0 comment Wednesday, June 4, 2014 | admin
Her name isnt popular if you type it on google.com and you probably wont get any answers either if you ask the people in general but the fashion/art/design world knows a lot about her !! yes she's the girl behind the hypest and most talked about parisian shop right now called " Colette " ! what an honour is it again getting an interview of such a visionnaire, gifted and interesting woman ! Merci Sarah ! however i know a lot of people would have liked to see a picture or more of her !! but everyone knows the artist just disappears behind his work of art as it symbolizes pretty well how genius he is !!! so just enjoy this chic glimpse !! and check their website for their great music and exclusive offers !!! i just need the Gareth Pugh and Jeremy Scott perfume only availables there !! i told you it's hype :)
1- First why is the shop called " Colette " ? Is it really your mother name ? And isnt it a bit cliché for a shop knowin it's a very french name ?
Sarah : Yes it is, but that's not the reason. We wanted a French and Parisian name so we thought it would be a good choice. We like the contrast of the old name with our modern space.
2- By the way it's also very paradoxical comparing the very french and traditional name, Colette, mixed with some high-fashion, hype and couture brands. Was it a commercial trick ?
Sarah : No, it was not a trick at all, it was simply how we wanted to built the store: a modern lifestyle store with products we like.
3- How do you explain your success ? Why is the Colette label so powerfull right now ?
Sarah : It's always difficult to explain but we're happy that people like the way we work, like our selection, like the fact that we change the display and the window every week. Maybe they realised also that we always try to think about how to surprised them tomorrow and not sleeping on some passed success.
4- I adore the concept of the water bar !! But when are you gonna have an oxygen bar ? Like in Tokyo ? Wouldnt it be wicked ?
Sarah : Oxygen bars are forbidden in France.
5- You have also released a CD called Colette Express !!? Do you plan to launch an international tour for example ? And do you have other projects like that ?
Sarah : We launched many colette compilation since our opening and this one is the last one, like a Fedex envelop to send. We already did a tour, Paris-NY-Tokyo for colette N�5.
6- So i read that you're the one shopping for the shop ! Is it a hard job ?
Sarah : I am buyer and creative director and even if it's a non-stop job, it's honestly a great one, as it's always very inspiring to keep meeting great designers.
7- Most important question, how are you choosing which brand is going to be shown ?it must be an honour for a lot of young designers ! or artist ?
Sarah : It's just very spontaneous, I just follow my heart!! And you know, it's also an honour as well for us to have the possibility to launch new designers or artists.
8- So you're always inviting famous artist like Ryan McGinley or Dan Colen! What is the most important thing you look in an artist ? if i want to exhibit at Colette, what do i need ?
Sarah : Since March 1997, we change monthly exhibitions...and believe me, there is no rules.
9- By the way, you seem to be really influenced by the Purple mag team, artistic vision or fashionable point of view. Do you admit it and why ?
Sarah : Purple is a very important visual reference, but i don't feel influenced by their work. We just share some taste for some artists.
10- Why is Olivier Zham so iconic from your point of view ? you are even selling some candles with him on the box which is very lovely !
Sarah : Olivier Zahm became a sex-symbol!!!
11- I was also wondering knowin you opened one pop-up concept store with Commes des Garcons in Tokyo and one in New York with Gap, so in which city the upcomin one is gonna be settled ? and with which brand are you going to team for the next one ?
Sarah : Surprise!!!!
12- I would also like to have your point of view on fashion. Where do you think it is going ?
Sarah : ..everywhere!!!!
13- Just before closing the interview, do you know or do you have any ideas of what is going to happen to Colette in the future ?
Sarah : Always in evolution...so we never know.
14- And finally what is stylish today ?
Sarah : I don't know you but I'm sure you are!!
ps : a big thank to Sarah since i know she's so and so busy even tough we get more shots of her at parties by The Cobrasnake than behind a computer !! but who cares !! and thanks to Guillaume also !! the guy from the public relation service !! this wouldnt have been possible without you !!
1- First why is the shop called " Colette " ? Is it really your mother name ? And isnt it a bit cliché for a shop knowin it's a very french name ?
Sarah : Yes it is, but that's not the reason. We wanted a French and Parisian name so we thought it would be a good choice. We like the contrast of the old name with our modern space.
2- By the way it's also very paradoxical comparing the very french and traditional name, Colette, mixed with some high-fashion, hype and couture brands. Was it a commercial trick ?
Sarah : No, it was not a trick at all, it was simply how we wanted to built the store: a modern lifestyle store with products we like.
3- How do you explain your success ? Why is the Colette label so powerfull right now ?
Sarah : It's always difficult to explain but we're happy that people like the way we work, like our selection, like the fact that we change the display and the window every week. Maybe they realised also that we always try to think about how to surprised them tomorrow and not sleeping on some passed success.
4- I adore the concept of the water bar !! But when are you gonna have an oxygen bar ? Like in Tokyo ? Wouldnt it be wicked ?
Sarah : Oxygen bars are forbidden in France.
5- You have also released a CD called Colette Express !!? Do you plan to launch an international tour for example ? And do you have other projects like that ?
Sarah : We launched many colette compilation since our opening and this one is the last one, like a Fedex envelop to send. We already did a tour, Paris-NY-Tokyo for colette N�5.
6- So i read that you're the one shopping for the shop ! Is it a hard job ?
Sarah : I am buyer and creative director and even if it's a non-stop job, it's honestly a great one, as it's always very inspiring to keep meeting great designers.
7- Most important question, how are you choosing which brand is going to be shown ?it must be an honour for a lot of young designers ! or artist ?
Sarah : It's just very spontaneous, I just follow my heart!! And you know, it's also an honour as well for us to have the possibility to launch new designers or artists.
8- So you're always inviting famous artist like Ryan McGinley or Dan Colen! What is the most important thing you look in an artist ? if i want to exhibit at Colette, what do i need ?
Sarah : Since March 1997, we change monthly exhibitions...and believe me, there is no rules.
9- By the way, you seem to be really influenced by the Purple mag team, artistic vision or fashionable point of view. Do you admit it and why ?
Sarah : Purple is a very important visual reference, but i don't feel influenced by their work. We just share some taste for some artists.
10- Why is Olivier Zham so iconic from your point of view ? you are even selling some candles with him on the box which is very lovely !
Sarah : Olivier Zahm became a sex-symbol!!!
11- I was also wondering knowin you opened one pop-up concept store with Commes des Garcons in Tokyo and one in New York with Gap, so in which city the upcomin one is gonna be settled ? and with which brand are you going to team for the next one ?
Sarah : Surprise!!!!
12- I would also like to have your point of view on fashion. Where do you think it is going ?
Sarah : ..everywhere!!!!
13- Just before closing the interview, do you know or do you have any ideas of what is going to happen to Colette in the future ?
Sarah : Always in evolution...so we never know.
14- And finally what is stylish today ?
Sarah : I don't know you but I'm sure you are!!
ps : a big thank to Sarah since i know she's so and so busy even tough we get more shots of her at parties by The Cobrasnake than behind a computer !! but who cares !! and thanks to Guillaume also !! the guy from the public relation service !! this wouldnt have been possible without you !!
Labels: Trendsetters On This Way
0 comment Sunday, May 25, 2014 | admin
Let's be clear, Wayne Sterling is that brilliant guy who is writtin for the hype website theimagist.com ! since the very beginnin i fell in love with his honest and sincere way of writting ! moreover his truthfull ability to express his thoughts clearly happen to be the perfect way to describe the fashion world, so complex and moody !! by the way he stands out among the billions of blogs thanks to his unique and peculiar vision, his exclusive never-heard-before news and above all his fashion analysis ! yeah i really wont mind callin him a " couture shrink " !! dont u !!? so well i'd like to thank him for feedin my hungry eyes everyday and givin my soul somethin to think about ! thank u sincerely
First tell me why you started this blog !!?
W.S : I think I started this blog because I felt like I was getting behind on what was new out there...in terms of music...fashion..in art..the new books...the new girls..new talent...new kids...Everything these days moves so fast, it sometimes feels like a blur. So I started doing theimagist as a kind of act of daily discipline to figure out what I liked out of that constant gush of new stuff.
So everyone knows you as a blogger but can you tell me what is your job actually ? where are you workin ?
My day job so to speak as the editor of Models.com. The modeling industry can be a very dramatic business. Sometimes I'm amazed at the...inelegance of certain people's behavior but at least it's never dull! Doing models.com has taught me to ignore all that noise and drama and focus on my own idea of what is good and what is mediocre.
Blogs are becomin really trendsettin and influential right now !!? do you think they're gonna play a big role in the future !!?
Totally and 100%. Some people complain that there are too many blogs and too many opinions out there but I think that is the big future for blogs...destroying the illusion that anybody anywhere can dictate their tastes to the passive consumers. The way people consume information these days is a lot more passionate, active and opinionated than the world of PR and advertising would like us to believe.
So last week, you were in Paris, so tell me what do you think about the french city !!? and the shows you've seen ? how was it ?
I love Paris and I hate Paris because I always end up blowing through so much money there. I love the creativity and the self-indulgence and the sybaritic hedonism of the city. Every time I'm in Paris, I think "This is a great city to be established and older in" . In terms of shows I always am moved by the Chalayan because it is more than fashion. of course it makes no practical or economic sense as a show or as a brand and Hussein is not an editorial pet but I'm so moved by his isolation and his genius. He's so far ahead it's almost like seeing fashion as it will be 30 years from now.
By the way, I've noted through your blog that you seem to be a fan of french contemporary art scene. would you say Paris is still the city of light ?
Absolutely. I don't know what it is. There's a great conflict in seeing contemporary work in an old city. When I see modern, conceptual work in New York...there's a kind of...flatness and appropriateness to the experience because New York is such a graphic city of concrete and electricity and asphalt and glass. But in Paris, that kind of work, modern work ... has an energy of conflict. It feels like a losing battle, visually when you see the work of an artist in Paris who is battling to discuss the ideas of 2008. Then you walk out onto a medieval street in the Marais and the past just hits you like a crumbling wall. That tension is really invigorating.
So what about fashion ? who are your favorite designers and why ?
Yiiikes. I don't have favorite designers so much anymore because its hard to tell...Do I really think this designer is genius or am I being brainwashed by the fashion PR of it all . I really do love Chalayan though. Remember the collection with the remote control outfits that changed shape before your eyes. I cried when I saw that and I'm not corny that way. I love my friend Rad Hourani because he is in the spirit of a new generation that grew up inspired by fashion and then woke up one day to explore it on his own terms. I think he's going to evolve in a brilliant way. I totally respect Nicholas Ghesquiere's work for Balenciaga when it comes to mainstream designers and Alexander McQueen is also really really honest and shrewd as a designer. Its not all smoke and mirrors bullshit with him.
Are there models you are a big fan of ?
OH ...but when it comes to models I've seen too much to be a groupie (lol) . But I love the bad girls. I think Kate Moss is great and Lara Stone. Agyness is a good "bad girl". She's super-sweet and works her ass off but I love how UNLIKELY it was for her. Its badass the way she broke all the rules about not being 16 and not being the pet of such and such a designer or editor and just became her own force of nature. When she started, do you think she would be a celebrity hanging out in LA n all? I didn't and I love that about her.
Besides the world is lackin new icons. do you think Kate Moss deserves the place she has today ?!! what about Carine Roitfeld from Vogue Paris recent rise ?
Yeah Kate deserves it because at one point they tried to strip her of it but she still gave them such gorgeous pictures they came back to bow at her throne lol. Carine Roitfeld is awesome because her force field is so strong you want to be like an element in her world. You look at her way of putting looks together and it always...a la Carine... That's real power. The power of taste.
So let's go back to fashion. The world is goin crazy right now !! so do you think Jonathan Saunders is right when he said recently " Maybe the next trend is stay the same. Yves Saint Laurent did essentially the same collection for eight seasons in a row. I like that idea. I think, on some level, we could all use a break." ?
Funny enough a couple of haters kept sneering to me that this was what Rad does season after season...the same collection. But you know what..I ran around in Rad's clothes all Paris Fashion Week and..I want that feeling of continuity in my clothes for seasons upon seasons upon seasons. I want a secure., precise sense of style...not fashion...style. And I want to keep it going for as long as I can fit those clothes. Not everybody has to share that point of view. But personally I'm not someone who has 2 hours in the morning to put an outfit together. I want to open my closet door... grab a perfect blazer, a perfect shirt, perfect pants...shoes,...belt and run! I'm not so chic as to want to throw away everything I buy in October .I think I want to buy things I can wear for a loooooong time now.
So please tell me who are those spies you're workin with and that are part of the squad hiss ?
If I did that Mr Style...The ringmasters of The Hiss Squad...they'd snatch me off the street one day...put a bag over my head...cut my tounge out and do unspeakable things to my body...I live in terrible fear of what they might do to me . I really do!
Oh and i just adore your eye-candy du jour concept ! sex sells for sure !! do you think it's important to show flesh in a fashion magazine whereas fashion seems to be about clothes ? interestin paradox no !!? what do you think ?
Skin and sex gets my attention anytime. Yes its obvious and sometimes crass but I don't know how to pretend that I'm not very sexually driven. I feel that is an important part of being honest about your humanity. It doesn't mean I want to sleep with everybody who takes their clothes off but I WILL look! I've never seen intelligence and sexuality as two opposing forces. The human body is so beautiful and so remarkable I've come to learn that denying its power is futile.
this question is a bit private but interviews are made to reveal things no !? so is your heart taken ?
And as for ...is my heart taken. Ah...no. Not officially. I feel like I'm in transition . I have a great love of my life but my constant traveling was not good for a relationship. Its a little sad but at the same time. I'm happy to have known that kind of love.
By the way what are your favorite magazines right now ? and why ?
100% Fanatstic Man because it inspires me to live my life as a gentleman. It is so dignified and polite but sexy at the same time. And there's that Dutch thing. Have you ever been the Dutch West Indies? I went last Christmas and the shock of seeing those super-bright colors against the blue Caribbean sea damn well seared my retina!
Dont you wanna start doin your own mag ?
More and more I'm starting to feel that that might be inevitable. I have to figure out how to do a different kind of magazines. Very personal and very honest.
You said in your own blog (if i can call it like that) that New York was loosin it's power and fashion influence !!? so do you think or plan to move to Europe as Milan, London and Paris are still shining ?
You called it. New York has great bones and a great tradition of innovation in art and music ....NeoExpressionissm...Jazz...Beats...Warhol....Conceptual Art..Punk...Disco.. Hip-Hop.. and will always have great potential because of that but recently it was so obsessed with social climbing and department store parties and PR agencies and commercial success it just got so boring. I'm trying to figure out if its London or Paris that will provoke me out of my own complacency. Its not Milan. And I have a really strange attraction to Amsterdam. There's something about Dutch culture that really draws me. The great thing about Europe though is I could just be a nomad and drift from city to city...searching... until I find a new city to shape a new identity around
I was wonderin also if you ever had a fashion dream that you wanna fufill ?
Fashion dream...fashion dream... To come up with a look, a style ,a taste point in some kind of project...maybe a book or a movie or a magazine...and that look, whether it is graphic design or a kind of photography or cinematography or set design is completely and truly mine. That's my great great dream. To create some kind of look that people will remember. And then sell it as a perfume in a brilliant bottle.
Finally what's stylish right now ?
Walking around with perfect posture and dealing with people with very good manners. Everything looks amazing on you when you have perfect posture. And very good manners requires a lot of discipline but it gets you upgrades on airplanes and in good hotels . Oh yeah...good luggage helps that cause too.
First tell me why you started this blog !!?
W.S : I think I started this blog because I felt like I was getting behind on what was new out there...in terms of music...fashion..in art..the new books...the new girls..new talent...new kids...Everything these days moves so fast, it sometimes feels like a blur. So I started doing theimagist as a kind of act of daily discipline to figure out what I liked out of that constant gush of new stuff.
So everyone knows you as a blogger but can you tell me what is your job actually ? where are you workin ?
My day job so to speak as the editor of Models.com. The modeling industry can be a very dramatic business. Sometimes I'm amazed at the...inelegance of certain people's behavior but at least it's never dull! Doing models.com has taught me to ignore all that noise and drama and focus on my own idea of what is good and what is mediocre.
Blogs are becomin really trendsettin and influential right now !!? do you think they're gonna play a big role in the future !!?
Totally and 100%. Some people complain that there are too many blogs and too many opinions out there but I think that is the big future for blogs...destroying the illusion that anybody anywhere can dictate their tastes to the passive consumers. The way people consume information these days is a lot more passionate, active and opinionated than the world of PR and advertising would like us to believe.
So last week, you were in Paris, so tell me what do you think about the french city !!? and the shows you've seen ? how was it ?
I love Paris and I hate Paris because I always end up blowing through so much money there. I love the creativity and the self-indulgence and the sybaritic hedonism of the city. Every time I'm in Paris, I think "This is a great city to be established and older in" . In terms of shows I always am moved by the Chalayan because it is more than fashion. of course it makes no practical or economic sense as a show or as a brand and Hussein is not an editorial pet but I'm so moved by his isolation and his genius. He's so far ahead it's almost like seeing fashion as it will be 30 years from now.
By the way, I've noted through your blog that you seem to be a fan of french contemporary art scene. would you say Paris is still the city of light ?
Absolutely. I don't know what it is. There's a great conflict in seeing contemporary work in an old city. When I see modern, conceptual work in New York...there's a kind of...flatness and appropriateness to the experience because New York is such a graphic city of concrete and electricity and asphalt and glass. But in Paris, that kind of work, modern work ... has an energy of conflict. It feels like a losing battle, visually when you see the work of an artist in Paris who is battling to discuss the ideas of 2008. Then you walk out onto a medieval street in the Marais and the past just hits you like a crumbling wall. That tension is really invigorating.
So what about fashion ? who are your favorite designers and why ?
Yiiikes. I don't have favorite designers so much anymore because its hard to tell...Do I really think this designer is genius or am I being brainwashed by the fashion PR of it all . I really do love Chalayan though. Remember the collection with the remote control outfits that changed shape before your eyes. I cried when I saw that and I'm not corny that way. I love my friend Rad Hourani because he is in the spirit of a new generation that grew up inspired by fashion and then woke up one day to explore it on his own terms. I think he's going to evolve in a brilliant way. I totally respect Nicholas Ghesquiere's work for Balenciaga when it comes to mainstream designers and Alexander McQueen is also really really honest and shrewd as a designer. Its not all smoke and mirrors bullshit with him.
Are there models you are a big fan of ?
OH ...but when it comes to models I've seen too much to be a groupie (lol) . But I love the bad girls. I think Kate Moss is great and Lara Stone. Agyness is a good "bad girl". She's super-sweet and works her ass off but I love how UNLIKELY it was for her. Its badass the way she broke all the rules about not being 16 and not being the pet of such and such a designer or editor and just became her own force of nature. When she started, do you think she would be a celebrity hanging out in LA n all? I didn't and I love that about her.
Besides the world is lackin new icons. do you think Kate Moss deserves the place she has today ?!! what about Carine Roitfeld from Vogue Paris recent rise ?
Yeah Kate deserves it because at one point they tried to strip her of it but she still gave them such gorgeous pictures they came back to bow at her throne lol. Carine Roitfeld is awesome because her force field is so strong you want to be like an element in her world. You look at her way of putting looks together and it always...a la Carine... That's real power. The power of taste.
So let's go back to fashion. The world is goin crazy right now !! so do you think Jonathan Saunders is right when he said recently " Maybe the next trend is stay the same. Yves Saint Laurent did essentially the same collection for eight seasons in a row. I like that idea. I think, on some level, we could all use a break." ?
Funny enough a couple of haters kept sneering to me that this was what Rad does season after season...the same collection. But you know what..I ran around in Rad's clothes all Paris Fashion Week and..I want that feeling of continuity in my clothes for seasons upon seasons upon seasons. I want a secure., precise sense of style...not fashion...style. And I want to keep it going for as long as I can fit those clothes. Not everybody has to share that point of view. But personally I'm not someone who has 2 hours in the morning to put an outfit together. I want to open my closet door... grab a perfect blazer, a perfect shirt, perfect pants...shoes,...belt and run! I'm not so chic as to want to throw away everything I buy in October .I think I want to buy things I can wear for a loooooong time now.
So please tell me who are those spies you're workin with and that are part of the squad hiss ?
If I did that Mr Style...The ringmasters of The Hiss Squad...they'd snatch me off the street one day...put a bag over my head...cut my tounge out and do unspeakable things to my body...I live in terrible fear of what they might do to me . I really do!
Oh and i just adore your eye-candy du jour concept ! sex sells for sure !! do you think it's important to show flesh in a fashion magazine whereas fashion seems to be about clothes ? interestin paradox no !!? what do you think ?
Skin and sex gets my attention anytime. Yes its obvious and sometimes crass but I don't know how to pretend that I'm not very sexually driven. I feel that is an important part of being honest about your humanity. It doesn't mean I want to sleep with everybody who takes their clothes off but I WILL look! I've never seen intelligence and sexuality as two opposing forces. The human body is so beautiful and so remarkable I've come to learn that denying its power is futile.
this question is a bit private but interviews are made to reveal things no !? so is your heart taken ?
And as for ...is my heart taken. Ah...no. Not officially. I feel like I'm in transition . I have a great love of my life but my constant traveling was not good for a relationship. Its a little sad but at the same time. I'm happy to have known that kind of love.
By the way what are your favorite magazines right now ? and why ?
100% Fanatstic Man because it inspires me to live my life as a gentleman. It is so dignified and polite but sexy at the same time. And there's that Dutch thing. Have you ever been the Dutch West Indies? I went last Christmas and the shock of seeing those super-bright colors against the blue Caribbean sea damn well seared my retina!
Dont you wanna start doin your own mag ?
More and more I'm starting to feel that that might be inevitable. I have to figure out how to do a different kind of magazines. Very personal and very honest.
You said in your own blog (if i can call it like that) that New York was loosin it's power and fashion influence !!? so do you think or plan to move to Europe as Milan, London and Paris are still shining ?
You called it. New York has great bones and a great tradition of innovation in art and music ....NeoExpressionissm...Jazz...Beats...Warhol....Conceptual Art..Punk...Disco.. Hip-Hop.. and will always have great potential because of that but recently it was so obsessed with social climbing and department store parties and PR agencies and commercial success it just got so boring. I'm trying to figure out if its London or Paris that will provoke me out of my own complacency. Its not Milan. And I have a really strange attraction to Amsterdam. There's something about Dutch culture that really draws me. The great thing about Europe though is I could just be a nomad and drift from city to city...searching... until I find a new city to shape a new identity around
I was wonderin also if you ever had a fashion dream that you wanna fufill ?
Fashion dream...fashion dream... To come up with a look, a style ,a taste point in some kind of project...maybe a book or a movie or a magazine...and that look, whether it is graphic design or a kind of photography or cinematography or set design is completely and truly mine. That's my great great dream. To create some kind of look that people will remember. And then sell it as a perfume in a brilliant bottle.
Finally what's stylish right now ?
Walking around with perfect posture and dealing with people with very good manners. Everything looks amazing on you when you have perfect posture. And very good manners requires a lot of discipline but it gets you upgrades on airplanes and in good hotels . Oh yeah...good luggage helps that cause too.
Labels: Trendsetters On This Way
0 comment Friday, May 9, 2014 | admin
what a great chance i got when I've asked photographer Mariano Vivanco to share with me some time answering few questions from my then on unmissable " trendsetters on this way " column ! for the sad and ignorant one, Mariano is just one very gifted artist mainly collaborating with fashion trendy and hype magazine around the world !!! his unmistakeable eye has made him shot ad campaigns for the best : Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Cesare Paciotti or Zegna !! moreover he is also very popular for his sexy and undeniably seductive black and white photographs of young men for the Dieux du Stade calendar or for the D & G David Gandy calendar !!! oh and he made portraits of the most talked-after dudes like football player Kaka, designer Paul Smith or of Vogue Nippon muse Anna Dello Russo !! check his website to get into his fabulous world at www.marianovivanco.com !!! and thanks a lot !
ps : next week I'll post pictures from his recently released magazine !!!! and it's quite exclusive as there is almost no pics on internet !! cute no !?
so let's start by the beginning. so you are a photographer ! is it a job you've always wanted to do ?
M.V : Since I was 16 years old. But since I was 4 or 5 I was obsessed by movies and fashion.
Would you agree with the people that says " photography is like stealing the present " ?
M.V : No it is Preserving it.
By the way thinking about your work and art which is from my point of view sexually appealing and dangerously seductive, i would be really interested in knowin if you would agree with Mario Sorrenti who said " photography is an act of seduction " ?
M.V : Yes and even more by Chris Von Wangenheim quote "photography is like the promise of sex"
You shot the best models, Naomi Campbell, Lily Cole or Andres Velencoso and so many others. isnt it intimidating ?
M.V : Not at all!! Its more like an honour! Actually the first time with Naomi, she was one of the first famous people I shot, so I was a bit nervous, but when I got into it, it was fine.
So can you sum up for me your way of working ? i mean is there a way you're preparing every shooting ?
M.V : Every shoot has a life of its own, from editorials, to portraits to advertising jobs. But usually after it is decided what it is we are going to shoot, I then get an idea, or a vision for the job. We all then start planning it, this can usually take weeks. From set production to casting back to location hunting, there is lots to think about and then take this process and times it roughly by 30 shoots per season, its a hefty workload. Every aspect is carefully considered, then with a bit of luck we have little moments of spontaneity that happen.
Well looking at your website, I've realized you did one campaign for Prada. you must be proud of it right !? but did you meet Miuccia ? how is she ?
M.V : No I did not meet her, I admire her very much though.
I've also realized you're a great fan of gym settings as seen in your many Dolce & Gabbana ads ! why ?
M.V : That concept begun when I used to photograph all the soccer players for Dolce Gabbana and also when I shot the Diex Dv Stade calendar. Gym surroundings are natural places for the sportsmen to be, hence those locations for the campaigns.
By the way I've seen you've worked a lot with sportsmen as seen in Les Dieux du Stade calendar or in your book Milan. do you fall in love for them ?
M.V : Do I fall in love With them? No, I have to know someone to love them, but yes, there has been times of eroticism.
So you released a book this year called " ninetyfive chapel market " mainly made of black and white shots. why have you called it that way ? and what's special about your way of making portraits ?
M.V : That was the actual address of the place I lived (and worked) at. I get to know the people I shoot as much as I can, so the portraits have an intimate feeling.
Do you have some things or places or people or whatever that inspires you ?
M.V : Places, people, music, conversations, art galleries, friendships, night out, moments you name it, I am a sponge!
And do you have a favorite photographer ? or artist ?
M.V : Newton, Avedon and Penn. and many many artists
So as a photographer i was wondering what you may think about celebrities doin campaigns for big brands whereas there are many great and cool models ?
M.V : I love both but celebrities, they cary a lot of energy and are very self aware, so sometimes they are better than models. Things swing around in pendulums so for sure the trend of models being our main form of attention will definitely come back.
You're workin a lot with the Dazed & Confused magazine team on editorials. what do you like about them ?
M.V : they are all like mates, especially Nicola, I guess we are all growing together.
And what is a perfect picture shot by Mariano Vivanco like ?
M.V : One that will last the test of time.
Finally what is stylish today ?
M.V : Confidence
ps : next week I'll post pictures from his recently released magazine !!!! and it's quite exclusive as there is almost no pics on internet !! cute no !?
so let's start by the beginning. so you are a photographer ! is it a job you've always wanted to do ?
M.V : Since I was 16 years old. But since I was 4 or 5 I was obsessed by movies and fashion.
Would you agree with the people that says " photography is like stealing the present " ?
M.V : No it is Preserving it.
By the way thinking about your work and art which is from my point of view sexually appealing and dangerously seductive, i would be really interested in knowin if you would agree with Mario Sorrenti who said " photography is an act of seduction " ?
M.V : Yes and even more by Chris Von Wangenheim quote "photography is like the promise of sex"
You shot the best models, Naomi Campbell, Lily Cole or Andres Velencoso and so many others. isnt it intimidating ?
M.V : Not at all!! Its more like an honour! Actually the first time with Naomi, she was one of the first famous people I shot, so I was a bit nervous, but when I got into it, it was fine.
So can you sum up for me your way of working ? i mean is there a way you're preparing every shooting ?
M.V : Every shoot has a life of its own, from editorials, to portraits to advertising jobs. But usually after it is decided what it is we are going to shoot, I then get an idea, or a vision for the job. We all then start planning it, this can usually take weeks. From set production to casting back to location hunting, there is lots to think about and then take this process and times it roughly by 30 shoots per season, its a hefty workload. Every aspect is carefully considered, then with a bit of luck we have little moments of spontaneity that happen.
Well looking at your website, I've realized you did one campaign for Prada. you must be proud of it right !? but did you meet Miuccia ? how is she ?
M.V : No I did not meet her, I admire her very much though.
I've also realized you're a great fan of gym settings as seen in your many Dolce & Gabbana ads ! why ?
M.V : That concept begun when I used to photograph all the soccer players for Dolce Gabbana and also when I shot the Diex Dv Stade calendar. Gym surroundings are natural places for the sportsmen to be, hence those locations for the campaigns.
By the way I've seen you've worked a lot with sportsmen as seen in Les Dieux du Stade calendar or in your book Milan. do you fall in love for them ?
M.V : Do I fall in love With them? No, I have to know someone to love them, but yes, there has been times of eroticism.
So you released a book this year called " ninetyfive chapel market " mainly made of black and white shots. why have you called it that way ? and what's special about your way of making portraits ?
M.V : That was the actual address of the place I lived (and worked) at. I get to know the people I shoot as much as I can, so the portraits have an intimate feeling.
Do you have some things or places or people or whatever that inspires you ?
M.V : Places, people, music, conversations, art galleries, friendships, night out, moments you name it, I am a sponge!
And do you have a favorite photographer ? or artist ?
M.V : Newton, Avedon and Penn. and many many artists
So as a photographer i was wondering what you may think about celebrities doin campaigns for big brands whereas there are many great and cool models ?
M.V : I love both but celebrities, they cary a lot of energy and are very self aware, so sometimes they are better than models. Things swing around in pendulums so for sure the trend of models being our main form of attention will definitely come back.
You're workin a lot with the Dazed & Confused magazine team on editorials. what do you like about them ?
M.V : they are all like mates, especially Nicola, I guess we are all growing together.
And what is a perfect picture shot by Mariano Vivanco like ?
M.V : One that will last the test of time.
Finally what is stylish today ?
M.V : Confidence
Labels: Trendsetters On This Way
0 comment Wednesday, May 7, 2014 | admin
I think the best way to understand fashion is probably about getting around the people that knows the designers, that understand their doubts and fears, that probably have done it too... I choose that woman for her peculiar vision, her unique tastes, for her love and passion for fashion but not only ! Diane Pernet has become one person i do admire ! and her kindness and originality was just what i was expecting for such an interestin protagonist, only the world of fashion can offer ! our meeting was delightfull if you allow me to call it like that !!
- First of all thanks for this interview and for havin given me a chance to meet you. So im as curious as everyone, so for me the most important question to start with is where does your look come from ? How do you call it ? And what's the rule to build such a fierce and fearless outfit ?
D.P : Let�s just call it minimal baroque. My look does not really come from anywhere in particular. If I have to draw on references you can say Pasolini, Goya, Marie Antoinette, Sicilian widows in neorealistic films. The rule is �.no rules. I just like what I like which is long flowing skirts, simple shirts, platform shoes, high hair, silver insect pins, sunglasses and a veil. It�s more about the elements I suppose but that is what builds any look, isn�t it?
- Then i will probably sound boring with that question but why have you launch a blog ? What was the main reason ? Did you expect that much buzz around it ?
D.P : I used to be an editor for Elle.com and then Vogueparis.com and before that for Disciplefilms where I wrote Diane�s diaries and one day I decided that it would be nice to just have my own blog and report on what interests me on a daily basis. I did not expect anything but I�m happy if it feeds people.
- So you're also known as a stylist. But tell me, have you stop designing ? And why ?
D.P : I was a designer under my own label for 13 years in NYC with a license in Tokyo for 5 years. It was hard for me to leave NYC and to abandon my business but at the end of 1990 the city was a mess and I was not inspired to live there anymore. I moved here with no strategy or plans. I chose Paris because I thought if I want to stay in the fashion business I had a few choices: Paris, Milan, London and since Paris is the center of the fashion world, I decided to move here. I knew one person when I moved here 18 years ago. It was very difficult but no regrets. I never wanted to stop designing I just did not want to live in NYC any longer and if someone had offered me a nice bit of cash and said , continue�. I would have, gladly. But I did not want to start from zero all over again, not as a designer and I had no interest to work for someone else.
- There's a kind of mystery around you. I cant easily find a lot of things surrounding your past etc. Is it part of the myth ? So if you could describe the start of your career, what would you say ?
D.P : It is actually very easy to find out about my past. If you go on my site www.ashadedviewonfashion.com and click memory one of the files on the right hand side of the screen you will even see me with flat hair, also a photo I took of my first husband. If you click the file called history you will even find images of some of my designs.
The start of my career, which one? I studied film in college, did reportage photography, took 9 months of classes at FIT and Parsons before opening up my own brand. Did that for 13 years, moved to Paris, became a costume designer on a few films, then an assistant to the producer at CBC, Fahion Files, then a Fashion editor for Joyce Ma�s magazine from Hong Kong, Joyce, then Elle.com, Vogueparis.com, journalist for independent magazines, opened my blog, consultant for WHITE Club in Milan, talent scout for Hyeres festival in the South of France, co-editor in chief for ZOO Magazine, curator for fashion and photography festival in Santiago de Compostela and the founder of both www.ashadedviewonfashion.com and the first fashion film festival in Paris, ASVOFF.
- So you told me you adore the duo behind the hype brand Boudicca, i read that you also like the designers from Three as Four, same for jewelry designer Waris Ahluwalia and it's also written that you're a fan of Take Hirakawa. So who are the other people that you admire ? What inspires you in your everyday life ?
D.P : My friends inspire me, books inspire me, films inspire me, do you need that I name names? I admire my friend Mr. Pearl, Kim Jones, Nicola Formichetti, Robb Young, Pierre Gonnord, Miguel Villalobos, Isabel and Ruben Toledo, David Lynch, Atom Egoyan, Guy Maddin, Todd Hayes, Neil LaBute, Kelly Cutrone, directors from the past like�Rainer Werner Fassbinder, John Cassavetes, Pasolini, Luchino Visconti, Michelangelo Antonioni, Fellini. Also Abel Ferrera, Sean Penn, Dennis Hopper� and finally we have an icon for our times, Barack Obama, he inspires me.
- So apart from all the things you're currently involved in, is there other things you would have liked to do ? For example, when you were a little girl which job would you have chosen ?
D.P : When I was very young I was like many little girls, I wanted to be a ballet dancer but I was never going to grow tall enough for that.
- By the way this question is a bit personal and really private and you dont necessary need to answer but i cant prevent myself from asking. So Diane, do you have children ? Is your heart taken ?
D.P : I was married 4 times, that was enough for a lifetime and no, never had any children and never wanted any. Had a brief moment of pure vanity with my first husband who was very sexy and handsome, he wanted a child and for a minute I considered it, but children are not dolls and neither one of us was up to the challenge/responsibility, no regrets.
- The world is in crisis. What do you think it's gonna happen in fashion and art because of those financial issues ?
D.P : It�s like a house of cards. I�m not sure what will happen next, recession dressing? As for the art world, up until very recently it looked like the safest investment but even that has changed over the past ten days.
- Obama has been elected tough. Do you think it's gonna change something ? Are you one of those people from the fashion world like Anna Wintour, who supported him ? why ?
D.P : He�s earnest, he�s smart, he has surrounded himself with a very strong team and I believe if anybody can make a CHANGE, he can. I could not be happier, I never thought this would happen in my lifetime and I am over the moon that it did.
- The world of fashion is a lot associated with superficiality. What do you think about that statement ?
D.P : Sure, it is true but that is why I am an insider/outsider, that aspect of the fashion world does not interest me at all.
- You're always wearing dark glasses but why ? Is it your way to remain protected ? Do you wanna hide ?
D.P : It places a distance between me and the rest of the world, hide, not really, protect, probably.
- By the way, I've always wondered, when are you gonna released your own magazine ?
D.P : I don�t really think it is the moment, do you? For now I will continue to curate my blog and make films. In the future I might make a best of the blog as a book�I think it is a good document of our times.
- It's also very personal but what do you carry in your bag ? I've seen a camera the day of our meeting but what else ?!!
D.P : Depends on the day and where I�m going, if I�m traveling there is my computer, my digital lumix, maybe my video camera, powder, lipstick, passport/id, keys, umbrella, you never know here when it will start to rain, a good book� It�s always far too heavy.
- If there was a secret to beauty, what would it be ?
D.P : Stay out of the sun.
- Finally what is from your point of view stylish ?
D.P : Dress to please yourself.
- First of all thanks for this interview and for havin given me a chance to meet you. So im as curious as everyone, so for me the most important question to start with is where does your look come from ? How do you call it ? And what's the rule to build such a fierce and fearless outfit ?
D.P : Let�s just call it minimal baroque. My look does not really come from anywhere in particular. If I have to draw on references you can say Pasolini, Goya, Marie Antoinette, Sicilian widows in neorealistic films. The rule is �.no rules. I just like what I like which is long flowing skirts, simple shirts, platform shoes, high hair, silver insect pins, sunglasses and a veil. It�s more about the elements I suppose but that is what builds any look, isn�t it?
- Then i will probably sound boring with that question but why have you launch a blog ? What was the main reason ? Did you expect that much buzz around it ?
D.P : I used to be an editor for Elle.com and then Vogueparis.com and before that for Disciplefilms where I wrote Diane�s diaries and one day I decided that it would be nice to just have my own blog and report on what interests me on a daily basis. I did not expect anything but I�m happy if it feeds people.
- So you're also known as a stylist. But tell me, have you stop designing ? And why ?
D.P : I was a designer under my own label for 13 years in NYC with a license in Tokyo for 5 years. It was hard for me to leave NYC and to abandon my business but at the end of 1990 the city was a mess and I was not inspired to live there anymore. I moved here with no strategy or plans. I chose Paris because I thought if I want to stay in the fashion business I had a few choices: Paris, Milan, London and since Paris is the center of the fashion world, I decided to move here. I knew one person when I moved here 18 years ago. It was very difficult but no regrets. I never wanted to stop designing I just did not want to live in NYC any longer and if someone had offered me a nice bit of cash and said , continue�. I would have, gladly. But I did not want to start from zero all over again, not as a designer and I had no interest to work for someone else.
- There's a kind of mystery around you. I cant easily find a lot of things surrounding your past etc. Is it part of the myth ? So if you could describe the start of your career, what would you say ?
D.P : It is actually very easy to find out about my past. If you go on my site www.ashadedviewonfashion.com and click memory one of the files on the right hand side of the screen you will even see me with flat hair, also a photo I took of my first husband. If you click the file called history you will even find images of some of my designs.
The start of my career, which one? I studied film in college, did reportage photography, took 9 months of classes at FIT and Parsons before opening up my own brand. Did that for 13 years, moved to Paris, became a costume designer on a few films, then an assistant to the producer at CBC, Fahion Files, then a Fashion editor for Joyce Ma�s magazine from Hong Kong, Joyce, then Elle.com, Vogueparis.com, journalist for independent magazines, opened my blog, consultant for WHITE Club in Milan, talent scout for Hyeres festival in the South of France, co-editor in chief for ZOO Magazine, curator for fashion and photography festival in Santiago de Compostela and the founder of both www.ashadedviewonfashion.com and the first fashion film festival in Paris, ASVOFF.
- So you told me you adore the duo behind the hype brand Boudicca, i read that you also like the designers from Three as Four, same for jewelry designer Waris Ahluwalia and it's also written that you're a fan of Take Hirakawa. So who are the other people that you admire ? What inspires you in your everyday life ?
D.P : My friends inspire me, books inspire me, films inspire me, do you need that I name names? I admire my friend Mr. Pearl, Kim Jones, Nicola Formichetti, Robb Young, Pierre Gonnord, Miguel Villalobos, Isabel and Ruben Toledo, David Lynch, Atom Egoyan, Guy Maddin, Todd Hayes, Neil LaBute, Kelly Cutrone, directors from the past like�Rainer Werner Fassbinder, John Cassavetes, Pasolini, Luchino Visconti, Michelangelo Antonioni, Fellini. Also Abel Ferrera, Sean Penn, Dennis Hopper� and finally we have an icon for our times, Barack Obama, he inspires me.
- So apart from all the things you're currently involved in, is there other things you would have liked to do ? For example, when you were a little girl which job would you have chosen ?
D.P : When I was very young I was like many little girls, I wanted to be a ballet dancer but I was never going to grow tall enough for that.
- By the way this question is a bit personal and really private and you dont necessary need to answer but i cant prevent myself from asking. So Diane, do you have children ? Is your heart taken ?
D.P : I was married 4 times, that was enough for a lifetime and no, never had any children and never wanted any. Had a brief moment of pure vanity with my first husband who was very sexy and handsome, he wanted a child and for a minute I considered it, but children are not dolls and neither one of us was up to the challenge/responsibility, no regrets.
- The world is in crisis. What do you think it's gonna happen in fashion and art because of those financial issues ?
D.P : It�s like a house of cards. I�m not sure what will happen next, recession dressing? As for the art world, up until very recently it looked like the safest investment but even that has changed over the past ten days.
- Obama has been elected tough. Do you think it's gonna change something ? Are you one of those people from the fashion world like Anna Wintour, who supported him ? why ?
D.P : He�s earnest, he�s smart, he has surrounded himself with a very strong team and I believe if anybody can make a CHANGE, he can. I could not be happier, I never thought this would happen in my lifetime and I am over the moon that it did.
- The world of fashion is a lot associated with superficiality. What do you think about that statement ?
D.P : Sure, it is true but that is why I am an insider/outsider, that aspect of the fashion world does not interest me at all.
- You're always wearing dark glasses but why ? Is it your way to remain protected ? Do you wanna hide ?
D.P : It places a distance between me and the rest of the world, hide, not really, protect, probably.
- By the way, I've always wondered, when are you gonna released your own magazine ?
D.P : I don�t really think it is the moment, do you? For now I will continue to curate my blog and make films. In the future I might make a best of the blog as a book�I think it is a good document of our times.
- It's also very personal but what do you carry in your bag ? I've seen a camera the day of our meeting but what else ?!!
D.P : Depends on the day and where I�m going, if I�m traveling there is my computer, my digital lumix, maybe my video camera, powder, lipstick, passport/id, keys, umbrella, you never know here when it will start to rain, a good book� It�s always far too heavy.
- If there was a secret to beauty, what would it be ?
D.P : Stay out of the sun.
- Finally what is from your point of view stylish ?
D.P : Dress to please yourself.
Labels: Trendsetters On This Way
0 comment Tuesday, May 6, 2014 | admin
Behind every publication, there's an INSPIRATION, like US Vogue and Anna Wintour, it's also possible to be about HOPES and DESIRE behind, like god with Jesus
and the Bible or simply a kind of MOOD, Olivier Zham at Purple magazine for example. Therefore, if a magazine is a dream, let's say im HAPPY getting inside the mind of the one who created Fanzine 137 and Electric Youth. With his UNIQUE taste and vision, love for ART and BEAUTY, Luis Venegas offered this exclusive moment! My appreciation: WONDERFULL !
I�ve typed your name on Google and found more informations about your recent project, Electric Youth magazine than Fanzine 137. How do you explain that? Would you say sex sells more than anything?
L. V : Undoubtedly sex is a great selling weapon... And you're right, EY! is -among some other things- a very sexy publication... But I guess EY! has been more present on the internet more than Fanzine137 because of different reasons. First, when I started Fanzine137 nobody knew me, so nobody really care about it at the very beginning. Now, after years doing Fanzine137 I've gained some kind of notoriety -even thought I think it's a very small one-, so it helped to get more excitement and press interest around the launch of EY!... and it means more reviews everywhere. Also I like to think about Fanzine137 as the "best kept secret" in publications... I like it be just for a cult elite, I don't like it to be for everybody, that's why I only print 1137 copies and I sell it at some specific exquisite shops around the world. EY! is also a special magazine not for everybody or to be found at every newstands, but you can find it at American Apparel shops, for example, and it means it's somehow more "mainstream"... I use that word, even thought I'm very conscious I don't print enough copies to be as "mainstream" as most magazines we know...
The first issue was about Spanish boys, then the UK issue and now it seems like you moved to the American dream. So when are we gonna get a chic peek inside Paris hottest boys ? Or at least please reveal in which new country have you decided to land for the next issue?
L. V : Oh, of course there'll be a Parisian issue! I love Paris' boys... They're sooo cool and sexy... They look refined, classy and edgy. I like the very masculine ones, but also those ones who look like fresh little flowers... So, I'm sure the Paris issue will come soon! About the next issue's chosen country... Well, Ray, this is an absolute scoop for you: issue 4 will be published in May and will be about Argentina -or ArgenTEENa, as I like to say-... And it will be entirely photographed by the great Steven Klein. I'm so excited about it!
By the way, you�re one of the first who believed in youth power, restless teenagers, gifted twenty something lads�..therefore, would you also say as Steven Meisel in Vogue Italia February 2009 issue : " so young, so cool "?
L. V : Absolutely. Oh, I love that Vogue Italia issue... Ash, Cole, Luke, aren't they amazing? I love young people... and I also love very old people. There's something exciting about those who are beginning to do stuff and something fabulous about those who know a lot about what they do. I think there's a connection between those two ages. At the beginning you don't care about anything and you're able to take on anything, and when you get older is probably the same... Your life is made and you don't have to prove anything to anyone, you've sen it all and you've done it all... I feel both are moments of great freedom: the beginning and the end of your life.
I must admit you�ve already done many amazing things. I just look at the people in Electric Youth, from it-boy Prince Pelayo, to Brazilian male supermodel Evandro Soldati or London greatest models Luke Worrall and Ashley Stymest, only nice and fabulous people actually !!! How come !? Are you this kind of Spanish Andy Warhol like-artist, only surrounded by amazing creatures?
L. V : Oh, I don't think I could be at any level of comparision with Warhol, I wish I could! But you're right, I love being surrounded by handsome people and beautiful things. I'm addicted to beauty. I really deeeeeeeeeeply enjoy a good photo, a good movie, a nice Lladró figurine, a good magazine, an amazing kiss... I take all things I like in a very personal way.
So if I was the genius of the lamp and I could make one of your wish come true, what would you ask me to do?
L. V : I would like to have Spiderman's superpowers.
On Wikipedia I�ve typed your name again but nothing�..as if the world was denying your amazing first publication " Fanzine 137 ". Tell me how and why you started this amazing but difficult project.
L. V : Fanzine137 is about all things I like, about people I admire because of different reasons. Every little thing on each new issue is there because I like it... At last, it's a magazine about me throught the things I like, throught the artworks of amazing artists around the world that I admire. I like to think if someone likes my magazine is very possible that person will like me also... Does it sound strange? I started to publish it in sSeptember 2004, but I wanted to do it since always, because of my endless love to magazines since I was a child. I collect special magazines since I was 12 years old. From Vanity Fair to rare issues of Avantgarde, for example... So it was my dream to make my own special magazine... And hopefully earn money doing it!
I just adore the concept of your book, mixing the work of famous and well-known visionnaire with young and promising artist. Was it easy doing this ? I mean everyone knows it�s better playing safe as the economy isn�t going really well !? the crisis��do you care about that?
L. V : I prefer not to think too much about it... I mean, of course I have to be realistic and be awake to make things happen harder than 2 years ago, but I trust a lot on my own enthusiasm. So I'm sure my magazines will survive. Think the team behind my mags is my computer, my phone and me... Maybe it's harder for big mags which have to fire their employeees, but my structure is so little...
So you�ve been showing the work of duet photographers Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin or Juergen Teller, some designers like Tom Ford or Christian Lacroix or some editors like Stephan Gan or Jefferson Hack!!! OMG how are you doing this!!? How much money to you spend!!? In French, there�s an expression that says if I translate it "you have to have sex with people to succeed"! True or False?
L. V : Ray, do you know it by your own experience? I'm joking... Well, I love sex, so I've always done it without expecting anything in return -at least farther than pleasure-... So I wouldn't care to have sex if it would mean an investment in success! Unfortunately, it never happened before and luckily I've never needed it.
Ps : what about having Carine Roitfeld in your book ?!! not interested ? And what about working on a new way of showing your book like Visionnaire and their funny ways of approaching the concept of publications?
L. V : Carine Roitfled on Fanzine137 would be as exciting for me as his son Vladimir on my bed. I mean, it would be great! I think she's doing the best Vogue nowadays -together with the American edition by Anna Wintour-... And about Visionaire, it is also a magazine I deeply admire, and endless source of inspiration. I also have to say Stephen Gan, Cecilia Dean and James Kaliardos -and all the rest of their team- are extremely kind and very supportive with me. I like them a lot! I like to change the format of my Fanzine137 and try new things, but I'll never be as radical as Visionaire is... why? Well, that's what they do, and they do it so great that I never would dare even try to imitate it.
Well I�ve sweared I wont give up trying to get to know you more thanks to the internet. So after few minutes on various blogs and websites, I found that you�ve been working with Thierry Mugler!!! You�re so lucky! Please tell us how he is and what do you think about the return of his brand to the menswear fashion week in Paris?
L. V : I was an stagier at Thierry Mugler for 7 months from December 1996 to July 1997 and assisted him to his Couture shows, during that amazing season when Galliano did the first Dior, McQueen did Givenchy and Gaultier did his first Couture show... It was an extraordinary experience for me... Mr. Mugler was very strict and occasionally rude with most of his team, but at the end he took care about every little detail and was nice. I did the stage with another Spanish friend and we had lots of fun, working hard but also singing and laughing all time and he seemed to like that... I keep a wonderful memory of those days... And I would love to meet Mr.Mugler again and include him on forthcoming issues of Fanzine137!About the return of his brand... Well, it is a powerful brand, so I understand its comeback. Is Thomas Engel Hart still doing it? I think he's good... But Mugler was A-MA-ZING, and it's so complicated to fight and win against such a great legacy...
I also noted that (according to a french website) you�ve worked at Acne paper, Butt magazine and Dazed & Confused and at El Pais and at Marie Claire. What an eclectic journey. Those mags are just so different and unique, which may also explain your taste for various artists and creators. Would you say this is your force, a great background ?
L. V : Probably. I feel lots of curiosity for maaaaany things. I have no prejudices. I can find joy and fun -almost- everywhere.
By the way, if you could work today at the magazine of your choice, which one would you choose and why ?
L. V : How difficult! I guess I would love to see Vogue USA from the inside... But I really can't say I would love to work there... I love so much my own freedom...
I also read that you�ve been working for the brands Loewe and Carolina Herrera. So tell me what you have learnt from this experience and how it affects your present in your choices ?
L. V : Working with big brands is so exciting! I like to see the other side of the business, that one focused on marketing rules, selling lots of products... I've learned a lot about business. Maybe it could sound too naïf, but I think it's not difficult at all to learn fast about those things. You only have to use common sense.
Oh and is it true that you�re a teacher? What are you teaching? Where? And yeah why?
L. V : Yes I am... I teach Contemporary Culture at the main Fashion Institute in Madrid. I looove doing it! It helps me to re-fresh my own knowledge... And I love to be in front of an audience and entertain them for 2 hours... It's like being a performer! Also, it help me to get in direct contact with younger people and better understand what new generations like or dislike... And honestly, most of them need sooo much to learn sooo many things!
When I�ve typed on Yahoo.com your name, I�ve found articles related to a music composer or a football player!!! Not really glamour or arty right!? So tell me if you could control what people say or write about you what would you like to hear?
L. V : I really don't care... But I love games, so let me try the ideal sentence I would like to read about me... It would be something like "the sexiest, funniest and cleverest independent editor and creative director alive is a very kind, lovely and normal person"... :-p
You�re ready to release one new issue of Fanzine 137 " Ladies & Gentleman volume 2 ". So first tell me why this very classic name? And then it seems so fashionable right now doing cross-genders things no!!? So tell me, are you one day gonna do one issue called " trashy-trans " ?
L. V : Who knows? In fact, this 2nd volume of Ladies & Gentlemen includes a long interview about the story of wonderful hairdresser Jimmy Paul, who started working in NYC as a drag queen... Possibilities are endless and I like to celebrate them all, talent doesn't care about gender!
Then I�d like to know what are your upcoming projects ?
L. V : Oh, next 2 issues of EY! and next Fanzine137... and open to many other possible projects.
What can I wish you ?
L. V : Happiness, always.
Finally my very favorite question, today what is stylish ?
L. V : Irving Penn's work always... Japanese women. Brazilian teenage guys... I also find stylish all actresses who style themselves and don't any stylists to dress them, like Diane Keaton.
and the Bible or simply a kind of MOOD, Olivier Zham at Purple magazine for example. Therefore, if a magazine is a dream, let's say im HAPPY getting inside the mind of the one who created Fanzine 137 and Electric Youth. With his UNIQUE taste and vision, love for ART and BEAUTY, Luis Venegas offered this exclusive moment! My appreciation: WONDERFULL !
I�ve typed your name on Google and found more informations about your recent project, Electric Youth magazine than Fanzine 137. How do you explain that? Would you say sex sells more than anything?
L. V : Undoubtedly sex is a great selling weapon... And you're right, EY! is -among some other things- a very sexy publication... But I guess EY! has been more present on the internet more than Fanzine137 because of different reasons. First, when I started Fanzine137 nobody knew me, so nobody really care about it at the very beginning. Now, after years doing Fanzine137 I've gained some kind of notoriety -even thought I think it's a very small one-, so it helped to get more excitement and press interest around the launch of EY!... and it means more reviews everywhere. Also I like to think about Fanzine137 as the "best kept secret" in publications... I like it be just for a cult elite, I don't like it to be for everybody, that's why I only print 1137 copies and I sell it at some specific exquisite shops around the world. EY! is also a special magazine not for everybody or to be found at every newstands, but you can find it at American Apparel shops, for example, and it means it's somehow more "mainstream"... I use that word, even thought I'm very conscious I don't print enough copies to be as "mainstream" as most magazines we know...
The first issue was about Spanish boys, then the UK issue and now it seems like you moved to the American dream. So when are we gonna get a chic peek inside Paris hottest boys ? Or at least please reveal in which new country have you decided to land for the next issue?
L. V : Oh, of course there'll be a Parisian issue! I love Paris' boys... They're sooo cool and sexy... They look refined, classy and edgy. I like the very masculine ones, but also those ones who look like fresh little flowers... So, I'm sure the Paris issue will come soon! About the next issue's chosen country... Well, Ray, this is an absolute scoop for you: issue 4 will be published in May and will be about Argentina -or ArgenTEENa, as I like to say-... And it will be entirely photographed by the great Steven Klein. I'm so excited about it!
By the way, you�re one of the first who believed in youth power, restless teenagers, gifted twenty something lads�..therefore, would you also say as Steven Meisel in Vogue Italia February 2009 issue : " so young, so cool "?
L. V : Absolutely. Oh, I love that Vogue Italia issue... Ash, Cole, Luke, aren't they amazing? I love young people... and I also love very old people. There's something exciting about those who are beginning to do stuff and something fabulous about those who know a lot about what they do. I think there's a connection between those two ages. At the beginning you don't care about anything and you're able to take on anything, and when you get older is probably the same... Your life is made and you don't have to prove anything to anyone, you've sen it all and you've done it all... I feel both are moments of great freedom: the beginning and the end of your life.
I must admit you�ve already done many amazing things. I just look at the people in Electric Youth, from it-boy Prince Pelayo, to Brazilian male supermodel Evandro Soldati or London greatest models Luke Worrall and Ashley Stymest, only nice and fabulous people actually !!! How come !? Are you this kind of Spanish Andy Warhol like-artist, only surrounded by amazing creatures?
L. V : Oh, I don't think I could be at any level of comparision with Warhol, I wish I could! But you're right, I love being surrounded by handsome people and beautiful things. I'm addicted to beauty. I really deeeeeeeeeeply enjoy a good photo, a good movie, a nice Lladró figurine, a good magazine, an amazing kiss... I take all things I like in a very personal way.
So if I was the genius of the lamp and I could make one of your wish come true, what would you ask me to do?
L. V : I would like to have Spiderman's superpowers.
On Wikipedia I�ve typed your name again but nothing�..as if the world was denying your amazing first publication " Fanzine 137 ". Tell me how and why you started this amazing but difficult project.
L. V : Fanzine137 is about all things I like, about people I admire because of different reasons. Every little thing on each new issue is there because I like it... At last, it's a magazine about me throught the things I like, throught the artworks of amazing artists around the world that I admire. I like to think if someone likes my magazine is very possible that person will like me also... Does it sound strange? I started to publish it in sSeptember 2004, but I wanted to do it since always, because of my endless love to magazines since I was a child. I collect special magazines since I was 12 years old. From Vanity Fair to rare issues of Avantgarde, for example... So it was my dream to make my own special magazine... And hopefully earn money doing it!
I just adore the concept of your book, mixing the work of famous and well-known visionnaire with young and promising artist. Was it easy doing this ? I mean everyone knows it�s better playing safe as the economy isn�t going really well !? the crisis��do you care about that?
L. V : I prefer not to think too much about it... I mean, of course I have to be realistic and be awake to make things happen harder than 2 years ago, but I trust a lot on my own enthusiasm. So I'm sure my magazines will survive. Think the team behind my mags is my computer, my phone and me... Maybe it's harder for big mags which have to fire their employeees, but my structure is so little...
So you�ve been showing the work of duet photographers Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin or Juergen Teller, some designers like Tom Ford or Christian Lacroix or some editors like Stephan Gan or Jefferson Hack!!! OMG how are you doing this!!? How much money to you spend!!? In French, there�s an expression that says if I translate it "you have to have sex with people to succeed"! True or False?
L. V : Ray, do you know it by your own experience? I'm joking... Well, I love sex, so I've always done it without expecting anything in return -at least farther than pleasure-... So I wouldn't care to have sex if it would mean an investment in success! Unfortunately, it never happened before and luckily I've never needed it.
Ps : what about having Carine Roitfeld in your book ?!! not interested ? And what about working on a new way of showing your book like Visionnaire and their funny ways of approaching the concept of publications?
L. V : Carine Roitfled on Fanzine137 would be as exciting for me as his son Vladimir on my bed. I mean, it would be great! I think she's doing the best Vogue nowadays -together with the American edition by Anna Wintour-... And about Visionaire, it is also a magazine I deeply admire, and endless source of inspiration. I also have to say Stephen Gan, Cecilia Dean and James Kaliardos -and all the rest of their team- are extremely kind and very supportive with me. I like them a lot! I like to change the format of my Fanzine137 and try new things, but I'll never be as radical as Visionaire is... why? Well, that's what they do, and they do it so great that I never would dare even try to imitate it.
Well I�ve sweared I wont give up trying to get to know you more thanks to the internet. So after few minutes on various blogs and websites, I found that you�ve been working with Thierry Mugler!!! You�re so lucky! Please tell us how he is and what do you think about the return of his brand to the menswear fashion week in Paris?
L. V : I was an stagier at Thierry Mugler for 7 months from December 1996 to July 1997 and assisted him to his Couture shows, during that amazing season when Galliano did the first Dior, McQueen did Givenchy and Gaultier did his first Couture show... It was an extraordinary experience for me... Mr. Mugler was very strict and occasionally rude with most of his team, but at the end he took care about every little detail and was nice. I did the stage with another Spanish friend and we had lots of fun, working hard but also singing and laughing all time and he seemed to like that... I keep a wonderful memory of those days... And I would love to meet Mr.Mugler again and include him on forthcoming issues of Fanzine137!About the return of his brand... Well, it is a powerful brand, so I understand its comeback. Is Thomas Engel Hart still doing it? I think he's good... But Mugler was A-MA-ZING, and it's so complicated to fight and win against such a great legacy...
I also noted that (according to a french website) you�ve worked at Acne paper, Butt magazine and Dazed & Confused and at El Pais and at Marie Claire. What an eclectic journey. Those mags are just so different and unique, which may also explain your taste for various artists and creators. Would you say this is your force, a great background ?
L. V : Probably. I feel lots of curiosity for maaaaany things. I have no prejudices. I can find joy and fun -almost- everywhere.
By the way, if you could work today at the magazine of your choice, which one would you choose and why ?
L. V : How difficult! I guess I would love to see Vogue USA from the inside... But I really can't say I would love to work there... I love so much my own freedom...
I also read that you�ve been working for the brands Loewe and Carolina Herrera. So tell me what you have learnt from this experience and how it affects your present in your choices ?
L. V : Working with big brands is so exciting! I like to see the other side of the business, that one focused on marketing rules, selling lots of products... I've learned a lot about business. Maybe it could sound too naïf, but I think it's not difficult at all to learn fast about those things. You only have to use common sense.
Oh and is it true that you�re a teacher? What are you teaching? Where? And yeah why?
L. V : Yes I am... I teach Contemporary Culture at the main Fashion Institute in Madrid. I looove doing it! It helps me to re-fresh my own knowledge... And I love to be in front of an audience and entertain them for 2 hours... It's like being a performer! Also, it help me to get in direct contact with younger people and better understand what new generations like or dislike... And honestly, most of them need sooo much to learn sooo many things!
When I�ve typed on Yahoo.com your name, I�ve found articles related to a music composer or a football player!!! Not really glamour or arty right!? So tell me if you could control what people say or write about you what would you like to hear?
L. V : I really don't care... But I love games, so let me try the ideal sentence I would like to read about me... It would be something like "the sexiest, funniest and cleverest independent editor and creative director alive is a very kind, lovely and normal person"... :-p
You�re ready to release one new issue of Fanzine 137 " Ladies & Gentleman volume 2 ". So first tell me why this very classic name? And then it seems so fashionable right now doing cross-genders things no!!? So tell me, are you one day gonna do one issue called " trashy-trans " ?
L. V : Who knows? In fact, this 2nd volume of Ladies & Gentlemen includes a long interview about the story of wonderful hairdresser Jimmy Paul, who started working in NYC as a drag queen... Possibilities are endless and I like to celebrate them all, talent doesn't care about gender!
Then I�d like to know what are your upcoming projects ?
L. V : Oh, next 2 issues of EY! and next Fanzine137... and open to many other possible projects.
What can I wish you ?
L. V : Happiness, always.
Finally my very favorite question, today what is stylish ?
L. V : Irving Penn's work always... Japanese women. Brazilian teenage guys... I also find stylish all actresses who style themselves and don't any stylists to dress them, like Diane Keaton.
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