See Like Me

Estelle Hanania is something wonderful out of Paris. I met up with her recently and she’s currently en route to South Africa to shoot a commissioned project. Her minimalist shots have maximal effect. It’s her fascination with objects and shapes that make her portraits so much more absorbing. Estelle won Festival de Hyères in 2006, and has worked with Maison Martin Margiela, Nike, Urban Outfitters, and Nowness. Check out more of her work and her blog.

This gem of a film resurfaced recently when I was telling bad jokes. The Stupids — a film about Stanley Stupid, a daft gentleman who wants to discover who keeps taking away his trash and ultimately uncovers a real conspiracy by accident — is really not worth watching. You’ll be disappointed, believe me. However, if that twelve year old sense of humour is stirring inside you, or if you’re twelve, this film is for you. Besides, it features incredible styling, as proven by the photos below. Watermelon dresses, powder blue suits, and floral print pastels serve to distract from the god awful jokes. The sad part is it’s probably Tom Arnold’s best film. But hey, at least it appeals to the immature in all of us.

I’m currently reading Bret Easton Ellis’ Less Than Zero. It’s very arid in the way of notable events. It’s as if Helen Keller described every mundane detail of her day in the present tense. I’m a bit disillusioned. I’ve also bookmarked hundreds of interviews that I haven’t yet bothered to read, for complete lack of motivation. For example, Tom Ford by Derek Blasberg, Rei Kawakubo by Angelo Flaccavento, and Kris Van Assche by Rick Owens. How’s that for celebrity saturation? I almost forgot to mention that I did a feature on Pogo in the new issue of Dazed & Confused. In the issue Beyoncé said that The Truman Show is a direct reflection of what being a celebrity is like, so I’m going to watch it now in an effort to prepare myself. When I was in Brussels I attended a Jeff Wall exhibit at the BOZAR. He’s a really great photographer from Vancouver, Canada. His photos, all backlit with a light-box, are larger than life, staged representations of reality. So if you’re near Brussels, check it out. If you aren’t, watch The Truman Show.

Went on a quick trip to Amsterdam, Brussels, and Bruges, only to be stuck here in Brussels because the Amsterdam train is late on arrival. So I’m sitting on the train with no complaints, because I got upgraded to first class which means free internet and a free dinner, with a possibility of free champagne. The only downside is my slightly similar train version of aeronausiphobia, and eating while in motion is never recommended. Speaking of motion, Columbine Goldsmith, who was introduced to me a while back by Cameron Krone, shot a fashion film called Wanderlust for Dossier Journal. Now, I recommend you look up the word wanderlust in the dictionary before we continue. But assuming you’ve seen more than two separate tumblrs, chances are somebody’s reblogged some stupid vintage map photo with wanderlust written on it in a free, downloadable typeface therefore eliminating said peruse in dictionary. Anyways, two girls affected by wanderlust go on vacation True Grit style to the desert, a poolside, and some rosebud-costumed suburbia. Since True Grit seems to be quote unquote in, I’ll give this film a clichéd break from my critique. It’s actually very aesthetically pleasing, give or take the mundane credits roll at the end to further signify that it was, in fact, a fashion film you just watched. It’s kind of like the fashion film equivalent of that new Terence Malick film, Tree of Life, save for the extreme wide angle. Overall, it hits the spot, and you won’t be able to resist pressing play…

Guinevere van Seen-it-all flaunts her proud airstrip for Steven Klein in a rottweiler haunt as a coolly, unaffected autobot. Although it’s a lot more aesthetically reassuring compared to the Kristen McMenamy editorial in the new 032c, which is frankly disgusting, her landing strip has no business parading around an automobile graveyard complete with wild, rabies-laden rottweilers… Get’s the point across, I guess. The interview with Riccardo, however, is quite a nice read.

The reason I love Acne so much is for their noncommittal, anecdotal and seemingly perfunctory press releases. They are written more like “found” prose that has been peeled off of a steam roller’s wheel. They reaffirm their stance with every published piece they circulate. It’s the ultimate roundtable reflection that is really worth taking the time to read. For Acne Paper No. 12, they’ll be taking a hard look at some youth who would otherwise never have a chance in the limelight; think Billy Elliot, Kieron Williamson and other young virtuosi. A refreshing look at real talent, that leave others in Acne’s wake. See excerpts of the release below.

Like a rebel with a cause, Acne was born 15 years ago to do things differently. With the motto “Discover how far you can go”, a group of idealistic young friends in Sweden joined forces to race together in the fashion and media arena. Free of conventional hierarchy but with a strong involvement in encouraging youths of different talents, artistic as well as industrious, acne became a platform for young people from various backgrounds to learn, grow and prosper. Because youthfulness and its many characteristics has in many ways been the very foundation of our company, we thought it was about time to dedicate an issue of Acne Paper to the subject of Youth.

While being young is one thing that most people are pretty good at, it is more unusual to be exceptionally good at something when you are very young. People who express great devotion to a creative practice from an early age was something we found interesting to address, and especially the young who breathe new life into old artisanal traditions. In a world of commerce, mass production, fast consuming culture and self-publicity, what does the future hold for fine arts and crafts? Are we slowly seeing the elimination of artistic skills that once were the fundaments of cultural life, or are we witnessing a reaction against this development with a new renaissance for old-world quality and refinement?

To shed light on these questions we have searched for young people from around the world who reinforce their chosen path with a fresh approach. What is it like being a young ballet dancer today, or a classical musician, a playwright, or a craftsman? Through interviews, documentary, photography, portraiture, biography, and fashion, our new issue celebrates many young talents, and also those who look upon youth from a creative point of view.

We have tried to broaden this horizon by studying the young from both an anthropological and scientific perspective. Questions such as how creativity work in a young versus an elderly mind; what mentors can teach protégés, and vice versa; what kind of impact our environment and also cultural differences have on traditions, past and present, all try to find answers throughout the current issue. It is our biggest edition to date: 256 pages. Within it we hope you will find beauty, energy, purity, confidence, idealism, creativity, boldness, vision, rebellion, and all of youth’s many attractive characteristics.