Jean Paul Gaultier: Influenced by Avatar, Inca, Aztec, and Mexico

Jean Paul Gaultier: Influenced by Avatar, Inca, Aztec, and Mexico -

I enjoy the fashion designs produced by the house of Gaultier - he seems to know how to properly acknowledge his influences, and how to remix common tropes to create exciting new fashion designs.

Read a review here. And view the entire collection here.

Podcast | Tsosie-Gaussoin Studio

(Image: Postmodern Boa by brothers Wayne Nez and David Gaussoin)

(Image: Jewelry and fashion by teh Tsosie-Gaussoin family)

Check out this wonderful podcast featuring a presentation by the artists of the Tsosie-Gaussoin Studio!

Event | Virgil Ortiz - Contortionista: VO Cirque Performers at King Galleries of Scottsdale

King Galleries of Scottsdale present:
Virgil Ortiz: Contortionista: VO Cirque Performers
Saturday, March 6, 2-4 pm
during the 52nd Annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market 2010

The fantasies and imagination of Virgil Ortiz take a new turn in Contortionista: VO Cirque Performers. This new series of clay figures and vessels delight the senses and amaze the eye. Virgil has taken inspiration from the late 1800s Munos figures of Cochiti Pueblo which depicted Southwestern traveling circus sideshow acts. Today, Virgil’s pieces tumble, twist and meld together as never thought possible before. They seemingly defy gravity as they rise above the pedestals, taking flight to the ceiling and the walls. Virgil brings Contortionista: VO Cirque Performers to the center ring and delivers an unexpected exhibition.

UNRESERVED Alliance Launches Designer Collective: New York Fashion Week Showcase

(Images: all from NYFW, February 2009)

As I blogged earlier, UNRESERVED is a newly formed collective founded to empower and encourage artistic expression by Native artists.

Their latest announcement describes the establishment of a Designer Collective, which will launch a fashion installation during the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in just a few weeks. The event will feature accessory and ready-to-wear designers from various tribal backgrounds at the Bryant Park Hotel Loft in Manhattan on Thursday, February 11th from 4pm to 5:30pm.

The artists include purse-maker Maya Stewart (Chickasaw/Creek), fashion designer Patricia Michaels (Taos Pueblo), jewelry-maker Kenneth Johnson (Seminole), mother and son jewelers Dylan and Veronica Poblano (Zuni), and jeweler Maria Samora (Taos).

Last February, UNRESERVED co-founders Gail Bruce and Michael Chapman hosted a similar event at Ramscale Penthouse Studio, in which three Native American fashion designers showcased their work during the New York Fashion Week, February 2009. These three designers, Dorothy Grant, Patricia Michaels, and Virgil Ortiz, marked a historical moment – this was the first time in history that Native designers participated in an event in Manhattan during the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. However, they did not show at the elite and hard-to-get-into Bryant Park. Physically, Ramscale is on the outer limits of the fashion week events, located on West Street, which is a few blocks away from Bryant Park. The upcoming event, however, will be held at the Bryant Park Hotel, which regularly hosts several important events during fashion week. Once again, it is not Bryant Park, [the tents at Bryant Park are fashion central for the week] but the hotel is literally right across the street and it is most definitely the next best thing, and it's very exciting to witness this movement. I’m booking my plane ticket now... see you in New York!

Article | On the Issue of Wire-Thin Models

(Image: Models changing backstage at São Paolo Fashion Week. Photo: Getty Images)

As the world is buzzing with fashion week excitement for the Fall/Winter 2010 collections, check out this article, reposted from The Huffington Post, which discusses the issue of wire-thin models on the catwalk for Sao Paulo's Fashion Week, which just ended:

The Velveteen Revolution: Say No to Wire-Thin Models

A message to the fashion industry: If you want hangers to show your clothes off, then put a bunch of hangers on a cleaning-store style conveyor belt and send that down the runway. It will be way cheaper than 'hanging' your garments on wire-thin women.

The fashion industry's state of affairs has grown increasingly disturbing. Even the Creative Director of Sao Paulo Fashion Week, Paulo Borges, said this week, "This situation cannot be ignored. We would like to propose a joint effort towards minimizing this issue and preventing the effects of this trend on models, on our industry and on society itself."

Echoing Mr. Borges plea, today we call out to the fashion, media, and entertainment world for A Velveteen Revolution. Unlike war and peace, this is simple. The message: Just stop.

Stop peddling your wares using underweight models. This is perpetuating an unrealistic and unhealthy body ideal for girls. It is time to halt this practice.

1. Designers and manufacturers: Stop designing for and featuring clothing on emaciated models. Stop advertising campaigns featuring them. Stop airbrushing photos.

2. Retailers: Stop buying and selling the clothing that is being marketed in this way.

3. Modeling Agencies: Stop recruiting and sending out underweight models.

4. Magazine editors: Stop accepting sample clothing for layouts in too small sizing. Stop the excessive self-congratulation when you feature a normal size woman in a spread.

5. Entertainment industry: Stop featuring models and actresses who resemble skeletons.

In our Huffington Post article Bring Back the Belly, we wrote, "Girls growing up today have enough pressure without these unrealistic and unhealthy images of scarecrows." We lamented the fact that magazines are not seamlessly integrating regular-sized models into their fashion spreads; that when regular-sized women are occasionally included in their pages, it's generally in a piece about body image.

Meanwhile, already tiny models are being airbrushed to seem even thinner (to the point of absurdity). We are not advocating unhealthy overweight role models; we're advocating the inclusion of pleasing, healthy bodies in all shapes and all sizes. In our book, Bitches on a Budget, we say "Wake up, look around--in this mulit-culti world we live in there's no longer a single icon of beauty. A woman with a hip modern aesthetic doesn't settle for just loving her inner bitch; she knows the outer one is fine too, whatever her shape!"

It's time for the fashion industry to wake up. Look at how gorgeous, curvy Michelle Obama has become a beacon for style. We are advocating variety. We are advocating an end to deception.

This latest outrage in Sao Paolo, where underweight models have supposedly been banned, is a reminder of how hard it is to make change whether in government or industry. It takes courage and will to foment a revolution. Small steps have been made--but isn't it time for the entire industry to take a stand?

You can read more from Bitches on a Budget at: www.bitchesonabudget.com

Native Lo_Fashion

When I told my friend Doug Miles of Apache Skateboards that I was writing my dissertation on Native high fashion, he told me -> don't forget about Native American low fashion.

DM: "Let's just say that 'fashion,' though a wonderful field can and must encompass many things besides high couture items. Today it must also include what I call 'lo_fashion'."

Indeed to fully investigate the world of Native fashion - we must include high fashion, streetwear, and even powwow attire. While my research focuses on the 'couture' side of things, I can't, nor do I want to, dismiss the exciting work happening in Native streetwear. Several underground Native-owned and operated shirt companies have emerged in the past decade, splattering the epitomous American t-shirt with imagery of historical Native American heros, comtemporary political messages, old tribal design motifs, and words in Native languages.

Apache Skateboards has recently collaborated with the eco-conscious C-Pas - the latest of his many collaborations with skate companies. One of his shirts in this collection features the image of a Apache kid – a real person who was both a hero and an outlaw. “He was never caught but lived the remainder of his life in Arizona and New Mexico as a fugitive and ‘wanted man.’ There was a bounty on his head.”

Another shirt features geometric designs influenced by traditional Apache symbols and culture – black triangles represent mountains and earth, lightning bolts represent power, and the circle represents life in completion. The shirts can be purchased here.

Miles' collaborations demonstrate a way for Native artists to get the image of Native people out there in the world - from the Native perspective. Indigenous aesthetics have much to offer the world of fashion, but they need to be presented with respect to the cultures. The current Tribal Trend in fashion offers an exciting opportunity for Native artists and designers to reach broader audiences, however, this trend also threatens to merely replicate old stereotypical tropes and call it done. I'm hopeful that consumers are atleast somewhat cognizant of this situation, and will seek out forms other than the stereotypical ones - especially now since artists/designers like Doug Miles are making it easier for consumers to access new options.

Miles' work is also currently on display (thru Feb 13) at the Chelsea Art Museum in NYC.

Article | "Africa" is out. "Native American" is in. (And cultural appropriation never goes out of style, apparently.)

Check out this article (from my friend Consuelo) written by Dodai for Jezebel about the latest trend of the Tribal Trend (Africa is out... Native American is in)...

Rachel Zoe Pronounces Tribal Trend So Hot Right Now

This article is packed with great quotes like "Gone native is the title of the latest Zoe Report missive. Indigenous peoples, this is your moment!" and "Ethnic is such a catch-all, but what she and other people who use it this way mean is: Not white. (Did you know that the first dictionary definition of ethnic is heathen?)" Ahh great great quotes.

The highlight of the entire article, perhaps, is when the author writes this:

"But the point is this: Navajo blankets were woven to be used and traded by people who were routinely massacred. Modern Navajo rugs are quite pricey, but you're getting a handmade craft whose sale most likely contributes to the economy of the Navajo Nation, where the unemployment level fluctuates between an overall 40 and 45 percent and in some communities is high as 85 percent... No disrespect to young designer Lindsey Thornberg, but the price for one of her "ethnic" cloaks is $950. You could get an actual Navajo blanket woven recently for less than $500, or a blanket woven in 1890 for $975. Up to you."

The article also has links to tons of examples of 'cultural borrowing' from Native American sources - American Apparel, Oscar de la Renta, Victoria's Secret, Urban Outfitters, and magazines like Vogue, Elle, and Teen Vogue don't escape the eye of this author.

And, to top it off with a lil cherry, the comments to the article are nice added bonuses.

Event | Thunder Run Fashion Show

Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino, teaming with the New Mexico Rail Runner Express, will be hosting a rail fashion show Saturday, January 23 from 6-8 p.m. The Casino, in its effort to support Native arts, is presenting this opportunity to view the hottest in Native fashion.

The fashion show, titled Thunder Run, will feature designs by Pilar Agoyo, Michelle Tapia Browning, Jerry Ingram, Patricia Michaels, and Penny Singer. These couture garments will be worn by all New Mexico models. I’ve had the great pleasure of viewing fashion shows featuring the edgy vinyl garments by Agoyo and the ephemeral clothing by Michaels, and this show will definitely be a crowd pleaser. Tapia Browning works in a variety of media, including photography, but she also designs clothing for family and friends, including the Pueblo of Pojoaque Governor George Rivera. She also designed the uniforms worn by most Buffalo Thunder hotel personnel. Ingram is known for replicating historic beadwork created by Plains and Plateau Indians during the late 1800s, and Singer’s chic jackets are always quick to sell. Augusta Meyers, former news anchor, will emcee the event.

Thunder Run is an opportunity for New Mexicans to enjoy chic Native fashion and great food and spirits all while benefiting a worthy cause: although the event is free and open to the public, donations will be collected for the Northern New Mexico Boys & Girls Clubs. Fashion for a cause!

Many of these designers are featured in the new Thunder Magazine, which was published this month. Thunder Magazine is an in-room publication of Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino designed for resort guests, and is distributed at the property and other Pojoaque Pueblo locations. This publication will be available to all fashion show guests, who will also enjoy savory hors d’œuvres and a goodie bag packed with gifts, including Medicine Mountain body lotion, a signature offering of Buffalo Thunder Resort’s luxurious Wo’P’in Spa.

Details:
WHAT: Thunder Run Fashion Show
WHERE: Tewa Grand Ballroom at the Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino, 30 Buffalo Thunder Trail, Santa Fe, NM. Highway 84/285.
WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 23, 6–8 p.m.
COST: Free. Open to the public
INFO: 877-848-6337

Group | UNRESERVED Alliance

(art by Sarah Sense)

UNRESERVED is a new collective based out of New York and formed by a team of American Indian entrepreneurs and leaders from the international worlds of fashion and art.

Dedicated to empowerment, education and sustainability, their goal is to help American Indian designers and artists find careers in the art and fashion industries, allowing them to incorporate their skill sets and traditional heritage while establishing financial independence and encouraging cultural renewal within American Indian communities.

The mission of UNRESERVED is to encourage American Indians interested in exploring and pursuing careers in the worlds of fashion and art through internships. UNRESERVED seeks to create awareness and bridge American Indian communities with established companies and organizations, renewing the relevance and power of American Indian cultures, ensuring self-sufficiency and economic development.

They launched last summer with a $400,000 WK Kellogg Foundation grant, and held their first public reception at the Santa Fe Indian Market last August. Their first art exhibit will be IN/SIGHT, which will be on view at the Chelsea Art Museum in New York City from January 14th through February 13th. I'm proud to say that the exhibit features the artwork of one of my good friends, Sarah Sense.

Fashion and art go hand-in-hand with American Indian culture, and UNRESERVED seeks to prep the runway and open gallery doors for undiscovered American Indian talent. Their annual calendar includes fashion shows, art exhibitions and events as well as internship programs. Check out their website for more information, and information on opportunities.