MADONNA MOMENT

YOU'RE SO FINE, AND YOU'RE MINE

Last look at Chanel Couture Fall 2010- July 6, 2010

COLOR ME BADD

I'm kind of sick of people's so-called "re-interpretation" of pop art, especially in the local art scene. I mean, if I see another artist painting him/herself in the light of a pop star, a pin-up girl or painting comic icons and cartoons and calling them art by giving them a lousy twist, I'm seriously going to throw up (which given the few pounds I want to shed, might come in handy, ha!).
So when I came across the following video, I should have probably closed the window, but instead, I was caught up in it. Like I think I've mentioned before, beautiful or cool looking visuals rarely get away with being good enough unless they have an essence to them and a concept to back them up. In Marina and the Diamonds' new video for her song Oh No!, the lyrics, the song title and everything make a perfect match with the pop aesthetic given to it. Thank GOD for music videos. Had I heard the song on the radio I would have probably liked it but not paid much attention to it. This video actually enhances the power of the song by creating a living cartoon out of the lyrics, adding a much-to-my-delight comical drama (is that an oxymoron?). I KNOW I've mentioned thoughts on my life as a musical about a thousand times by now, and that's probably why I'm in love with the video. I felt it was a mix between Ally McBeal and Björk's It's Oh So Quiet in a Lichtenstein world.
I have to say I LOVE the choices in wardrobe, they are just perfect, both for her and the back-up dancers. I think they manage to give the video a more contemporary feel. I also love those Pantone-inspired outfits, which many might think were probably designed especially for this video, but they are actually part of Henry Holland's Fall collection.  I just love when fashion and music share the same spirit and come together in work of art like this.

I'll watch the video again while I begin to write a letter asking her if she'll consider a name-change, it just happens to be shared by a most unfortunate person.
Here it is,  enjoy:

BEAUTY IS WHERE YOU FIND IT PART II

Part II of the show:

DÈJA VU

I've been thinking about how the 80's haven't ceased to make their comeback just yet. It started in the late 90's with the Adidas trademark stripes on everything and then kept slowly creeping up on us until there was no more denying it and then suddenly we were all wearing leggings once again. OK, maybe not all of us, but all our girl friends. Believe me, I have nothing against men's leggings but you've got to have a killer physique to pull them off AND then of course, I DO live in Lima, Peru, where I get "Barney" yelled at for wearing purple jeans...Ah! The Third World!
Back to our main subject, regarding the 80's and stuff (yes, I said "stuff"), it is common knowledge music and fashion go hand in hand most of the time. From disco to rock to rap to the next thing, we've seen and heard it all happen. Gianni Versace was one of the first designers to take advantage of this by signing Madonna, Prince and Elton John among others to star in his ad campaigns and by having all of them front row at his shows. This also reminds me Gianni would have turned 63 this year had he miraculously avoided that fatal encounter twelve years ago.


MADONNA IN A 1995 VERSACE AD SHOT BY STEVEN MEISEL


OK, now seriously, back to what brought me to my blog once again. I was paying close attention at how Lady GaGa and, on a very different level (at least up to now), Adam Lambert were adding so much NEEDED glam to the musical scene. It had been a long while since we had seen such attention grabbing theatrics from pop newcomers, the trend had been quite the contrary lately, just remember when Britney came out, then Christina (though she was quick to break from her initial image), Mandy Moore, etc. They all pretty much filled the same pattern.
I think it's refreshing to see people who are willing to challenge an audience that had become numbed by a flatlined scene. Now, this only applies to mainstream pop, I'm in no way trying to ignore the fascinating and amazing talents of the likes of Roisin Murphy and others who HAVE been doing their own "thing", pushing musical and fashion boundaries for QUITE A WHILE but have gone unnoticed by the masses. I mean, Roisin has been wearing avant garde wardrobe (including shoulder pads) for a loooooooong time.



She's wearing a deer-shaped jacket for Christ's sake... (and I love it).



Anyway, this glam thing going on in music is once again VERY 80's. I was just humming "When You Were Mine", thinking it was a Cyndi Lauper original only to find out it was actually performed first (and written) by Prince. However, her version stood out, I think. I youtubed it immediately and found a live performance from the American Music Awards I was happy to recognize as one I had seen many times as a child. Now THAT was a true GENUINE performance. And to think it was over 20 years ago. I think that was probably more shocking back in the day than what our discussed boundary-pushers have done at the last award ceremony held two weeks ago.
It'll be interesting to see how this new wave of pop artists that are embracing louder images shall influence people around the world. Maybe they will let more people bring out their flashy side and enjoy fashion as the role-playing game it can be.
Cyndi Lauper SURE was an influence back in the day, we've seen that hair and make-up on the street, don't you remember?
Here's her UH-mazing performance at the 1985 AMA's for "When You Were Mine". Enjoy.

NEUE-STALGIA

One of Lady Gaga's best songs on her debut album finally gets a video. I really like it, not in love with it (yet), I just think it's a good video. I do LOVE the wardrobe though (some of it reminds me of my own stuff hehe..) the choreography, and the make-up. I love the fact that she has so many dancers and that this time they are all male. It has been a long while since we've seen a new, fresh pop star with such a well-achieved image.
I know she gets a lot of criticism for some of her wardrobe choices but I think it's all good. I love how she's created this pop-superheroine persona and how as her success increases her image gets more and more polished and continues to evolve. What I mean by polished is that it gets closer to what I believe she had in mind for herself from the start of her career which could have been a limited version of her actual self due to different factors such as getting the right people to work with her, and yes, budget too.
I like to think I was the first person to listen to her here in Lima haha...I got to know her through Perez Hilton. It took FOREVER until she finally got some airplay over here. I've liked her ever since the Just Dance video, I like the song itself, her look and how it represents this younger generation's fascination for the 80's. I love how something, such as the 80's in this case, can appeal to almost three different generations in two different ways : for teenagers it's something new while for us late twenty-something's and beyond it's pure nostalgia.
Here's the video for Love Games, I think this one really says she's arrived. Enjoy.

BHUTTO BOLLYWOOD

It's been a month!! Bad blogger, bad. I definitely need to increase the frequency of my posts....
OK. I haven't shown any of my work up to now, but a special date has come across and I think it's the perfect chance to do so and get away with a little personal homage I've had in mind for a while.
December 27 was the first year anniversary of Benazir Bhutto's tragic death. She was the starting point for my latest collection. I took elements of her personal style mixed with details of muslim women's traditional wardrobe and, to lighten it up a bit, a little Bollywood too (main reference : the Jimmy Ajja part of the 80's movie Disco Dancer). Oh yes, 80's elements too.
I was able to take this collection and show at the September edition of the Salon du Prêt-à-Porter this year where I got great reviews. This collection was also nominated for the Collection of the Year category by Peru's leading newspaper, El Comercio, in it's Best of 2008 survey.