Quote of the week: Naomi Campbell

"I am a woman of color and I will always be proud of that." Naomi Campbell in the October issue of Interview Magazine, 2010.

Exclusive interview with Anne Fenninger, Digital Manager, Peugeot

According to Peugeot, what does emotion mean?

This year Peugeot celebrates its 200 years of shared emotions.

Touch, see, smell… the car offers a whole host of sensations. According to Peugeot, emotion is at the centre of the car experience, which can be seen as a unique alliance of skills and emotional intensity.

Driving can be a core issue, a critical base for car values, but Peugeot’s priority is to put emotions back into driving today and tomorrow’s cars.

Is emotion expressed in the design of the cars or rather through the marketing campaign?

Both, emotion is part of the global strategy and it is in the DNA of the company. The SR1 is the most representative car of Peugeot’s style. Cars such as the 508 or the RCZ embody the brand’s new expression, as they combine strong design and emotion with their streamlined, prestigious and dynamic appearance, their quality and interior comfort, their unique drivability, all based on Peugeot’s longstanding expertise.

The emotion is embodied in the automotive experience: we believe it’s the translation of driving pleasure. Emotion is in the campaign strategy too. It is always part of the brief.

Have you ever thought about doing a partnership with a contemporary artist such as Jeff Koons for BMW, or any celebrities?

Peugeot already set this kind of partnerships with a design agency directed by Olivier Saguez: the hall of our headquarters, called the Peugeot Avenue, has been completely redesigned in association with a guest artist, Felice Varini, who worked on the outlook.

Other projects are planned, but they are still confidential at this time.

The new platform is really creative, where does the idea come from?
In 2010, after 200 years of inspiration, we are renewing Peugeot’s style and visual identity, broadening our mobility range and affirming our international ambition.

With this website (www.new-peugeot.com) Peugeot is responding through videos and users generated contents to the challenges of the automotive industry through the prism of motion and emotion, in a 3D immersive interface. The idea was to share with the users the strategy of the brand and the changes in an original way. Emotion and motion are at the heart of the strategy. We wanted to have videos so as to showcase movement. Videos are also much more emotional than pictures or text. We also wanted to give a more open-minded image of the brand and give the possibility to the users to share their vision with us. This unique environment is based on 6 emotionally expressive themes (required skills, Environment, Emotions, Movement, Connectivity and Vision). Each theme represents a face of a cube which provides visitors a really fluid navigation combined with a very interactive experience.

Emotion described with three words according to you:

Passion + sensuality + Seduction or hedonism + inspiration + pleasure

Björk graces the cover of AnOther Magazine

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Many thanks for your support!
Nicolas.

Tilda Swinton / David Bowie and vice versa

Exclusive interview with Caroline Bénech, artist

 

I have the pleasure to introduce you to the amazing Paris-based artist Caroline Bénech who shares with us her vision of cities. She agreed to answer my questions. Here is the interview for you... 

Can you introduce yourself please? 
Young French born artist, aiming to share idealistic visions of the contemporary world, as a way of life. I’m keen on offering a vision of art with positive values, a sublimation of reality and emotions. I’m living with phantasmagoric ideas appearing intuitively in my mind, often invading places and situations. My artwork finds it's origins in the combination of mediums : photography, numerical drawing, painting and textures, and also installations. 

Where do you take your inspiration from? 
As expected, primarly cities. Especially cites by night, when lights appear above urban-scapes transforming architectures and shapes, and when reality fades. Then my dreams fill with new wild ideas and surreal worlds. Everything around me provides constant inspiration, essentially music, people, sciences. And last but not least, art !

What is so fascinating in the concept of urbanity and cities? 
Cities are alive, infinitely transforming. Urbanities mirror everything about the world, presenting fascinating personality portraits reflecting periods, cultures, societies, technologies.

Which is the best city to live in according to you? 
I can’t limit my choice. Discovering new places is the most exciting. An utopic city beyond the bounds, possibly. And a great Paris/NYC amalgam is a possible option.

Any current or coming projects ? 
I’m working on installations with motion, videoprojection and sound design, that all come together to create a more intense sensation of immersion for the spectator. The urban universe of my pictures awakes and moves in and around ad infinitum. 

If you were not an artist what would you do? 
Hard to figure out… If I had skills, I would have sought scientific research, especially in biology and other living systems. 

To finish with, what would you wish to this blog? 

That Art Is Alive will win over new art lovers, generating interest like a real showcase of art culture, easy to access. That it will keep growing as a real alternative to art exhibitions in galleries or museums. And that contributions will continue to provide new ideas, applications of imagination and creativity.

Thank you so much Caroline! 

More info on: http://www.benech.fr/

I love that picture

 Kate 

Nick Knight, 2006

More info on: http://shop.showstudio.com

Tom Ford makes a point

"This fashion immediacy thing — yes, if you can order the clothes immediately, if you can see them and press a button and they can be shipped to your house, I get fashion immediacy.…I don’t get the need for this immediacy. In fact, I think it’s bad.The way the system works now, you see the clothes, within an hour or so they’re online, the world sees them. They don’t get to a store for six months. The next week, young celebrity girls are wearing them on red carpets. They’re in every magazine. The customer is bored with those clothes by the time they get to the store. They’re overexposed, you’re tired of them, they’ve lost their freshness, you see somebody wearing it…
In addition, all of the fast-fashion companies that do a great job, by the way, knock everything off. So it’s everywhere all over the streets in three months and by the time you get it to the store, what’s the point? "

NY Fashion Week.

YSL The Fall/Winter 2010-2011 Manifesto Video

Yves Saint Laurent introduces its Fall/Winter 2010-2011 Campaign Video, filmed by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin under the creative direction of Stefano Pilati and featuring Daria Werbowy.
While the actual physical Manifesto is currently being given in some of the biggest cities of the world, have a look at the video which is beautiful. I think it's an artwork. I love it.

Exclusive interview with Creative Director of Belle Sauvage

Art is Alive had the chance to catch up with Chris Neuman, the Creative Director of the pioneering London-based brand Belle Sauvage. There's currently a huge buzz around the Belle Sauvage since they will unveil an exclusive fashion film this Friday at 11.30am as part of London Fashion Week (the first exclusive stills are here). Don't miss the interview and don't miss the actual film which will be aired on the LFW´s website: http://www.londonfashionweek.co.uk/digitalschedule

Can you introduce Belle Sauvage please? 

Belle Sauvage is an emerging  womenswear brand that was established in January 2008 by Virginia Ferreira and Christian Neuman. Neuman’s eye-catching digital prints and Ferreira’s sharp, imaginative silhouettes have resulted in the brand receiving worldwide attention and interest.

Three words to describe Belle Sauvage? 

Progressive, Creative, Elegant

What was your inspiration for this collection?
Belle Sauvage return for Spring/Summer 11 adding dimension to their signature vivid, abstract digital prints and slick sculptural silhouettes with full-length red carpet style gowns, and flowing ethereal layered silks. Contemporary shoulders and necklines combine with classic draping and floor-length dresses presenting a new yet entirely recognisable direction for the brand. Prints this season are inspired by American abstract expressionism paying reference to artists such as Frank Stella and Jeff Koons. Blended printing combined with appliqué creates relief and texture within the print and the appearance of gold and copper tones running through the prints alludes to the glamour with exotic stones and precious metals as a key theme throughout. 

Can you tell us a bit more about the fashion film you’ve made? 

I also studied Film directing and so it was logical to move into fashion film with Belle Sauvage sooner or later. There is a fashion feature film in planning and so we decided to
start generating interest in our cinematic vision through a first fashion short for the SS11 collection.

Are you closer to the fashion world, the contemporary art bubble or to cinema? 

Definitely the fashion world. It is the most sophisticated and challenging one.

Why have you decided to make a film for this London Fashion Week? 

It is the future. The visibility and possibilities of expression are enormous.

Do you believe in the power mixing disciplines?

Yes that is what Belle Sauvage is all about.

Where can we watch your movie and where can we buy your pieces?

The fashion short will launch officially on the London Fashion Week website on Friday 17th September at 11.30am UK time, and will stay online on various sites (our Youtube channel) as well as our own website: www.belle-sauvage.co.uk Belle Sauvage has over 40 stockists internationally and is available online through the Belle Sauvage online store and ASOS.com.  

Do you think that London is the best place to showcase your design? Is the city inspiring you? 

We love London and that is why we also showcase the collection here. We are also present in Showrooms in Paris, Milan and Tokyo.

Are you constantly looking for innovation or are you also interested in vintage? 

Innovation.

Who would you dream to work with, I am talking about artists, filmmakers, designers, muses?

Grace Jones would be pretty cool to dress! 

To finish with, what would you wish to this blog?

Lots of traffic :)

Thanks Chris!

More info on: www.belle-sauvage.co.uk

Felipe Oliveira Baptista Named New Creative Director at Lacoste

I am quite happy because fellow Portuguese designer Felipe Oliveira Baptista has been named new Creative Director at Lacoste, a brand which has recently managed to be cool and trendy again!

His first collection will debut in September 2011 during New York Fashion Week. Felipe said: “I will associate the main values and DNA of the brand with a more transversal women’s wardrobe, something which appeals to a younger woman and which is feminine and unique. I also plan to do extensive research in fabrics and experiment with colors in order to create an effortlessly chic aesthetic.”

Good luck!

Kate Moss in the September issue of UK Vogue

That's old news but I think she looks stunning!

Warhol 3D in Budapest

“I always suspected that I was watching TV instead of living life,” said Andy Warhol. As a tribute to the works and dreams of the King of Pop Art, a special exhibition was held only for a week in Budapest at the Museum of Fine Arts. The show featured some of the artists' video artworks in 3D displayed on Samsung screens. Take a look at the huge poster of the exhibition!

His close ties and passion for film and television (remember these Mtv ads?) are one of his trademarks. He documented all the details of his life on videos and he was also dreaming of creating his 3d alterego. However, the limited technological possibilities of the time prevented him from realising his ambition. This show allowed him to do it, only post-mortem.

Alber Elbaz and Lanvin for Hennes and Mauritz

"When H&M approached us to do this collaboration, they asked if I could actually translate the dream we created at Lanvin to a bigger audience. It wasn't a project about a dress for less. I think I loved the idea that H&M was going luxury, rather than Lanvin is going public. I thought it was a smart concept so I say "I do"." commented Alber Elbaz in the teaser video.

I am really excited.