In 2010, the United Kingdom’s oldest independent school of architecture “The Architectural Association School of Architecture”, internationally renowned for its architectural research laboratory, set up a workshop in Paris with only a very few, very coveted places available. Following the success of their “F(AA)shion” and “Building Fashion” workshops, the AA School is back this time with a new intensive program inviting the participants to think of architecture outside the box. Combined with the world of fashion and design, it has become a new hybrid discipline with a very evocative title: “Post McQueen Embryos”!

(c)AA School Paris / Rémi Chevrillon

At the instigation of the AA School’s founder and director Jorge Ayala, the program explores fashion focusing on the work of Alexander McQueen and invites students to understand and enlarge upon such themes as mass production driven by capitalism, and the adaptability of clothing bearing in mind permanent climatic and technological changes.

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The centre of culture and arts in Istanbulhosts another exceptional exhibition : The Van Gogh Alive Digital Art Exhibition will remain open until May 15^th 2012 and is exhibited at Antrepo No3 in Karaköy.

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When « mega » brands enter a new era of consumption, their codes are reworked and their roles modified. Creative directors become true icons, even muses of their own empires. And when a New Yorker finds himself at the creative head of one of France’s biggest luxury companies, the legendary creative explosion makes a strong impact and becomes the subject of an exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs.

Tribal woman, dominatrix, bourgeois lady, retro-disco chick … Louis Vuitton’s ideal entity advances from season to season, revealing the infinite facets of her feminine identity. With Marc Jacobs, women are not stereotyped by repetitive, creative codes but evolve constantly.

This exhibition parallels Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton. We travel through the brand’s period accessories or iconic trunks and pass from Marcel Duchamp’s “Mona Lisa”-with-mustache to a plethora of fur bags and graffiti by Steven Sprouse. We rediscover the company’s classic, noteworthy beginnings at a time when Baron Haussmann was restructuring the French capital and move to the contemporary era where models had animal heads and walls were inspirational. There’s even a wink at the muses who played a role in the Louis Vuitton ad campaigns. In a word, the fascinating evolution of a fashion super-power … we are seduced.

Du 9 mars au 16 septembre 2012

107 rue de Rivoli,

75001 Paris.

C. Wonder brings the a downtown price point to the upbeat, all-American, east coast chic that one might expect from the founder of original preppy brand Eagle’s Eye and co-founder of uptown brand Tory Burch. Opened in October 2011, venture capitalist and ex-husband to Tory, Chris Burch seeks to deliver whimsy, excitement and value by disrupting the typical retail formula.

From the minute you walk in, you are enveloped in bold colors, geometric lines and an air of unassuming fun. The 5000+ square foot space is set up in vignettes/shops/nooks, each decorated in contrasting colors + graphic patterns and stocked with classic preppy American favorites like cable knit sweaters and stretch cotton chinos in fun stripes and bold solids. The sub $200 price point doesn’t seem to have had any effect on the quality of the garments at C.Wonder, as everything appears to be well-made. The sales staff is friendly and helpful without being overly pushy or at all pretentious. In addition to affordable clothing, C.Wonder also offers beautiful home goods and accessories. Favorites include: patterned dinnerware and solid leather storage boxes of various shapes and sizes; ornate enamel bracelets; large canvas or nylon totes and belt buckles with the initial of your choosing.

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Exactly a century ago in 1912, Georges Claude perfected the very first neon tube. Today Maison Rouge is presenting a retrospective of the place of the neon in art from the 1940s to today.

Joseph Kosuth, Neon 1965

A hundred or so historical and never before seen works showcase the importance of the often under-estimated neon when considered as an artistic medium in its own right.
From pioneers Gyula Kosice and Lucio Fontana in the early 1940s and 50s, to François Morellet, Bruce Nauman, Stephen Antonakos and Mario Merz in the 60s, as well as such artists as Jason Rhoades, Claude Lévêque, Sylvie Fleury and so many others today.

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The Space

Opened by Chris Santos, renowned chef and founder of the highly successful and trendy Stanton Social Club, Beauty & Essex brings the idea of a supper club to a whole new level. Located in New York City’s trendy Lower East Side, this grand bi-level space functions as a bar-resto-lounge that offers patrons the ultimate entertainment experience for all the senses. Disguised as a pawnshop from the front, Beauty and Essex is one of the many highly popular speakeasies that have been popping up in New York City in the past couple of years. Unlike other speakeasies, which tend to be small, Beauty and Essex is able to accommodate more patrons – up to 250 diners at one time to be exact. Within its 10,000 square feet of space, Beauty & Essex somehow manages to keep an air of exclusivity and secrecy. Once past the doorman located at the back of the fully functioning, retro pawnshop, guests are greeted by a grand winding staircase topped with a magnificent chandelier. Both floors offer the full bar and dinner menu. While the lower level houses the main dining room with 20-foot ceilings and a enclosed spectacular skylight , the upper level has more of a laid back lounge feeling. The buttery leather banquettes and walls adorned with gold art deco pieces and dramatic lighting make patrons feel as if they have just been transported into another era.

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We love the “Millefiori” window displays at the Bon Marché Rive Gauche :

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We talked about it in our December Trendletter devoted to media: paper is proving to be an alternative to digital. With this in mind we met Côme de Bouchony and Vincent de Hoÿm to talk about FIGURE, a new player in the world of magazines…

NellyRodi : NellyRodi: Could you describe Figure to us?

Côme de Bouchony and Vincent de Hoÿm: : FIGURE is a magazine that presents culture in a transversal manner (art, design, music, architecture, nature, media, gastronomy, style, sport and lifestyle) at a time when the frontiers between disciplines are no longer clear-cut.

However where many lifestyle magazines choose to present the trends, we prefer to give the floor to those who contribute to the making of their epoch. FIGURE is like a Zeitgeist portrait gallery. In the form of interviews, family portraits, tribunes or essays, artists, photographers and designers will be invited to illustrate or interpret their world. A way of allowing the public to discover personalities of all different disciplines and generations on an equal footing, whether they be outsiders, newcomers, renowned or icons. .

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Nelly Rodi, vice-president of the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIP), launches the Paris Shop & Design Prize in close collaboration with Gérald Barbier, another CCIP vice-president and Jacques Leroux, CCIP delegate for the Fashion Design and Creation industry.

This prize, new for Paris, validates the most exemplary design initiatives taken by Paris’ stores, neighborhood services, cafes, hotels and restaurants. It’s true that Paris has the advantage of having an exceptionally dense number of commerce businesses and design professionals, two complementary sectors where design aids in business success and client relations.

The objective of this initiative is to break new ground and inform the public by awarding prizes for exceptional realizations which demonstrate the importance for businesses to incorporate design in their approach.

As Nelly Rodi emphasizes, “With this prize, the CCIP hopes to demonstrate the interest for sales points to use design to boost their development and growth”.

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We’ve been keeping an eye on it and this evening L\Inconnu, a new bar, opens in the 10th arrondissement. Besides its varied menu and stream of DJ’s, we note that their coffee is produced locally, inscribing L\Inconnu in the current wave of barista openings around the world from Kulbay in Stockholm to Protein in London. Everyone will find something here to suit their fancy for drinking or eating – from morning to evening – with an added dose of happiness, for, to quote Victor Hugo, “Happiness is sometimes hidden in L’Inconnu”.

For this evening’s launch, L\Inconnu called upon their favorite talents to design the invitation. Our preferred one is by Andrew Woodhead, a talented Australian graphic designer working in Paris. There’s no doubt about it, we’ll be hearing a lot about him and L\Inconnu in the future !

Andrew Woodhead’s version

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