🎙️ Mary Katrantzou
I’ll never forget the first time I discovered the work of Mary Katrantzou. It was in London in 2008 I believe, and I just happened to wander into a room where a rack of her now-famous perfume bottle printed dresses was on display. On hand was her mother who was proudly showing off the stunning creations her daughter had dreamt up.
I’ll never forget the first time I discovered the work of Mary Katrantzou. It was in London in 2008 I believe, and I just happened to wander into a room where a rack of her now-famous perfume bottle printed dresses was on display. On hand was her mother who was proudly showing off the stunning creations her daughter had dreamt up.
Mary Katrantzou
And Mary’s mom had every right to be proud. Her work was unlike anything else going on in fashion at that time. Advancements in printing and computer technology had made it possible for this young woman to create architectural designs on fluid fabrics. Blending beautifully her passion for interior designs and her studies in the field of architecture at Rhode Island School of Design with her Bachelor of Arts in Textile Design and her Master’s in Fashion from Central Saint Martins. But it wasn’t just the print work that set Mary apart from the pack,it was that combined with her choice of vibrant rainbow colorways. The result was a collection that was the harbinger of the 2010s colorful print fashion revolution.
Since she started her signature brand in 2008 Mary, who was born in Athens, Greece, has found a way to modernize trompe l’oeil, help women fall in love with print and color again, and showed the world that clashing aesthetics can be boldly feminine and empowering. This is why powerful women like Michelle Obama, Cate Blanchett, Beyoncé, Lizzo, Jane Fonda, and Zendaya have all flocked to her creations.
But Mary’s success goes beyond her ability to reinvent her core design principles every season. She is a very savvy businesswoman who saw early on in her career the power that collaborating with other creatives and brands could have in expanding her reach and name recognition. Her recent partnership with the high jewelry company Bulgari on a line of limited edition bags is a perfect example of this. But so is her work with Victoria’s Secret, Longchamp, Topshop, and Adidas Original. And her recent decision to create the size-inclusive year-round holiday capsule collection called Mary-Mare also is indicative of how Mary is able to deftly read the fashion tea leaves as the industry shifts away from seasonal shows and moves into a space where smaller drops throughout a year feels more in keeping with the times we live in.
With over a decade in fashion, Mary Katrantzou is still innovating and challenging herself as a creative, and her devoted clients couldn’t be happier.
Photo from Athens Insider.
🎙️ Spencer Phipps
Designer Spencer Phipps is a born risk-taker. There isn’t a limb on his body that doesn’t have a scar from one escapade or another - that he jumped into with both feet before asking questions. The man is even missing a significant portion of one of his pinkie fingers from one memorable misadventure. And when it comes to taking risks, Spencer also has no problem doing that in business. It was, after all, an impulse decision to launch his signature menswear brand Phipps back in 2017. When, after having worked alongside Marc Jacobs and Dries van Noten, he found himself looking to make his next move and couldn’t find a fashion house that ticked all the boxes. So instead he decided to start his own.
Designer Spencer Phipps is a born risk-taker. There isn’t a limb on his body that doesn’t have a scar from one escapade or another - that he jumped into with both feet before asking questions. The man is even missing a significant portion of one of his pinkie fingers from one memorable misadventure. And when it comes to taking risks, Spencer also has no problem doing that in business. It was, after all, an impulse decision to launch his signature menswear brand Phipps back in 2017. When, after having worked alongside Marc Jacobs and Dries van Noten, he found himself looking to make his next move and couldn’t find a fashion house that ticked all the boxes. So instead he decided to start his own.
Spencer Phipps
Designer Spencer Phipps is a born risk-taker. There isn’t a limb on his body that doesn’t have a scar from one escapade or another - that he jumped into with both feet before asking questions. The man is even missing a significant portion of one of his pinkie fingers from one memorable misadventure. And when it comes to taking risks, Spencer also has no problem doing that in business. It was, after all, an impulse decision to launch his signature menswear brand Phipps back in 2017. When, after having worked alongside Marc Jacobs and Dries van Noten, he found himself looking to make his next move and couldn’t find a fashion house that ticked all the boxes. So instead he decided to start his own.
Spencer, who was born and raised in San Francisco and graduated with a degree from Parsons in New York, has over the past four years created for himself a label that scratches a very interesting sartorial itch. His clothing celebrates timeless American wardrobe staples that allude to wide open places, outdoor activities, and manly pursuits. Garments that Spencer has designed so that they revere nature, appreciate the artisanal hand, and seek to leave as little an impact as possible on the planet. While simultaneously his goal is to have them hold a long-term place of honor in a man’s closet, another sustainable pursuit.
From its inception, one of the pillars of the Phipps brand has been its commitment to sustainable sourcing and responsible manufacturing. For the designer, this means both leveraging the latest technology in terms of construction and production, as well as fine-tuning a list of transparent, sustainable suppliers that he works with regularly. His fervent commitment to crafting clothing that makes an impact but doesn't leave one on the Earth is one of the reasons why Spencer was an LVMH prize finalist in 2019 and, after just two seasons, the brand was added to the official Paris Fashion Week: Menswear calendar.
But if I am being completely honest, on top of all the reasons I have already mentioned, Spencer is just a really cool guy that you always have fun hanging out with, as you will discover yourself with this interview.
Photo from GQ Magazine.
🎙️ Joseph Altuzarra
You get the sense, when you speak to designer Joseph Altuzarra, that he is that perfect combination of creativity and commerce. That as a French American, he has an innate sense of style coursing through his veins. While his American roots give him savvy business sense and a “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” attitude.
You get the sense, when you speak to designer Joseph Altuzarra, that he is that perfect combination of creativity and commerce. That as a French American, he has an innate sense of style coursing through his veins. While his American roots give him savvy business sense and a “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” attitude.
Joseph Altuzarra
From a young age, Joseph - who was raised by his French Basque father and Chinese- American mother - has always believed in the transformative power of fashion. A self-taught designer who got a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art and Art History from Swarthmore College, his approach to this sartorial art form has always been focused on how the clothes someone chooses to wear tell a larger story. It can be the story of who that individual is or it can be one about the person they hope to become. That clothing telegraphs a message to the world about how we see ourselves.
As luck would have it, Joseph landed an internship in the design studio of Marc Jacobs in 2004 and he went on to work with Proenza Schouler before getting tapped by Riccardo Tisci to join him in Paris and become the designer’s first apprentice during his tenure at Givenchy.
Then in 2008, Joseph returned to New York to strike out on his own. And from the moment he launched his signature brand, his work stood out from the other fashion collections being shown at New York Fashion Week. His sexy, sensual aesthetic that wove together elements of his multicultural heritage into his designs did not fit into the American Sportswear approach of many of his peers at that time.
But standing out from the crowd served Joseph well. He was honored with the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Award in 2011 and the CFDA Swarovski Award for Womenswear Design in 2012. He was then named the winner of the US Woolmark Prize in 2013 and in 2014 he nabbed the CFDA Womenswear Designer of the Year Award.
Suffice to say, Joseph, with his accolades, his brand collaboration with Target, and his stint as a judge on the first season of the Amazon Prime television series “Making the Cut” turned Altuzarra into a household name. And now with his label well established in the fashion industry, Joseph is thinking about where he wants to take things from here.
In our conversation, we discuss what the future holds for this talented designer as he looks at his career from a post-pandemic perspective. A viewpoint that has been changed by the arrival of his daughter Emma and a desire to lead a balanced and intentional life. But one that will always have fashion at its heart.
Photo © Bruno Staub.
🎙️ Alisa Volskaya
I wanted to interview Alisa Volskaya, the founder of the public relations firm AVEC, for a few reasons. First of all, every time I would bump into her at a fashion show or event, our conversations about the state of the industry, future trends, and fashion in general always went well past surface chit-chat. Secondly, I was impressed by her drive and third, it just takes a lot of guts to launch a PR company during a moment when that field is in the middle of such a paradigm shift. Not to mention doing it in 2020, the year the world stood still.
I wanted to interview Alisa Volskaya, the founder of the public relations firm AVEC, for a few reasons. First of all, every time I would bump into her at a fashion show or event, our conversations about the state of the industry, future trends, and fashion in general always went well past surface chit-chat. Secondly, I was impressed by her drive and third, it just takes a lot of guts to launch a PR company during a moment when that field is in the middle of such a paradigm shift. Not to mention doing it in 2020, the year the world stood still.
Alisa Volskaya
Alisa started out her career working at Condé Nast International in Paris and was in charge of the fashion publishing house’s digital projects and partnerships. In 2015, she became the Executive Director at Naked Heart France, a charity founded by the top model and philanthropist Natalia Vodianova, where she was in charge of international fundraising and partnerships. Then just five years later, she decided to go out on her own and launch her firm AVEC.
Alisa’s PR philosophy is right there in the name of her business - AVEC. She sees the work that she does for brands like Chaumet, Ralph Lauren, Chopard, and Balmain as a real partnership. One where her role is to be there with the companies every step of the way in their strategy journey, from conception to completion. But what exactly does that mean in the post-pandemic, social media-centric metaverse world we now inhabit? Alisa, just like every other time I have spoken with her, had some insightful and sometimes surprising answers.
🎙️ Alexandre De Betak
Consummate creative Alexandre de Betak is an industry touchpoint in the world of fashion. He is behind some of the most era-defining fashion shows, events, and exhibitions of the past three decades. The proverbial man behind the curtain, Alex has brought to life the visions of designers as diverse as Raf Simons, Michael Kors, and Gabriela Hearst, and brands big and small, from Dior and YSL to Jacquemus and Rodarte.
Consummate creative Alexandre de Betak is an industry touchpoint in the world of fashion. He is behind some of the most era-defining fashion shows, events, and exhibitions of the past three decades. The proverbial man behind the curtain, Alex has brought to life the visions of designers as diverse as Raf Simons, Michael Kors, and Gabriela Hearst, and brands big and small, from Dior and YSL to Jacquemus and Rodarte.
Alexandre De Betak
Throughout our fascinating conversation, we talk about where the spark of creativity comes from, how to keep those creative juices flowing, and how Alex is instilling in his own children that desire to experiment, to explore, and to see the world, and what it could be from different perspectives. Perspectives that will help those around them also experience a moment in new ways that challenge, delight, and mesmerize.
💭 Gherardo Felloni for ODDA Magazine
In just under three years, Gherardo Felloni, the creative director of Roger Vivier, has put a new spring in the step of one of the world’s most famous souliers. Since his arrival at the French house, Felloni has given Vivier a fresh joie de vivre with his introduction of the first-ever Vivier sneaker, his unforgettable fashion week collection presentations, and his cinematic style of brand storytelling. Felloni’s infectious positive attitude and his light-hearted approach to shoemaking are however grounded in over 20 years of designing footwear for some of the biggest luxury brands, including Prada and Dior. Not to mention his father and uncle are also shoemakers. For Felloni fashionable footwear is a way of life.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
GHERARDO FELLONI
In just under three years, Gherardo Felloni, the creative director of Roger Vivier, has put a new spring in the step of one of the world’s most famous souliers. Since his arrival at the French house, Felloni has given Vivier a fresh joie de vivre with his introduction of the first-ever Vivier sneaker, his unforgettable fashion week collection presentations, and his cinematic style of brand storytelling. Felloni’s infectious positive attitude and his light-hearted approach to shoemaking are however grounded in over 20 years of designing footwear for some of the biggest luxury brands, including Prada and Dior. Not to mention his father and uncle are also shoemakers. For Felloni fashionable footwear is a way of life.
Portrait by PIERRE EMMANUEL TESTARD @BeaumondeParis, Grooming RICHARD BLANDEL @WebmasterB-Agency
JESSICA MICHAULT. In Tuscany, where you grew up, you were surrounded by the world of shoe design. Do you feel like it was always your calling? And what were the big lessons you learned from your uncle and father, who were shoemakers, during those early formative years?
GHERARDO FELLONI. For me, it isn't easy to describe when the passion became alive. I grew up in a shoe factory. My uncle and father had a shoe factory since 1958. They used to work on shoes for luxury brands. So my passion for shoes has always been there. So it is actually really difficult to determine the moment where it became a passion, it was just always a part of me. From my uncle, the biggest lesson that I learned was that shoes have to be comfortable because you always have to remember that there is going to be a foot inside them. If your feet aren’t comfortable then you can’t really be happy. That is something that my uncle was really attached to. From my father, one of the biggest lessons that I learned was that you cannot force someone to do something they cannot do. You have to take the best from everyone on your team and use those talents so that they do their best work for you.
JM. Before joining Roger Vivier you worked with Miuccia Prada and John Galliano. What did your time working with both those houses teach you?
GF. I started with Prada and it was a big privilege to be there, it was completely another world than what I had known before. Then I worked for Dior with both John [Galliano] and Raf Simons. The experience was quite eclectic. One thing I learned during that time, working at those houses, was that sometimes I was too sure of myself. On one hand, this was a good thing because I was confident but at a certain point, sometimes that confidence can lead you to make something that was wrong. Wrong in fashion means you can do something that is sometimes too far in advance, or too old. Sometimes I would propose things that were out of the blue, way out of context. One of the important things in fashion for me is the context because I do not want to make fashion political at all. But fashion is the manifestation of the society we are living in. It is really important to be attached to reality in a way.
JM. When you joined Roger Vivier it already had a pretty famous origins story and your predecessor had been at the house for over 15 years. What did you feel was your biggest challenge stepping into those shoes as the new creative director?
GF. In the beginning, I was scared. But even though I was scared I still tried to get this job because it was my dream. Finally, I decided to just act as usual because I had over 20 years of experience. I have realized after all these years that the best thing to do is to approach fashion with your own taste. You have to be happy with your product, and you have to be convinced. That makes things real, consistent, and people will understand. Someone may not like what you propose but they will understand that you did it with your heart and vision.
JM. What I love about your tenure at the house is how playful and fun it has become. You seem to take having fun with the footwear very seriously.
GF. It is the same in show business and movies. When you have to communicate something funny, something happy, it is the most difficult thing to do. It is a projection. I think fashion is linked to happiness because we are selling dreams. For me, it is more challenging to do something fun than something serious. In the last year, fashion lost a bit of its sense of humor. For me, I am not taking myself seriously in any case.
“I have realized after all these years that the best thing to do is to approach fashion with your own taste. You have to be happy with your product, and you have to be convinced. That makes things real, consistent, and people will understand. Someone may not like what you propose but they will understand that you did it with your heart and vision.”
JM. Your Hotel Vivier presentations during Paris Fashion Week have always been a highlight of the week; so much fun and energy. Why was that sort of outlandish presentation important for you?
GF. When I proposed the idea, everyone looked at me like I was crazy. But I thought that I had to do what I liked so people would understand and enjoy it. I did not have a silhouette because I did not have ready to wear. It was really crucial for the shoes to be linked with the silhouette and body. So I hired actresses to wear the shoes at the presentations instead of models because we needed the character that actresses bring. We needed what they had inside. Everybody was shocked but I had the chance to show what was in my mind. I like women that do something, not just their bodies. They are powerful. We have to be linked with that.
JM. One key element that you have brought to the house is a real cinematic flair for storytelling with lots of enticing little videos. Tell me more about the thinking behind this approach to connecting with your customer.
GF. The idea of a cinematic point of view comes from two reasons. One, because I really love cinema and acting. It feels like it is in my DNA. Two, I believe that in the code of Vivier is cinema. These kinds of shoes change the silhouette. I think that Roger Vivier’s mainstream success comes from movies. So I thought let’s go back to the basics, let’s start with a cinematic point of view to tell the new Roger Vivier story.
JM. In terms of the way you work, how do you like to create? Do you have tricks to get you in the creative mood?
GF. I am really basic. It means that I work on a train, plane, alone, or in a team. For me, it is really natural. There isn’t anything that I really need or feel that is important for me to start sketching shoe designs. Sometimes I ask myself why this is, how is it possible that I can just start sketching anywhere, anytime. But I think it is because I started really young in this business. When I was 18 years old I could draw 100 pairs of shoes in a day. Even if I have someone in front of me that is in the middle of demolishing a wall, I can still do my job. I feel that this skill is actually what makes it possible for me to continue to do this job. It comes from me easily, which is good because being the creative director of Roger Vivier today is so much more than just designing the shoes. I have so much more to do, so if I couldn’t design in any situation it would make this job a lot harder.
JM. Tell me, what was the reaction like when you announced that you would be launching the first-ever Roger Vivier sneaker, the Viv’ Run?
GF. The reaction was really cool because it was one of our best sellers. I think it is a beautiful sneaker and one of the first shoes that I drew for Vivier. It was a Christmas holiday and I did not start my job here at Roger Vivier until the next February. I was thinking of something that Vivier missed, and that was the running shoe. Today the running shoe is something that is normal. So to be contemporary you need it because it is something women wear. That is the beautiful thing about women today, there are so many women in one. Today, you wear sneakers because you need to walk somewhere but tomorrow you are going to dress up in super high heels. This is what I love about my job, getting to create shoes for all women and all the different things they do.
JM. Roger Vivier’s shoes have been worn by some of the world’s most beautiful and powerful women. Who are the new Vivier women who you feel embody your vision for the house?
GF. This question for me is silly because it is contradictory to say that I have a muse, which is really easy in fashion to say. I have this curiosity that goes in all directions. I am not interested in one particular type of woman for Roger Vivier. Of course, these women can understand the value of the shoes and bags we are selling. But their features do not matter, what they look like doesn't matter, I am really clear about this. But I do love women who have a job and do something. I love when they are self-realized. That is why it is easy to find women for Vivier.
“I do love women who have a job and do something. I love when they are self-realized. That is why it is easy to find women for Vivier.”
JM. Besides your love of shoes, what other passions do you have?
GF. I studied opera for years, I did a conservatory here in Paris. I am a tenor. But I stopped singing because I have too many things to do now. But I studied music, and I would love to be a composer, but for now, that is not possible. I also have a large antique jewelry collection. I have been wearing antique jewelry for over 20 years, long before it was fashionable, or even acceptable for men to wear jewelry. Otherwise, I like gardening, I am lucky enough to have a garden in Paris and I do it all by myself. I also love interior design and many other things, but those are the top ones.
JM. How has the pandemic affected you and your work? How are you remaining positive during this time?
GF. We are in a bad moment, but in the history books, there were worse times. I want to be positive. The pandemic is very heavy but it can be worse. That is the positive attitude. It is a sanitary problem but I think the social problem is going to be bigger after this pandemic. Now, I start to think that this pandemic has a big social impact. It changed something in us, for example now when you see someone touch someone it is scary. So I am curious to see how this pandemic will affect us socially, in our relationships, in the future.
JM. Ok, but when we can all come together again, what is the first thing you want to do?
GF. In my job, I will start to go back to the office often because I like to work here with my people. I will do a new show with Vivier because you feel something that you cannot feel digitally, so that is important to me. For me personally, I want to go to swimming pools and restaurants. Simple pleasures. History is really scary, and you cannot predict the future either. But if you look at the past, it was like this before. After a moment like this, people become unified.
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by CHARLENE FRETT
Photographer SANTIAGO SIERRA SOLER
Creative director DAVID MARTIN
Fashion editor SHARON CHITRIT
Casting director KEGAN WEBB
Model TEDDY QUINLIVAN and JULIE HARDIN @VisionLA, JAMES BAEK @SelectModelManagamentLA, NAYTHAN COTNE @Photogenics, and SKYLER CARON @LAModels
Make-up artist FRANCESCA MARTIN using CHANEL BEAUTY
Hair stylist LISA-MARIE POWELL using R+CO BLEU
Producer ABIGAIL JONES
Photographer assistant DANIEL VAN DER DEEN
Fashion assistant ARIANA VELAZQUEZ
💭 Andie MacDowell for ODDA Magazine
Long-distance soul sisters actress Andie MacDowell and acclaimed author Anne Lamott connect online for a powerful and heartfelt conversation. Where they share openly and freely about their experiences of co-dependent childhoods caring for alcoholic parents and how they have used their artistic voices to work through the pain of the past. How spirituality and a connection to nature and animals have helped them to heal and their hopes for their children and the future.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
ANDIE MacDOWELL
Long-distance soul sisters actress Andie MacDowell and acclaimed author Anne Lamott connect online for a powerful and heartfelt conversation. Where they share openly and freely about their experiences of co-dependent childhoods caring for alcoholic parents and how they have used their artistic voices to work through the pain of the past. How spirituality and a connection to nature and animals have helped them to heal and their hopes for their children and the future.
ANNE LAMOTT: I think we should start off with a little prayer Andie.
ANDIE MACDOWELL: Awhh you might make me cry, but go for it! It might make me calm down.
A.L. Alright, let’s have a deep cleansing breath. Close our eyes and settle down into our hearts and our center and out of our crazy pinball machine minds. Mother, father, God, source, and creator, and sustainer we are your very loving daughters who have loved each other for a long time, but are just meeting now. So my prayer is that today I just get to know my sister, and I want to let her get to know me. And I hope that what we say will be of help to people who read this someday, who might be feeling weak or ashamed or alone. I just pray that our words might be bread for the journey for whoever ends up hearing us today and we just thank you in advance for all of your tender mercies so far and still to come and for helping us figure this out as we go.
A.M. Thank you so much, Anne! You did make me cry...so much for the makeup job! (laughing).
A.L. Andie, I feel like we know each other because we have loved each other for so long, even though we have never met. One time, a couple of years ago, I was raising money to help girls in Uganda learn how to do electrical repairs and how to repair cars and I put out the word that we needed money, and I couldn’t believe that you sent me so much!
A.M. Oh, I should have sent more!
“My kids get it, they see how much fear there is in my body. That I panic a lot. They understand where that comes from. But I feel bad because they have had to take care of me, in some sense and that is just the repercussions of the damage that was done to me.”
A.L. No, no... but, I realized that you and I are on the same path, that by giving, we receive. I was so blown away by how much you gave us, that was like the equivalent of three months of teaching girls and women how to have futures! They were able to start brand new chapters of their lives.
A.M. Yeah, when you are doing stuff like that, and you hear what these women are doing, it really puts stuff in perspective, doesn’t it? It is like all the things that I am worried about just become so small. But you know my experience of that moment, being in my loneliness and having you communicate with me through Twitter was so touching to me. That is one of the interesting things I think about technology, especially now with COVID, because I am kind of a lonely soul and I am not a hugely social person and I feel inadequate in so many ways. But I see people on Instagram and I can talk to them that way. I find that fascinating, that you can actually, I mean I met you and first talked to you through Twitter!
A.L. It was your heart talking to me and my heart talking to you because we couldn’t be together in a physical space. Because we are fond of each other and bonded in some way, it just makes me believe that the space-time continuum is not all it is cracked up to be. We have some kind of umbilical connection. I have never gotten to hug you or kiss you, or take a bite of your food, but we will. And in the meantime, there was this other thing, outside the continuum, where we just fully rocked each other.
A.M. But I think so much of that comes from your books. You found a soul sister in me because in your books you are so real and so honest. And you are so self-deprecating and funny and you are not ashamed to show that you are not perfect and that you make mistakes. I have just re-listened to three of your books, and there is this one part where you talk about having thoughts about wanting to jump off of a building, and a priest says to you “who doesn’t”. I thought that was so funny and charming because I have a lot of those neuroses inside of me, like neurotic thoughts. Like when I moved to Venice Beach in California, there are these tsunami signs all over the place and I became very obsessed with the idea that I was going to be caught up in a tsunami, I almost felt like the ocean was going to suck me in.
A.L. I wouldn’t call it neurotic behavior, I think it is how we survived having parents that were so damaged. We both grew up around alcoholism. I had unhappy parents, there was alcoholism and blackbelt level co-dependence and I was this perfect little girl. I am 67 next month and I have spent my whole life recovering from perfectionism because it is the voice of the oppressor, the voice of the enemy. Because when I was 5 years old and my baby brother was born, I felt like I was handed a clipboard and I was handed a caseload. I had to help dad not drink too much and not have affairs. I had to help my mother who was very very heavy, and I had an older brother who was unhappy with me and I had this little baby to take care of too. And one of my survival tools, besides trying to save and fix and rescue them all with my little clipboard, was to anticipate what might go wrong. And I remember being at the dentist office in this tall building in San Francisco when I was a little, back when you could still open the windows, and I remember being drawn to the open window in the waiting room, and I could feel some energy pulling me towards the open window. I remember digging my heels into the ground and holding onto the chair I was sitting in to keep me from going to the window. But all of these survival tools I learned as a kid are what I have spent most of my life trying to heal from.
A.M. Yes, I can totally relate, I have a lot of PTSD. Right after I was born, my mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia and they gave her shock treatments. I was taken away from her when I was very young, so who knows what that did to me psychologically. When she came back she became a full-blown alcoholic, that is how she dealt with her issues, there was no support system or real resources back then. Now we are much more compassionate with people who have these kinds of issues. And with my kids, we talk about all kinds of stuff, there is none of the shame that there was back then when everything was so hush-hush. So I feel like we are evolving as humans. My kids get it, they see how much fear there is in my body, that I panic a lot. They understand where that comes from. But I feel bad because they have had to take care of me, in some sense, and that is just the repercussions of the damage that was done to me. I have so many horrible memories. But I tell my kids, “you can do better. Each generation can do better, you can have a better family.”
And it is so interesting because the role that I am playing now in this new series I am shooting, called “Maid”, the character’s name is Paula, and my mother’s name is Paula and in the script, she is manic depressive. That is not really what my mother was, but there are components and pieces that I understand.
A.L. Tell me more about this Paula that you are inhabiting now.
A.M. Well, what is really interesting is I have a really great relationship with all of my kids, but I was shocked when I got the call that my youngest daughter [actress Margaret Qualley] wanted to work with me. Because she has been so independent of me, she really wanted to make her own way in the business, because people have this tendency to take your power away, and people would say things to her like “it’s been easy for you”. She is really good at accepting the fact that she has had privilege, she is such a smart young lady. She is really brilliant and really with it. But honestly, it doesn’t really work that way, yes she might get the door open, because of me, but that is as far as it goes, you know, you have to be able to do it, do the work, and that is up to her, I can’t do it for her. So I was so surprised when she wanted to work with me on this project. Plus the job is such a great job, and it is a big job, with Netflix and the director John Wells. And the character is unbelievable! Once I read the script I was like “Oh God I can’t believe I have been given this gift”. The writing is really good - it’s a dark comedy which is really my comfortable place. And getting to dig into some scenes that are really really vulnerable and not always nice was amazing. My character is often the life of the party and she is really out there and her thinking is very bright and interesting. She is very dynamic and powerful and overly sexual, extremely overly sexual, that is her force that makes her feel ok! And my daughter’s character is the opposite, so it’s a really interesting dynamic.
A.L. So I want to ask you a bit about growing up in the deep south and how that determined who you grew up to be, both good and bad.
A.M. It was interesting. Because my mother didn’t pay any attention to me when I was little. I was very very free and I got to do what I wanted to do from a very young age and I would spend most of my time outside and barefoot doing whatever I wanted to do. Back behind my house was an old Antebellum house and I would go over there as a kid and play. And we had another neighbor, he was a sweet man and he ended up having a stroke so he was bedridden and couldn’t speak. My sister and I would go over there as kids and we would dance for him. I think we had kindness in our hearts but I also think there was a bit of morbid fascination as well, you know, we were children. And I remember his wife was just lovely. But the guy with the Antebellum house, I found out later he was part of the KKK, and I remember these little Black children would come by on their bicycles and I was completely terrified and I would run up the hill and tell them to be careful and not to come around this man. Some of the stuff that I saw as a child, that the rest of my family had no idea I was seeing, was fascinating. So there is this kind of mixture, when I look back on my childhood, of happiness and darkness all mixed together.
A.L. I wanted to know if you would feel comfortable talking about your spiritual evolution and how you on a daily basis do radical self-care and tend to your own soul?
A.M. I should probably do more. But what I do is I hike every day. I am not good at meditating. I can’t sit down and stay still. I think that is leftover anxiety stuff. I always need to keep busy, you know, clean the shelves and stuff like that. But I walk every day and I think that is how I pray. And what I try to do is not get lost in my head, but to stay present, to hear the birds, and to see the sun and the sky. I try not to take a mental trip somewhere else. I also love doing yoga. But I have a question for you - you got married for the first time in your sixties, what was that like? Because I am 62 and I have been alone for so long now I can’t even imagine sharing the bed anymore. I really like sleeping alone, I like taking up all the space. I am so independent now I just don’t know if I could do it….
A.L. You know, all truth is paradox…. I got married three days after I got Medicare. I mean I didn’t see a lot of happy marriages that I would agree to be in, which was the main thing for me. I mostly see marriages where the wife takes on a lot more of everything. Not just the housework but she ends up being the therapist, and the minister, and the sex worker, and of course raising the children. I also was not very good at picking men. And with Neal [Allen], we met on a dating site for people over 50. And the thing is, he is allergic to cats, and my whole life is cats. So I thought to myself “well I don’t want to be with him because he could never come to my house and I hate to leave my house and I prefer to be alone”.
A.M. Me too!
A.L. And he likes to be with people and he likes to talk. Whereas I can go days without talking. I just read. But he told me this trick, if you put Brewer’s yeast in the kibble that would help with the allergies. So then after about a year of dating - and he is so funny and smart and handsome and tall and spiritual - one day he just turned to me and asked me to marry him. I was so shocked. And the thing is, we had just lost our old cat and so I said to him, well can we get another cat? And he said ok, so then I said: “ok I’ll marry you!.”
In conversation with ANNE LAMOTT
Conversation curated by JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by EMMELEIA DALIWAN
Photographer JUSTIN ARANHA
Fashion editor MARIAELENA MORELLI
Creative director DAVID MARTIN
Make-up artist and hair stylist ANYA ELLIS @LizbellAgency
Photographer assistant PATRICK MENARD
Fashion assistants EMILY GRAY @LizbellAgency and ROBERTA CONSOLE
Special thanks to NANCY AND LOUIS from THRULINE
💭 Cyrill Gutsch for ODDA Magazine
Cyrill Gutsch is the visionary founder of the company Parley for the Oceans, an organization dedicated to leveraging a community of creators, innovators, and decision-makers to help raise awareness about the fragile state of the world's oceans. Gutsch is leveraging his network of big thinkers to come up with, and implement, outside the box strategies that have a singular goal, saving the seas. Ian Urbina, the Pulitzer winning investigative journalist, has spent years on the high seas reporting on the lawlessness that exists offshore. That experience resulted in the book “The Outlaw Ocean,” which was recently purchased by Netflix and Leonardo DiCaprio. Both men are drawn to the big blue as a place of beauty, danger, loneliness, and freedom. But most of all its critical role in the future of humanity on this planet.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
CYRILL GUTSCH
Cyrill Gutsch is the visionary founder of the company Parley for the Oceans, an organization dedicated to leveraging a community of creators, innovators, and decision-makers to help raise awareness about the fragile state of the world's oceans. Gutsch is leveraging his network of big thinkers to come up with, and implement, outside the box strategies that have a singular goal, saving the seas. Ian Urbina, the Pulitzer winning investigative journalist, has spent years on the high seas reporting on the lawlessness that exists offshore. That experience resulted in the book “The Outlaw Ocean,” which was recently purchased by Netflix and Leonardo DiCaprio. Both men are drawn to the big blue as a place of beauty, danger, loneliness, and freedom. But most of all its critical role in the future of humanity on this planet.
CYRILL GUTSCH. Do you remember the moment when we first connected, when you had just come back from your investigation and landed in the Maldives?
IAN URBINA. This crazy German guy I knew started texting me when I barely made it with my photographer out of Somalia. We had gotten caught in a really tough bind and on the way back to U.A.E. and on the flight, I got a text from this guy named Cyrill saying I was needed in the Maldives. I didn't even know where the Maldives were. I was pretty fried and it was quite a contrast to go from Mogadishu to the gorgeous place in the Maldives where Cyrill was soon to be setting up a Parley center.
CG. For some, the ocean is a symbol of peace. We connect remote beaches to the perfect holiday. On the other hand, it is one of the most violent places on earth. Can you describe that space, “The Outlaw Ocean,” this place without laws that you see in contrast to what people usually see at sea?
IU. I don’t mean to undermine the first part of what you said, because it is no less true in the context of my reporting. It is true that the ocean is this existentially gorgeous place. It is beautifully different and through literature, philosophy, and law you can see in history how the ocean was always a place where people got away from life to open their horizons. All of those things are true but because it has always been that and it has always been culturally and legally protected like that, it is this extra-legal space, especially the high-sea that has been defined as this separate space like the atmosphere or Antarctica that don’t belong to anyone, yet belong to all of us. Also, just because of the geography of the space it would be difficult to enforce someone owning a part of it. For all of those reasons, the extra-legal nature of it means that you can do whatever you want and get away with it much easier than you would be able to on land. There is no one out there to stop you. Most people are good and do not engage in bad behavior, but those who do engage in it can do it without real worry.
CG. Technically, it would be possible to see everything that is happening at sea. There are listening devices, satellites, and all types of technology. Where do you think there is that lack of motivation who is watching to interfere with crimes on the high-sea?
IU. I think that you are quite right. The technology is there to see everything out there. It is still fairly expensive. Not for the developed north, but for the rest of the undeveloped countries, it is completely out of reach for governments, citizens, or companies to afford that level of monitoring. But that could change too if there was more collective will to put more satellites up there and to make the satellites more affordable. What is lacking is the centralized will. The nature of politics, governments, the turnover rate of governments. The fact that the organizations that deal with the ocean lack a lobby. The people that work with water generally lack lawyers and journalists that represent their interests. On the opposing side, the ones who want to industrially extract the ocean have a lot of motivations. All of those things put barriers on the government monitoring the ocean although the technology is very much there.
CG. I opened the conference in South Korea about the ocean and they only talked about how they could exploit the sea. I suggested that they should just give the sea a break. I expected that they would throw me out of the room but they applauded me. The defense minister told me that they knew that there was not much fish out there and had many vessels coming back empty. There is a harsh reality that we are this super predator. How do you see the state of the ocean and how life is out there in your eyes?
IU. In some ways, if you look at the historical arc of fishing in the last three decades, it has moved almost from hunting to agriculture because of the advances in technology. In the old days, it was as much an art as it was a science. A good fishing captain would have all sorts of specialized wisdom about the best and often secretive techniques. Now, the key advances have been engines in their efficiency, cold storage for the fish, and filament strength of nets. Also, the sonar and satellite technology means that there is no mystery as to where the fish are. All those things mean that commercial fishing has become dangerously efficient, unsustainably efficient. The extraction that is occurring is way outpacing the replenishment. Personally, I would love to hear about the status of this amazing thing you are doing in the Maldives with Parley.
CG. It was very interesting for us because we started working in the Maldives five years ago. It was the first government that signed a membership agreement with Parley. The president came to New York and we announced together that we are going to turn the Maldives into a future island nation. The idea was to cut down the use of fossil fuels to constitute a battle against climate change. The damage is obvious. The president committed to becoming a champion of fighting against marine plastic pollution as well. This country was really oversaturated with trash. There is debris everywhere. We agreed on a very aggressive agenda and they are moving forward quite well. We consult them on how to change laws, we work with local industry, and the tourism industry as well. We really want to make the country a role model but it is rough. It is a small country with only 500,000 people living there and it is still rough to change a country fast. We want to tackle the problems of marine pollution, but also at some point climate change and illegal fishing. What was remarkable is that in 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, we were able to secure an agreement with the World Bank. They endorsed our strategy, “Parley AIR.” “Avoid, Intercept, and Redesign.” These three pillars to fight marine plastic pollution. Together, we declared war on marine plastic pollution in South Asia with 10 countries on board. That was a big milestone for us. Suddenly, we are able to think globally. We are able to talk to people who can actually change the fate of a country and we have access to funding in a totally different dimension. It comes with a new challenge of navigating that type of administration that we are not so used to.
IU. Pivot for a second, and talk to me about when you do a partnership with corporate players, such as Adidas. Specifically you work on really investigating, improving, and innovating the supply chains within companies.
CG. All the environmental issues that we face today are caused by the economy. It is business really that is creating these problems. Narrowing it down, it is the materials and production methods. When you want to drive change at a rapid speed, you have to approach it in a systematic way. Our approach is to go forward with these things called epicenters. We pick potential champions in these industries and turn them around. The rest of the industry has to follow or else they are losing competitive advantage. Even if they don’t realize why they should help, they have to, or else they are being outperformed. That is exactly what we needed to prove. It took us two years to negotiate a contract with Adidas. The end of last year marked five years of our partnership.
Suddenly, a brand becomes a corporate activist that has carried ending plastic as their main campaign where Parley became their main strategic partner. The cause of fighting plastic suddenly was embedded in the business model and that is new. Suddenly, brands stand up and don’t just give a donation. They say that they could be part of a new economy where the purpose is the core of our DNA. That has not happened before on this large scale. This caused a drastic shift in how shareholders look at their entities. What happened in the last five years, is that the conversation really went towards what is the true footprint of our organization. What is the impact that we could have? That is what we need. We need to establish a new business standard, a new idea of why we are doing business. We need to establish new criteria for quality and success.
IU. I have seen a lot of things that feel like major and cultural intellectual shifts that have come from the pandemic. One is from a work perspective, that we have to telecommunicate and realize that it is possible to travel less and also think a little bit about the wasted time in engaging in certain work formalities. Also, since I work on human rights and labor out at sea, a lot of common denominators of all those crimes is a sense of distance and isolation. We all have experienced these ideas through the pandemic and we now have a keener sense of what it feels like to be cut off from each other. When I talk to people about the experience at sea, people can relate more. Those are two small ways in which I have noticed a difference.
CG. I see that people actually become aware that they love nature. They realized that they did not show enough respect in the past and they are craving nature now. They want to see themselves back out there. People appreciate the natural world more and they are consuming content about the natural world. On the other hand, some people also associate the pandemic with that situation. They feel like it pushed nature to the wall.
When I look at the industry, I see way more interest and honestly way more sincere interest to become part of Parley. The conversations are very different. In general, the environmental movement had a lot of traction before the pandemic but now it will be in the foreground. We learned that we are seeking purpose, and we want to be surrounded by people who are responsible. We want to support brands that stand for a cause. We don’t want to waste our time anymore supporting superficial emptiness.
“The extra-legal nature of [the oceans] means that you can do whatever you want and get away with it much easier than you would be able to on land. There is no one out there to stop you. Most people are good and do not engage in bad behavior, but those who do engage in it can do it without real worry.”
IU. If the last four years showed us anything, I think that the next one or two years will show that radical, global action is possible. I don’t think that you’d be able to say that you could stop the economy and make everyone wear masks in 30-60 days yet the pandemic has happened and drastic things have happened. I think that we will see an acceleration of that with the new administration and with the presence of vaccines. Generally, the global public is more aware of doing more radical things if the stakes were high enough.
CG. It was kind of a drill. We faced a global event that everyone on this planet had to experience. You cannot buy yourself out of it. Suddenly, we learned that we can respond to that. We can put trillions of dollars out and restrict things that we thought were not possible before. We can do that with the crisis we face now, the collapse of the natural world which ultimately means the collapse of our species. Even small changes are creating a very big discomfort and can even drive us into extinction.
But I think it is all about being optimistic. It is not about being overwhelmed and scared. Let go of fear and allow the possibility. That is the first thing everybody can do. Try to allow the new and be open to it and support it. With fear, we won’t succeed. The only way I see is to move out of this by accepting the challenge and allow new technology. We have to support alternatives even though they are not perfected at this moment. Cut into this behavior that has brought us here. We live a very wasteful lifestyle that pretends resources are endless.
IU. I would add that it is important to step back and question who you are. We all wear many different hats and in each of those costumes, you have a role to play. It does not have to be grandeur but a conversation with your son or spouse or a check to an organization that helps out are all things that can more proactively help out in small ways. If you just try to think of those in those different capacities and push yourself in each of them it adds up.
CG. As a creative, you are sensitive to things. For a very long time, I felt that there was no way that this planet was going to survive us. We are so selfish. I was very cynical about it. Then I learned that this is a very cowardly mindset. I could use my skills and the creative industry could contribute to solving these crises. The most important thing I learned is that I have a role to play and that I had to find my place in the movement. Also, it is extremely fulfilling to be part of a movement and you don’t have to solve these problems alone. I feel like the creative industry has a very important part to play because these problems are based on the economy which is based on technology, communication, and design. We, the creators, need to own the environmental movement and own the responsibility of it instead of pushing it to people who run corporations. The most important thing is the man in the mirror. Leadership today is all about declaring ownership of problems and really addressing them hard.
“The most important thing I learned is that I have a role to play and that I had to find my place in the movement. Also, it is extremely fulfilling to be part of a movement and you don’t have to solve these problems alone.”
In conversation with IAN URBINA
Conversation curated by JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by DOMINIC CELEMEN
Photographer DAMIEN FRY
💭 24kGoldn for ODDA Magazine
2020 was a very good year for the 20-year-old rapper, singer, and songwriter 24kGoldn. His earworm of a song “Mood” had, by the end of the year, spent eight weeks at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 between its original version, which featured Iann Dior, and the remix that worked in vocals from Justin Bieber and J. Balvin. 24kGoldn, who is taking a leave of absence from his full ride at the University of Southern California for Business Studies, is also in the early stages of setting up a scripted tv series about his life and his debut album “El Dorado'' is set to drop by April. All of which is to say 24kGoldn is currently living his best life.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
24KGOLDN
2020 was a very good year for the 20-year-old rapper, singer, and songwriter 24kGoldn. His earworm of a song “Mood” had, by the end of the year, spent eight weeks at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 between its original version, which featured Iann Dior, and the remix that worked in vocals from Justin Bieber and J. Balvin. 24kGoldn, who is taking a leave of absence from his full ride at the University of Southern California for Business Studies, is also in the early stages of setting up a scripted tv series about his life and his debut album “El Dorado'' is set to drop by April. All of which is to say 24kGoldn is currently living his best life.
JESSICA MICHAULT. When did the idea of becoming a singer really come into play for you?
24KGOLDN. It is such a tiered question because I feel like I was surrounded by music my whole life. When I was a baby, my mom and dad sang harmonies to me of Michael Jackson songs. Music was always there. I was always encouraged to sing and express myself through my voice. But it was not until I was 15, during my sophomore year of high school, when I had already linked up with my mentor, Paypa Boy, and he gave me the opportunity to record music for the first time, that things really got serious. I never wrote music at first. I started rapping a year prior, but Paypa Boy taught me how to write.
JM. Talk to me about the cultural dynamic between your parents; your father is Black and Catholic and your mother is white and Jewish. How did that impact the way you express yourself as an artist?
24K. For some people, when their parents are so different, that can be a cause of tension within their family dynamics. In my house, that was never an issue. It was about whoever had the best way for our child’s development. My parents were not overly religious in the first place, it was more about the culture and remembering to connect with spirituality. I think dealing with that duality growing up gave me a lot of perspectives, that there is not just one correct way of doing something. There are often many correct ways of doing something. The way this affects my music is that there is no one right way to make a rap song or a pop song. I am just making songs and letting it flow. I think that openness to combination, spin-offs, and variation comes from such an open-minded background.
JM. Your attitude is very joyful and positive. Where does this come from?
24K. I have always been very optimistic. From those early days of elementary school, my teachers always told me to act right or else the other kids will just do what you do. I was always encouraged to be that shining light in whatever room that I walked into. I think the way I am now is just a continuation of that. That is something that never changed within me. The light is better than the darkness to me even when we do deal with those dark situations. Everyone has their problems and struggles but you can look at them optimistically or think that it is all over. It is not always easy to pick the first option because life is hard.
JM. 2020 has been a tough year for most people. But it's been a year of major successes and wins for you. What has that been like, to have so much positivity come into your life in such a difficult year?
24K. I had a little bit of survivor’s remorse because everyone around me is going through a lot but my music was very successful. It was a weird dynamic. I never questioned the virus that much in the beginning, I put my head down and worked through it. But it's true that I don't even get to enjoy the fruits of my labors, essentially.
JM. Yes, but you did get to perform at “Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Years Eve.” What was that like?
24K. That was dope because I remember watching that with my parents ever since I was a little kid. At the risk of sounding ungrateful, I appreciate all those moments but I want the real-life experience. I grew up in an internet age, but I have always been a real-life experience kind of person. So this year has been the most challenging time period for me.
JM. What was the biggest “I can’t believe I’m here” moment?
24K. Whenever someone asks me what my most memorable moment as an artist has been, I still go back to that 2019 Bay Area Rolling Loud performance I did. I am from the Bay Area and that was my second Rolling Loud. The first one I did, right across the street from the school I went to, USC, had about 50 people show up. Boom, six months later I am back in my hometown and I have one of the most lit sets of Rolling Loud that year. It was surreal, going from having 50 people watch me to having 3,000 to 5,000 people watch me live in a matter of months was mind-blowing to me. That is still the moment that resonates with me the most.
JM. What makes a “lit” set? What do you have to do to get the crowd rolling?
24K. Honestly, I was wildin’ out. I brought girls up the stage to twerk, one of them kicked off the stage lights and I did not realize it until after. I like to stage dive at my shows, throw water, basically all the things that venues hate.
JM. You attained a full ride to the University of Southern California for Business Studies. Do you still have that business mindset? Do you still think about stuff like investing for your retirement?
24K. 90 percent of the time my head is on straight in the financial aspect. But that 10 percent of the time when I just wild out because it is whatever and who cares. Most of the time I am definitely responsible with my money. I do not live beyond my means. The way I describe it is the basketball game of 21. In 21, once you get past 13 points the lowest you can get knocked down to is that number 13. But the whole journey up there points 10, 11, 12, is extremely important because you can get knocked down all the way from 12 to zero. Until I get to that point of financial comfortability, there is definitely a part of me that is scared that I did not make it all the way yet.
“The light is better than the darkness to me even when we do deal with those dark situations. Everyone has their problems and struggles but you can look at them optimistically or think that it is all over. It is not always easy to pick the first option because life is hard.”
JM. You do a lot of collaborations. Who is on your bucket list to collaborate with next?
24K. Young Thug, Billie Eilish, and Drake. Those are my top three right now.
JM. “El Dorado,” your debut album, is coming out when?
24K. I just got the date from my label yesterday. I would say late March, early April. I have 10 songs but I want to make the project 13 songs. That is my lucky number. I have 10 songs that I really like for the album but some stuff needs some additional work. I got those extra three songs that I have to figure out too. I made a lot of music in this process, probably around 40 or 50 more songs. I am really picky, I am learning about myself, and especially since it is my debut album, I want to make sure I put my best and true foot forward.
JM. How are you defining how you want to represent yourself in your first album?
24K. That is the challenge of being a very genre-fluent artist. You have so many different types of fans. The fanbase is one, but it is also very segmented. The people who like “VALENTINO” might not necessarily be the same people that like “CITY OF ANGELS”. For me, it is important to create a project that is inclusive to all the different types of people that enjoy my music. It is inclusive to everybody, but not sacrificing any quality. The first 10 songs were easy, but those last couple ones were very difficult. Maybe it is not trying to compete with your own music, but about exploring your music and vibes.
JM. You have a song called “VALENTINO” and one called “Coco,” there are a lot of fashion references in your work. If you could go to any fashion show, who would you want to sit front row in?
24K. That is a very difficult question. I like Virgil’s Louis Vuitton collections, but it is more about certain pieces that stand out the most to me. Everyone likes Virgil’s collections but when everyone else starts to like something I start to not like it as much. But because of the environment and world that he creates at his fashion shows, I think that Virgil’s would be the fashion show that I would go to.
“For me, it is important to create a project that is inclusive to all the different types of people that enjoy my music. It is inclusive to everybody, but not sacrificing any quality.”
JM. I hear there is talk about a television series. Is that true?
24K. I just did a pitch meeting a couple of days ago. But it is this scripted show called “Golden” which is about my life. I do not know if a lot of people know this but when I first signed my deal and left college, I did not immediately move into an apartment or anything. That summer between being “college Golden”and superstar 24kGoldn I was living at my friend’s house in L.A. I am this kid from one of the poorest spots in one of the most expensive cities in the world that got a full scholarship to USC, got a full record deal, dropped out of school, and then moved into one of the craziest guest houses that I have ever lived in my life. I am just there the whole summer doing me. That fish out of water experience was a crazy idea to pitch. It is like “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” meets “Entourage.”
JM. How has the Black Lives Matter movement impacted you as a person, and your music?
24K. I think that it shifted more of my sense of urgency rather than my music or my beliefs. I have always been an advocate for my people ever since my freshman year of high school. We were doing all these events so it has always been an issue that I was passionate about. But after going to those protests and experiencing everything that came as a result of the killings clicked in my urgency. It made me realize that I am not just a kid anymore. I have a platform and I can use this platform to deeply impact people’s lives and potentially change their perspective on how they see things. My demographic is a lot of younger people and they look up to social media stars, artists, and actors to be their moral compass and guide. Like Uncle Ben in “Spiderman” said, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Now I know that I have a lot of power and it is my job to change the world to be the way that I want it to be and one that I want to live in.
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by CHARLENE FRETT
Photographer HARRY EELMAN
Fashion editor SHARON CHITRIT
All by LOUIS VUITTON MENSWEAR S/S 2021
💭 Kris Van Assche and Brian Rochefort for ODDA Magazine
For the first time during his tenure as the creative director of Berluti designer Kris Van Assche collaborated with a living artist to bring his SS21 menswear collection to life. And it was the colorful, textural, and freeform art pieces by the highly respected American ceramic artist Brian Rochefort that caught Van Assche's eye. An avid ceramics collector, Van Assche was able to reinterpret Rochefort’s bold and layered vision into silk prints shirts, three-dimensional knitted sweaters, and rich patinated leather Berluti accessories. The result is an elevated collection where artists, artistry, and the artisanal are celebrated in perfect harmony.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
KRIS VAN ASSCHE AND BRIAN ROCHEFORT
For the first time during his tenure as the creative director of Berluti designer Kris Van Assche collaborated with a living artist to bring his SS21 menswear collection to life. And it was the colorful, textural, and freeform art pieces by the highly respected American ceramic artist Brian Rochefort that caught Van Assche's eye. An avid ceramics collector, Van Assche was able to reinterpret Rochefort’s bold and layered vision into silk prints shirts, three-dimensional knitted sweaters, and rich patinated leather Berluti accessories. The result is an elevated collection where artists, artistry, and the artisanal are celebrated in perfect harmony.
JESSICA MICHAULT. Talk to me about how you first discovered each other’s work.
KRIS VAN ASSCHE. I was interested in ceramics for many years. I started out with French ceramics from the 50s which was very in-line with the type of design that I love. I was into that for a long time. 50s ceramics are very beautiful but there is something restrained about it. What I really loved when I came across Brian’s work was the liberty and freedom that jumps at the eye. I had seen quite a bit of it over the years and then there was this major exhibition in London at the end of 2019. That was the first time that I saw such a big group of work together which made me really want to do something. That was the turning point for me. First, it was just about having the piece of it at my house but then I realized that it could become something else.
BRIAN ROCHEFORT. I knew about the brands that Kris was associated with, but I did not know Kris by name. I knew at the time that he was following me on social media but I came to know him through research that he was highly regarded because of his past work. I have a lot of friends in the fashion industry. All I had to do was call them up and they told me it would be a great opportunity for me. That is how I got familiar with Kris.
JM. In relation to ceramics, what is it about the medium that calls to you?
BR. I think it is good to understand my background. I am 35 and I have been doing ceramics full-time since I was 14 years old. Every semester throughout high school and college I got a degree in ceramics. Subsequently, I gained a fellowship, became a teacher, and now a full-time artist. So I have been doing this for so long and I am very passionate about it. Ceramics are very popular right now, but it is still unexplored. That is my goal with the material, to push it as far as possible. I come at the medium with a very expressive technique and approach. Color and texture are my things. Although it is very meticulous, I try to make it as expressive and wild as possible. I feel like I am pushing the boundaries a bit with the material, that is why my work is getting a lot of attention. I want to dissect the material, formulate my own glazes, and manipulate the chemicals to do something that is totally wild or not used in the traditional way.
KVA. I grew up in a very traditional family, I do not come from an artistic background. I knew at 12 or 13, that I really wanted to get into fashion, which was a weird thing within my family. Then I ended up going to the academy, then I learned about fashion, then fashion photography, then photography in general. Design came somewhere in the process. It is like a snowball that keeps on rolling. Through design came ceramics. The more our world becomes more digital, the more I like the human aspect of ceramics. In a very different way, that is why I used to like working with tailors. Every sleeve is done by hand and there are no two tailors in the world that will make the same type of sleeve. I am very sensitive to the human side of things. Brian’s work is very much about that, it really makes sense as an evolution.
“I am more solitary and this is the first time that I have worked in a collaboration of this scale. But I became very comfortable with it because it keeps things interesting for me, it was very refreshing to have another artist at the table.”
JM. You talk about artisan creation, yet your first collaboration at Berluti happened during the pandemic. Talk to me about that experience, dynamic, and if that hindered anything.
KVA. When I reached out to Brian, I had already one piece of his work in my collection so I could touch it. The truth about it is that we had no idea that we were heading towards a pandemic when we started this project. When I reached out to Brian, I thought that we were going to have a fashion show, I thought that it was going to be business as usual. I had been working for fashion for over 20 years and this never happened. It was not necessarily a big problem because what I like about Brian is the color explosion which was going to be the main focus. There is the artisanal approach which is Berluti and there is the artistic approach which is Brian. In that sense, it made sense to do it as the first collaboration. The first two years at Berluti for me was figuring out what my relationship between me and the brand was going to be. After two years, I felt quite comfortable that there was room for a third person at the table. There is something that I love about craft, but it tends to be difficult to push out of your comfort zone. That is where it is really nice to have an artistic influence, like Brian, and confronting them on their reactions to certain things. A good thing about Brian is that he works with a very good photographer and he has a very good way of documenting his work. That was a really good tool for us to work with. We gave the images to everyone working on it and it was an interesting work process that got the ball rolling, which is interesting because it is pushing people’s buttons.
“I am a pretty quiet guy but I create these very wild and colorful sculptures. I have always been that way. From what I have heard from other people is that maybe it is my alter-ego. Maybe it is a different part of me that is trying to escape.”
JM. Brian, did this collection push your buttons? Did you feel like you were surrendering your work for other people to have input on or did you feel like you were in control in terms of the back and forth in the work process?
BR. There was not too much back and forth. I pretty much surrendered all of my pictures to Kris and his team. I did not really push any particular image or piece onto Kris. I trusted him with whatever he needed. I submitted 80 images or so to choose from and he sent me some preliminary designs later on and I did not have any issue with them. I did not feel like I was in any position to do that either. I did my part by making these objects and Kris is the master of his craft and his own boss. There was no conflict whatsoever. I felt very comfortable doing it, that is why I signed up. If there was any hesitation, then it would be a different collaboration.
JM. Do you have the Berluti and Brian Rochefort collection now to enjoy?
BR. I do have one piece that Kris sent me which is the tote bag. It is the first piece that I have seen in real life and the details are amazing. I saw the layering and palpability in the images that Kris sent but when you see it in real life there is so much variation in sheen and texture. But I do know which ones I am going to get [when the collection arrives in the stores]. I am going to buy a bunch of stuff just to have forever. It is a really important project to me so I want to get as much as possible.
JM. Talk to me more about the challenges and surprises that went on and this collection.
KVA. It was definitely a challenging working process. Part of what we do as creative people is trying stuff, especially when you have a starting point such as Brian’s work. You want to go to all types of people and try to develop as much as possible. A big part of work is teamwork, I try to provoke things from creative people and see what we can get from what I throw at them. But all at once, all of that was put on hold. I realized that we would not be able to produce a collection as big as usual. I had to constantly select and edit my own work without being able to try it first, that was the case for the whole thing. It was very frustrating, but also quite interesting. It reminded me a little of when I used to have my own label where I had to edit really early in the process. It brings me back to certain moments of being a student. It is not the ideal way of working. But in the end, that did allow for the collection to come out great and I was happy about it but it is a frustrating way of working.
JM. Brian, your working process seems like a one-man show type of process. Are you on your own and what was this collaboration like in relation to your usual way of working?
BR. I work by myself in my studio. Even pre-pandemic, I had an assistant but I hardly required them. I really enjoyed being by myself in my own studio. I think that I will be working by myself as long as possible. The restrictions right now are size limitations. My sculptures are big and heavy so I have to lift them by myself so sometimes I have to get some help. One of the most difficult things is getting feedback during the pandemic. It is hard to get honest feedback from artist friends because they never want to give their honest opinion because they are afraid they are going to lose a friend. That is definitely a difficult thing as an independent artist, not having assistants around to pick their brains which a lot of big artists do. I am a pretty quiet guy but I create these very wild and colorful sculptures. I have always been that way. From what I have heard from other people is that maybe it is my alter-ego. Maybe it is a different part of me that is trying to escape.
JM. What were your biggest takeaways from this collection?
BR. There was a lot. For personal reasons, it was really exciting to expand my work and to see it in a different context. When I went to my school of design, they had a huge fashion & apparel department. I never even thought that I would dabble in it until Kris invited me to do this project. To see my work in this field is totally crazy. It is very exciting and it happened so quickly. When I first went into this agreement, I did not know how big of a project it would be and the extent Kris would bring it to with the storefronts and the designs he would produce. That was really exciting for me to see as an upcoming artist.
JM. Kris, how does it feel for you to be in the position to use the might and history of Berluti to give it as a platform to Brian to share his work with the world?
KVA. I do not see it like that, because Brian definitely does not need that. Brian has his own world and he does not need this publicity. For me, the pleasure about all of this is the conversations that happened. I am very comfortable with all this. I am similar in how I work, I am more solitary and this is the first time that I have worked in a collaboration of this scale. But I became very comfortable with it because it keeps things interesting for me, it was very refreshing to have another artist at the table. Although it might be a stretch to connect Berluti and Brian’s work, it was really well-received and that exceeded my expectations.
JM. With the rhythm of fashion shows, what was it like to not have that deadline on your back and be able to express yourself in such a different way?
KVA. I like fashion shows and I definitely feel that the risk of the current situation, judging everyone through a screen allows people to get away with a lot of crap. This situation is a risk for luxury because you cannot touch or see it in movement, there is too much that cannot be appreciated. It really narrows down the differences between high-end and mainstream. It is a high risk for brands like Berluti because you need to understand that difference. I am very frustrated about that and I hope that this will not last too long. I have surprised myself by enjoying making the video. I do not usually like to show people how work is done, I usually like to show the end result. But in June, it seemed like the best thing to do. I was surprised that I enjoyed explaining the work and that was something positive about this because we are able to have these types of deeper conversations.
In conversation with BRIAN ROCHEFORT
Conversation curated by JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by DOMINIC CELEMEN
Photographer CHRIS KONTOS
Fashion editor GEORGIA TAL
Casting director DAVID MARTIN
Model OLIVER HOULBY @NewMadison
Grooming by CHRISTOS BAIRABAS @BeehiveArtists using AVEDA and BUMBLE AND BUMBLE
Fashion assistant ÉLIE MERVEILLE
💭 Gelitin for ODDA Magazine
In a freewheeling conversation that featured both nudity and urination, the collective known as Gelitin, which consists of four Austrian artists named Wolfgang Gantner, Florian Reither, Ali Janka, and Tobias Urban, took time out from their latest project to discuss their illustrious and outrageous career. It’s a history that is rooted in the idea of collaboration, not only between the four men, who first met at a summer camp in 1978, but also between the art they create and the audience that is encouraged to interact with it. And in doing so, transform the pieces in ways even the artists couldn’t have imagined.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
WOLFGANG GANTNER, FLORIAN REITHER, ALI JANKA, AND TOBIAS URBAN
In a freewheeling conversation that featured both nudity and urination, the collective known as Gelitin, which consists of four Austrian artists named Wolfgang Gantner, Florian Reither, Ali Janka, and Tobias Urban, took time out from their latest project to discuss their illustrious and outrageous career. It’s a history that is rooted in the idea of collaboration, not only between the four men, who first met at a summer camp in 1978, but also between the art they create and the audience that is encouraged to interact with it. And in doing so, transform the pieces in ways even the artists couldn’t have imagined.
JESSICA MICHAULT. I’m going to start with a very generic, classic question. The famous origin story is that the four of you met in a summer camp in the late 1970s. I get the feeling, having looked at all your art, that you’ve never really left summer camp, the four of you. This kind of play and exploration is in all the work that you do. Would you say you’ve been existing in summer camp all of these years?
FLORIAN REITHER. Now, it’s more winter camp.
ALI JANKA. Or indoor camp.
F.R. Yeah, you could also say it’s just camp, without summer or winter.
A.J. Or cluster camp.
F.R. Yeah, now it’s cluster camp.
J.M. I don’t know if I’m going to even ask you to elaborate on that cluster reference. I wanted to know how have you been able to maintain that youthful exploration, that sense of play, into your adulthood.
TOBIAS URBAN. It’s a very difficult job, you have to do it every day and most people just stop doing it because they’re so lazy. But you should try it a little bit, it’s not so difficult.
F.R. I often play with myself too, because it’s often so joyful.
A.J. There’s nothing else to do, I’m not good at anything else.
J.M. This is going to be a fun conversation, I can tell already. The whole theme of this issue is “YOU” and I wanted to talk about what each of you brings to your collective collaboration.
A.J. I have the credit card.
T.U. I’m the one in the bush [hiding behind a plant].
F.R. I’m the one who likes to play with himself.
WOLFGANG GANTNER. I’m the guy who-- (gets cut off) I never talk.
J.M. You’re killing me! I’m loving this. Okay. You’re going to love this next question I can feel it already. Here we go. There is this premise in quantum theory, which has long fascinated philosophers and physicists alike, that says that by the very act of watching, the observer affects the observed reality. That concept came to my mind when I was researching your work. So much of the work that you do brings the audience participation into what you do, thus changing the art you create. Why is including the audience so important to you creatively?
W.G. We don’t do it for ourselves. I think without an audience it’s not possible. Like they’re a part of it.
T.U. The audience participation for me, I think it’s a little bit like a technique. It's like paint or something. It’s like material. We don’t do it to entertain the audience but, you know, when they participate it gives you moments of surprise.
A.J. For me, art is a conversation. If you don’t have a conversation with somebody then what’s the point of it. And it’s nice to have a conversation with other people than just by yourself.
F.R. A friend of ours, once introduced this idea to us, talking about this participative moment in our art as the threshold. Like creating spaces where you cross a threshold and then maybe we are not hierarchical, we don’t tell anybody what to do. But we like to open possibilities so people can behave differently.
J.M. Some of the pieces that you have done like “Arc de Triomphe,” one of my personal favorites, and “Human Elevator,” you did early in your career and then redid it later in your career. What was that like to revisit pieces from the past, and rethink them and present them in a new way?
W.G. On the last “Arc de Triomphe” presentation, there was a boy in the audience and he said to his mother “Tonight I’m going to do that at home.” That was surprising, that was a little surprising moment. And the mother tried to tell the boy that it’s not a good idea to do it. But a friend of ours who was standing nearby whispered to the boy “Just do it, don’t tell your mom. Just do it. Do it on your own. It’s a good idea.” It’s very small, but that was a surprising move.
On the last “Human Elevator” presentation, we had a minister riding it as a passenger. And when he went through, all the boys in the scaffoldings said “Good evening Mister Minister.” That was probably more surprising to him.
“We really like to do things when you start thinking about it and talking about it with some people and their first reaction is and people say “You can’t do that! That’s impossible! You can’t do that!” That develops a thrill and we think “Why not? Let’s try it. Let’s do it.””
J.M. You have used your rectums, your anuses, in a number of your art pieces and presentations. You have painted things with bushes held by your butts and then hung them on the walls of museums. You have also done pieces that are lifelike sculptures of poop and the urine bed, I thought the urine icicle you create in Moscow was quite cool. What is it about the nether region, let’s put that in that way, that you guys like to put in front of peoples’ faces?
A.J. It’s a good anchor to anchor some stuff. Unlike paintbrushes and stuff. You always have it with you, you don’t have to buy anything.
W.G. The idea with the Moscow piece was with the [urine] icicle, the big icicle was the idea to make audience participation possible on a very wide range. So, you can come there, all you need to do is be able to pee. That’s enough to participate. You don’t have to recite a poem, sing a song, go onstage. You just pee and it contributes to the beauty of the sculpture.
F.R. You contribute by emptying yourself and by that you create something together.
J.M. So everybody’s an artist?
W.G. Everybody contributes…
A.J. Be part of something bigger.
W.G. Yeah, be part of something bigger.
J.M. I want to know what it was like to sleep on the urine bed. Did any of you guys try that out? What was that like?
F.R. It was, I mean there was so much urine in there that it was heavy, big, and heated to body temperature. Like a water bed but warmer, like 30 degrees something [Celcius] and when you enter the room you realize there is a living thing in there. We thought like "Wow, why does this feel like…” it felt like a cow or elephant standing in the room because of the radiation of the heat of that much water.
W.G. The water basically had the mass of two cows, so you basically came into a small room and there was a huge something that has body temperature and it was possible to feel its presence...
F.R. From a distance.
W.G. Like an alien that is with you in the room that radiates not 50 degrees [Celcius] but really body temperature and lying on it was cool. Like you would like to lay on something that is alive because it has exactly the same temperature as yourself.
J.M. So we’ve talked about urine, we’ve talked about feces, we’ve talked about the participation of the audience coming into it. There’s another aspect that I’ve picked up on from your work is that…
A.J. ... It relates to every person and shape that everybody can relate to. It’s not gender, it doesn’t have anything to do with race, it brings everybody together. I think “shit” is a great thing to bring everybody together. A great form for a sculpture to bring everybody together.
J.M. So you’re talking about basically what's left, the shit and the urine, what's left after we have used up as much as we can? So there is that idea in some of your work, that message of decay, of the leftover. I’m thinking, of course, about your “Rabbit” art piece. The last pictures I saw were from 2011, I don't even know if there’s anything left to the rabbit that has been slowly decaying since you put it out there. Or “The Fall” exhibition you put on, where you had the pieces that would break apart and become something different through being destroyed. What is it about transformation over time that appeals to you?
T.U. For us, the interest is not so much in the biological process like the decaying. We are artists so we think about form or sculpture. We are not biologists. We’re not really interested in that. But when you think about sculpture... Do they always have to last forever? How would it change?
F.R. There’s something slightly uncanny that happened with the “Rabbit.” After we saw it, after the first year, things started growing on it and it was oozing this brown liquid and you could see this pink toilet paper. Because first, you make it a thing that looks like roadkill with the intestines spilling out. And then you come one year later and all of a sudden it really is roadkill. It’s really dead and transforming into somebody else’s loss. It sort of became real through the rotting.
J.M. Alright, guys so tell me about the nudity. What is that all about? Even in this interview nudity has played a huge role [all four artists were naked from the waist down]. Why is that such an important element in your creative process?
A.J. It makes us more ridiculous and more approachable I think.
J.M. We can’t do this interview without talking about your “The B-Thing” art happening that you created at the World Trade Center, where you opened a window and created a balcony on the 91st floor. You did this just months before 9/11. How do you all feel about that project? In relation to how it will forever be connected to that event which was, of course, never part of your intention.
A.J. That event kind of made it impossible to show this work for 15 years because of being connected to that. I mean it’s bad. Not bad in the sense that “It is a bad artwork” but connected to that. The others might disagree.
W.G. We didn’t show it for some time. But that wasn’t our decision; it was like institutions did not want to deal with the thing in some way but it's difficult for us because we don’t want to interpret it, our own work, that’s the job of other people, I think. I mean we did what we did and it had a very high-class, visionary moment.
T.U. The way we did it, we weren’t really looking for publicity. Very simple.
A.J. And it was the first thing that came to our minds when we stepped into that room.
F.R. This building needs to be opened, perhaps you can take the window off. So, of course, it was the thing we needed to do.
J.M. Let in some fresh air.
T.U. It was not really possible to look outside. We were high above, you couldn’t see the landscape, you couldn’t see above the windows because it was so narrow.
J.M. What was it like for all four of you to step out there? Did all four of you step out?
W.G. Yes.
F.R. All of us together.
J.M. I don’t think I could’ve done that.
W.G. Very, very sexy. It’s a very good feeling.
J.M. I bet it stirred some things up.
W.G. Yeah, it's not comparable to anything else. It feels very special, really good. We really like to do things when you start thinking about it and talking about it with some people and their first reaction is and people say “You can't do that! That's impossible! You can't do that!” That develops a thrill and we think “Why not? Let's try it. Let's do it.”
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by EMMELEIA DALIWAN
Images courtesy of GELITIN
💭 Derek Blasberg for ODDA Magazine
It has been a steep learning curve for Derek Blasberg at YouTube. But he hit the ground running. In the little over two years since the fashion insider took on the brand new role of Head of Fashion and Beauty at YouTube he has launched the YouTube Fashion vertical on the site, connected big-name luxury brands with big-name YouTube creators and he gave Naomi Campbell a global platform to be, well, Naomi Campbell. A classically trained journalist who has written for all of the top fashion publications, from Style.com and Interview to Vanity Fair and Harper’s Bazaar, Blasberg has fully embraced the new narrative of his career, where instead of recounting peoples stories he is empowering them to tell them themselves.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
DEREK BLASBERG
It has been a steep learning curve for Derek Blasberg at YouTube. But he hit the ground running. In the little over two years since the fashion insider took on the brand new role of Head of Fashion and Beauty at YouTube he has launched the YouTube Fashion vertical on the site, connected big-name luxury brands with big-name YouTube creators and he gave Naomi Campbell a global platform to be, well, Naomi Campbell. A classically trained journalist who has written for all of the top fashion publications, from Style.com and Interview to Vanity Fair and Harper’s Bazaar, Blasberg has fully embraced the new narrative of his career, where instead of recounting peoples stories he is empowering them to tell them themselves.
JESSICA MICHAULT. Let’s start with this: Derek, you didn't want to do this interview until after the election in the U.S., which I thought was an interesting thought process as this is going to come out in, you know, February or the beginning of March for most people. So why was it so important to you to make sure that it was past the election before we spoke?
DEREK BLASBERG. When you work, and I don’t know if you felt this way, because you're obviously not in the States at the moment, but it's the idea of trying to focus on anything apart from the Inauguration, and the safe and considerate transfer of power. You know, after January 6th. Between those two Wednesdays, the 6th would be the riot on the Capitol, a week later, the following Wednesday, was the second impeachment and the following Wednesday was the Inauguration. It's just like, I can't talk about fashion right now. This is crazy. And of course, also, when you work at a company like YouTube or you work in Big Tech in general, you want to make sure that everything that you're working on is accurate and up to date. There were, of course, so many conversations, especially in the tech space around everything that Trump was doing. And then, the other reason that I was happy to wait until the Inauguration is because I definitely thought there'd be a new sense of normalcy and goodwill.
“Essentially what I do now at YouTube, instead of translating those people’s stories into the written word for me to publish in newspapers and magazines, I now work with them to tell their own stories on their own channels, and videos.”
J.M. So I have to ask Derek, where does that charisma of yours come from? You seem to become friends with everyone you meet. Where does this kind of ability to be everybody's best friend come from?
D.B. Well, thank you. That's a very indulgent and sweet and feel-good question. I guess I’ve never, kind of, fleshed that out but I've always been an extrovert. I was a chatty kid, super social by nature. But I guess fundamentally, what it all comes down to, my whole life and career, my personal life, my professional life, is that I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. I was pre-digital. I was starved for the glitz and glamour and the art and for this world that I'm so fortunate to live in now. You know, I didn't meet a gay person until I moved to New York. To me, fashion was the mall, and then when you move to New York, you realize in New York City, the fashion industry is a $10 billion dollar industry. It's the real world. So when I got to New York, I knew that's what I wanted to do. And I was so enthusiastic and thrilled to be there. I think it's kind of easier now for young people because if you are in St. Louis, Missouri today, and you're 16/17/18, you can Google what a stylist is or you can go on Vogue's YouTube channel and you can see behind the scenes. So there are definitely now easier touch-points for young people to encounter the world of fashion, beauty, and style. It took me a little longer to find it and then when I did I said I'm not going anywhere, this is where I want to be.
J.M. I get it. I feel really blessed that I was able to experience the age of old media, pre all of this, pre-social, YouTube and Google, and able to experience both sides of the coin. But I wanted to know what that was like for you because you were like me, a journalist by trade, you came up in the old way of doing things, and then just to switch over to YouTube. What was that culture shock like for you?
D.B. So I went to NYU, I have a degree in journalism. I thought I was going to work in newspapers or magazines my whole life. Something that I know you can relate to is I really idolized Suzy Menkes, I wanted to write for a newspaper and do trend reports and designer interviews. And so when the opportunity to sort of shift more into social media and tech came, to be very candid and honest with you, when the job opportunity to be the first-ever Head of Fashion and Beauty at YouTube came across my desk I was a little suspicious or even dismissive. You know, I said, this is not what I went to college for. And then the more I kind of wrapped my head around it, I realized what I was so excited about doing when I was graduating college, was working with fashion designers, telling model’s stories, and working with hairstyles and makeup artists. And that's essentially what I do now at YouTube, instead of translating those people’s stories into the written word for me to publish in newspapers and magazines, I now work with them to tell their own stories on their own channels, and videos. So I'm still working with designers and models and hairstyles and makeup artists. I'm just doing it in a way that when I was in college, I never thought I would or even fantasize being possible.
J.M. Your role at YouTube is a completely new one, that you make into what you want. So what, for you, was the goal?
D.B. I guess like in the most simplistic of terms. I saw this job opportunity as to how to create more, better fashion and beauty content. As I dug into the job a little bit more, I realized that one of the biggest things that I needed to do was help reeducate fashion beauty brands as to what worked well on YouTube.
J.M. So tell me about that, because I think that that's still quite a steep learning curve for a lot of brands. As much as the beauty world seems to really get YouTube, I think that the fashion world is still kind of on its heels as far as leveraging the power of YouTube.
D.B. I often think that most fashion people assume that what works well on all digital platforms is short, quick, and pretty. We see a lot of content that comes through, that's like about a minute long, maybe 30 seconds, it's a pretty girl walking on the beach holding a nice bag, and that content does well on other platforms. But on YouTube, people are coming to see a story, to learn a lesson, to reveal a secret. There are cases for longer, shorter and other formats, but typically, to sum up, what works well on YouTube and a single sentence - It’s content that's around 6 to 10 minutes of narrative-driven personality-full storytelling that teaches a lesson, reveals a secret or offers a service.
J.M. Talk to me a little bit more about your tenure, because it's only been two years. You're getting your bearings that first year, your feet underneath you, figuring out what works and what doesn't. And then by year two, we’re in a pandemic, and the whole world is shifting. Now you have a captive audience. How did you pivot what you’d maybe started to outline as your strategy to the new normal?
D.B. So I began my job in June 2018 and in September 2018, I was still very fresh and brand new but I wanted to hit the ground running. We did a big launch party in Paris, at the official residence of the U.S. ambassador. And that September we live-streamed on YouTube, about 20 shows. So fast forward to September 2020, so exactly two years later, we live-streamed more than 200 shows. More than half of which were first time YouTubers.Those were channels that we helped set up and helped launch. So we're definitely looking at incredible growth. At the base level of participation, we launched YouTube Fashion which has grown to become the largest aggregate of style video content around the world. Of course, no one saw a viral pandemic crippling the entire world and making travel unsafe and congregating in large groups unsafe. But it was incredible to have the YouTube Fashion vertical up and running for 2020.
J.M. Okay, so let's get to the nitty-gritty here. How did you convince Naomi Campbell to embrace YouTube with such a passion and fever?
D.B. Well, the good news is that I knew Naomi before I came to YouTube, so that helped. But honestly, the way that she was convinced to open her whole world to YouTube was that... number one at YouTube, you own your own content. You're your own producer, you're your own editor, your own director. If you want an upload every day for a month and then take a hiatus for a year, you can do that. You're really in charge, and you own everything, and you have final cut and final approval and everything. You know, on other streaming services, that’s really not the case. The YouTube business model is much different than at Netflix or Hulu or Amazon. At YouTube, you are in charge and you make your money and your influence on a longer tailwind at the end. If Naomi wanted to sell her docu-series to Netflix she would get a lot of money up-front, but she would have no power on longevity. Ultimately, Naomi wants to be in control. YouTube gives her the opportunity to be 100 percent in control. She approves every video, in the "No Filter" series she is picking her guests, she has questions, she decides when she wants to upload it, you know, she's moderating her chat and responding to fans. So YouTube definitely is a brilliant way to break down the barrier between talent and an audience.
J.M. I think after Google, YouTube is the biggest search engine in the world. Something like two billion unique users per day. So there's no question that gives YouTube a certain amount of power. When we see the impact of social media, these platforms can have to shape people's worldview to a certain extent, by the suggestions, in relationship to the algorithms, etc. How has YouTube dealt with that massive power?
D.B. That is a compelling talking point when we're meeting with brands. I’ll back up… so the fashion and beauty vertical is really split within three different buckets. There are brands, which are Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Nike, Prada. There are publishers, which is Goop, Paper, Vogue. And then the last one is professionals, that is models, makeup artists, hairstylists. The Naomi, the Hung Vanngo, and the Jen Atkins element. So when we are meeting with those different buckets of people, the knowledge that YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world is a very compelling argument for them to own their own narrative. We can use Naomi as an example, when you used to search for Naomi Campbell in the YouTube search field, there was a lot of content that was probably populated that she obviously didn't approve, or didn't know. So now when you search Naomi Campbell since she has had success on the platform, her own content populates that search result. That’s obviously very compelling for her.
J.M. But there are other ways that the platform can be reactive to what's going on in the world.
D.B. In 2020, I think every industry had to re-evaluate the way it approaches diversity and inclusion. And of course, the fashion space was like every other. So I am very fortunate that the fashion team at YouTube is a pretty diverse crew and so we wanted to do something to help spotlight diverse creators and diverse fashion voices. We launched this Black Designer Initiative and we approached 30 self-identified Black designers, gave them a workshop out, offered everyone some equipment, and built a shelf on Youtube fashion to spotlight their content. And I think what's important, especially around all those diversity issues, is that people think of them beyond just 2020. So we're currently looking for other opportunities to help maintain the present initiative conversation into the future.
J.M. Well, let's jump to that, like talking about the future. Where do you think fashion is going in its relationship with the digital space, once we’re able to congregate again in the real world?
D.B. One thing that I'm excited about expanding on with the style squad here at YouTube is beauty. Another thing that we haven't really had the opportunity to flesh out is that there's such an incredible creator community in APAC [Asia-Pacific countries]. One of the biggest things that I was so excited about when I joined YouTube was that there was this robust and super engaged and very powerful creator community of YouTubers. And I'm looking forward to continuing to close that gap between what we consider our fabulous fashion world and this incredibly robust creator community.
“On YouTube, people are coming to see a story, to learn a lesson, to reveal a secret.”
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by SIÂN LORI TOOLAN
Photographer SHANE MCCAULEY
Fashion editor SHARON CHITRIT
💭 Harvey Mason Jr. for ODDA Magazine
Harvey Mason Jr. has had a pretty wild ride as interim CEO and President of the Re- cording Academy. He was tapped for the top post just days before the Grammys took place in January 2020. He then spent the rest of the year helping musicians make it through the pandemic via the Academy’s MusiCares initiative, responded to the social justice movement by launching the Black Music Collective project, and more recently he made the tough call to push back the 2021 Grammys show to March 14th, in re- action to the COVID-19 conditions in California. Music is Mason’s life’s blood and he is on a mission with the non-profit Recording Academy to uplevel the industry as it faces the new normal.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
HARVEY MASON JR.
Harvey Mason Jr. has had a pretty wild ride as interim CEO and President of the Re- cording Academy. He was tapped for the top post just days before the Grammys took place in January 2020. He then spent the rest of the year helping musicians make it through the pandemic via the Academy’s MusiCares initiative, responded to the social justice movement by launching the Black Music Collective project, and more recently he made the tough call to push back the 2021 Grammys show to March 14th, in re- action to the COVID-19 conditions in California. Music is Mason’s life’s blood and he is on a mission with the non-profit Recording Academy to uplevel the industry as it faces the new normal.
JESSICA MICHAULT. Your whole life has been infused with music. Can you take me back to that time growing up and some of those strong childhood memories that were set to music?
HARVEY MASON JR. Music has always been a part of my life. Both of my parents were musicians. My dad was a drummer and my mom was a trombone player. I was always around music and musicians. My dad ended up being a session musician for a lot of years. He played all genres. I was around a lot of amazing artists at such an early age. I started taking piano lessons and grew up making music. I grew up thinking that was just the way life was for everyone, but I never really knew how lucky I was to be around such high-quality musicians, artists, and producers. Going with my dad to see Quincy Jones, it was amazing to see them work on projects together. Music is in my DNA and bloodstream.
J.M. Talk to me about the transition of your love to music as a child into it becoming your life’s work.
H.M.J. I didn’t know it was going to be my life’s work. I was an athlete in college playing basketball and I had dreams of being in the NBA. But I suffered an injury that made me refocus. I was always playing piano, writing music, and using it as an outlet for things or emotions that I wanted to talk about. Then when I ended my basketball career, I started to refocus and I started to write songs. It took some time, but I started to pitch my ideas, and people just started to like the mu- sic. I have been very fortunate to work with some amazing artists like Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, and Whitney Houston. They were some of my idols and having the opportunity to work with all these big names. Also having the opportunity to work with up coming artists like Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, and Chis Brown that eventually became legends. You don’t know if they are going to be amazing but you sense something in their talent, voice, and story. I have been very fortunate but always humbled to work with so many amazing talents.
J.M. You pushed the Grammys from January to March because of the COVID situation. How are you reimagining the show, knowing that, I fear, by March we will still not be out of the woods yet?
H.M.J. We knew that March was not going to be a window where we were going to be free of the virus or that everyone was going to have the vaccine. We were concerned about the overloaded healthcare system in January. We did not want to put any additional tax on those people and facilities. We postponed knowing that there were still going to be issues, but we did not want to add to the craziness of the L.A. situation. We have an incredible show, an amazing lineup of artists. I am really look- ing forward to it. I think that it is important that we take the time to come together around music. That is one of the things that music does so well in times like this where we are all over the place, sometimes music can be that unifying force.
J.M. The last Grammys took place in the before times, January 26, 2020. What have you learned from all of the other awards shows that have had to scramble to go digital during the past year that you are onboarding or leaving by the wayside for your show?
H.M.J. More than anything, I really sympathize with anyone trying to do a production during the pandemic. It is work. It is unlike anything that has been done before, so there are things that are being figured out on the go. Watching other shows has been really helpful. We want to do something different, we want to do something that people have not seen before on T.V. We are taking into account what has been done in the past and making sure that we are doing something different. This is the chance for organizations to be really strategic and to look at things from different perspectives. I have tried to do that with the organization and also just as a person.
J.M. For you personally, what music has been on heavy rotation in your house, and what song is your go-to energy booster?
H.M.J. Not any one particular artist or song, but music has absolutely been on a constant loop. I just love music that much and my mood and energy are impacted heavily by music. I love the calming sensation that you can get from the right song or the relaxing energy that you can get from the right music. I also have kids, so they are playing music that they love. They introduce me to music all the time. Music is a constant in every part of my life. I am also in the studio every day alongside work I do for the Academy. It is crazy how nonstop music is part of my life.
J.M. This past year, it has come to light that there is the need for more diversity, equity, and inclusivity across all industries. It is nice to see that the Grammys nominees this year are such a diverse group of artists. How are you cultivating a DEI culture at the Grammys and how did you feel when those names came up as nominations?
H.M.J. I am always nervous when thenames come up, now more so than ever. People look at me like I have an impact on the selections. So I was initially nervous, but I was very pleased with the diversity that came with it along with the gender balance that I thought that we have missed in years. A lot of genres were represented as well. I still think we still have work to do as an organization to make sure that we are diverse and inclusive. We are working really hard on our membership, that is what it comes down to. It is about the voting body that decides who gets the nomination or the win. This year, I think that the voting body has done a really respectable job. Wehave already started to do the work that it takes to evolve our voting membership. It is about 12,000 people that vote, it is music professionals that vote on these awards, not fans. Making sure that our membership is developed and diverse, which is really important to the Academy.
J.M. After 40 years with Ken Ehrlich leading the way, there is a new executive producer taking point for these Grammys; Ben Winston. Why was Ben the right person to pick up the baton and what does he bring to the Grammys?
H.M.J. It has been great, bringing fresh en- ergy and a fresh set of eyes to everything. The energy is different, the outlook is a different perspective, the tone has changed considerably. Ben is different in the sense that he is very team-oriented, which I love because I come from sports. He has five or six other co-producers that work with him and on our side, we have other people involved from the Academy so it is a cool group of people coming together to build this show. I love to work in collaboration. I have made all my music through workingwith other people.
J.M. You are also new to taking the top spot, stepping into it just days before the January 2020 show got underway. What has the experience been like for you to take on this role as chief of the Recording Academy, particularly at this time?
H.M.J. My whole platform was based on change, improvement, and looking at everything we did at the Academy. I felt like we could be more relevant, inclusive,and diverse. I ran on that platform, and when they asked me to step in as President and CEO, I saw it as an opportunity. I saw it as a way to continue to do the work I did as chair and I would have the additional reach and have the ability to really make the changes that I wanted to do. I was sad about the timing of it all and it being that close to the show. I did not want to remove any of the focus of the people that de-served to be represented in the show. But I was happy to step in and saw it as an opportunity to make some needed change.
J.M. Tell me about the Black Music Collective project and how the MusiCares initiative was activated during the pandemic to help struggling musicians.
H.M.J. MusiCares has been around for quite some time now and they have been doing some amazing work year after year. But this year particularly during the pandemic it’s been incredible what they have been able to do. MusiCares is the safety net for the community. It is the organization that steps in when someone needs help, or when they can’t pay their rent, or they lost a gig, or they require medical attention. They have done that impeccably well for many years, but during the pandemic, there has been a huge demand for service and assistance. Music people were really some of the first people to find themselves out of work during the pandemic and will be some of the last people to come back. As far as the Black Music Collective is concerned, it was formed at a time when the Academy realized that we were not able to understand all the issues around black music and we needed help. We needed to be able to rely on people in that community that could advise and tell us how we can do better. The B.M.C. was for me and it was the first organization in the history of the Academy like that. We have our producers and engineers wing that works similarly to the B.M.C. in the sense that they advise us on problems that are going on with producers and engineers but the B.M.C. is talking directly to leadership and telling us what is important to them. It is the early stages for the B.M.C., but we have started some really exciting initiatives, some real transformative and long lasting changes are coming.
J.M. When you hear stats about the music industry, like less than one percent of artists make it as mainstream artists, or the success rate while signed with a major label is one in 2149, what advice do you give those who want to be a working musician to be their career in life?
H.M.J. I can tell you that the majority of the members of the Academy are working-class musicians, they are using and playing music to earn a decent living. A lot of people think of the members as rock stars or pop stars flying on jets and driving luxury cars. A very small percentage of our people are doing that and kudos to them. The majority of our members are just trying to do what they love and appreciate. My advice to new artists and creators coming into the industry is to do it for the right reasons, and that is because you love it and are passionate about music and you can’t imagine doing anything else with your life. The music industry is hard, difficult, and competitive, and there are so many people that want to do it. It is a lot like the NFL or NBA. You have to eat, sleep, and breathe music if you want to be in this industry. It is not a casual industry. My advice is to be passionate,bepreparedforthelonghaul. Be ready to sacrifice and to do anything for your art. If you live and approach it that way then I think you will find success, but that is just my personal opinion.
J.M. What are you looking forward to doing first, once we are all able to gather together again without fear of the virus?
H.M.J. The first thing I want to do is to travel somewhere, listen to live music, sing at the top of my lungs, and dance with other people. I want to be in the mosh pit somewhere in a beautiful country listening to some incredible music. I really miss that interaction that you find through listening to music. Another thing that I really look forward to getting back to is the normal mode of collaborating. Nothing measures up to when you can sit in a room and hang out with somebody and go through the creative process together. I miss that way of working and I miss what comes out of that magic of multiple people in the same room.
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by DOMINIC CELEMEN
Image by RatedRnB
🎙️ August Getty
Fashion designer August Getty is a gentle soul whose goal is to create a fully inclusive, fully immersive sartorial world where everyone is welcome. All that is required is that you be yourself 100% both in the real world in one of his one-of-a-kind couture creations, or in the digital sphere where he recently created a whole new virtual universe he has baptized Tinitus.
Fashion designer August Getty is a gentle soul whose goal is to create a fully inclusive, fully immersive sartorial world where everyone is welcome. All that is required is that you be yourself 100% both in the real world in one of his one-of-a-kind couture creations, or in the digital sphere where he recently created a whole new virtual universe he has baptized Tinitus.
August Getty
It is inside Tinitus that August brought to life four digital gowns for this past haute couture season, with 3D imagery so detailed it probably caused some of the biggest couture houses to turn green with envy. The designer spent six months creating these three-dimensional virtual gowns and he intends to expand on this concept with the upcoming couture shows this summer.
Based in Los Angeles, the August Getty Atelier has become a niche go-to fashion house for celebrities like Miley Cyrus, Cher, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Zendaya..and I could go on. All of them looking for outfits that are bold, unexpected, and wholly original for their galas, red carpets, and event outfits, because let's get one thing clear, August designs ensembles for maximum impact.
For August, who is an autodidact designer, the goal of fashion, which he says he has loved all the way back to “when he was in the womb” is how transformative it can be. It can make you brave and it can give you the strength to be the person you want to become. Turn fiction into reality with fashion. That is what makes it so magical and so powerful.
💭 Priya Ahluwalia for ODDA Magazine
Award-winning designer Priya Ahluwalia is giving the fashion world a dynamic and vital new narrative. Her signature menswear line is both a reflection of her Nigerian and Indian heritage and presents a hopeful vision of the future, where upcycled designer clothing becomes a new cornerstone to the industry and fashion finally begins to reflect a more multicultural perspective. A future where sartorial stories are pulled from places and events that don’t usually get highlighted in traditional history books and the voices of those who have been muted until now finally find an avenue to proclaim themselves.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
PRIYA AHLUWALIA
Award-winning designer Priya Ahluwalia is giving the fashion world a dynamic and vital new narrative. Her signature menswear line is both a reflection of her Nigerian and Indian heritage and presents a hopeful vision of the future, where upcycled designer clothing becomes a new cornerstone to the industry and fashion finally begins to reflect a more multicultural perspective. A future where sartorial stories are pulled from places and events that don’t usually get highlighted in traditional history books and the voices of those who have been muted until now finally find an avenue to proclaim themselves.
JESSICA MICHAULT. For the photoshoot for this interview, you’re actually wearing pieces from your menswear line. I think that’s maybe a great place to kick the conversation off. Can you tell me a little bit about this collection and what you wanted to express with it?
PRIYA AHLUWALIA. Yes, I’m wearing pieces from S/S21 at the moment. My collection is called “Liberation” and for that collection, I did loads of research into Black protests in the U.S. and the U.K., Nigerian graphics, and Nigerian newspapers from times of civil unrest. I really wanted to do something graphic because I knew that I would have to present it digitally. So, that was something I was thinking, I need it to translate well on a computer screen. I worked with a graphic designer called Dennis [McInnes]. He is also Nigerian and we worked together to create the prints and graphics. Also, the collection was being developed at a time of lockdown and it was during Black Lives Matter protests. And I didn’t feel that good, I felt despair basically. So it was difficult thinking about how to design something and I think even though it is a really colorful collection, for me it was actually quite muted. It feels pretty grounded.
J.M. Let's go back a bit, I know that your father’s Nigerian and your mother is Indian. And I know that your heritage plays such an important role in how you express yourself as a designer. Can you unpack that a little bit?
P.A. I think it's really interesting because since I've been doing this job I've actually been wanting to learn more about it because I feel the history system and school system are so Eurocentric here [in the U.K]. It completely deletes a part of history from my culture even though they are integral to the story of the British Empire. I feel like since I've been doing this job, I'm much more aware of these things and I'm interested. I take a camera with me on trips when I go to India and Nigeria and what I see and what inspires me. It could be the color of the sand in Nigeria. It's really obscure things that I think are beautiful. And in my 20’s, I've dedicated my time to read more about the history of where I am from and that really inspires my work as well. It's almost theoretical as well as it is being visual.
“A lot of it is people saying that they are glad that there’s someone representing them but not only, you know, visually but the ideas and the things I’m talking about.”
J.M. Tell me a little bit about this past year for you. You were named a “30 Under 30” by Forbes, you have the LVMH prize, you have the British Fashion Awards and the Gucci Fest film, you did “Joy.” There has been a lot going on for you this year when you were ringing in 2021. What was itlike looking back on all this?
P.A. It's been really crazy and I feel really lucky that in this time of a pandemic and when so many people around the world are suffering and with job insecurity. I feel sort of really proud and blessed. I wouldn't say lucky because it's taken a lot of hard work. I'm just really proud that it's been able to come to fruition.
J.M. When I look at your career so far, with your photography book, the “Joy” film, and your collections, I get a sense that you are more than just a traditional designer. It feels like there's a lot of different types of creativity that you're attracted to.
P.A. Thank you, that's really nice to say. I definitely think I’m not only a clothing designer. I definitely feel like my ideas transcend clothes I guess and I think I love figuring out new ways to express them. I want it to grow and become a world where people can experience things and when viewing it become engaged with it. It's like I've really got excited by the ways we can communicate that as well as the clothing. I definitely feel that storytelling, and I like giving people a platform to share who they are. And we kind of do it through the vehicle of a fashion brand.
J.M. Tell me a little more about “Joy” and what you wanted to express with that film, having GucciFest as such a huge platform for your message.
P.A. I've never been so proud of something my whole life. The whole thing was really special. Essentially I got contacted, I think maybe in September or October by Gucci explaining that they were doing a film festival and then they gave us a budget. They were really kind of relaxed about what we did, me and Sam, the director, Samona Olanipekun. He's amazing. We were given free rein. I really wanted to make the most out of the opportunity. So it had to be about something that's really special to me. I wanted to do a film about essentially the universal British experience. It started because I have a certain book I look at a lot for research. The photos were taken in the 70s and it's about a Black hostel in the U.K. and I was looking at the book and was really thinking and I wondered what they were doing now. And trying to get into contact with people that had been involved in the U.K. Black Civil Rights movements. I kind of just wanted to find people who were involved in that and see how that affected them and their struggle for liberation. But it was also about showing that Black love, that family, that joy, happiness, and strength and vulnerability. The film became a love letter to the cast. It really wouldn't be what it was without the people in the film. I worked really hard with Sam. We created these sets around the cast. We had sets designed especially for that family or that person. I designed clothes around them. I spoke with the cast and interviewed them a lot before. While we were doing the process and while we were designing the clothes. I was thinking about ways to personalize them for each cast member. So we had little graphics that were an inspiration for them.
J.M. Are you starting to get a sense, as a woman of color working in the fashion industry, that you are representing so much more than just your brand, and what you do has a larger impact?
P.A. I can say I know I have a responsibility, even with the mes- sages I receive from people, whether that's Instagram DMs or emails. A lot of it is people saying that they are glad that there's someone representing them but not only, you know, visually but also the ideas and the things I'm talking about. People really resonate with it. The main point, I think is important with anyone who is coming up now is that they can be themselves. We don't have to try to fit into the box of what people did 20 years ago. And I definitely think representation helps with self-esteem. It is a big sort of, not pressure, that's not the right word but it's just a big thing.
J.M. I absolutely agree with you. One of the other things you are doing is highlighting the importance of sustainability in your work. Upcycling has been a part of the DNA of the company from the jump. How did you decide that you wanted to make clothing that was grounded in the sustainability movement?
P.A. Long story short, when I went to Nigeria I was going to see my family and I kept noticing that all the clothes there were really obscure British clothing. I learned about this big second-hand clothing market. I learned that 80 percent of the clothing we donate to charity actually gets shipped off to other countries whether it gets sold as clothing or gets recycled. That's when I learned about Panipat, about 70 kilometers north of Delhi; it is the world's capital of recycling garments. And a couple of months later, I got not only, you know, on a plane to see it with my own eyes. I took my camera and I was completely gobsmacked about the sheer amount of stuff that was there. It sounds cheesy or whatever, but it was a life-changing moment. I really couldn't go back after seeing that.
J.M. This last year has been so radical on so many different fronts and one of the things for younger designers is seeing their relationship with retailers and buyers really shift. There has been this idea of taking that power back and going direct to the consumer, cutting out the middleman, and being in control of your own narrative. How do you feel about that shift?
P.A. I've been really fortunate. I have a great relationship with all my stockers and I feel grateful for the support they have given the brand. I think they have a really huge part to play in terms of positioning us and getting us known in different corners of the world. But I have definitely realized it’s kind of a bit dumb to completely rely on wholesale shops because I’ve got no control over that relationship. Relying solely on wholesale means I don't even own the relationships with my customers. I don't know anything about who's buying that product which makes it hard to target things towards them. I think there is power in owning your client relationships. Then you will be able to develop your business with them in mind. I think there's definitely strength in that and that's something I'm working on for this year.
“I definitely think I’m not only a clothing designer. I definitely feel like my ideas transcend clothes I guess.”
J.M. As far as the company is concerned, do you have certain goals or things you want to accomplish for the company? Kind of benchmarks?
P.A. I feel like in the first two years of the business everything happened so fast, taking every day as it comes. I wasn't able to take a break and strategize what I actually wanted to do. It was just always one thing after another. Especially when it was related to travel I was always on the plane. Now I've had time to really harness what it is that I want and be able to achieve moving forward and what I want to be able to do with the brand. That comes in loads of different forms, improving digital platforms and this year we will be getting a new website. It also comes with making some investments I wasn't able to do before, diversifying the product range, and things like that. We defi- nitely got some strategy coming in. I’ve done so much, I've just been trying to get information and learn from everywhere that I can so that I can lead it in a way that'll be successful and also fruitful.
Photographer TYLER ASH
Fashion Editor ABIGAIL JONES
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Images courtesy of KEVIN YAGHER
💭 Alexandre Mattiussi for ODDA Magazine
Alexandre Mattiussi is feeling the love. This past year his company, AMI Paris, saw strong sales as it became a safe haven for shoppers looking for comfort clothing to wear while in lockdown. And he has found himself a new partner in Sequoia Capital China, to help him take AMI to the next level as a global fashion house with a Parisian heart. Matti- ussi is a strong believer in signs, and right now all the signs are saying that big things are in store for a fashion brand built on one simple but powerful premise. Well-made evergreen clothing that you can wear every day of the week.
This article first appeared in the ODDA Magazine 20th Issue “There is a Time”.
ALEXANDRE MATTIUSSI
Alexandre Mattiussi is feeling the love. This past year his company, AMI Paris, saw strong sales as it became a safe haven for shoppers looking for comfort clothing to wear while in lockdown. And he has found himself a new partner in Sequoia Capital China, to help him take AMI to the next level as a global fashion house with a Parisian heart. Mattiussi is a strong believer in signs, and right now all the signs are saying that big things are in store for a fashion brand built on one simple but powerful premise. Well made evergreen clothing that you can wear every day of the week.
JESSICA MICHAULT. First off, I guess, congratulations are in order because you just signed a big partnership with a new investor. That’s wonderful news! Tell me a little bit about it. What was it about them that attracted you?
ALEXANDRE MATTIUSSI. I felt they understood the way we [AMI Paris] see our fashion and I liked the way they also respect my mood, my freedom, the way I have built my company over the last 10 years. It was a kind of a very natural way we were able to speak together and we thought maybe we should do a partnership. It felt like the natural next step for the company.
J.M. I was also happy to learn that during this past year, which has been difficult for so many brands, AMI has come through it pretty well. What did you feel was the underlying attraction of your brand that had people still coming back, even with everything that has been going on, that customers made the choice to continue to buy AMI pieces?
A.M. I think we share a very good energy, a very positive energy. We are making clothes for people who want to look cool. It’s not about fashion. AMI is about family, it’s about friends, it’s about relationships, it's about love, it's about good products you want to wear to feel cool, to feel sexy, to feel part of real life. And I think people thought to themselves, “Why should I buy a sweatshirt for 900 euros when I can buy something from AMI which has a much better price and very good quality? And it has a nice logo with a heart with its very positive message.” I think it’s about the energy again, I feel it, but I don’t know how to describe my success. But this is my story, I have to tell it because it can be inspiring for lots of people too.
J.M. I think your message of love and friendship and of well made everyday clothes that have longevity also speaks to the times that we are living in. And there is also, at AMI, this fundamental idea of inclusivity, which has been part of the brand ethos way before it became a focus in the industry. From the beginning, when you were just doing menswear, women were already dressing in your designs. Can you maybe talk a little bit about that aspect of your brand?
A.M. It’s really hard for me to think this way, you know, menswear and womenswear as separate things. We feel with our wardrobe there is no gender. Why must a sweater be for men when it fits a woman? I think the last few years have been wonderful for everyone because I think those boundaries are breaking down. I say we should just mix things because when you mix things, you free yourself. I feel like it’s much more interesting to break the rules in a very nice way. And it makes everyone happy in the end.
J.M. I know that your logo with the heart and the “A” has a fantastic backstory. I know that so many people with their logos research and market test them before they finally decide on one. But this logo was in your life forever, isn’t that right?
A.M. Yeah. When I was a kid, it was my signature so it was somehow meant to be I think. It was written in the stars. I really love the logo. I love advertising. I was born in the 80s with Nike, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, all the strong logos. I always felt inside of me, that one day I wanted to create my own logo. And 20 years later with my team, we were having meeting after meeting trying to find a logo and nothing was right. At the same time on my desk, there were plenty of sketches with my heart and my A letter, that is how I would sign off on things. It was right there but we didn’t see it. And one day we looked at it and we all said “Let’s try this!” And now it’s a huge success. I love it because it’s very personal. It is part of my life.
“You have to cultivate chance, it’s like a muscle. It’s like your brain, you have to read to keep clever, you have to go to the gym to keep toned. It’s the same for the signs you have to stay very, very aware.”
J.M. You seem to kind of look for signs in your life. I know you put importance into different things, like your lucky number nine, which you have tattooed on your wrist, even the name of your company comes from the initials of your name. Is it true you believe in signs?
A.M. Yes. It’s all about signs. We have signs all around us every day, for everyone. I am very lucky because I am someone who is able to recognize the signs, to connect with them. To feel the idea of something at the right moment, at the right time, in the right place, with the right people. You have to cultivate chance, it’s like a muscle. It’s like your brain, you have to read to keep clever, you have to go to the gym to keep toned. It’s the same for the signs you have to stay very, very aware. I’m very curious to meet new people all the time, to take risks, to go to new places, to listen to music I’ve never heard before. Because this is a way to train and experience this idea of signs that come to me. If I don’t look at them, they’re not going to look at me. To have someone to knock at the door, you have to listen for them. I’m not that kind of designer who says “I want everything to come from me” you know, the megalomania designer thing. For me it is all about teamwork, we are all together. Sometimes I have the idea, sometimes someone else has the idea.And this is great they can share the ideas with me because I encourage them to share that idea and I am not afraid to say “That’s a good idea, let’s do it.” AMI is not about Alexandre Mattiussi, it’s AMI. 10 years ago when I decided to name the company I felt it was very pretentious to call it “Alexandre Mattiussi.” I’m very happy that 99 percent of people who are buying my clothes don’t know me, they know the AMI brand. I’m not the big star of the company. The big star of the company is AMI itself, it’s the clothes.
J.M. One area I do want to ask you about is how are you trying to incorporate more sustainable practices into the ethos of your brand?
A.M. I am very happy that you asked this question because that is something we have been working on for the last two years now. And I am very proud actually, 90 percent of our production is made of wool and cotton and all of the AMI pieces made from wool and cotton have the GOTS [Global Organic Textile Standard] and RWS [Responsible Wool Standard] certificates. We are really working hard to be in tune with this sustainable transformation of the industry.
J.M. You’ve been doing staple evergreen pieces, for a decade and you have also created the codes of your house over that period. How do you build off of these ideas that are so classic, and continue to refresh them every year so that you can keep enticing people back into your stores each season?
A.M. Sticking to the same idea of creating staple pieces is a strong part of my DNA. And at the same time, as I said before, it is also important to me as a designer to stay curious and to feel what’s happening around because the world is constantly changing. You have to look at the younger generation, you have to look at the new music, you have to watch the new films, and all the young artistic movements. When you do that, you feel yourself changing too and it makes your brain grow. I just need to interpret those changes in the clothing. I’m not going to reinvent myself every season. It comes down to the little things. It’s about texture, it’s about the materials, the size of the buttons, the size of the shoulder, the comfort, the lining. It’s all about the details, that is where you find those important differences. You look at a car in the 50s and a car now you still have five seats, windows, four wheels. It’s just the technique that changed a little bit but it’s the same principle.
J.M. You worked for about a decade at houses like Dior, Givenchy, and Marc Jacobs before launching your brand. But there seems to be a tendency today for some houses to hire creative directors straight out of school. Do you feel like it is still important to have that time working for someone else, to make those mistakes and learn at the other houses before taking on a top spot? Or has fashion changed?
A.M. It was important to me for sure, I felt at this time if I didn’t have this experience, I feel like I couldn’t have been a success. Being a designer is one thing, having ideas and creative direction but leading a company it’s tricky. It’s really hard; paying bills, the administration, the government, the taxes, all of that. And the business side of fashion is what I learned from my time at those other houses. I didn’t learn so much about how to make a t-shirt or sweatshirt. But I learned about how people worked together, how a production team works with a design team with the merchandising team with the communications team. So I feel it's important to spend some time learning without the pressure of having a whole house on your shoulders right away, especially an established one.
“I was alone at the office for two months, getting the DHL, making photocopies, answering the phone, doing the collection by myself in the office, doing Zooms with the team, setting my fabrics by myself, sketching by myself, sending my sketch.”
J.M. How did you live through this last year, when you had to stop and take a beat and reflect? Everyone was forced into a “time out.” How was that for you?
A.M. I stayed at home the first two days, three days, and then I asked my legal team if I could come into the office if I was all alone. I was like, “Can I come to the office? I want to be at the office.” So I was alone at the office for two months, getting the DHL, making photocopies, answering the phone, doing the collection by myself in the office, doing Zooms with the team, setting my fabrics by myself, sketching by myself, sending my sketch. It was for me, it was a rebirth, it was like I started again from the beginning. I enjoyed it really. The risk in fashion is to become too complacent to set in your ways. When you start toget money, you start to get comfortable. Sometimes you can lose a bit of a sense of reality, you know. And this for me was really very fantastic, because I was like “Okay. Let’s start again. You are alone now. You have to do a collection. How do you make a collection by yourself? Remember you did it before. Before you had 160 people around you.” And it ended up becoming a very personal collection. I really love this collection because it’s very simple, it’s very pure. I hope people will enjoy it in the stores; the fabrics, the comfort, the quality, everything is really, really simple but very well done. I am very proud of this collection.
Photographer ANTONIO YSURSA
Fashion Editor LAURA STOLOFF
In conversation with JESSICA MICHAULT
Edited by EMMELEIA DALIWAN
Casting Director MARGEAUX ELKRIEF
Models FISHER SMITH @TheSociety and YOUSSOUF BAMBA @DNAModels
Hair Stylist NERO using BUMBLE AND BUMBLE
Set Designer JESSE COOLEY / Furniture by MINJAE KIM
🎙️ Sasha Samsonova
Photographer Sasha Samsonova is generating quite a buzz with her striking images of women who are comfortable in their own skin and unabashedly sexy. A female Helmut Newton, Sasha is all about celebrating the beauty and strength of the women who stand before her lens.
Photographer Sasha Samsonova is generating quite a buzz with her striking images of women who are comfortable in their own skin and unabashedly sexy.
A female Helmut Newton, Sasha is all about celebrating the beauty and strength of the women who stand before her lens.
Sasha Samsonova
Born and raised in Ukraine, Sasha is an autodidact photographer who was already shooting for Harper’s Bazzar by the time she was 17 years old, having picked up a camera after her plans to become a professional ballroom dancer fell by the wayside. But her innate understanding of how the body can express emotion in the way it moves has had a direct impact on both her photography and the films and videos she is now directing in Hollywood.
Sasha has worked with celebrities like Kylie Jenner, Lili Reinhart, Khloe Kardashian, Emma Roberts, and Kate Bosworth, her images have been featured in the pages of Vogue, L’Officiel, Elle, and Playboy and she has collaborated with brands such as Google, Fear of God, and Revlon.
When you see Sasha’s work it’s all about sensual strength. And when you listen to her speak, you know that her goal in life is to make women feel as powerful as possible. And she has the photos to prove that she is doing exactly that.
Photo from Sasha Samsonova Instagram.
🎙️ Romeo Hunte
Romeo Hunte first registered on my radar in a way that I have never connected with a young designer before. He sent me a DM on Instagram during the global lockdown last year and suggested that the two of us jump on an Instagram Live to talk about the state of fashion in the throws of a global pandemic. And that is exactly what we ended up doing.
Romeo Hunte first registered on my radar in a way that I have never connected with a young designer before. He sent me a DM on Instagram during the global lockdown last year and suggested that the two of us jump on an Instagram Live to talk about the state of fashion in the throws of a global pandemic. And that is exactly what we ended up doing.
Romeo Hunte
I am telling you this story because I think it perfectly illustrates who Romeo is. He always takes the initiative, he has a clear vision of where he wants his brand and his career to go. And he is open to experimenting, trying new things, meeting new people, and just seeing how the creativity all comes together to build something new and engaging.
Now just a bit of background about Romeo before we jump into our podcast interview. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and turned down a full athletic ride for his skills in track and field to instead attend the Fashion Institute of Technology to pursue his dream of becoming a fashion designer. He launched his brand in 2014 and then he hustled. Using his contacts via his freelance styling gigs and his full-time job as a personal shopper at a luxury retail store he was able to build both momentum and a buzz for his signature label.
And then it wasn’t long before Romeo found his statement-making outerwear on the likes of Beyonce, Dwayne Wade, or Tobias Harris. Zendaya was a very early adopter of his colorful ensembles, and Michelle Obama has been spotted wearing his tailored blazers and denim hybrid jackets.
Step by step, Romeo has been building a reputation for making cool, reconstructed pieces that take the best elements of different items of clothing and creating CRISPR-like hybrid pieces designed to get noticed. One person that early on took a shine to Romeo’s designs was Tommy Hilfiger.
The two designers have built a strong relationship over the years, and Tommy recently gave Romeo free reign to forage through his archives. Romeo took it upon himself to revisit and reinvent some of Tommy’s iconic designs and give them a new lease on life. This clever collaboration is just the beginning of the long road ahead for Romeo in fashion.
Photos by from USA Watchpro website.
🎙️ Declan Chan
Declan Chan is one of those front-row fashion fixtures that you always keep an eye out for at the shows. A fashion editor and stylist by trade, Declan has also become a favorite subject for anyone who loves to appreciate those who take the time to put together a look. Declan always looks put together, but with flare. And his outfits are just as eye-catching as the spreads he creates in the pages of publications like Vogue Hong Kong, The New York Times, the South China Morning Post, and Men’s Uno Hong Kong, or the campaigns he crafts for companies like Calvin Klein, Cartier, Estée Lauder, and Lane Crawford.
Declan Chan is one of those front-row fashion fixtures that you always keep an eye out for at the shows. A fashion editor and stylist by trade, Declan has also become a favorite subject for anyone who loves to appreciate those who take the time to put together a look. Declan always looks put together, but with flare. And his outfits are just as eye-catching as the spreads he creates in the pages of publications like Vogue Hong Kong, The New York Times, the South China Morning Post, and Men’s Uno Hong Kong, or the campaigns he crafts for companies like Calvin Klein, Cartier, Estée Lauder, and Lane Crawford.
Declan Chan
Ostensibly, Declan is based in Hong Kong, but if you follow him on Instagram, his real home, up until the pandemic, seemed to be on an airplane...or a series of hotels... as he is continuously crisscrossing the world to oversee a fashion shoot, attend a fashion week, or just be a part of all of the “you had to be there” fashion happenings.
What I like most about Declan, besides his style, is his honest, frank and often funny reflections on fashion in general and fashion shows in particular. I always look forward to checking in with him at least once a season to get his thoughts on what he saw - the upcoming trends - and even which pieces he has already put a personal order in for. Declan’s point of view is important because he has become one of the central go-betweens linking the Chinese consumer to the fashion catwalks. Communicating via his editorials a sartorial message that will shape how the Middle Kingdom sees a collection, understands a designer and ultimately, which brands they decide to invest in.
I know that once you have listened to this podcast you will be as enchanted by Declan as I am.
Photos by Hywel Jenkins for Men's Fashion Post website.
🎙️ Pascal Morand
It is hard to miss Pascal Morand when he arrives at a fashion show. Not only does he tower above most of the guests, but he is also always surrounded by the who’s who of the industry, designer hopefuls, and fashion journalists who all want to bend his ear about one aspect or another pertaining to the business of fashion. But that is what you sign up for when you are the executive president of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.
It is hard to miss Pascal Morand when he arrives at a fashion show. Not only does he tower above most of the guests, but he is also always surrounded by the who’s who of the industry, designer hopefuls, and fashion journalists who all want to bend his ear about one aspect or another pertaining to the business of fashion. But that is what you sign up for when you are the executive president of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.
Pascal Morand
However, Pascal wears his title with the ease of someone who has spent years in the industry and knows it well. Having had paid his dues with tenures at both the Institut Français de la Mode (IFM) and Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris (ESCP), not to mention his time as the deputy director-general of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the Paris region before his current job – shaping the future of French fashion.
His years teaching and his studies in Organisational Sciences at the University of Paris Dauphine have come in handy at the Fédération where he is both helping to nurture the next generation of designers who dream of showing their work during Paris Fashion Week, and wrangling those current calendar members who are always angling for a better spot. And Pascal’s love of innovation and technology has very much come in handy over the past year when, almost overnight, all of the collections - from menswear and womenswear to haute couture moved from real-world runway shows to fully digital experiences that only exist online, on a platform that the Fédération built up to frame the virtual shows as well as enrich them with added content. Including exclusive designer interviews, round table discussions about hot button fashion topics, and in-depth looks at the savoir-faire that is the beating heart of French fashion.
I spoke with Pascal before the Fall/Winter 2021 menswear collections got underway in January about how he sees the fashion week evolving in the future and, as always when I speak with Pascal, I was blown away with his overarching vision when it comes to the fashion industry. It is one of the reasons why I am often part of the crowd that tries to catch his attention at the shows.
Image from Fashion Network website.