Givenchy Paris Flagship
American Apparel: from suburbia to the city
Luella A/W 08-09
The witching hour is nigh and the hocus pocus comes straight off the catwalk at Luella's London show today. Luella's new designs are straight from the dark side of a fairy tale; the hair, the hats and the lace are clearly gothic inspired. However, some pieces are certainly wearable like the cute skirts that we are so akin to with a Luella collection. But will the front row's Alexa Chung and Lily Allen find them indie chic enough? We'll have to wait and see for the next opening of an envelope to find out...
Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster
So why did Ghesquière chose to collaborate with a celebrated French artist rather than a renowned architect? Gonzalez-Foerster's work transfers well into the brand's forward-thinking experimental values. Her work, Séance de Shadow II (1998) was recently displayed at the Tate Modern, London for the exhibition 'The World as a Stage'. When the audience enters the room it triggers light sensors which casts their shadows upon the wall, including them into the art itself. It highlights the people and makes them conscious of themselves, like actors feel upon a stage. This conscious use of light, and in subsequent work, moving images is a way of bringing the consumer into a user generated experience, they are creating the shopping experience rather than simply being part of something static, overall making them feel warm and comfortable in their surroundings.
Balenciaga Flagship Store, London
The new Balenciaga store is proving that fashion certainly can merge with art. Nicolas Ghesquière enlisted the help of French artist Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster to design a store thats concept reflects a modern art installation. A martianesq quality inside makes the shopper feel like they are buying the latest Balenciaga bag on Mars rather than Mount Street. Sounds and video images are affected by the shopper's movement in the store and likewise have an effect upon the shopper's experience.