After its successful release of a new scent based on Andy Warhol’s Silver Factory, the legendary art space in mid-town Manhattan. The fragrance boutique Bond No. 9 will be introducing a brand new scent based on the iconic New York artist once again. The perfumery took inspirations from 2 studios right by the Union Square area, in which Warhol experimented with not only painting but film making, music, and other artistic mediums, from the year 1968 to 1984. Though it is a superb residential area and shopping district now. Union Square and the surrounding areas were in the state of shambles, like much of the city park system. Overall, crimes were rampant and the city was in decline, yet Warhol persisted on staying in New York, the city where he thrived.

As Warhol once stated “My favorite smell is the first smell of spring in New York”, the new Andy Warhol Union Square fragrance is essentially a bottled version of the season Spring. The core scent of lily of the valley, blue freesia, golden amber, with a hint of animal musk to bring it warmth. The uniquely shaped bottle of Bond No. 9 will be imprinted with silk-screened color flowers in psychedelic colorways, inspired by Warhols’ Flower Series. Bond No. 9 will be introducing 3 different sizes of the fragrance” a 100ml retails for US$ 195, a 50ml unit for US$ 135, and for the serious collector, a ten 100ml bottle set, each with different floral patterns, for US$ 1500. The perfumery will introduce a special Mother’s Day pack next month - a 100ml vessel wrapped with a limited edition Robert Lee Morris‘ Warhol - inspired floral necklace in sterling silver.

» Bond No. 9

» Andy Warhol Foundation

FASHION | 13 March 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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As the politics of presidential election heat up and candidates jockeyed for votes to be the nominee representing their political parties here in the U.S. Members of the creative community have joined the fray too. Shepard Fairey and his company, Obey, created a series of poster in support of Senator Barack Obama during the Super Tuesday primary in January. The graphics were so popular that subsequently they were made into t-shirts and now available for purchase at Upper Playground online store. Another is the special t-shirt, created by fashion designer Marc Jacobs, for Senator Hillary Clinton. Featured a black/white portrait of Clinton printed on “100% Cotton Union Made T-Shirt”, with an emphasis on “Union Made” in support of the American work force. The t-shirt retails for US$ 35, a great bargain compared to other Marc Jacobs merchandises. The Hillary Clinton t-shirt will only be available at Marc Jacobs retail locations.

» via: Freshness Mag
» Hillary Clinton for President
» Marc Jacobs

FASHION | 11 March 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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©Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week

Since the establishment of her own label in 1981, Yeohlee Teng briskly gained reputation as the designer for “urban nomad” lifestyle. Similar to her minimalist peers in the fashion world, her collections are often in single colorway or two, with streamlined forms. What set her apart from her contemporaries, however, is that her designs are not abstract artworks to admire from a distance with no true functionality. Instead, Teng seamlessly blend functions, ease of maintenance, with aestheticism into her creations.

For her Fall/Winter 2008 collection, Teng decided on a smaller fare at the Sky Room on the very top of the newly opened New Museum. The space was quite limited but it was crucial for Teng to showcased her collection there - the SANAA designed structure was her inspiration for the new collection. At the start, Teng immediately reinforced the notion of “urban nomad”. Hooded ponchos, over-sized wraps, long cloaks…clothes you can throw on without much thought. Each still retained the Yeohlee signature. The ponchos are insulated and quilted, unlike the flimsy nylon ones found in the sporting goods store. The cloaks/wraps are shaped, into more coat-like than just simple drapery. Soon, a sort of pattern appeared with all the articles on display - the silhouettes . As Teng explained after the show, she didn’t believe in the traditional “hour-glass” format. So she created silhouettes that were more geometrically proportion. Because of the sensibility and thoughts she put into her design, Teng has attracted a legion of loyal fans, such as actress Meryl Streep and Ali McGraw.

» Yeohlee

» New Museum of Contemporary Art

FASHION | 11 March 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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As previously mentioned, Yves Saint-Laurent’s new global campaign, Manifesto, is well underway, to coincide with the ongoing Paris Fashion Week for Ready-To Wear. Under the creative direction of Stefano Pilati, the massive campaign, which features Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin’s photographs of supermodel Kate Moss in YSL Spring/Summer 08 collection, consist of 1 million printed matters and a traveling pop-up gallery with the same photos in life-size.

One of the first stop for the temporary gallery was New York City, which saw it set up shop on the busy street corner of Houston and Lafayette in the neighborhood of SoHo. An odd twist of irony since it was directly under a large billboard of actress Kate Bosworth for Calvin Klein Jeans. It was in another Calvin Klein campaign, from a different era, which propelled Moss’ modeling career into supermodel status.

The gallery consisted of 4 X-shaped, large pane glass, held up by what seemed to be commercial door frames. Photos of Moss were then enlarged and adhered to both side of the glass. In total, 32 photos were on display. In the meantime, campaign staff hurriedly handed out the YSL Manifesto printed matters. At the nightfall, the temperature became a frigid 18°F. The campaign staff braved on with the flyer distribution while the support team set up LED lamps to brighten the display units. Since the gallery was meant to be on display for a day, the gallery was dismantled as fast as it was assembled. All signs of the gallery were gone by midnight as the troupe headed out to their next destination. Look for its arrival in London, Milan, Tokyo, and Hong Kong on a later date.

» Yves Saint-Laurent

ART & DESIGN & FASHION | 29 February 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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Yves Saint-Laurent, under the creative direction of Stefano Pilati, will be launching a new global marketing campaign. To be release this week in Paris, coincide with the ongoing Paris Fashion Week for Ready-To Wear, the new campaign can also be seen in other major fashion hubs of the world: London, Milan, and New York. It will then extend its distribution to Tokyo and Hong Kong later in April.

The massive campaign, second part of Pilati’s Manifesto series, featured the current “it” model, Kate Moss, adorned in YSL’s Spring/Summer 2008 collection, in decidedly subversive poses as she glanced into the YSL store front. Photographed by the team of Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, the Dutch-based fashion photographers whose works have graced fashion magazines, galleries, and museums world wide.

The Manifesto campaign will include a distribution of 1 million copies of the printed matter, a traveling exhibition of life-size photos from it, as well as a behind-the-scene video of the photoshoot, currently available for viewing at Yves Saint-Laurent’s website.

» Yves Saint-Laurent

ART & DESIGN & FASHION | 27 February 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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After its Barbie-inspired cosmetic product line last year, M.A.C. (short for Make-up Art Cosmetics) collaborated with renowned French graffiti artist Fafi, in launching a new product line for Spring/Summer 2008. Taken inspirations from her friends, Fafi created 3 characters, each with distinctive personalty and backstories - Living in Tokyo, Monoka is sophisticated and thoughtful. Ermine is a Parisian transplant in New York City who loves graffiti. Originally from Tokyo, Ericko loves the excitement of Paris. Aside from the original packagings and comectic tools, such as brushes and and make-ip bags. There are also a collection of tote bag, t-shirts, scarfs, and vinyl figures. All are currently available, for a limited time only, in Colette, M.A.C. flagship and counters, as well as its online store.

» M.A.C.
» Fafi
» Colette

ART & DESIGN & FASHION | 26 February 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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Valentine’s Day is here, and perfume is always ranked as one of the top Valentine’s Day gift. However, with so many different fragrances to select from, how does one go about the process of elimination? Enter Bond No. 9, the boutique perfumery in New York, which its newest fragrance, simply named West Side, a few weeks before in anticipation of February 14th. Drawn on the Broadway musical, and later the movie, of West Side Story, the modern re-telling of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, as well as the actual geographical location in New York City. (Coincidentally, the movie was filmed partly at the same location of what is now Lincoln Center) West Side coaxed together the emotion of love and music. The scent note is heavy on rose, with a touch of peony and slight sweetness of vanilla. Similar to other Bond No. 9 bottled creations, graphics and color scheme reflect the central theme of the fragrance - covered in deep bright red with a large G clef symbol in front. Aside from the fragrance, there is also a scented candle version. Currently available at Bond No. 9’s 4 retail locations, online store, and Saks Fifth Avenue department store locations.

» Bond No. 9

FASHION | 13 February 2008 | e-mail | print | del.icio.us | Digg it

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