Yearly archives:2016

  • David Bowie was a musician of almost immeasurable influence. His last name echoes amongst the likes of Fitzgerald, Lennon, Presley, Ramone, Nicks and Cobain as one of the people responsible for music today. For almost half a century, he graced genre after genre with his albums, exploring each with an obsessive eye. From folk rock to krautrock-laced funk to art rock and experimental, there seemed to be no undertaking that Bowie couldn’t master. He fathered sub-genres and inspired others to do the same. He became known not only for his songs, which climbed the charts like English ivy, but also his oddities. His hair, his face paint, his outlandish outfits. During the era of Ziggy Stardust from his station in glam rock, he made being an outsider ‘in’. He challenged gender norms, racism, politics, and a whole manner of preconceived notions of how music was supposed to be. He was an idol, a style icon, a pop star, the star of your favorite childhood movie and in his final effort he was a blackstar. Bowie’s final album Blackstar was released on January 8th, coinciding with his 69th birthday. The record is a short, emotional, and strange departure from the various forms of pop that Bowie is best known for, but fittingly so. Bowie was never going to be predictable. Two days after the album’s release, the seemingly immortal Bowie died after a long battle with cancer. Blackstar then took on its intended meaning. It was his swan song. With every subsequent listen it seemed increas[...]
  • David Bowie was an incredible genius that has been a massive influence on the fashion world from ready-to-wear to high couture, trailblazing trends for both men and women alike. Since news of David Bowie's tragic death on Sunday, January 10 hit the internet the following Monday, a deluge of mournful tributes on sites like Twitter and Facebook have brought back to attention many of  his gender-fluid, enigmatic looks throughout the music legend's career, which span six decades. His constant sartorial evolutions have left indelible mark on fashion, as evident in the multitude of status updates, images, and video, paying homage to Bowie.   Bowie as Ziggy Stardust. Photo Credit: Ilpo Musto / Rex Features From Jean-Paul Gaultier's 2013 "Rock Stars" collection to Haider Ackermann's latest Spring 2016 line, it's no doubt that Bowie's influence still impacts fashion these days. On Monday, Gaultier told The Associated Press, "personally, he inspired me by his creativity, his extravagance, his sense of fashion that he was constantly reinventing, by his allure, his elegance and his androgyny." Below: 1) Jean-Paul Gaultier spring 2013, 2) Haider Ackermann spring 2016, and 3) Dries Van Noten men’s fall 2011 collections.  Photo Credit Jacques Brinon/Associated Press, Valerio Mezzanotti/Nowfashion, Francois Guillot/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images To Karl Lagerfeld, Bowie was "a great artist, and a timeless icon...who will remain a reference." And on Tue[...]
  • Based on the novel by Bonnie Nadzam, Lamb is an unsettling drama about the relationship between an unmoored middle-aged man and a precocious young girl. The movie, starring and directed by Ross Partridge, consists mainly of a road trip, fraught with the self-centered needs of its protagonist and set against the beautiful backdrop of the duo’s natural surroundings (Wyoming and Colorado). When we first meet David Lamb (Partridge), he’s denying the fact that his wife has left him to his ailing, alcoholic father, who knows better; David also lies about his wife’s desertion to co-worker Linny (Jess Weixler), with whom he is having an affair. Despite his good looks and laid-back outward demeanor, David is obviously a guy with issues. Some time later, he is smoking in a parking lot after his father’s funeral, when 11-year-old Tommie (a terrific Oona Laurence) saunters up and asks for a cigarette, a dare set up by her friends. David’s reaction – he not only gives her one, but lights it – is the just the first of many disturbing moments in this film and in their relationship. He pretends to kidnap Tommie to scare her friends, but actually drives her home, and lectures her about approaching him: “I’m not a bad guy, but I could have been.” (He introduces himself as “Gary,” one of many lies he tells to various people he knows or encounters.) This sets the tone for the rest of the film, showing both David’s concern for Tommie and his disconcertingly inappropriate behavior[...]
  • If each new calendar year brought forth a new style trend that mirrored the Spice Girls, 2016 would be known as the Year of Sporty Spice. Right now, athleisure is as popular and ubiquitous as Park Slope or Santa Monica moms pushing UppaBaby strollers—and with booming sales, chic, dressed-up exercise clothing are finally more affordable too. "Stores like H&M, Forever 21, and Aritzia, are offering up a selection of goods that aren't just cute but, mostly at under $50, won't break your bank, either," writes Ray Lowe of Refinery 29. Here are three simple facts you need to know about this fabulously casual fashion trend.  Activewear Is Not Going Anywhere Don't count on this bubble bursting in 2016! In October 2015, Morgan Stanley ventured to estimate that activewear will reach up to $83 billion in sales by 2020. Athleisure sales stretched out to $36 million in 2013. In 2014, activewear accounted for 16 percent of the total apparel market, according to research firm NPD Group. And in 2014, Nike expected to add $2 billion dollars to sales by 2017. Photo Credit: Nike Clearly, activewear is going for the win. High-end names like Sweaty Betty, Outdoor Voices, Vimmia, and Aday, are now competing with fast-fashion staples like H&M for shoppers' hearts. And over the years, luxury companies like Tory Burch, Trina Turk, Stella McCartney, and Mara Hoffman have rushed to jump into the current craze. Below: Image from January 2016 limited-edition, 21-piece[...]