EYE 2 EYE

  • EYE 2 EYE

    john lawrence sullivan : in the ring

    - by rene

    Tokyoite Arashi Yanagawa, the man behind menswear label John Lawrence Sullivan, has quickly become a fixture of the men’s fashion circuit.

    The choice of name for the label is perhaps the most telling. John Lawrence Sullivan, the man, is a heavyweight boxing champion, also known as the “Boston strong boy,” and godfather of sorts  to Arashi, who quit a promising boxing career to fight in another type of ring. 

    Ever since entering the seasonal arena of fashion week in Paris, he’s championed his collections in the eye of attention, with the likes of Suzy Menkes a constant follower. In this context, Arashi’s unconventional vision of the sharp tailored sportsman is most compelling.

    
    Arashi Yanagawa backstage after his John Lawrence Sullivan presentation. Photography by René Habermacher

    René Habermacher: Hello Arashi, how is it being back in Tokyo after your last show in the ring fight of Paris fashion week?
    Arashi Yanagawa: I’m getting ready for the next match in June. While I’m always relaxed in the end, I also always begin thinking about the next collection right away. It’s exactly the same as in boxing.

    RH: In your work, specially your most recent collection, I sense a strong fascination with British culture.
    but you’re successfully showing your 3rd collection, you chose Paris to present it…
    AY: I believe Paris is the most important location for fashion in terms of the both the culture and the history of the industry. Paris has a special eye for beauty and elegance. No other place draws as many journalists, buyers, and fashionistas. All of this naturally makes Paris a very attractive city for presenters, but I also appreciate how strict everyone in Paris is towards creativity.

    RH: And what is it with you and London? 
    AY: London has street fashion just like Tokyo, but it also brings history and tradition into the mix. I’m impressed by the way all of this culture has just naturally rubbed off on the younger generations. Another example of something that has really moved me is the culture of the London market where you see young people today buying and even demanding clothing designed a century ago.

    
    Rehearsals for John Lawrence Sullivan FW13. Photography by René Habermacher

    RH: how do you decide for what you’ll go next? what is your creative process?
    AY: I input the “sense” of the things I see or hear in my daily life and stockpile them. These could be colors, silhouettes, light, or even materials. But, I make an effort to express my own sense of the now rather than just making things based on historical research.

    RH: For the current summer collection the theme was influenced by the Bauhaus movement.
    Why did you feel the urge for this now, and how did you translate that into the clothes?
    AY: I had a chance to go to Berlin, so I paid a visit to the Bauhaus school in Dessau and took in the artwork there. I found the combinations of wood, leather, and metal used in the products there particularly interesting, and thought it might be fun to try doing the same things with apparel. So, I made the theme “Bauhaus” and began putting together the collection while referencing architectural cutting, artistic colors, and product techniques.

    
    John Lawrence Sullivan's "Bauhaus" inspired collection, SS13. Photography by René Habermacher

    RH: can you tell me more about “ELECTRIC AFRICA”: theme of the collection FW13/14, you just showed in Paris, what ideas are behind it?
    AY: “Electric Africa” is a coined phrase. I had the idea to create a new, modern vision by combining tribal patterns associated directly with Africa with flashy colors instead of the standard earth tones. Tribal (triangular) elements were worked into various items and aspects like the cutting of the tailored jackets or the placement of the buttons. I also added a spacey essence reminiscent of the crop circles that suddenly appear in fields to the accessories, colors, and textures.

    RH: This collection also sports extraordinary footwear. Your sneakers have been hailed throughout. How did this design come together?
    AY: I wanted create something akin to sneakers or trekking shoes, so I used Vibram soles. I also combined the base colors of the seasonwith highly contrasting hues in order to bring out a sense of Africa. I worked with a brand called ORPHIC when making the shoes.

    RH: Since you dropped your boxing for founding your label, fashion in Japan underwent quite some changes. How do you see the japanese approach today, what is your viewpoint and what influenced you over the course of time?
    AY: When I started my brand in Tokyo my image was much more aggressive. I feel like back then many of the magazines adopted a fashionable approach, and that the buyers tried to answer the challenges the designers undertook with respect. But, as the economy got worse the magazines switched to much more easy to understand catalog-like appearance in order to make sales, which in turn influenced buyers, whose customers were influenced by this, to become much more conservative in their selections. So, there were a lot of negative things occurring in fashion here. The Tokyo runway shows were no different, as the focus shifted conspicuously to more “real” presentations rather shows with a bit a fantasy or elegance to them. Feeling all of this made me want to do my shows somewhere more stimulating, so I chose Paris.

    
    "Electric Africa", John Lawrence Sullivan FW13. Photography by René Habermacher

    RH: While developing your collection, are you having a specific type of man in the back of your head?
    AY: I always imagine a man who possesses both beauty and strength in terms of appearance and mind. If I were to provide a sportsman as an example, there is a certain boxer who comes to mind…

    RH: Are there any parallels you can draw between your sports career and the one in fashion? 
    AY: One thing I realized when I first started working in fashion is that there is a common trait shared by boxing matches and fashion shows that only I seemed to notice. This was the way in which you worry over something that will last only few minutes on a single day for months in advance, battling with your anxieties and, as long as you don’t give up, preparing for the next match as soon as it’s all over regardless of whether you won or lost. The way everything seems so fleeting and transient once it’s all said and done is also the same.

    RH: The understanding of classic tailoring is a very strong element in your work. Now you started your women’s line: how does this apply here? 
    AY: Incorporating classic tailoring into women’s fashion is one of the most important elements for John Lawrence Sullivan. This isn’t something just any brand can do, so it’s something we will continue to actively working with in the future. One of the differences between men’s and women’s fashion for me was the way in which things like esthetic elements concealing points I had complexes about confused me a bit at first. Now I feel that I have learned to use men’s techniques to deal with these things.

    
    Showboard with looks and cast for "Electric Africa". Photography by René Habermacher

    RH: As you added another collection to your house – your work wheel must spin faster evidently, with 4 instead of 2 presentations.
    AY: I always think of how I can break down the restrictions of the tailored look when I do my men’s designs. While there is the sense that I can be confident in breaking these restrictions down precisely because they exist, but with women’s my process is one of imposing my own restrictions on the things I design freely. So, there is a sense of mutual stimulation between my men’s and women’s lines that has been a good influence in my opinion. That said, I am definitely much busier than before…

    RH: Do you feel urged by the increasing numbers of pre-collections and cruise collections that the big houses lately launch?
    AY: This is most likely just a sign of the conservative sales trends we’re seeing worldwide right now.The big houses are just doing this as a way of making sure they continue to pull in revenue. I too feel that JLS must do the same if we are to continue showing in Paris, so I’ll be considering various strategies for this in the days to come.

    RH: With clients all over the globe in different climate zones: do “season oriented” collections make still sense to you? (already the weather in Japan is quite different to the north american or european)
    AY: Breaking things up by season allows designers to change up their mood and add depth to the presentation, so I most definitely think it has meaning. But, I also feel that in terms of actual sales it is often seasonless items that perform the best.

    
    "Electric Africa", John Lawrence Sullivan FW13. Photography by René Habermacher

    RH: How do you perceive the present of fashion?
    AY: I think what we are seeing is a mixture of various styles coming together.
    This is also exactly why I feel that you can’t make it in this day and age unless you believe in yourself and keep making bold presentations. I guess you could say I feel we’re in an era where only the essentials survive. I want JLS to continue to be a brand that always takes up the challenge of presenting in Paris.

    RH: What is up next? 
    AY: The designs for my women’s exhibition in March and preparations for the 2014 S/S season.

    RH: What is the last thing you saw, read, heard or felt that stimulated you?
    AY: Tadao Ando, James Turrell, Donald Judd, Taro Okamoto, Talking Heads, Pixies, David Bowie, Wes Anderson, Jim Jarmusch, Kinji Fukasaku

    Website: John Lawrence Sullivan

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    MONSIEUR HERVÉ

    - by filep

    What’s in a name ?

    You can ask Kenzo Takada, Martin Margiela, John Galliano, Valentino Garavani or Helmut Lang – designers who, for various reasons, left the company which bears their name, and then had to make themselves a new name, in fashion or elsewhere.

    Or you can ask Monsieur Hervé Léger, the legendary French designer who took fashion by storm with his body-conscious designs, ultimately embodied by the “bandage” dresses. Monsieur Hervé Léger does not design for Hervé Léger, the company. Monsieur Hervé Léger designs for Hervé L.Leroux, a nom de mode suggested by Karl Lagerfeld.

    Photography by René Habermacher

    Filep Motwary, who met Monsieur Hervé through model and muse Suzanne Von Aichinger, talked with the designer as he prepared his new couture collection for Summer 2013, now on display in Paris in Colette and on presentation in Monsieur Léger’s new but history-laden atelier.

    Filep Motwary: So, how is your day so far?

    Mr. Hervé Léger: Well it’s cool. I am peaceful today. Yesterday I was not, but today I am.

    F.M: You are getting ready for your Couture collection ?

    Mr.HL: Yes, you see I am a professional, I try to do everything in the right context and I do not like to keep my people working at night and we are trying to be efficient and of course we will be ready on time. You know I’ve been creating for a long time, but because I didn’t want to make shows, my comeback is under new conditions. And it figures that some people always followed me and now I sell worldwide. Business is good now finally again and I am pleased.

    (As we speak, Suzanne Von Aichinger and René Habermacher are working in the showroom photographing the garments),

    F.M: I understand. Do you mind if you help me fill some gaps of your life’s storyline, because it’s out there, but not fully completed… So, it was during the late 1970’s that you started-off your career as a hat maker and hairdresser?

    Mr.HL: (Laughs) It’s a crazy story, but… I’ll try to make it short. I had done some studies like everyone, I went as a young man to the Beaux Arts in France though I only stayed for one year as it was the 70’s and France was all about manifestations at the time and intense political changes. As students, we were on the streets demonstrating and I wasn’t learning a lot since everything was on strike.

    I also wanted to be independent from my parents and wanted to do something by myself, to work. I am very good with my hands; I am a craftsman and can do everything with them in terms of creation so I decided to be a hairdresser. Although I didn’t study hair, I learnt the job very quickly by opening the door of a hair-salon telling them I wanted to learn. They took me and stayed there for a while. Then I started to make hats, after finding a book at my grandmother’s house, which was full of illustrations on how to make them. The first customers arrived and I was working at home. So there goes the “hat story”.

    Then one day someone who was famous in the 1970’s asked me to do a very particular hat, a-giant-sort of “Belle Époque” hat with a lobster on it (laughs). The guy’s name was Tan Guidicelli, whom you probably might know. It wasn’t long enough until he asked me to make three dresses for his show because his atelier was very busy and his show was in three days. Although I had never designed any dresses before, I said “Ok, I’ll do them” and when he saw them he said “ you got a real sense of fashion and you should stop hairdressing and come work with me”. So that was my first fashion encounter.

    Of course I dropped hairdressing and started to learn sewing. Later I went into design. My second big encounter was Karl Lagerfeld.

    The 1980’s were an easy time. You could easily meet someone. People were more open. Even during my days as a hairdresser, with my friends, you could end up having dinner with Claude Montana, Mugler, Lagerfeld etc. It was not such a big deal as it is today. It was proper dinners you know, not charities. So at the time I met Karl at the house of a journalist friend and something happened immediately. We started talking about corsets (at the time I was fascinated by corsets). So that was on Saturday and on Monday my friend from “Woman’s Wear Daily” called to say “Karl wants to see you.” So I went with a few sketches and he said, “ Well, I don’t care about your sketches, I’m looking for an assistant at Fendi in Rome” and I said “Yes!”.
    So by next Friday I was on the plane flying to Italy.

    Then I went to Chanel for one year and worked for him until I was fired.
    I created my own label in 1985 but the bandage dresses came out only in early 1990’s. I don’t consider the beginning of my career started in the 80’s. My career, as I see it started in the 90’s.

    F.M: Tell me about the bandage dress…

    Mr.HL: The real story of the bandage dress is important as a fact of my work storyline. I was having a show at Angelina Tea Salon in Paris, and I wanted something glamorous for the finale. I didn’t have the fabrics. A few days later, I went to a factory and found some bands of metallic yarn, sort of lurex. I asked, “What is this?” and I was told “its for the garbage”. So I took that and I started to put one yarn next to the other and started molding the bands on the dummy, exactly like you do hats. And that’s how the first bandage dress was born. I did the show and it was a success.

    I was hooked on these new for me materials and started to experiment. In the beginning, I did not want to put any zippers because I wanted to create a dress with no seams. The problem was that I did make the dress with no seams but when one of my clients got herself in, she couldn’t get out (Laughs).

    Then came the presentation of nine dresses in the office of my press attaché at the time. The fashion journalists from American Elle made pictures and became a success very quickly.

    F.M: This technique you are working on, the way you make your garments is really one of its kind. Allow me to say that I see them as dresses for women to please men…

    Mr.HL: It’s true! Its because they make women look great. The fit is great because it shapes the body. For example, the body of a young girl is not my cup of tea. I like bodies with a bosom, with a waist, curves…

    My dresses can give a shape even to bodies that are not perfect. This is why I think men love them the same that women who wear them. They seem almost like a modern corset with no bones. The fit that a woman experiences at Herve L.Leroux is the fit I invented at Hervé Leger. Even in my couture dresses today, I use the bands and my own technique, the one I invented then.

    F.M: Hervé, I want to ask you about the true story about what happened. How did you lose control of Hervé Léger in 1999.

    Mr.HL: People say that I sold it. That’s a lie, I mean I wish I would have sold it.

    When the bandage dresses started to be famous, a man that was fascinated by them approached me. He said to me “I went to a party in Caracas and a woman arrived in one of your dresses and everybody went crazy.” He “chased” and sent me some bankers asking to be my partner. Of course I said “Yes” because I wanted to develop this business and I didn’t have to run after any partner anymore…

    It was a nice combination and it was Seagram, a very powerful group who invested money and soon Hervé Léger became a major house.
    Though I had to be very conscious about the number of sales, otherwise they would drop me. The story is that the guy from Seagram decided to get rid of a few companies they had in order to invest on a bigger French company called Vivendi. At the end he sold everything, including me, although he assured me before that he would find me a new partner and he would help to finance the changes.

    I had someone who wanted to buy the company from Seagram, they put the dossier in the bank’s hands and then they sold it to Max Azria. So he bought it, though I tried to make it work but it fact it didn’t. At the time I was only left with 5% of the company…
    When people invest in a company, especially in the fashion industry, the designer or the name behind the company, has to stay part of it otherwise it won’t invest.

    Some people like Donna Karan, did it in a very clever way for example.
    I guess it didn’t work for me because I didn’t have good lawyers at the time…

    I didn’t agree with the strategy and they fired me from the house I had created. The worst of it all was that he didn’t know what to do with the house of Léger for a long time. In 2007, which is quite recent I may say, at the same moment when I decided to do ready-to-wear again, he opened the archives he started to re-do my dresses from back then for Hollywood stars and the bandage dresses were successful again.

    F.M: And what did you do?

    Mr.HL: Wolford contacted me and they asked me to work for them… Then came my shop. The problem was I couldn’t use my name anymore. It’s Karl Lagerfeld who came up with the idea of Hervé Leroux. He said “you’ve got red hair” so it has to be called Hervé Leroux and put the “L.” in the middle, who knows one day you can do again “Hervé Léger Leroux.”

    F.M: So, back to your collection. How did you start again?

    Mr.HL: In 2000 I did a comeback with ready-to-wear and I had immediately lots of customers coming, especially from America. Then came another incident, 9/11. No one came after that.

    It affected everyone and the business went downhill. That’s when I decided to stop ready-to-wear as it was very expensive to create, have production control, distribution etc… So since then, I focused on Couture until 2007, only for private customers and some shops that wanted to buy a few of my pieces. It was a difficult time but I survived.

    It was in 2007 when my customers wanted my ready-to-wear again and it went very good. We are in Colette and so many other prestigious boutiques around the world now. I am very satisfied.

    F.M: You are a designer that works with couture methods, a real artisan. How do you see the use of “future” references and approach in fashion in combination with technology?

    Mr.HL: I think moving towards the future is good for this business, generally speaking..

    Sewing a dress is always sewing a dress.
    For me what is more important is that the clothes look good and made with good materials. I know nothing about technology whatsoever. I know that my clothes are very true; I use very particular techniques to make them. I am more of a couturier rather than a stylist. I don’t go scouting for old clothes to re-do them, I don’t search for ideas around. Even at moments when I wanted to copy someone, I just couldn’t do it you know?

    Other’s people’s clothes don’t inspire me. I am obsessed by my own ways of creation and I feel lucky to have customers starting from 16 to 70. I am never about trends; I see no use in them. Today I have the feeling that it is all about money. Designers today don’t spend hours fitting a dress on a body. They do it on dummies. I feel comfortable with the way I work.

    F.M: How were the 1980’s and 1990’s fashion scene compared to what we see today?

    Mr.HL: Oh my God, things were so happy back then, so happy. The 70’s, the 80’s and the 90’s. People were passionate and they could make money from that passion. Bankers, investors or whatever you call them didn’t really exist then so designers were freer. Only one thing Filep, the aesthetic of the girls then is what is missing from today.

    Or the power the shows had back then. Think of Montana and Mugler!! Oh my God, the girls were so beautiful, the way they walked. I feel lucky for living through that era working with all of them; from Linda to Cindy… I had them all.

    And they were so full compared to today that everyone is so skinny. And all my models loved the clothes; you know a lot of clothes would disappear after the show (laughs). Even during fittings those girls would feel the clothes, they were posing.

    Today my favorite show is Victoria’s Secret because it’s a happy one. I am not saying girls are not beautiful today, I just think shows today have become boring and less inspiring. They look like robots and there is no charm. I really wonder if I was to do a show today how I should do it and not look ridiculous and dated.

    And sometimes I speak with journalists and they are bored of the current situation too.
    Anyway, I am not ready to do a show now also because I am not a kid. If I do a show it has to be made the right way as a good show also costs a lot of money.

    F.M: Maybe you could do a little show in a Hotel Suite like couturiers used to do back in the 50’s.

    Mr.HL: Hmm, yes. For this season I just wanted to show the work the way it is. Starting on Monday, Colette will have 5 of my dresses in the window and on Thursday I am showing another 12 pieces in my showroom as I have been invited by the Chamber of Haute Couture and it feels wonderful.

    F.M: What is this collection about?

    Mr.HL: You know I never start saying “I’m going to do this and that”. I just grab my fabric and start working. All I can say is that 80% of the collection is done and it looks like a walk in a Japanese garden. The drapes are very graphic in the sense of Japanese design…

    F.M: Why does couture still breath? Is it merely a question of tradition? Why does it still interest people?

    Mr.HL: It’s exceptional I would say with an excellence. Although the world has changed and we are in the middle of a crisis, luxury is always surviving. What is luxury about today is another story than what it used to be. There are a lot of luxury houses that produce clothes or bags in Taiwan etc. but, there are still women who want to dream. I see my clients… And the movie stars I dress – of course they don’t buy the clothes (laughs).

    There are still women who are not in the spotlight, not in the newspapers yet they prefer couture because it is special. They are in search of the perfect fit and for me the fit is something important.

    F.M: Why is couture so personal as it requires the customer and the designer in a very private session?

    Mr.HL: There are less and less couture houses as time goes by. Chanel is a real Couture house for example because they have the right hands to do the artisanship, Gaultier also as well as Dior. Couture has a certain way of doing it, it has its own rules, and also the fabrics are richer. Everything is on made on perfect scale. There are more and more rich people and the opposite, which I find very depressing. We can say there are people who are rich today and they are richer than what the term “rich” meant 20 years ago..
    Those who spend, really spend…

    F.M: What provokes the strongest emotions in you nowadays, compared to what made you emotional in the past?



    Mr.HL: When I was “Hervé Léger” I was never satisfied. Nothing was good enough and I always thought I could do better. Today, although I still want to do better I become emotional by looking at my own dresses, a feeling I never had before.
    I am happier today because I don’t have anybody else involved in my business; I have a great team of loyal people working with me. Also what is very emotional for me is when I see women trying my clothes on.

    F.M: What is next for you?

    Mr.HL: I’m working on developing my business. A perfume that I am working on. I want to start doing accessories, shoes, lingerie and swimsuits. Also my customers locked me in my atelier designing dresses – at least I am famous for something (laughs)- but you know I am very good in designing suits, coats, pants and blouses…

    Basically when you are wearing Herve L.Leroux, is for the evening. I want to make day-wear too. Although every time I do they never buy it, but I’m going to push.

    The interview is a collaboration project between Un nouVeau iDEAL and The Stimuleye.
    interview FILEP MOTWARY
    photography RENE HABERMACHER
    fashion editor SUZANNE VON AICHINGER
    hair PANOS PAPANDRIANOS
    make up YIANNIS SISKOS
    model ANNA MARTYNOVA@ NEXT MODELS

    thank you VERSAE VANNI @ NEXT PARIS

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hanaa

    - by antoine

    It’s not everyday that an Arab woman is chosen by a major cosmetics brand as its global spokesperson…

    The Stimuleye presents “Hanaa”, a film by Antoine Asseraf & René Habermacher, starring Tunisian model Hanaa Ben Abdesslem, spokesperson for Lancôme.

    Antoine Asseraf: Where are you from, and how were you discovered ?

    Hanaa Ben Abdesslem: I was raised in a town on the sea coast of Tunisia named Nabeul. 
    I dreamed of becoming a model since I was very young.

    In 2009, I participated in a reality TV show for models in Lebanon.  There I met Sophie GalaI, who would become my manager, and in 2010 she presented me to IMG Paris, who in turn presented me to Carine Roitfeld, at the time Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Paris.

    Through her introduction to Ricardo Tisci , I was chosen as a Givenchy fashion show exclusive that same season.
       
    AA: You’re becoming an icon representing the “middle-eastern woman” in the fashion world and beyond,
    but which people are icons to you ? Can you tell us a bit about your relationship with Farida Khelfa ?

    My icons are the Tunisian women in the fashion industry, whom I admire and whose accomplishments I respect, such as Liela Menshari, Hermes window designer — she received the Golden Dido Award for her contribution to Tunisian culture and influences in world, and Afef Jenifen, who fought for Arab women’s freedom of choice and continues to defend their rights.

    Farida is a great support and she always has good advice, such as “stay true to yourself.”

    HANAA
    a film by Antoine Asseraf & René Habermacher
    starring Hanaa Ben Abdesslem
    styling Yoko Miyake
    hair Nicolas Eldin
    make up Tracey Gray Mann
    production by Clast
    postproduction by The Stimuleye
    text by Omar Khayyam
    sound by Gnawa Diffusion
    thanks Sophie Gallal

    Look 1: Dolce & Gabbana
    Look 2: Jil Sander by Raf Simons
    Look 3: Chloé
    Look 4: Stella McCartney

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    the museum of everything

    - by antoine

    Art. What is it ? Where does it start, and where does it end ?

    In today’s contemporary art “market”, it seems no one bothers asking the question anymore.
    Art, as it would appear, is whatever is made by a self-claimed artist, whatever is recognized by the market.

    Enter The Museum of Everything.
    Premiering in Paris at the new Saint-Germain location Chalet Society after several exhibits in London, this groundbreaking, sprawling, multi-level and multi-layered show changes the game.

    Forget the market.
    For founder James Brett, it’s about special things, made by special people, people who haven’t gone to art school or thought of showing their work, much less of selling it.

    The museum of everything by Antoine Asseraf

    Antoine Asseraf: What started you on The Museum of Everything project ?

    James Brett: I don’t come from a particularly artistic family and my parents never taught me what creativity meant – but as a child I had a lot of it and it always got in the way.

    And so I worked in different industries and was working in film, and I remember meeting a very interesting photographer, the late Bob Richardson. He was the father of Terry Richardson. Terry’s a terrible photographer (sorry!) but Bob was a genius. He was the first person who really told me that “You don’t choose it, it chooses you”.

    In the same way, I can’t really tell you why I started The Museum of Everything. I didn’t set out to do it, I wasn’t interested in art, exhibitions, nothing. But I was working in film and I know film very well, I studied acting, so I’m creatively interested. And in my travels I started to see artworks, first of all by people in the American South, that was just cool and graphic. I always liked graphic novel and comics as a child – and as an adult frankly – and they started speaking to me.

    The artworks were cheap, really like 20-25 bucks, and the more I looked the more I found. I started finding better examples, and realized there was a whole history in America of folk art, African-American art and self-taught art which seemed to come from the individual, it didn’t have the pretension or the words of formally-trained artists, and it was immediate. As a film-maker I loved that, because I’m not really interested in what you are or what you say, I’m interested in the stuff, in what you do.

    As I continued I saw there were some other areas that had a great psychological depth. For example, the work of Henry Darger. I discovered there was a word for it, Art Brut, of which Dubuffet was the proponent. And that also interested me because in my youth, I was fascinated by the mind, how the mind works, and why we make the choices we do, all of this sort of existential philosophy of life.

    Prophet Royal Robertson
    untitled (NO DIVORCE WHORE's ALLOWED), c 1980
    © The Museum of Everything

    (more…)

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    cécile bortoletti: homodiegetic serendipity

    - by antoine

    Beyond its famous fashion & photography festival, Hyères’ Villa Noailles hosts throughout the year a number of photography, fashion, design, architecture and film-related events.

    For the annual photography commission, fashion photographer Cécile Bortoletti captured the Mediterranean flora of Hyères over the course of one year, her visions now revealed to us in a new exhibition, “sur-nature”…

    by René Habermacher

    Sur-Nature exhibition poster. Picture by René Habermacher.

    Antoine Asseraf: The title of the exhibition is “sur-nature” [“over-nature”]…

    Cecile Bortoletti: It’s a contraction of “super-nature.”

    AA: But there’s also a reference to the super-imposition which takes place in some of the pictures…

    CB: It was rather complex to get a complete vision of nature around Hyères, very bountiful, luxurious…

    I live in the countryside, i take pictures of special moments, but to do something like this, like a one year long walk, I had never done. I had done a series of trees at night for a UNESCO/CNRS exhibit about black matter, with a more scientific aspect, but it wasn’t so scattered in time, with all the seasons, like this project.

    RH: What was the challenge compared to your editorial work ?

    CB: Managing time… I’ve never worked one year on a project. Even if you know the end date, the exhibition date, it’s difficult to manage it. When you work in fashion, you’re on an addict schedule, everything is last minute, very fast.

    And here i was working alone, with a lot of time, many kilometers to explore, time to think, changing weather and moods, and each time I came I thought it was better than the previous time.

    It’s a matter of stimuli. I learned many things but I was happy that it ended, it was very intense.

    Sur-Nature exhibition view. Photo by René Habermacher.

    AA: You’ve come to Hyères for a long time… did some things still surprise you ?

    CB: Now I know it much better, I can find my way, and I’ve discovered the salt marshes and its flora, with impressive survival strategies. I didn’t know about that at all, it was a bit like desert flowers…They’re emotional because they look fragile but in fact they’re tough.

    As a whole the exhibit shows the fragility of nature, because many times one week later flowers I had shot would no longer be there.

    by René Habermacher

    Cécile Bortoletti and the salt marsh flowers. Photo by René Habermacher.

    (more…)

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    FIAC 2012 art fair

    - by antoine

    The time to FIAC is now. The Stimuleye presents 2 films in partnership with Saywho:

    A portrait of sculptor Jaume Plensa, whose statues are installed place Vendôme.

    The opening day of the FIAC fair, with interview of director Jennifer Flay, artists Xavier Veilhan and Matthieu Laurette, and featuring Michele Lamy, Emmanuel Perrotin and many others

    FIAC 2012 OPENING VERNISSAGE BY SAYWHO from SAYWHO on Vimeo.

    Jaume Plensa from SAYWHO on Vimeo.

    fiac channel on saywho
    fiac site

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    fall encounters

    - by admin

    Another season’s collaboration with Joyce: Marios Schwab + music designer Rafael Wallon-Brownstone, and a glimpse into the world of Giambatista Valli…

    Marios & the Music 

    Giambatista Valli 

    More on Joyce.com’s Special Features

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    face 2 face : rad hourani & filep motwary

    - by antoine

    Just before leaving for some much needed holidays, The Stimuleye is happy to announce a new interview series in collaboration with Un Nouveau Ideal’s Filep Motwary.

    A-referential, Unisex, Anti-Trend, Feature Film… wunderkind designer Rad Hourani is first to go FACE2FACE.

    Creative Direction: The Stimuleye

    Assistant: Jean-David Alimi

    Sound Design: SOSSOON

    Thanks: Robin Meason / Creative Door.

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    the ANDAM

    - by antoine

    230 000 euros for a young designers… who says the French don’t support talent ?

    For 23 years now, the ANDAM prize, created by Nathalie Dufour and presided by no less than Pierre Bergé, has rewarded promising Paris-based fashion designers, regardless of nationality.

    The first winner : Martin Margiela in 1989.
    Since then, Viktor & Rolf, Christophe Lemaire, Felipe Oliveira Baptista, Gareth Pugh and last year Anthony Vaccarello have received the prize which includes not only a huge amount of money, but industry connections whose worth money cannot measure…

    The Stimuleye presents : ANDAM 2012.

    ANDAM
    Association Nationale pour le Développement des Arts de la Mode
    2012 FASHION AWARDS
    05/07/12

    GRAND PRIZE: 230 000 EURO
    Nominees: Cédric Charlier, Julien David, Thomas Tait, Calla Haynes, Vika Gazinskaya, Andrea Nicholas Taralis
    Winner: Julien David

    FIRST COLLECTION PRIZE: 60 000 EURO
    Nominees: Calla Haynes, Pièce d’Anarchive, Céline Méteil, Jacquemus
    Winner: Pièce d’Anarchive

    more info: http://www.andam.fr

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    Astronomy compels the soul to look upward and leads us from this world to another – Plato

    - by miguel

    Planet Earth is at the center of an observable universe with a 13.7 billion light year radius. Just so you get an idea of what that means, the Moon is only 0.0000000406 light years away (about 357,000km, if that makes it any easier). Paul Klauninger is an astrophotographer who captures some of the beauties of our galaxy, and has been doing so for over 20 years.

    Astrophotography remains one of the most complicated forms of photography, but with today’s technology we get images not even Galileo or Newton would have even dreamt of. The Stimuleye catches up with Paul to get a better understanding on this ancient fascination for the Cosmos.

    M45-Pleiades star cluster

    M45 - Pleiades Star Cluster. Photography by Paul Klauninger.

    Miguel Batel: You must be happy winter is over. Last time we went out to the field must have been one of the coldest experiences I’ve ever had.

    Paul Klauninger: I have mixed feelings about the winter really. While it can be very challenging to operate your equipment (and your fingers, for that matter) when it is –20o C, there are also a number of benefits. In the winter, the nights are much longer than the summer, so you can do much longer observing and imaging sessions. Also, the air tends to be cleaner, containing less dust and water vapour. That makes it better for imaging. And in the winter, you see a different part of the sky than in the summer, so you can see a completely different collection of celestial wonders. Finally, there are no mosquitoes or black flies in the winter, and that’s always a good thing.

    MB: Being mostly subjects you can’t appreciate with your naked eye, or directly interact with, I’m curious to know what kind of emotional attachments you develop with your photographs?

    PK: I guess my images are like a photo album of travel pictures, in that they remind me of places that I have visited. While it is true that most of the imaging subjects cannot be seen with the naked eye, my telescopes do in fact, allow me to see these without a camera.

    When I look through a telescope at a nebula or galaxy that is thousands or millions of light-years away, I can’t help but wonder about other Earth-like planets in those places, and the potential for other advanced civilizations like our own. And when I see the images I’ve taken of those same places, they remind me of just how much more is out there that our limited vision cannot detect directly.

    MB: Which have been some of your most significant or revealing photographs?

    PK: One of my most favorite “revealing” images is one I took of the Pleiades star cluster. This is an object that you actually can see with the naked eye. It appears as a small dipper-like formation of seven very bright stars, just to the right of Orion. Not only does the image show these seven stars as brilliant blue beacons in the night, it shows hundreds of surrounding, lesser stars that are also part of that cluster. And the entire collection is wrapped in an ethereal, misty blue nebula. Photographically, it’s just a strikingly beautiful object.

    Another favorite is actually a series of images that I took over a span of a few months of a very odd object in our solar system named Comet Holmes. Back in 2007, this dim, obscure little comet suddenly and explosively erupted. In a matter of 24 hours, its brightness increased by a million-fold and it easily became a naked-eye object. Before that, you would have needed a large telescope and sensitive camera to even capture it as dim speck of light. In the weeks after its eruption, it continued to expand and grow until it appeared larger than the full Moon, although nowhere near as bright. However, you could easily see this object as large round fuzzy patch in the sky. It wandered around the sky like that for months, until it gradually faded. I captured a series of images over that time period that nicely shows its growth and evolution. To this day, no one knows what caused this comet to erupt as it did.

    Horsehead

    Horsehead and Flame Nebulae. Photography by Paul Klauninger.

    (more…)

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    i am a very lazy man : yohji yamamoto

    - by antoine

    “i am a very lazy man.”

    That’s not really the first thing that comes to mind when you think about Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto.
    Film costume designer, Hyères jury president, Y-3 sportswear line creator, musician and soon film director, not to mention one of the people who revolutionized fashion aesthetics, Yamamoto has done his share.

    I had the pleasure of spending an evening backstage at his fashion show to get an exclusive peek for the new Joyce.com website.

     Antoine Asseraf for Joyce.com, interview by Lucienne Leung.

    Thanks: Coralie Gaultier, Filep Motwary.

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    The perfect muse: François Sagat

    - by rene

    In Carlo Collodi’s 1883 children’s novel “The Adventures of Pinocchio” it is the wooden puppet that possesses sentience prior to its transformation; it is the puppet and not its creator, the woodcarver who triggers the miracle of the doll coming alive.

    With François one never knows who pulls the strings. It is him who invokes the sentiment for a story to become alive. Yet he hands himself over unconditionally to his collaborators, like an “instrument to be played”, as he likes to call it.

    Film director Christopher Honoré once expressed that François Sagat “redefines the notion of masculinity”.  François, the humble boy from Cognac has moulded himself to unattainable iconic status. Gilded with his blue inked crane, he is to conquer his righteous spot in the pantheon of pop culture…

    FRANCOIS_SAGAT_RENE_HABERMACHER_THE_STIMULEYE_APPLE
    "François Sagat with Apple" Exhibition SPECTRE, Hyères 2010. Photography by René Habermacher

    René Habermacher : you recently played alongside Chiara Mastroianni in HOMME AU BAIN by Christophe Honoré, and as well the lead in Bruce LaBruce L.A. ZOMBIE – how were your experiences?

    François Sagat: L.A ZOMBIE was an experience which had very little to do with HOMME AU BAIN… The shoot for LA ZOMBIE was like a real porno shoot, scene by scene, it was mostly fucking, except that of course the porno version was censored for festivals…Beyond the sex scenes, LA ZOMBIE was a chaotic shoot, without a script, hasardous… but I’m still to this day satisfied with this participation and collaboration with Bruce LaBruce, from whom I still have much to learn, and who possesses a huge cinema and litterary culture… Despite what his critics say, I think Bruce has a real style.

    During the shoot I really tested my capacity to resist “obstacles”, it was at times very difficult, I didn’t know where I was going, no direction, it was like being thrown in the lion’s den.
    There was no script, the storytelling was weak and the whole plan was turned on its head by last minute changes and many cancelations, but that can be said about a lot of “cinema” projects.

    L'HOMME AU BAIN by Christophe Honoré, starring Chiara Mastroianni and François Sagat.

    Regarding  HOMME AU BAIN, the shooting was a lot more structured, but energetic nevertheless. It’s on this project that I realized that my abilities as an actor were limited, weak even, and felt like I was a big challenge for Christophe Honoré because of my “heavy” image, of the luggage I was carrying.
    There were moments when I thought I terrified him, being everything except malleable. The project was constantly evolving due to the fact that we had planned it as a short, and that a lot of questions arose towards the end of shooting. It was finally released as a full feature film, and I have the feeling it wasn’t the right place for the film.

    It was an intimate project which to me, with hindsight, would have had a strong impact as a short. But I am neither director nor the creator of my own character.  Rather than control the situation, I felt the blowback. But surely the imperfection of the final result  makes it a real film, that can be remarked and criticized. I chose to shoot it and live the collaboration for the moment rather than think of the finished product.

    FRANCOIS_SAGAT_RENE_HABERMACHER_THE_STIMULEYE_ROSE
    François Sagat for QVEST magazine. Photography by René Habermacher.

    What is the difference to you between acting in a porn movie or a feature film?

    The difference ? Of course there are differences.

    When you’re a porno actor, you’re in constant control of your carnal envelope and your physical aspect, whether you learn it or you have it from the start.

    I didn’t know it as first but I am someone who has that ability. Porn is often an activity for people who are shy orally.

    As a performer, you never really have to carry the more or less artistic responsabilities of a porn film, because there is no artistic issue to start with. You just have to be a good soldier fitting what the consumer desires to watch and what the production has decided, and that’s it.

    I think also that I am someone who’s very sexual and exhibitiionist, but that’s not really giving you a scoop. Porn is like military service, it’s “my way or the highway”, and in my case, I’ve been and continue to be a good soldier.

    The main difference is that you need a capacity to adapt and to lose who you really are, physically as well as morally. I created for myself a character in porn as in life, it’s difficult to let it go.

    FRANCOIS_SAGAT_RENE_HABERMACHER_THE_STIMULEYE_PILLORY_VILLA_NOAILLES
    Video still from PILORI installation by Lynsey Peisinger & The Stimuleye. Villa Noailles, Hyères 2012.

    (more…)

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    power couple : esser & elisha : 2 : elisha smith-leverock

    - by antoine

    Powerdreamcouple part 2. Director Elisha Smith-Leverock has been going back and forth between fashion and music.

    Her fashion films collaborations with designer Fred Butler, scored by Benjamin Esser, have been both acclaimed and rewarded.

    She made the first music video for Esser before directing for Cocknbullkid, Pixie Lott, Sunday Girl and now… Esser.

    Interview by Filep Motwary & Antoine Asseraf.

    Elisha Smith-Leverock. 

    Your new video for Esser is very strong, and seems to show more confidence, perhaps because of the success of “I Want Muscle” ? I would like to hear your thoughts on “I Want Muscle”, how the story was perceived and how difficult or easy it was working for the film.

    I think the Esser video and I Want Muscle might seem more confident because they are both very personal projects.

    Making ‘I Want Muscle’ was a great experience. I set out to explore what physical strength can mean for women and I also wanted to challenge and expand peoples ideas of female beauty.

    Obviously there were some difficulties, especially trying to find clothes for Kizzy to wear. Some designers just flat out did not want their clothes to be seen on a bodybuilder and others were willing to lend but sample sizes are generally tailored to fit a very specific kind of figure, so they did not fit her.
    The reactions to the finished film were overwhelmingly positive, from winning the ASVOFF Grand Prix, down to the number of people that watched to film and how they reacted to it.

    A lot of people have said to me that they had never seen a female body builder portrayed in this way, without the fake tan and irony. But there was a time when people were more appreciating of ‘strong’ women and different body types, just think of Lisa Lyon for example.

    I WANT MUSCLE by Elisha Smith-Leverock.

    You made, if I’m not mistaken, the first music video for Esser, as well as the one for his hit “Headlock” – how is it working with someone you know intimately, to be simultaneously in tune with his world and able to step back to connect it to a bigger picture?

    It’s the best and the worst thing at the same time. It’s amazing because you have great mutual trust and it’s really easy to communicate and yet it’s the scariest thing because you feel so much more pressure. You don’t want to let the other person down when they have done something so great and have worked so hard for it. You don’t want to let them down by not getting your end right.

    When I shot Ben’s first video and successively the video for Headlock the approach was somewhat naive. These were also amongst my first experiments with moving image and it was really fun because Ben was just finding his feet as a solo artist so we both didn’t feel any pressure going into it.
    The process for his new video was more conceptual which very much mirrors Ben’s approach to making the track.

    What are your inspirational catalysts and how they help you form what you do today?

    Most recently I’ve ben watching a lot of Hans Richter films, this has been a great influence for the ‘Enmity’ video.

    Esser: Enmity on Nowness.com by Elisha Smith-Leverock.

    How do you approach making music videos versus fashion films ?

    I think generally making fashion films gives me a little bit more freedom so my approach varies. It will alway depend on if it’s a personal project where fashion aspect is a byproduct to the story or the visual idea or if I am working with a specific designer to actually showcase their collection. With personal projects the idea is more important to me than the clothes but obviously if working for a designer then you need to focus on showing the collection as well. I think this approach bares similarities to how I do music videos.

    With music videos, the idea/concept always becomes secondary to how the artist is presented.

    How do you see the future of fashion film ?

    I’m not sure how the future will be but I know how I would want it to turn out.
    I would love to see a stronger move towards actual content. Director-driven fashion films. Less ‘moving photographs’ as I like to call them. Whilst these type of films can be beautiful, I personally don’t find it very interesting to make them or to watch them. Seeing someone swishing around for 3 minutes gives me nothing.

    I think its far more interesting to watch something more abstracted, a story or mood film that tells me more about the ideas behind the collection. A well crafted film that really brings you into the world of the designer and the collection rather than just straight up showing the clothes.

    What is the last thing which stimulated you ?
    Charles and Ray Eames.

    Elisha Smith-Leverock

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    power couple : esser & elisha : 1 : benjamin esser

    - by antoine

    Musician Benjamin Esser & director Elisha Smith-Leverock are not just a dream couple, they’re a power couple.
    She directs his music videos, he scores her fashion films.

    Now as they prepare to release the first single/video from the upcoming second ESSER album, a radical shift from the first LP’s pop mood to darker synth pop, we talk to them about music, film, fashion, and what it’s like to work with your significant other.

    Interview by Filep Motwary & Antoine Asseraf.

    Benjamin Esser by Filep Motwary.

    Since the release of your debut album back in 2009, what are the changes to the way you perceive your own music, and how it has evolved?

    Benjamin Esser: I think the beauty in first records is naivety, which you can never regain.
    But I feel a lot less pressure in a lot of ways with this second one, there’s a confidence that means I can let the music take its time.
    I think people might immediately assume that I ‘discovered’ a whole genre of music that I’d never listened to before. But that’s not true, I’ve always been into bands like Cluster, Tones on Tail, Suicide, Add N To X (mixtape – coming soon!)…

    What is inspiration for you ? Do you consider yourself as eccentric?

    I find inspiration in repetition.
    Inspiration for me isn’t about looking outwards its about looking further inwards – into the core of things.
    No I definitely wouldn’t say I’m an eccentric, I guess I have my own ways of doing things. But everyone does.

    People would tell you my views on organization and timekeeping are fairly abstract. I strongly disagree.

    ESSER performing at Hyères 2012 Fashion & Photo Festival, with Stage of the Art.

    What are you looking for in music? And how do you measure success?

    I’m looking for complete submergence.

    What does it mean to you to have an image change, beyond the need to convey a change musically?
    Do you care about fashion or style?

    Well I completely agree with artists like David Bowie. His concept of reinvention was incredible and the conceptual way he approached his records is a big influence for me.

    Of course the amazing thing about fashion is anyone can become whoever they want to be – I could be a different person by tomorrow.

    at Hyères 2012

    ESSER performing at Hyères 2012 Fashion & Photography Festival, by René Habermacher.

    How is it to work with your wife – when she’s directing you around, when she’s making videos for other music acts or when you’re the one scoring her films?

    I like it.
    People always asume that you can’t be objective if you’re working with someone close to you, but I think it’s the complete opposite. We work together constantly actually and I’ll always ask her opinion on whatever I’m doing and vice-versa.
    In fact we’re the only ones that can give each other honest opinions because we know each other so well.

    As far as working on music for her films, she always has a really strong idea about what she wants. Which is great. It’s often a reinterpretation of a song (“I want muscle,” Donna Summers). So it’s always satisfying to do that.

    What is the last thing that stimulated you?
    Charles and Ray Eames.

    COMING SOON : II : Elisha.

    ESSER, ENMITY on Green United Music.

    Thank you: Laurence Alvart, Pierre LeNy.

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    hyères just a taste… steven tai

    - by filep

    Meet Steven Tai, our final Hyères designer.

    Steven. Photo by Filep Motwary

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    I feel incredibly honored to be selected for this year’s Hyeres. I vividly remember that when I first discover the festival I did not even begin my education at Central Saint Martins. But at that point I already felt a strong connection to the competition and I knew I would try to be apart of the festival one day. Therefore, being selected as a finalist really means a great deal to me because it means that an audience I truly respect understands my work.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    Natural, familiar, friendly..

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    The entire process has been incredible. It really is difficult to pick just one favorite part. Having the name Hyeres backing you means you are granted opportunities that I could not normally even dream of. A selection of those moments include: – having countless fabric companies at Premiere Vision sponsoring my work – working with the prestigious Givaudan Fragrances to create a personal perfume – having the opportunity to create a look for the house of Chloé – coming to Hyeres and meeting all the wonderful designers and the team at Villa Noailles

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    Geeky, Awkward, confident

    Steven Tai / CANADA / Central St-Martin's London.
    Photo: Rene Habermacher.
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    hyères just a taste… ELINA LAITINEN, SIIRI RAASAKA & TIIA SIREN

    - by filep

    Elina Laitinen, Siiri Raasakka and Tiia Sirén come from Finland and design menswear together. They have been selected for Hyeres 2012.


    Elina. Photo by Filep Motwary

    Siiri. Photo by Filep Motwary

    
    Tiia. Photo by Filep Motwary
    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?
    We feel really honored to be selected regardless of the fact that this is the first collection we have ever put together. We want to break every boundary there is, and it’s exciting that other people can understand our world as well.
    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?
    Coolest thing EVER!
    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?
    We have totally enjoyed the whole process of making the collection since we like to get our hands dirty and here in Hyères its really amazing to be able to work with a professional team.
    In three words , what is your collection about?
    Boys! Youth! Revolution!
    
    
    Elina Laitinen + Siiri Raasaka + Tiia Siren / FINLAND / Aalto University Helsinki
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    hyères just a taste… daniel hurlin

    - by filep

    Meet French-born Daniel Hurlin, one more talented original from this year’s selection of Hyeres’ Festival.

    Daniel. Photo by Filep Motwary

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    I am very happy. I am also very worried, because I want to make my collection the best it can be! But I am very happy, and proud.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    My world is in colors, so : Azure, emerald and beige

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    Meeting the other selected designers help you rationalize everything, and make the whole process more human. Fashion design is an isolating process, even though you are constantly brought to collaborate with other people for all the bits of your collection. Being able to share with people who perfectly understand your dilemmas, is invaluable.

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    While I’m tempted to say “Perfect Blue Tamara” (title of my collection), I think this will be more enlightening : colours, materials, bodies.

    Daniel Hurlin / "Perfect Blue Tamara" / FRANCE / IFM Paris
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    hyères just a taste… lucas sponchiado

    - by filep

    Continuing the introduction of the Hyeres 2012 selected designers. Meet Belgian womenswear designer, Lucas Sponchiado.

    
    Lucas. Photo by Filep Motwary

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    It is incredibly great! It is an honor to be selected…

    The Hyeres Festival is a huge event and a great opportunity for me to show my work. I am glad to be selected, exited and very enthusiastic about it.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    Opportunity, meeting with other creatives from around the world and creativity.

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    It is very hard to answer because there is a lot of different things happening during the process of the festival. Meeting all the different contestants and the festival crew is great. Professionally, presenting my collection to Maida Gregory-Boina was a great experience.

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    Contrast, sensuality and architecture.

    Lucas Sponchiado / "out of vacuum" / BELGIUM / La Cambre Brussels
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    hyères just a taste…maxime rappaz

    - by filep

    Continuing the introduction of the Hyeres 2012 selected designers. Meet Swiss womenswear designer, Maxime Rappaz.

    
    Maxime. Photo by Filep Motwary.

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    A chance to show what I’m working on and the opportunity to learn more through rewarding meetings.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    Professional. Stimulation. Fashion

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    The challenge to update my collection and take decisions in a short time.

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    Geometry. Femininity. Poetry.

    
    
    Maxime Rappaz / SWISS / HEAD Geneva.
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    hyères just a taste…KIM CHOONG-WILKINS

    - by filep

    Introducing the Hyeres 2012 selected designers. Meet menswear designer, Kim Choong Wilkins from the U.K

    Kim. Photography by Filep Motwary.

    How does it feel for you being selected as one of the ten designers for this edition of Hyeres Festival ?

    For me this is the culmination of a very long journey. The idea that during the selection process many esteemed fashion specialists, including Yamamoto, have given their approval to my work is very encouraging. It is a crucial milestone.

    I graduated as textile designer and moved to Milan to follow my dream-job which turned out to be my nightmare job. I was a bit naive. I learn t a lot about what fashion was and what it emphatically wasn’t. Returning to London to take up my masters in menswear, allowed me to figure a few things out in terms of what fashion means to me. Personally, it is a medium to rally against mediocrity.

    I went to work for a handful of designers, sometimes as a seamstress, sometimes as a designer and all the time developing my signature and allowing me to mature.

    For me this is a kind of compulsion, I can only do this; to draw and make and knit and sew. Its not always so rational.

    Being selected for Hyeres gives this kind of obsession a context to nurture your neurosis and be part of a wider, critical audience.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    Limitless, creative , freedom…

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    Being involved in a festival this prestigious has a huge focusing effect, simply being granted the brief has allowed me to find my voice. Working to develop a perfume, being given free rein to use a multitude of fabrics and an exclusive print..

    Basically to be a mega-brand for a month, lucky does not even describe it. The festival is both a very slick operation and a compassionate nurse for our creative ambitions. The festival is both a very slick operation and a compassionate nurse for our creative ambitions.

    What is your collection about in three words.

    Subversive, dazzling, dystopia

    Kim Choon-Wilkins / UK / Royal College of Art London
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    hyères just a taste…narelle dore

    - by filep

    We have started introducing the Hyeres 2012 selected designers. Meet womenswear designer, Narelle Dore from Australia.

    Narelle. Photo by Filep Motwary

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    I feel not only honored to be selected for Hyeres but also overwhelmed that my work will stay in the wonderful archive forever.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    Sunny, open-minded and wonderful!!

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    Well, arriving at Hyeres, at the Villa was wonderful also the preparation for the show, the presentation while meeting the rest of the contenstants and people who work at the Villa Noailles

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    Macrame, salt crystals and women

    6a0105362716cd970c01630027b66e970d-800wi

    Narelle Dore / AUSTRALIA / Royal Academy Antwerp, Photo by Rene Habermacher
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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères just a taste…jasmina barshovi

    - by filep

    We have started introducing the Hyeres 2012 selected designers. Meet menswear designer, Jasmina Barshovi from Switzerland.

    Jasmina. Photography by Filep Motwary.

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    I was very happy to receive the phone call, though I did not expect to make it to the finals.  I feel honored to be here.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    A great opportunity to meet many important people from the industry, it has a laid back environment that combines business and pleasure and in a way it feels like being back to school. Of course, there is the jury at the end of the shows, which adds a bit of stress.

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    Rethinking the collection, going back to things I left on the side for a while. I was an opportunity for me to re-think women, as I am a menswear designer.

    What was the women’s garment you created for Chloe about?

    A sophisticated by nature, confident yet simple. The clothes featured all sorts of details.

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    Nostalgia, blurry memories and emotions.

    The Stimuleye

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères just a taste… paula selby avellaneda

    - by filep

    Starting today, we will be introducing the Hyeres 2012 selected designers. The first is 26 year-old Paula Selby Avellaneda from Argentina..

    How does it feel for you being selected for this year’s edition of Hyeres?

    It is an honor-It’s motivating because it makes you feel as if you are doing something right, you‘re on the right track. The Festival is a good chance to make a collection for the sake of creativity, a boundless opportunity.

    How would you describe Hyeres in three words?

    Independent, for the love of art and generous.

    What has been your favorite part of the process so far?

    I am studying business at the same time so getting back to “stitching” for me was great. Before sending the work I was dreaming of the concept, the collection as a whole, trying the fabrics, carefully choosing and combining them. This time though the process felt different, as it was the first time I had created a collection respecting my archetypal sketches and drawings.

    In three words , what is your collection about?

    Materials, couture and Rock&Roll.

    The Stimuleye

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères just a taste… pascale mussard

    - by filep

    “Ready to fight like a lionness.”

    It’s hard to imagine those words coming from the mouth of Pascale Mussard.
    But as art director in a very special company, the “petit h” division of Hermès, she knows how to wait for the right moment before springing into action, while in the meantime keeping an eye for that special quality — talent.

    Which makes her the perfect Hyères 2012 jury member.

    Pascale Mussard, photography Rene Habermacher © Hyeres 2012

    How should luxury be interpreted within a young creator’s work?

    At Hermes, an object, a creation, must “speak”. It is nourished by the soul and hand of craftsman. It is designed, created, pampered, shaped, dreamed, ennobled, sublimated. It is made with respect, love, passion. Young creators work must inscribe beauty in use, and use in beauty. Nothing superfluous, only honesty every step of the way: from design to production. As heirs of a noble tradition of craftsmanship, our initiatives must be loyal and the innovative expression of this tradition. It must show our optimism and wonderful ingenuity, that last long and leave all horizons open.

    What would you say is key to sustaining a fashion brand in a world like ours which is ever changing?

    Innovation?

    “L’obligation ardente de toute culture” Hélène Ahrweiller [the impassioned obligation of any culture]

    Integrity : Never forget our values, from where you come from and invent objects that will last long, be transmitted and bring joy.

    Continue to give testament to the relationship between man and the wisdom flowing from acceptance of nature and the unchangeable beauty of usefulness, by reflecting through craftmanship on the meaning of objects and the importance of the ties within mankind.

    New petit h film, produced by Partizan.

    The art at Petit h is so colourful, fun, happy. Do you feel that ‘happy’ is a keyword for our fashion era now? For our Hyeres contest, would you look for ‘happiness’ to be an aspect in choosing the winner?

    My uncle Jean Louis Dumas was saying “où que vous soyez , refusez de vous embêter, dans un milieu de qualité , ce serait du gâchis.» [wherever you may be, refuse to be bored, in a place of quality it would be a waste.]

    Petit h : May be not happy as « youthful» Petit h is indeed linked to childhood, particularly in the way to perceive objects and materials, in a new way without preconceptions or prejudice. It is a light, constant, free creation process which makes this petit “h” the legitimate child of Hermès: though sometimes impertinent, a child that does not cease to grow while learning on the materials, the hands that create, and the values of Hermès. For Hyères, it is a “team” judgment under a very innovative President: Mr Y Yamamoto.

    Happiness is always a positive value for me, but innovation, fantasy and talent are more important.

    Working for a house as historic and of great heritage as Hermès, how do you encounter the challenge to align new ideas with the skills of traditional craftsmanship?

    “During a long time I worked on a one-on-one basis with artists and designers. Then, in 2009, the project truly took off and we started working with a cabinet of accumulated materials and craftsmen who worked closely with the artists (at the time Gilles Joneman, Christian Astuguevielle and Godefroy de Vireu) in the recreation process. The pieces created were then submitted to the family and the artistic direction, and the project was approved for a first sale which went very well, allowing us to keep growing.”

    “An artist, designer, “geotrouvetout” [inventor] is invited by me to come to the atelier and to dive into the cabinet of materials – the materials are the source of inspiration for all creations, They must work with what is available. These materials will spark the creative process and discussion between the craftsmen and designers to find a solution that is concrete, realizable and esthetic according to Hermes values and procedures. The creation at Petit h comes primarily from a dialogue between the hands of the craftsmen, the materials and the ideas of the designer.”

    Craftsmen and designers do not necessarily have the same priorities. What is the collaboration like?

    Si vous écoutez vous finissez par entendre. Et un bon entendeur est plus facilement entendu…

    [if you listen you will hear. and a good hearer is more easily heard…]

    They have to be able to work together well, be able to respond to their partner. I frequently act as a middle person or a kind of midwife. I encourage the team members and say: “We have never done anything like this before, but why don’t we try it out?” If the designer knows exactly what he wants, then the craftsman has to use all his memory, skill and bring out all the techniques that he knows. Currently, we are working on a life-sized bear which is intended for the exhibition in Berlin (23 April – 12 May). The leather is folded using the origami technique – which is something that is for us completely without precedent. The designer Charles Kaisin calls up frequently to find out how we’re getting on. Last week, one of our craftsmen said he thought he would never be able to realize the idea. But eventually everyone in the studio found a method which works.

    An inner connection must be forged between the designer and the craftsman. If this happens then I am prepared to defend their work within the company like a lioness.

    What is the last thing that you experienced, saw or heard that stimulated you?

    Recently I had the chance , the luck to visit really inspiring places, Naoshima (Japan), Inhotim (Brazil) two sites that offer a unique combination of major contemporary art collection and nature.

    Two wonderful projects: A DREAM. Brazil and Japan, two countries very energetic and inspiring for me. A great encounter in Brazil: the architect Marcio Kogan ( Sao Paulo)

    This summer a beautiful and peaceful trip: Ladakh.

    Hyères Fashion + Photography Festival
    April 27-30, 2012

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères just a taste… irene silvagni

    - by filep

    With one of the longest careers in the industry, Irène Silvagni is considered as one the master-keys that open every door in fashion.

    As creative director of Vogue Paris in the late 80’s, she initiated collaborations with Peter Lindbergh, Paolo Roversi, Steven Meisel and Ellen Von Unwerth.

    One of the 2012 Hyères festival fashion jury members, picked by president Yohji Yamamoto, for whom she does creative direction, we asked for her view on ethics, talent and achievement…

    Irene Silvagni photo by Elise Toide ©

    What are the ethics a young designer should have?

    The most important is the “freedom”. One needs to follow what ever what he/she believes in.

    Stick to your style.

    In your career you have introduced to the industry and the world a lot of new talent. Do you still find yourself as excited by the new crop of talent today? And do you find there is a lot of progression in terms of work that is coming out today?

    I remember the time when we were a few editors fighting to have Azzedine Alaia recognized, wearing his clothes at the shows, fighting to have editors and buyers get to rue de Bellechasse; and those were moments of intense happiness.

    I also remember when the Japanese designers arrived in Paris, Rei Kawakubo and Yohji Yamamoto. It was a shock, a new kind beauty, a page was turned but in a way it seemed like a battle against a certain form of journalism which did not understand and accept this evolution.

    A revolution that opened all the Belgian movement, which is to this day still at the top.

    What do you think is the most challenging thing for young designers to conquer to achieve success today?

    The main problem is of course to resist the pressure of economics and the space given to big advertisers in magazines, also to be able to produce and deliver.

    The success of Carven, Rochas, Giambattista Valli, all of the independent designers has given a new energy to fashion… The placement of Raf Simons at Dior, the return of Slimane at YSL will bring new challenges in term of aesthetics…

    Irene Silvagni photo by Elise Toide ©

    How do you relate fashion with elegance?

    I do think that elegance is related to the woman or the man wearing clothes.

    Though, some clothing are not supposed to be “elegant”, they have style, magic, they are strong or soft, black or white all and its contrary. A piece of cloth wrapped around the body is elegant. I could go on and on talking on elegance. Sometimes I cross some girls in the street and I feel amazed by their creativity in putting clothes together. It’s amazing, inspiring and elegant!!

    There are more magazines then ever, yet the paper publishing is in crisis. How do you see fashion magazine publishing today? What excites you or you are missing to see?

    I miss the space given to young designers and new talents, I miss being surprised, I miss the adrenaline.

    These days, while turning the pages I often know what I am going to see, I read the same news on every magazine, see always the same people. As a professional and a reader I am disappointed most of the time, although there are still some magazines that I find exciting!

    What is the last thing that you experienced, saw or heard that stimulated you?

    The last Azzedine Alaia fashion show…

    Olivier Saillard exhibitions and performances.

    Hyères Fashion + Photo Festival
    April 27-30, 2012

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères juste a taste…Alan Bilzerian

    - by antoine

    Among the crew of fashion wisemen assembled by Yohji Yamamoto in the Hyères 2012 jury is Alan Bilzerian, owner of the eponym Boston boutique, who was kind enough to answer the questions of the Hyères partner blogs…

    The Stimuleye
    Alan Bilzerian by René Habermacher.

    How important is craftsmanship in a collection for you?

    Actually, its one of the first points that bring me closer to the designer. It puts a skip in my step when young designers succeed in translating quality.

    When looking at the Hyères ranges, what is more important to you, the designer’s ability to conceptualize a range and see it through to its most artistic and expressive, or do you focus strongly on the commercial viability of the ranges?

    I feel very uncomfortable about looking at large ranges of any designer. I believe you can exhibit your emotion of design very clearly in short exhibitions. But I look at both the commercial side as well as artistic expression.

    How supportive are your consumers to young designers? What is the most challenging aspect of trying to sell a young designer, and what can the designers do about it?

    The consumer will listen to us about any new designer and will certainly give it a chance with a try on or touch. The competition is so strong because of the immense amount of product, we feel you need a little push from the editorial side and a strong support system with shops of high caliber.

    The corporate fashion conglomerates are assembling more and more brands under their umbrella and control through advertising the exposure of fashion in the editorials.This makes it harder for young, independent designers to create visibility and establish their vision and brands.  How do you see this affecting your work as a buyer?

    Its always very challenging to move into new names because in my shops I like consistency to prove that I made the right decision for the customer. The fashion umbrella of the conglomerates are needed as well because of the visible progress shown to the consumer, it helps momentum.

    What is the last thing that you experienced, saw or heard that stimulated you?

    Nostalgia…

    Hyères Fashion + Photography Festival
    April 27-30, 2012

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères just a taste… Olivier Saillard

    - by antoine
    His name may not ring any bells, especially if you’ve never attended one of the numerous exhibitions he curated during his years at Union des Arts Décoratifs or more recently in his new position as curator for Paris’ Galliera Fashion Museum.

    But his appreciation, his judgement, informed by an impressive culture and understanding of fashion in the long run,  leave little to doubt.

    Who better to evaluate the young talent of tomorrow than one of the few people who get fashion beyond the trends of the moment ?
    Days before his double Comme des Garçons / Balenciaga exhibit opens at Cité de la Mode, here is Olivier Saillard.

    Olivier Saillard by René Habermacher on The Stimuleye
    Hyères 2012 jury member, Olivier Saillard, Director of the Galliera Fashion Museum. Photo by René Habermacher.
    Why should a garment be considered as important?

    At the risk of appearing a bit primal, because we’d be a bit cold if we had to live naked, unless we all moved to warmer pastures !

    Beyond climatic considerations, I love to see a garment as a solution, and to note that some designers are, to this day, still preoccupied by the idea of solving, through a way of dressing, our natural morning wardrobe.

    You have produced works that straddle the line between fashion and performance. Or maybe there is no line. When looking at the collections for the festival, how important is the element of presentation to you? Would a poor presentation of a great garment influence how you score it?

    Now more than ever, presentation interests me less than the garment itself. I skip fashion shows and rather appreciate presentations in show rooms.
    (more…)

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    hyères just a taste…. Marc Ascoli

    - by antoine

    “Fashion goes out of fashion” says veteran creative director Marc Ascoli.

    A jury member for the upcoming Hyères Fashion + Photography Festival, Ascoli is known as the man behind the image of Yohji Yamamoto, Martine Sitbon, Jil Sander for many years.

    He knows the times change, and yet the thirst for creativity is never quenched.
    Here’s a taste of Hyères.

    the stimuleye, rené habermacher, marc ascoli, hyères
    Marc Ascoli at the Hyères 2012 jury selection, by René Habermacher.

    FILEP MOTWARY/UN NOUVEAU IDEAL: What makes a young designer interesting in your eyes ?

    His/her sensibility before anything else, that he/she has something to say. But also the degree of creativity, the ability to show he/she doesn’t fit the mold or follow established models.

    A young designer, to be interesting, needs to reflect his era and talk about the times.

    MALI/SKATTIE: Once you’ve started working with a brand, what is your degree of involvement and counseling?

    It really depends on the intensity of the relationship I share with the person. Today the difficulty is to know which direction a brand wants to go, how to express its singularity.

    yohji yamamoto by david sims

    yohji yamamoto by david sims

    Marc Ascoli + photographer David Sims for Yohji  Yamamoto.

    MISHA/TOKYO FASHION DIARIES: Today, it seems essential for a designer to have a public persona. How does that affect you ?

    The current situation is ambiguous. Designers are personae, they embody and diffuse the image of the brand. Taking into account the investments made by fashion houses in terms of publicity, designers have become true flag bearers.

    But that’s where the error often lies, to hire people gifted in public relations but much less in terms of style.

    Today there is a “bottom line” in fashion, people tend to look at things commercially. Does the buzz which personality give off equal the quality of the offering ? The question today is primordial. [In the case of] Sarah Burton for Mc Queen, we don’t see a flamboyant personality, but everyone is floored by her work.

    Even though it’s a time of crisis, everything is about competitivity. Considering the number of collections (men’s, women’s, pre-collections), it’s about standing out through quality not only personality.

    RENÉ / THE STIMULEYE: What is the role of the stylist in the creation of a fashion image ? How did the evolution of this role impact the role of the artistic/creative director ?

    There’s now a lot of confusion between stylists and artistic directors, but I believe the two have very different roles. The artistic director works on the long term image of the brand, its DNA and visual impact, whereas the stylist reflects the brand’s fluctuating image by styling the clothes, whether it’s for ad campaigns or a fashion shows.

    jil sander by craig mcdean

    Marc Ascoli + photographer Craig McDean for Jil Sander

    BRUNO / BRRUN: Does fashion have a political role beyond aesthetic and function ?

    Fashion takes place in a different universe. It’s a universe where you’re bringing something else to reality, where there is little concern for politics, because it’s all about creation and individuals.

    You can see today that there is a huge gap between fashion and the political reality of our times.
    Fashion goes out of fashion; fashion is irrational so it can’t be political.

    ANTOINE / THE STIMULEYE: When and how does a creator, singer, artist need to work with an art or creative director ?

    An artist always needs an alter ego with whom to exchange ideas, to help write his/her story. It’s not just a matter of positioning. The artistic director has to be sensitive enough to understand the artist’s universe and then catalyze it ; establish an image visually and eventually commercially.

    Martine Sitbon by Nick Knight

    Marc Ascoli + photographer Nick Knight for Martine Sitbon.

    What is the last thing which stimulated you ?

    Being a very curious person, I am constantly stimulating my creativity through various cultural activities. The exhibit of Madame Grès curated by Olivier Saillard at Musée Bourdelle really seduced me. Everything was in its place, the location, the clothes, the spirit.

    I was also very stimulated by the latest Comme des Garçons fashion show. I thought it was majestic.

    Hyères 2012, April 27-30, 2012

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  • EYE 2 EYE

    HIGHER ATLAS – Marrakech Biennale

    - by rene
    The Arab Spring.
    One year later, the events seem so distant already, and yet an undeniable change has taken place in the atmosphere.

    A special case: Marocco, where evolution, rather than revolution, is being encouraged through a revised constitution. And now, the Marrakech Biennale, HIGHER ATLAS, curated by Carson Chan and Nadim Samman under the patronage of Vanessa Bronson, opens its door.

    A special case, a special place, in a special time… an interview with curator Carson Chan.

    The Théatre Royal, under construction.
    How was lunch?

    Thanks for asking! There’s been little time for lunch these days, but the 6 dirham omelets across from one of exhibition sites, the Théâtre Royal, are great.
    Now that you spend so much time in Marrakech- what are your favorite places you hang out to get a fresh head?
    With my indispensable curatorial assistant, Marie Egger, we often duck away for an hour at the Cafe de la Poste, a beautiful colonial-era restaurant.

    Did you accustom to the local rhythm?
    It took a few weeks, but I think I finally got a hang of how to deal with contractors, suppliers, interns, accountants and bureaucracy in Marrakech. This time around, I’ve been here for more than a month, and it’s been great to become familiar with some of the people in my neighbourhood. That being said, I’m still often my own tourist attraction!

    So did you surrender? Or is it the other way around?
    I think everyone involved has surrendered to the biennial making process. I knew that logistics would be a challenge, but in the end, the exhibition, often spectacular, sometimes very quiet, was curated to appeal first and foremost to the senses.

    How did your engagement with the Marrakech biennale and Nadim Samman come together?
    We were invited December 2010. I ended up meeting Vanessa Branson, the president of the Arts in Marrakech foundation at Art Basel Miami, and was hired after a brief presentation of my past exhibitions on my ipad! She had met Nadim a month earlier in London at an exhibition he made there.

    You had initially planned the El Badi palace to be at the core of the Higher Atlas biennale. As I understand one of the challenges you faced with the change of administration was that at some point El Badi was no longer available. What were the consequences?

    The consequences of losing the El Badi palace was pretty great in the end! The show now spans five different sites in and around Marrakech, so when traveling from one location to another, visitors, both local and from abroad, will begin to see the city as part of the context of the exhibition.

    The Théâtre Royal, a half completed opera house commissioned by King Hassan II, the old foundations and underground cisterns of the sacred Koutoubia Mosque, the so-called Cyber Park (it’s owned by Moroc Telecom and has perhaps the best wifi in the city!), the Bank al-Maghrib building in the historic Djemaa el-Fna square as well as an large scale sculptural installation by Elin Hansdottir in the town of Tassoultante about 15km outside of the city are all places where we have exhibitions.

    Particularly in the urban public spaces like the square, the park and Koutoubia, it has been amazing to see visitors that have had very little exposure to contemporary art stay and take time to experience the work.

    Installation by Ethan Hayes-Chute.
    Did the “arab spring” affect you curating this project?

    The so-called Arab Spring (no one here would ever associate any kind of political unrest as a problem relating to other countries…) was definitely on my mind when I started conceptualizing the exhibition. Before spending time at in Marrakech, all I knew of Morocco was what I read about in the media – a politics biased reading if anything. The very fact that we made an exhibition of contemporary culture was a response to politic-heavy understanding of North Africa.

    People here go shopping, go to restaurants, read books, watch movies and use the internet for YouTube just like everywhere else.

    One of the biennales goals are articulating the blurred boundaries between historically discrete spheres, and the conjunction of local and global conditions. Which works would you allocate to this specific target, and how do you see their relevance?

    I would say Jon Nash’s work, Moroccan Drift, is a good example. When he was researching Morocco online, he came across several drift videos in which people would speed up their cars and turn in such a way that the car moves sideways. Inspired by Tokyo drift and other videos from around the world, young Moroccans made their own Moroccan drift videos.

    In the end, it was the space opened up by the Internet, not, say, geo-politics, that shaped the cultural lives of the Moroccans making these videos. Morocco is used by filmmakers as stand-ins for several other places. Ridley Scott shot Prince of Persia here, and of course Morocco is no where near Persia. Large HDI balloons are often used as stand ins for the moon, and American artist, Karthik Pandian, decided to launch one of them in the Djemaa el-Fna square for one night. On that night, March 2nd, Marrakech had two moons, the real one, and the one Karthik launched, which was cubic in shape – a gigantic white cube, as it were.

    Was it difficult for you to get rid of the post-colonial shades and orientalist romanticism?

    Post-colonialism and its echos are definitely here, but not unlike other cities like Hong Kong, Montreal or Mexico City. We worked with about 50 university students from the Cadi Ayyad University, and they definitely regard themselves as either Moroccan or simply world citizens, not products of post-colonialism. In fact, I consciously tried to bypass this framework by foregrounding art as a question of physical experience, rather than a communicator of historical conditions. Having said that, Leung Chi Wo, from Hong Kong, reflected on post-colonial identities in his work.

    Marrakech_Biennale_2012_CARSON_CHAN_BRANSON_wienskowski_THE_STIMULEYE
    Right, Carson Chan, co-curator, and left, Vanessa Bronson, biennale founder.
    I am curious to hear a little on the locals reactions in this context?

    The local reaction so far has been amazing! If anything, it has really gotten people talking. Thousands came to our opening, and we are being featured in the local media – radio, television, newspaper, magazines – on a daily basis. Our interns, who have worked for the past two months alongside myself and our artists, are our main ambassadors. They tell people on the street, friends, make their own ads and posters about the show.

    I went to check up on the Koutoubia exhibition the other days and it was packed with people streaming in from the main square. At the Bank al-Maghrib, where Nine Eglantine Yamamoto-Masson curated video art as part of a walk-in screening room, I saw families sitting inside entranced by the videos.

    How did you encounter the local support when approaching it?
    Not only do we have support from the mayor, the Wali of Marrakech and just recently the patronage of the King himself, the love and support we get from our contractors and workers has been immense. One contractor, Said Aakif, has been instrumental to the success of the biennale, and we’re all really grateful for his dedication.
    You recently halted your project PROGRAM in Berlin, what was the decision? And, in retrospect how do you see this curatorial experience has affected you?

    Fotini Lazaridou-Hatzigoga and I ran PROGRAM for more than 5 years, and as a project that experimented in art and architecture exhibitions, we felt that we had had our run.
    There will definitely be more projects through PROGRAM, but the experience there has definitely shaped my work here in Marrakech. To start with, many of the artists I’ve shown there were also in the biennale.
    What are your plans after the Marrakech Biennale?

    I’m editing two magazines – editor at large for 032c, and contributing editor for Kaleidoscope – so that will take up much time. There are a few more exhibitions this year, talks and lectures, but I’m taking time to work on a conference at Yale University with David Tasman and Eeva Liisa Pelkonen about architecture exhibitions. There are a few books up my sleeve as well…

    
    Aleksandra Domanovic's "Monument to Revolution" and the al-Ghiwane singers, 
    performing turner-prize nominee Roger Hiorn's untitled performance.

    What is the last thing that stimulated you?

    The most stimulating thing was the exhibition vernissage. To see people experiencing the artworks I spent so much time thinking about and considering, to see them take it in and take their time, to see people encounter things they may never have encountered before, that has been the most stimulating.
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  • EYE 2 EYE

    ariane labed

    - by antoine

    She’s French, but she acts in Greek.
    ATTENBERG was her first film, but it won her a Lion at Venice in 2010 for Best Actress,
    and the admiration of Quentin Tarantino and Sofia Coppola.
    She loved the shooting, but hated the fame which followed.

    Introducing Ariane Labed in
    ARIANE
    an exclusive film by Justin Anderson,
    in collaboration with THE STIMULEYE and Giorgio Armani,
    and original pictures by René Habermacher.

     ARIANE, directed by Justin Anderson. Clothes - Giorgio Armani. Furniture - Armani Casa. Commissioned by THE STIMULEYE. 

    Antoine Asseraf : Bonjour!

    Ariane Labed:  Bonjour!

    Are you currently in London ?

    Yes, finally! I was supposed to move to London last September, but I’ve been moving around nonstop!

    Do you often go back to Greece ?

    I was in Greece in November to play with my troup VASISTAS, but now I’m more between Paris and London.

    When did you first come to Greece, and what was your impression of the country at the time ?

    I arrived in Greece 3 years ago, for a 9-month project of my troup with the National Theater of Athens, to put on a Faust.
    I was born in Greece, lived there until I was 6, and I think I left part of my childhood there.

    I dreamt of returning. When I met Argyro Chioti in college, a Greek theater director with whom we created the troup VASISTAS, I jumped onto the opportunity of going.

    So instead of 9 months, I stayed for 3 years, meeting Athina [Rachel Tsangari] and Yorgos [Lanthimos] had something to do with hit.  Beyond a purely sentimental attachment to this country, I was impressed by all the artists I met and their urgent need to create. Without expectations of getting anything in return, beyond any judgement to which they could be subjected, beyond thinking about breaking even.

    If I have just left, it’s only because I need to live in a country where I feel foreign, where I lose myself in the streets. That’s what I’m doing in London. The day where I won’t lose myself anymore, I will leave again.

    But I will always return to Greece.

    Ariane Labed by René Habermacher

     Ariane Labed by René Habermacher.

    The films of Yorgos Lanthimos and Athina Rachel Tsangari in which you starred have universal resonance, but we can nevertheless imagine that they come in a context, in reaction to precise things happening in Greek society: the influence of the Orthodox church (the impossibility of cremation), the need to break the myth of Greece as a postcard-perfect location (the desolate landscapes of Attenberg)…

    As you said yourself the Greek audience doesn’t really support these films, and when reading the article in THE GUARDIAN regarding New Greek Cinema I found the comments left by the Greeks to be very virulent – do you think the films play a role in questioning Greek society ?

    If Greeks have a difficulties situating themselves in films such as Dogtooth or Attenberg, it may be because they carry a truth about their country which hurts.

    This young generation carries with them the failure of the previous generation, a generation who thought they offering through a notion of “progress”, and after the military dictatorship, a better life, without taking into account the contradictions of orthodox culture and the desire for revenge after several centuries of hardship when the Greek people were a strange gate to the East.

    Being French, I love all these contradictions about Greece, but that is also where the complexity lies, and these are facets which the new generation denies or which the previous cannot accept.

    What I also love in Greece is that it’s non-colonial, as luckily they could never afford to be colonial, but it is painful to see and hear the Greek racism against the recent wave of immigration. I think the Greeks are overwhelmed by a lot of things today, and it’s evidently linked to the government which “enjoyed” European aid for decades, including the Olympics of 2004.

    Though all this is probably only the beginning of what is slowly happening all over Europe.

    ATTENBERG by Rachel Athina Tsangari - Trailer. Best Actress award at 2010 Venice International festival.

    The beautiful thing about this chaos is that, these artists, without means, who expect nothing from the government, find the strength to meet and trust each other enought to creat together.  That’s the case for HAOS, the production company created by Athina, which led to collaborations with Yorgos Lanthimos on DOGTOOTH and ALPS, and EMBROS, a new squat which just opened and brings together theater, danse, performance, critiques, writers, etc… Greek artists have never collaborated as much as they do today.

    Of course the films of Athina [Rachel Tsangrai] and Yorgos [Lanthimos] carry and will continue to be denounced by a society which closes its eyes, much like other Western socities. That may be why they are recognized abroad but considered “weird” and barely tolerated in their home country.  The taboos touched upon in Attenberg – death, cremation, incestuous desire, lesbian sexuality, are topics on which one can hardly have a dialog in Greece.

    But it is difficult for me to criticize Greece… Beyond the corruption of the government and the misery into which it has dragged the people, which I can intellectually denounce, there remains for me an unspeakable element, a vibration I feel only there. A chaos which I find appeasing.

    Ariane Labed by René Habermacher

     Ariane Labed by René Habermacher.

    How did you live this experience of the “fashion film”, between actress and model, with Justin Anderson ?

    I was quite reticent at first… but once I met Justin [Anderson] and he told me the concept, with the slow motion, I became quite excited. In the end it was a beautiful experience.

    What are your current projects ? Can you tell me about your play with VASISTAS ?

    The big news is that I’m about to shoot a film in France. The first film in my native tongue !

    It took quite a while for people to figure out I’m French. My first 2 films, ATTENBERG and ALPS, are both in Greek, so everyone thought I was Greek. It doesn’t bother me at all, but really it’s quite a different exercise to play in a foreign tongue.

    Congratulations. Are the plays with VASISTAS also in Greek ?

    I’ve worked with my troup for 5 years now. We are 3 women: 1 Greek, 1 Mexican and myself. We met in college at Aix-en-Provence and created a troup. We work in different languages, centering on the body, on the impossibility of communicating with words. We don’t work from existing plays but rather from an editing of texts ranging from Deleuze to advertising… I play in French most of the time, but the text is there to relate to meaninglessness… My work is rather physical.

    So it’s your own creations ?

    Yes. The last show was called  “spectacle” [“show”]. www.vas.eu.com

    This impossibility to communicate is also an important theme in Attenberg, your character is very physical but has difficulties communicating with others —did your theater experience push the role in this direction or was it already thought out this way ?

    The writing of Attenberg didn’t change much…but it wasn’t written for a foreigner, so maybe inadvertently we pushed this Marina towards another manner of communicating. Certainly, with Athina we didn’t want to approach the character psychologically. There’s always a great deal of physicality in my approach.

    Ariane Labed by René Habermacher

     Ariane Labed by René Habermacher.

    Where does this physicality come from, is it because you’ve practiced ballet, or did you practice ballet because it was in you ?

    I did 10 years of classical ballet. I stopped when I was 16 because I could no longer stand the way the body was dealt with. It’s a strange contradiction, I was and remain persuaded that ballet is a sublime and fair form of expression, but I can’t deal with the instrumentalised body.  In ALPS, I play the role of a competitive gymnast, it was a superb challenge to have to return to this physical condition, and yet a real nightmare !

    So you keep this tension within you, between the habits of ballet, the need to express yourself physically, and the rejection of the classical dance system….

    Yes, something like that.

    When we spoke for the first time by email over a year ago, I wasn’t aware that you were at the time going through a “reaction”.

    Reaction?

    Reaction, or crisis, ou questioning ?

    Was it the reaction to cinema ? to the success of Attenberg ? or to the rigors of a gymnast’s discipline ?

    Yes, it was shortly after my award in Venice… I was lost.  I did not know how to deal with anything — I didn’t expect and wasn’t prepared for such a level of display. I locked myself into work (the preparation of the role in ALPS) and fled the journalists. It took me a long time to realise that it could be a gift in my life.

    That’s when I decided to get an agent in Paris to continue film-making.  When I made Attenberg, I didn’t think I had a place on a screen. I’d loved the shooting, but I couldn’t picture myself fitting in.  This award led me to hope I could continue, and now I only dream of shooting again.

    Before Attenberg, was there something you found repulsive in cinema, or was it an attachment to the physicality of theater ?

    I didn’t think you could find the intensity you have in front of the public. That moment when you lose the notion of time.

    And paradoxically what troubled you after Attenberg was the intensity of the public scrutiny !

    Being exposed in a work of art has nothing to do with being exposed as yourself holding a world cup trophy.

    I can be naked, raw, give myself completely for a scene or a film, but to expose myself as Ariane Labed in the press is something I find completely uninteresting.

    ALPS by Yorgos Lanthimos - trailer. Best Screenplay at 2011 Venice International festival.

    So it’s rather the status of the “star” that troubles you rather than shooting itself ?

    Shooting is sublime. But I’m not sure of what the actress’ status is. I don’t think there’s a rule. It’s a crazy job, and I hope you can go about it your own way. At least that’s what I’m trying to do.

    You returned to Venice for ALPS, which won the prize for Best Scenario, how was it this time ?

    It was a holiday ! I took a lot of pleasure, and I was very happy for Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthimis Filipou [the writers].

    Let’s quickly talk about ALPS – when does the film come out ?

    In France I’m not sure, but in the UK in the Spring.

    How was this second film for you ?

    I was afraid. After the success of Attenberg, I put a lot of pressure on myself… I was telling myself again that maybe Tarantino was wrong, maybe I shouldn’t be on screens anymore….but it helped me to work even more.  It was a small role in ALPS, but which required 3 months of intense preparation, so I tried to make the most of shooting days and give my best. It was a very different experience.  Yorgos doesn’t work like Athina at all, he leaves the actors with a lot of doubt, and captures everything that slips through.

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