboarder and an ice-skater gazing into the middle distance.” While certainly one could argue that old fascist and communist era iconography has long been used to ironic effect (see: Shepard Fairey, the multi-million dollar industry of Che Guevara merchandise, etc.), the Guardian reports this particular instance is a bit different, in that the design firm behind the campaign, the St. Petersburg-based Doping-Pong, has used swastikas and Nazi flags in some of their work, and have frequently collaborated with the artist Katya Zashtopik, “who is known for her sympathies with the ultra-right” and who recently wished Hitler a happy birthday on her blog. The firm is now playing defense, claiming they had no intention to support Nazism through the ads, nor did they work with Zashtopik on them. They’ve also claimed that the press is itching to read more into this than is there (and upon seeing their site and the context for which things are used, particularly the Guardian‘s aforementioned, seemingly very devious claim that they’ve used “a swastika as one of its online ‘banners’” we’re inclined to agree with their defense to some extent, because once you see what they’ve done, it makes more sense than just that one, evil-sounding sentence). But in the end, it’s all up for you to decide: Did von Trier just get tongue tied or did he spill a bit more than he should have? And is this campaign a nod to Nazism or just the media trying to dig a story out that might not really be there?

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If you’ve ever wanted to see fashion mogul Ralph Lauren outside of designing clothes or not driving his expensive car collection, tomorrow will be your chance. As if you weren’t already watching the last few remaining episodes of “Oprah” (yesterday and today the show’s namesake has been busy filming her last two episodes in front of 20,000+ people at the United Center), Wednesday’s episode is set to feature two firsts in the Lauren legacy: it’s the only time he’s allowed camera crews access inside his home and it’s the first sit down, on-camera interview he’s done in nearly 20 years. But when Oprah calls, especially when she won’t be calling anyone again anytime soon (at least until the once-quarterly, then monthly, then weekly specials start), you answer. Here’s a bit about what to expect…

From riding around the RRL Ranch in Lauren’s vintage 1948 jeep, and a private tour of the property that includes tepees furnished with antiques and whimsical artifacts, the hour is sure to make television viewers feel as though they have stepped inside a Ralph Lauren advertisement with the breathtaking views of the mountains of Telluride as the backdrop.

Oprah also sits down with Lauren’s wife Ricky, and the couple’s three children Andrew, David and Dylan.

Okay, so you’ll get to watch him drive a Jeep. We take the second part of our opening sentence back.

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