After spotting these images on fashiongonerogue I just had to share them. Stylist Vanessa Bellugeon used designs from Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and Chanel to create the looks on model Naomi Preizler for this shoot in the December edition of L’ Officiel Paris shot by photographer Alexander Neumann. Gorgeous!
Helmut Newton is one of my favorite photographers. He died in 1994 after he lost control of his car leaving the Chateau Marmont in LA. He was best known for his nudes. I recently picked up Taschen’s Alice Springs Photography and noticed the similarity between her work and Helmut’s. As it turns out, June Newton, Helmut Newton’s wife, is the photographer and Alice Springs is a name she has been using for her photography since the 70′s. The book is filled with nudes similar in style to Helmut’s as well as portraits of some of the most famous fashion designers of our time including Hubert de Givenchy, Karl Lagerfeld, Yves Saint Laurent and Gianni Versace. After her husband’s death she started The Newton Foundation in Berlin which features a joint exhibit “Us and Them” featuring a photographic journal of their life together as well as June Newton’s deathbed images of her husband in LA.
Kristen Stewart gets 60′s glam for the September cover of W magazine shot by photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott. I am LOVING this look on her. Who did her makeup?? Stunning!
Daphne Guinness’ New York apartment, designed by interior decorator Daniel Romualdez, was featured in the March issue of Architectural Digest. The stylist, and member of the Guinness brewing family, has a very impressive home. I particularly loved the eclectic mix of furniture with modern art, especially the Damien Hirst Butterfly painting in the entry hall, the framed photograph by Daido Moriyama in the mirrored hall, photographs by (from left) Nobuyoshi Araki, David LaChapelle and Bert Stern in the living room and a portrait of Guinness by David LaChapelle in the home’s library.
After seeing a poster for the newest show at Caesars Palace called Absinthe, I was intrigued. The poster reminded me of Moulin Rouge, one of my favorite movies of all time, so I cut my visit to the forum shops short and headed over to the box office and bought a ticket for the show starting just ten minutes from then at 9:30pm. The show is held in a tent outside of the hotel in a place they call Spiegelworld. After passing the beer garden and some interesting fun food choices I got one of their signature drinks made with Absinthe. The show takes place in a large tent that, upon entering, transports you to another time. Part Cabaret, part acrobatics and comedy the show had me laughing and totally amazed. It was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen and for those not easily offended, I highly recommend it.
I recently went on a trip and got very, very sick from some water I drank. I thought it tasted bad but figured I was just being picky and had gotten too accustomed to the taste of Figi water. I also thought since restaurant water is supposed to be filtered it would be ok. I normally drink bottled but am trying to break the habit. Maybe that’s my problem. Maybe I need to drink more tap water. Anyway, after becoming very sick and confined to bed for more than 24 hours, I spent a lot of time thinking about the importance of clean drinking water and how if I were a child or an elderly person this sickness could have killed me. I learned about charity: water at TWTRCON last year. Every cent donated goes to clean water projects all over the world. When I got home I logged on and made a donation. I also saw these great gifts I wish I had seen before I finished my holiday shopping. You can give the gift of clean water by purchasing any of the following on www.charitywater.org.
Whenever I go to a new city, I like to ask a local the best places to go. I’ve only been in LA seven months but when I got here a “local,” and a friend, recommended a lot of these places to me, and I would also recommend them to someone visiting LA.
For HOTELS, and a great time, I recommend the Chateau Marmont. It’s hard to describe, really. You step in and sort of feel whisked into another time and are immediately in the mood for a party! When I went to visit a friend there recently, I knocked on her door and two other people in rooms close by opened their doors. Turns out they were both expecting people. At the other end of the spectrum is Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica. Unlike the Chateau Marmont, Shutters has a tranquil and relaxing environment. It has a beautiful interior done by Michael Smith (Michelle Obama had him decorate their living space in the White House) with stunning views of the ocean. On Thursday nights they have champagne tastings and people gather in the candlelit lobby and around the fireplaces. It’s wonderful and reminds me a bit of the East Coast.
For RESTAURANTS, I love The Ivy for the great food, the scene and location. My favorite is the one on Robertson. Cecconi’s is delicious for dinner. The interior is really nice, mostly black and white with touches of teal. I enjoy sitting at the bar where I have their thin crust pizza, it rivals any pizza I’ve had anywhere. For COFFEE and TEA, The Urth Cafe is a must! There is a line out the door most of the time, probably because it’s the best coffee ever.
For SHOPPING there are a ton of options, it is LA! On Robertson you have every imaginable boutique all in one place. There is also The Grove which is really magical at the holidays when it’s all lit up. It’s fun for a family outing with ongoing events year round. I’m taking my son to the tree lighting there next week and a Lego workshop this weekend. There is also a great children’s reading room at Barnes and Noble, a green trolley that will take you from one end to the other and a Farmer’s Market. For vintage and resale stores, do some research as there are a ton of good ones but I like Decades and Wasteland on Melrose.
I fell in love with Massimo Vitali‘s series of beach photographs several years ago. I am thrilled that his photographs are on display at the M + B gallery in LA until October 16th. To quote their bio on his work, which I feel sums it up best, Massimo is “Internationally respected for his acclaimed oeuvre of large-scale color works depicting people at play, masses at leisure, Vitali photographs beach scenes, popular ski locations and tourist destinations. In them, we are able to see ourselves with the perspective of distance as we interact with our environment.” Last week at the pier in Marina Del Rey, I took a few of my own Massimo Vitali inspired pictures. If only I could get the lighting right!
Many months ago I profiled model Lindey Wixson on this blog. I remember first spotting her in a W magazine editorial and ripping the page out so I could try and figure out who she was and cast her for the next shoot I was styling. I absolutely love her look. The demand for her has drastically increased; I see her face everywhere now. Many say she is the “model of the moment.”
This last September gifted photographer Gabrielle Revere‘s exhibit “I Remain, You Desire” was on display at Sotheby’s gallery in NYC. I missed the exhibit, but wanted to post the pictures because they are so unbelievably stunning. Through a project for Life.com, Revere spotted fourteen year old Lindsey while shooting behind the scenes during Fashion Week 2008. Revere chose her for the Life.com cover and for 9 days chaperoned her through Fashion Week documenting it all for the Life story. Shortly after Lindsey became the face of Miu Miu. Revere says of the story, “I wanted to capture what this young girl goes through in this sea of insanity. She is this beautiful, young, sweet, innocent creature in this explosive, unpredictable world. No one really humanizes those elements, not about her. That is why this work is so powerful.”
Of the Sotheby’s exhibit she says, “I am constantly looking for the hidden moment, and to me that is beautiful. I think that within every moment, the second before and the second after, that is the real moment… and not what is the obvious.”
I can’t wait to see more from Gabrielle Revere! Maybe a beautiful coffee table book??
