Accessorizing

Vado al Campo

Women at Work

Masters and Slaves

I Want To be a Living Work of Art

Masters and Slaves

The Mother Russia Complex

"It is a famine of beauty honey. My eyes are starving for beauty!"

by André Leon Talley

Strike a Pose

Blow

"People think that fashion is all frivolity and done by people who can’t do proper jobs but Issie understood that it is very, very serious business in terms of civilization and culture. It’s the one piece of culture that every single person in the world participates in. Not everybody reads poetry or listens to music, but every single person in the world gets up in the morning and puts on something, and whether you like it or not, that’s a statement about who you are."

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by Adrian Gill

Meanwhile in Lisbon...

Caspar David Friedrich, The wanderer above the sea of fog

"I, too, can command the wind, sir! I have a hurricane in me that will strip Spain bare when you dare to try me!"

Amen

“ I spent my entire life trying to avoid reality."

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by Karl Lagerfeld

Bacchus Vivat

Talk to me Hamish Bowles...

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What's the first piece you ever bought?

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Funnily enough it was a Balenciaga suit in a French navy wool from 1962. I got it at a jumble sale at Sadler’s Wells [Theatre in London]—a fundraiser for the ballet. They had a mini-auction, and one of the things was a Balenciaga embroidered bolero that Margot Fonteyn had given them. It sold for £60—much more than I could afford because I was about 11 at the time. I could afford the suit because it was 50p, and I always regretted the bolero and remembered it vividly. I walked into a vintage store in Los Angeles five years ago and the bolero was there, lacking its label. It’s now in the show.

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Do you have a favorite from your own collection?

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Some Galliano pieces from his first collection, and pieces I found through sleuthing, like a wonderful 1926 beaded Chanel dress, and a Schiaparelli jacket embroidered with cellophane from the late 1930s. Then things from designers that I think are unsung, like Mainbocher and Molyneux. I also have some wonderful mid-century ball gowns––so yes, plenty of things!
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Do you have any regrets over pieces that you've missed out on?

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Oh yes, endless––I lie awake at night. Things I've missed at auction, or foolishly haven't bought at vintage fairs. There are always regrets, but there is always another dress.

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Is there anyone whose wardrobe you would love to own in its entirety?

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Well, yes––the Met has quite a few doesn’t it! Mona Bismarck had fascinating things from the 20s through to the 60s. Pauline de Rothschild had wonderful taste. Daphne Guinness’s collection would be lovely to have, as would [the late] Isabella Blow’s…

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Regarding current or recent seasons, is there anything you suspect will become highly collectable?

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I’m intrigued by anyone who has a really strong point of view and has shaped fashion in various ways. So now I’d be interested in collecting Tom Ford’s work at Gucci and Saint Laurent, Nicolas Ghesquière, Alber Elbaz, Olivier Theyskens, Alexander McQueen, Helmut Lang. I’ve certainly been collecting early Gianni Versace. I’d love a great Rodarte piece; maybe a Christopher Kane piece. Designs that have been much photographed, much worn and have changed the look of fashion.

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in Nowness

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Balenciaga: Spanish Master

Info here

Quo Vadis?

Vanitas Vanitatum Omnia Vanitas

Rara Avis

Magister Dixit:

"I am fascinated by the whole process of what it's like to be alive, whether it's unbelievably uncomfortable and horrible or whether it's quite nice."

by Charlotte Rampling

1st Class

Il Gattopardo

Daphne On Blow:

"I miss darling Issie so, so much. She had a strong idea of the historical content of clothes, she had a sort of joy as well as enthusiasm and humour about fashion. You know a lot of people just thought ‘it’s Issie in a hat,’ but she was far more than that. She was highly educated and an incredible perfectionist. She was just an extraordinary human being."

by Daphne Guinness

Quo Vadis?