JC de CASTELBAJAC FASHION SHOW - AW 2011

Woman/Ray? Man/Ray?
By Whyishnave Suthagar

Couturier extraordinaire Jean Charles’s autumn/winter 2011 collection entitled “Woman/Ray” was a tribute to the surrealist photographer Man Ray. Through various emblems in the fabrics, JC de Castelbajac evoked subtle yet compelling acknowledgement of the influential film artist.

Stars like Katy Perry, Celine, Slimy, Pedro Winter and Mareva Galanter (who somehow was wearing one of the creations that were featured on the very same runway) were high in attendance.

The show began in complete darkness, with the words WOMAN/RAY lit up and hovering above the audience. Then, the group Gentleman Drivers played the show’s anthem and the first model walked out from the modern Marquise Casati entrance in a very plaid neutral coloured outfit, fitting for this season’s trends, but unfit for the unconventional work of Jean Charles. And then the show’s trend-accurate designs started to transcend into the avant-garde work he is famous for.

There were prints quite literally straight out of a book. Printed on some of the fabrics were fictional excerpts, cover titles and Disney interpretations of children’s classics including, the 101 Dalmatians, Croisiere sur ta Peur and Master’s of Ceremony. Then the work went even further in time to the 1920‘s, a time when Man Ray reigned. The flowing prints depicted some of Man Ray’s arguably most famous photographs like Le Violin d’Ingres and Glass Tears.

As the show concluded, viewers were left inspired and in awe, now awaiting his next collection.

Source: JC de CASTELBAJAC

Other articles by Whyishnave Suthagar: The Blonds

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THE BLONDS FASHION SHOW - NYC FW 2011

Taking a Trip to the East

By Whyishnave Suthagar

In their Fall/Winter 2011 show, The Blonds explored the diversity of East Asia showcasing many cultural influences from both modern day and dynasty China. They incorporated stereotypical associations with pop-culture type references creating a mélange of vivid colours and patterns. All this vibrant energy was some how contained at Milk Studios.

As usual, their show was a performance. With a dragon dance at the very beginning, those dragons later chased the blonds down the runway for their final bows.

Now to talk about the styling of the show, the models all wore these mammoth sized wigs that looked like they belonged to Mrs. Frankenstein or Buttercup from the Power Puff Girls – in a good way of course. Each of these sculpted head pieces was showcased in an array of colours, glistening even more with the camera lights flashing.

Some of the most notable pieces had to be the rice bowl dress, with chopsticks elegantly placed. The Taoist costume which created a semi-circle when the model’s arms were out-stretched was another show stopper. The googly-eyed jumper, potentially showing materialistic/abundant China was another piece that one would see Nikki Minaj’s stylist booking.

All in all, the show was a great success, like all of their shows, which brought a Fantasy East atmosphere to New York Fashion Week.

Source: Zimbio

Official website: The Blonds

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